Page 64 of Claiming His Lost Duchess
Graham had apparently wandered the exact thing audibly, to which the servant shook his head, his expression taunt with distress.
“I do not — I am sorry, Your Grace. She had been in the care of the housekeeper and a handful of maids for a period of time. They said she was only out of their sight for a moment and when they had begun to search for her, she was nowhere to be found. A door had been discovered open and it was assumed she had wandered off onto the property. But we searched every inch —”
“Stop,” Graham hissed, holding onto Joan tightly. “This is not the place to delve into the details. Let us return and think of what to do next.”
Joan could barely comprehend what he had said, her whole form tense and fraught with worry and fear.
She felt her husband stir her in the direction of the door and lead her by the hand towards the entrance of the door. Her mind and heart raced with dread, the thought of going home and this whole situation had not been resolved to be some kind of unfortunate mistake making her sick.
The idea of Sophia not being there to welcome her with her precious smile brought tears to Joan’s eyes. She could barely hold them back as Graham came to a stop at the door, glancing up to find Catherine and her husband, Sampson standing before them.
“What’s wrong? What has happened?” Catherine questioned her brother, her gaze filled with worry.
“My daughter is missing. I need to return home,” Graham told her quietly, his grip still secure and warm around Joan.
Catherine’s eyes widened as she gasped, her hand reaching for her mouth in shock.
“Is there anything we can do?—”
“I’m going to look for her, but I need to take Joan home. Could you tell Margaret and Lysander what’s happened?”
Catherine nodded immediately. “Of course. I’ll let them know and we’ll be right down to see you.”
“No, no,” Graham shook his head, his gaze wandering over her shoulder to the garden full of guests. “You are a host. You should focus on your guest.”
“That isn’t at all important, compared to the fact that my niece is missing —”
“Do not worry. We will find her. Just… stay here and do what you need to,” Graham insisted, before leading Joan in the direction of the carriage without waiting for his sister’s response.
Joan still couldn’t seem to grasp the reality of things as she settled in the carriage, her fingers clutching onto Graham as though she believed he would vanish if she let go.
“Joan,” Graham told her fiercely, placing one of his hands over hers, “I swear, I will get down to the bottom of this. We will find her. I swear to you —”
“I should’ve stayed,” she lamented quietly, tears rolling down her face. “If I hadn’t left her behind, if I hadn’t insisted on going —”
“Joan, please. Please do not blame yourself. This has nothing to do with you. It isn’t your fault. Whoever is responsible will pay greatly, that you can trust me on,” he assured her, gently wiping her cheeks with the pads of his fingers.
His gestures and words were no less warm than they had been moments earlier when they had been intimate, but for some reason, she could scarcely feel his touch. It was as though her nerves had been petrified and all she knew was the unsettling discomfort beneath her skin.
She couldn’t accept his comfort, did not feel worthy of it.
They arrived at the estate to find several members of their staff wandering the grounds, calling for Sophia as though they expected that she would still be around somewhere, perhaps asleep under a shrub.
Mrs Wintersdown came to meet them with Williams in tow, the housekeeper looking beside herself with worry.
“I’m sorry, Your Graces. We only wanted to make sure her dinner was ready for her — we’d only turned away for a moment! It was only a moment — I swear. She just vanished!” the older woman cried, clutching at her chest with one hand.
“What do you mean? How could she vanish? Did she somehow learn to pull magic tricks in the time I was gone? She’s only a child! Where could my daughter have gone?” Joan cried, reaching her limit.
It was not fair. It was cruel for her worst fears to come to life at a moment where she had allowed herself to gain some relief and ease into the life she now led.
What struck her heart with even more pain was the fact that this was her fault but everyone else seemed focused on identifying how this had happened. If she had stayed with Sophia, if she had listened to the whispers of her instincts, her daughter would still be by her side.
“Your Grace?—”
“Joan, look at me,” Graham spoke softly, stepping in her line of sight. “It’ll be all right. We’ll find her.”
“You do not know that,” Joan whispered, feeling defeated.
