Page 54 of Her Duke in Shining Armor
Eleanor sat at the window seat watching the deep indigo of dusk eat into the pale oranges and gold of the sunset until the sky was as dark as the distress in her soul. Soon the moon would be spilling liquid silver and pearly white over the land below and, despite her pessimism, she had to get to Maria.
I don’t want to believe it…but I can’t help thinking it must be true. To think…I was beginning to love him and he does this to me? Was I a fool in thinking he truly liked me?
Her chest that was numb one moment and ringing with a hollow pain the next.
Is this what heartbreak feels like?
Eleanor tried to not overthink it but her heart ached. Her stomach twisted and she felt that, somehow, she was to blame.I let him in when I swore I would never do that.
Time crawled and by the time evening came, she was cold inside and out. Maria was the most important thing now, not her internal crisis. Shaking herself from the reverie, Eleanor got dressed in a light coat and moved to the untouched supper tray that a servant had deposited some hours ago.
Carefully, Eleanor cut in the rolls and heaped slices of cheese in the middle. She then wrapped the sweet tarts in another napkin and stored them in the pockets of her coat. Maria must be hungry by now.
Regretting that she could not carry water, Eleanor left the room and snuck down the stairs. When she had arrived home, Mr. Ambrose had told her that her father, not too long ago, had gone out to visit one a fellow lord all the way in Twickenham, so it was a safe bet that he wouldn’t be coming back that night.
What she did fear was any servant catching her or making it hard for her to come back. Terrifying visions of a servant locking the door from the inside and making her stay out all night stilled her hands for a moment.
Gritting her teeth, Eleanor forged on. Maria needed her—if she had to stay out all night so be it. With her boots in her hands, Eleanor slipped soft-footed down the stairs and out through the side door.
Warm air greeted her but she knew that as time ticked away it would deepened to a chill. She wasted no time in putting on her boots, hurrying to the boundary wall and following the rough brick structure to the towering tree.
She found Maria sitting up lethargically and had to tug her out so the cooling air could revive her. When Maria woke up, Eleanor handed her one of the lesser stuffed rolls and waited as she ate it.
“I promise you there is more, but we need to go,” Eleanor assure while picking a twig out of the child’s hair.
Maria nodded and clutched at her ragged coat, “I understand, My Lady.”
Taking her hand Eleanor broke through the brush with a determined stride, she needed to get Maria to at least Grosvenor Square.
It is dangerous venturing out of the sanctity of Mayfair but Maria must be free of my father’s tyranny. My problems can wait.
* * *
Creeping in the shadows a good fifty feet behind Eleanor and the child, Aaron made sure to keep his footsteps light. Despite skunking in the darkness, Aaron made sure to keep Eleanor in his sights and his hand on his pistol.
He did not know why Eleanor was risking her life to secret this child away, but that could be found out after he protected her during this trip and got her back home to safety. The child suddenly stumbled and fell. The hood slipped off to reveal the diminutive human as a girl.
Well, that’s one mystery solved.
Aaron slipped into the shadows of a nearby awning and looked on. Eleanor helped her up and took her hand but at the same time, a carriage came barreling down the opposite side of the road.
His stomach went incredibly tight in frantic worry but Eleanor moved so fast he wondered if she was an acrobat. Eleanor grabbed the child, swung her and with that momentum, flung the both of themselves into the nearby bushes. The carriage thundered past without a pause.
The white-knuckled grip he had on his pistol did not loosen until there was no sign of the carriage and Eleanor’s bare head had peeked up from the bushes. He watched as she detangled herself from the thickets, clambered out and helped the girl out too.
That was a close call. Who knew if whoever had been in that carriage could have recognized Eleanor and told her father? With the backlash from that, Eleanor might not see the light of day until she was sent off to marry some foreigner. That thought sent cold lances through his stomach.
Eleanor, please let my faith in your brilliance never die.
Inching forward, Aaron stalled until the two began hurrying down the walkway again. Following them, Aaron kept track of the time by appraising the drift of the moon. It was past one o’clock when the three came upon Grosvenor Square where they passed the garden and hurried to the further to the St. George’s.
The moment they had hit the main roads, Aaron had gone into a full ready-for-battle mode. His senses had elevated to the point he could feel everything around him and he reacted to the smallest sounds. The streets were empty, thank God, but Aaron was not comforted. Ne’er-do-wells were masters at concealing themselves.
He edged close enough to see Eleanor usher the little girl under the eaves of the church’s back end. By virtue of its enormous size, there were many places to hide the child in and Eleanor opened a side gate and ushered her down. Aaron was not sure where she had put the child but that did not stop his admiration and pride for Eleanor from surging to the skies.
It is a Thursday so there would be no services until Sunday morning and by that time the girl probably would be long gone…you never fail to disappoint me, Eleanor.
Daring to come closer Aaron saw an open door that led underground. It was probably a room to store firewood or extra benches. It could even be a lavatory. Whichever it was, Aaron canted his head to the side and overheard their conversation.
