Page 14 of A Lady's Passion Knows No Distance
When she’d decided to run away with William, she hadn’t bothered to take a single thing from her parents’ home besides the sample day gown she’d put on earlier. She didn’t want to give them an excuse later to demand back anything from her, so she decided to take nothing with her.
As they rode off into the night with only the moon as their guide, Caroline wasn’t sure what her future would hold. She knew she loved William, that she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life.
She wasn’t sure what type of life they could have together, with her no doubt becoming estranged from her family and William currently without employment. But when she considered the alternative, of never being able to see him again, she had decided rather quickly that the risk was worth taking.
When William slowed the mare and eventually pulled her to a halt, Caroline wondered if they were stopping to rest for the night. But as the mare moved to the side, she saw in the darkness that a carriage blocked the road, its footmen holding lanterns to shed light into the darkness. The vehicle was very elegant, and Caroline knew that a very wealthy man must own the thing. But why would it be out on the road in the middle of the night?
When the carriage door opened and Lord Canton alighted from the vehicle, Caroline’s heart seemed to drop out of her body. She couldn’t fathom why he was blocking the road or how he would have known they would be traveling by night. Had her father already alerted their neighbours that she had run away? She was so careful to slip out of the house quietly that she hadn’t thought anyone would have known till morning.
“Good evening,” Lord Canton called as he took one of the lanterns from his footmen and came striding over to them. “I had a sneaky suspicion something like this was going to happen.”
“How could you have known?” Caroline demanded, tightening her hold on William. He rubbed her hands with his thumb, the reins brushing against her folded hands. She quickly thought about taking the reins and urging the horse around the carriage, despite the danger of it all.
“When you denied me, I knew the only possible reason was because you’d fallen in love with someone else. I just never knew that it would be for some man so lowly in stature,” Lord Canton said as he held the lantern up towards William as though to get a good look at him.
“There is no possible way you could have known. Who told you?” William asked, making Caroline think that they were both thinking the same thoughts. Lord Canton chuckled then, sending a wave of shivers over her body at the sound of the man.
“You two are so young and have many things to learn about the world. The one thing you don’t understand about me, Miss Caroline, is that I’m a very cunning man. I understand how people react, especially when they are desperate.”
“Then what do you plan to do, now that you’ve found us out?” William asked.
“I will return Miss Caroline to her parents. She will enter my carriage, then we shall have a private conversation,” Lord Canton explained.
“And why on earth would I go with you?” Caroline demanded.
“Because if you do not, I will not only have my footmen take you by force, but I will make sure they hurt this young man as well,” Lord Canton said with a smirk. He gestured towards the carriage then, causing five of his men to approach them. Caroline stared in horror, surprised that Lord Canton would be such a brute.
“I will never marry you,” Caroline yelled at him then, fear surging through her body as she tried to think what they could possibly do. If they made a run for it, his four horses and carriage would be able to catch up in no time.
“Perhaps in time you will come to find how much you like my wit and intelligence,” Lord Canton said with a shrug. “But for now, it’s time to go home, Miss Caroline. Especially if you want your lover to live.”
Caroline was about to tell him off when William quickly spoke to her. “Go with him, Caroline. You’re better off with someone who can actually provide for you,” he said.
Caroline couldn’t believe her ears. “What are you saying, William?” she asked in a soft whisper so only he could hear.
“I’m saying that you deserve better than what I could ever provide for you. I know you love me, and I love you in return. But after we are married and you begin to see what kind of life I live, after you begin to work, you might not love me as much anymore and instead come to resent me.”
Caroline listened, but she felt like a stranger was speaking to her. How could this be her William? Where was the man that she was certain would always be with her?
Eventually, when William didn’t say anything more, she finally let her hands unclasp and her arms fall limp at her side. Lord Canton came forth then and helped her down from the mare; all the while William remained silent and didn’t even bother looking towards her. She stood for a second, Lord Canton’s hand on her elbow, as she looked up at William, urging him to look at her. But when he didn’t, she allowed Lord Canton to lead her into the carriage.
As the door was closed, she felt like the door to her heart was also closed and locked away forever.
Chapter 8
As Lord Canton walked over towards the horse he was upon, William ground his teeth together. He knew that Caroline must hate him for what he had done, but when he thought about her future, he wanted the best for the woman he loved—even if that meant they couldn’t be together. Now he just had to hear what this gentleman wanted to say to him so he could return to the cottage to his father, his heart feeling as though a winter cold had settled over it.
“Good choice, my boy,” Lord Canton told him, holding the lantern high so that they could both see each other clearly. “We both know she won’t be satisfied with you in the long term.” William simply stared at him, his eyes narrowing as his hands tightened on the reins.
“Now, we both know that if you stay in the neighbourhood, things are bound to continue between the two of you. I can’t allow you to stand in the way of my future any longer, Mr Randel. Therefore, I’m offering to pay you ten thousand pounds a year for the next three years. You’ll take your father and move to town, where he’ll get the medical attention he needs. And with your new fortune, I’m sure it won’t be hard to find a new woman.”
William couldn’t believe his ears. Was this man really willing to pay him to leave Caroline alone for the rest of his life? And with that sum of money, he knew he could not only get his father the treatments he needed, but he could finally become the man that Caroline deserved. William looked from Lord Canton to the carriage, wishing Caroline was close by so he could tell her his plan. Instead, he’d have to find a way of getting a note to her to explain his decision.
“How do I know you’ll be a man of your word? That you’ll not only pay the amount you have suggested, but will also make sure my father gets the best care possible?” William asked, feeling a heavy blanket of guilt settling over him.
“As long as you keep up your end of the bargain, so will I. I’ll not only make sure that your father is cared for, but that Miss Caroline will have everything she needs in her married life.” William looked at him, feeling sick to his stomach for allowing this man a chance at marrying Caroline. He felt better with the knowledge of Caroline marrying someone she actually cared about. But the thought of Caroline being stuck with this conniving man for the rest of her life didn’t settle well with him.
“Fine. I return to my home this night and will be on the move in the morning if your payment is received, along with a letter of recommendation for your doctor,” William said, ready to race away into the night and put into plan his new ideas to win Caroline’s hand in marriage.
