Page 96 of The Enigmatic Governess of Buford Manor
“No and no one must tell him. I will have an announcement of my own to make that evening.”
A shiver slid through Rose as she peered at the duchess.
“An announcement, Your Grace?”
The duchess pressed her finger to her lips as if she was a small child playing a game of Secrets.
“I believe that this party will bring closure to the gloom once and for all,” she offered in the way of explanation. She shifted her eyes toward the untouched soup and she shook her head.
“You must eat, Rose. I will not have you the only one unwell on Saturday.”
“Yes, Your Grace,” she whispered, reaching for the bowl. “Your Grace?”
“Yes?”
“I would like to see the children and the duke if possible.”
“Oh, my dear, I fear that is a terrible notion. The children have asked to see you and the duke also but I have forbidden it. Perhaps tomorrow? We must ensure that the fever had been eliminated lest we infect an entire crush of guests. You understand, Miss Rose.”
“I do,” Rose answered quickly. Arguing with the duchess was futile. She would need to sneak about in the night and visit the duke when the household had retired.
“Trudy will return for your tray, Miss Rose.”
She offered Rose a warm smile and the governess was suddenly embarrassed that she had ever thought the duchess to be anything but the honorable woman she had come to admire.
“Rest now. You will need your strength,” the duchess called to her as she left Rose alone with her thoughts. They turned back to Nicholas immediately.
With or without the letter, I must tell him what I know and permit him to do what he will with the knowledge. If he wishes me to leave, I will go without question. Harry must also tell him the truth. We cannot fight Captain Balfour apart. We must stand united.
Rose had no way of knowing if Nicholas felt the same way, but she could be silent no more.
Tonight I will find him and put an end to this once and for all.
* * *
When Rose woke again, darkness had fallen and there was nary a sound to be heard throughout the estate. Trudy had left two candles burning on the vanity but their light cast a small glow in the vast room.
Rose slipped from the bed and was happy to discover that her body did not seem as shaky as it had been earlier in the day. She sauntered toward the wardrobe and found a warm robe, encircling her slender frame against the material.
There was a slight chill in the air but nothing to warrant a fire and she slid her bare feet into a pair of slippers before padding toward the door. She listened before turning the knob and heard nothing in the hallway but as she turned the brass handle, the door did not open.
Confused, she glanced down and saw that the key was not in the lock. Again, she tugged on the door but it was locked from the outside. Dread swelled in her heart and she tried once more but there was no denying that she had been secured inside intentionally.
Who has done this? Duchess Buford? Captain Balfour? Trudy?
Rose swallowed the panic which threatened to escape her lips as she paced the room, rubbing her goose-fleshed arms for warmth. It had grown unspeakably cold inside the apartment, as if the dead were trying to warn her.
But it was too late. She had waited too long to tell the truth and now, Balfour was going through with his scheme, a plan which she was sure would not fare well for anyone in the household.
A hand flew over her mouth as if to stifle back a scream, the sleeve of her robe sliding upward as she did. It was then she saw the marks on her arms, small pinpricks along the insides of her elbows.
Rose extended her arm and peered at them closely, the flickering candlelight illuminating the skin. Bile choked her as she realized at what she was looking and shock pushed her back onto the foot of the bed.
They were needle marks. Someone had been injecting her with something and Rose was willing to wager that Nicholas and the Arlington children had same markings on their extremities also.
We have not been sick. We have been purposely incapacitated.
Chapter 32
