Page 47 of Indecent Desires of a Proper Lady
Later that night, Philip sat at a card table once more, playing out his hand as he was wont, but this time he was one among many uniformed naval officers spent after a long day of military training. He smirked at the repetitiveness of his life. He thought that he would have given up gaming, now that he was off on his new adventure on the sea, but it appeared he was back at his old station at the table, ready to make his bid.
“Winston, tell us of your own life, now that we are so put together,” Lieutenant Collingsworth asked him, smirking as he did so. The whole of them had already begun a bottle of brandy, and the mood was merry and light. “Have you a lady waiting for you back in London?”
The other men laughed, smoking their cigars and waving their glasses in the air, swirling the brown liquid around in the crystal. “Or perhaps many ladies?” Captain Darling asked.
Philip smiled, the image of Margaret’s beautiful face coming to his mind. “Why, in fact, I do. We both await our future once I return.”
Lieutenant Collingsworth nodded as he pushed out his next bid. “I see. And will you honor us with the lady’s name?”
Philip laughed and shook his head. “I would not dare. Who knows what nonsense you lot would do if you knew the name? I should not tell you until all is clear and settled.”
The men laughed. “You are quite right, Winston. How logical you are. Let us hope that helps you upon the seas as you lead your men.”
“Let us hope.” Philip hesitated, not wanting to spoil the good mood of the evening, but he had been waiting to ask his question ever since the moment he had arrived in his camp a week before.
“Men. I wondered if you might answer me something. It appears we are all well versed in the gaming world, and I thought I might impose a question upon you.”
“Go on, then,” Collingsworth said, and he upped the bid ever so slightly.
Philip cleared his throat after he took a long sip of his brandy. “A friend of mine claims to have debts, great debts. I thought they were of a gaming nature, as he had mentioned to me, but I fear that they are far worse.”
The men watched him quietly, but the game continued on as they listened. Philip said, “I visited the gaming hell to which we are both members and frequent attendants, but they claimed no debts, or at least no debts of a very great nature. And yet, he has been receiving letters. Letters of threats, threats to bodily harm, and even we as his friends have received one.”
The mood in the room went cold, and every one of the men stopped moving. Philip furrowed his brow and said, “What is it?”
Collingsworth replied, “Your friend is in grave danger, indeed, if he is mixed up with the senders of those letters. Your friend must be very careful. It is not gaming debts he is involved in, but something far worse.”
Chapter Twenty
Philip saw Charles on the edge of a cliff. He reached out for him, stretching his hand forward, but he felt as though his feet were stuck. He tried to call out to his friend, but his voice wouldn’t work. He screamed and yelled, but nothing came out, even though he had stretched his mouth open wide.
The wind was blowing, and Philip felt like a storm was rushing through over the cliff edge, making everything shake and teeter. The clouds rolled in, seemingly instantly, and everything was dark, and the air felt heavy with rain. Charles was on the edge of the cliff, his hands held out to his sides as if he was balancing.
Philip was so frustrated that he couldn’t reach him in time. His friend was in danger, and he couldn’t get there. His feet felt like they were weighed down with lead, and he felt a scream brewing in his chest, but he couldn’t let it free. And then, he saw desperation in Charles’ eyes as his friend looked back at him.
Philip lifted his arm higher, hoping to get even the slightest bit closer, but it was no use. He could hear the sound of thunder as it rumbled and rolled, filling the whole area with its menacing sound. Suddenly, after one large, terrible peal, Charles fell over the edge, and Philip felt his heart drop to the bottom of his chest, and then he awoke, clutching his sheets tightly in his fists and breathing heard.
“Bloody Hell,” he whispered to himself as his eyes blinked open, and he realized that he was in the bedroom in his barracks that he shared with another.
“Winston, what are you doing? You nearly scared me to death.” The young man he shared with, Mr. Brent, rubbed his eyes and sat up in bed.
Philip felt a cold sweat on his forehead and felt slightly ashamed at his rough awakening. “Apologies, Brent, it was only a bad dream. There are a few more hours left to sleep. Go on. I do not want to take them from you.”
Brent sighed and laid back on his pillow. “No chance of that just yet. Why you were screaming as if you were on the verge of death itself! Who is this Charles you yelled for in your dream? Is this the friend you spoke of yesterday?”
Philip turned away from him. “Perhaps. But it is no matter. It was just a dream.”
“But your friend is experiencing trouble now. Go on then. Tell me a bit more about it. What was in the dream? Perhaps it will send me back to slumber once more.” There was a slight mocking tone in his voice, but it was not cruel.
Philip said, “He was on the edge of a cliff, and I could not move. I could not save him before he fell over the edge. That is what I feel like in this time. So helpless, unable to do anything to save him. But I confess, I also feel a brewing anger. I want to focus on my engagement to my beloved and not the fact that my friend suffers from secret debts of which he could tell me nothing really about.”
“Is that not the way of gentlemen, when they are in debt or anything else sordid? They would never wish to reveal the truth of it or the extent of it, to keep themselves from shame?”
Philip nodded. That was true, he supposed. Charles was always the sort to keep things to himself, and he wanted his best side to show forward. He would not wish anyone to be witness to his shame.
Philip nodded, feeling ever so slightly better. “You are right, Brent. Thank you. In a way, I am almost surprised he had told me as much as he did. Perhaps I should be grateful for that.”
“Yes, maybe. But remember. You are not the one to pull him out of his mire. We are gentlemen. We have been dealt a card in life as the younger sons. We must all deal with what we have been given. It is not fair to bring others down with us if we have taken our path, especially not the older sons who have inherited much. It is his own fault that he has done something to bring him into so much trouble.” Brent yawned. “But now, you must let me go back to sleep. We have the drills in the morning.”
