Page 15 of Her Wicked Highwayman
But her mother and father were dead, and Eleanor was likely dead too. That was the truth she constantly tried to deny, that something had happened to her sister. Why had Diana felt their presence so strongly in that dream? Why had it felt as if she could have joined them, if she’d only found a way to pass through the looking glass?
She wiped her eyes and carefully slid out of Tyburn’s arms so she could sit on the side of the bed. The thief lay facing her, his mask still in place. A pale hint of the coming dawn glowed faintly at the edge of the window where the curtains had been pulled back.
Her hand reached out, almost touching Tyburn’s face, but she halted just short of his cheek. She could remove the mask and see his face, but something made her stop. Perhaps he wasright. It was best not to see him. Best not to know him. Keeping this night a mystery would be better for both of them.
Determined to banish both the remnants of her dreams and her desire to curl back into Tyburn’s arms and sleep, she squared her shoulders and reminded herself to breathe. She slid out of bed and retrieved her clothing, then quietly dressed. She found the door to the outer chamber unlocked.
Tyburn still didn’t rouse at her exit, and the rest of the hunting lodge was quiet. That meant the other two brigands, Oxford and Cambridge, would be sleeping in the other rooms. She explored the main chamber while she clasped her mother’s necklace back around her neck. Spotting a row of chests against one wall, she knelt and tested the lid of one. It was unlocked, so she lifted it and stifled a sound of surprise. Jewels and coins winked at her from inside. Hundreds of banknotes were nestled among its treasures. This must be where the thieves kept their prizes. What she wouldn’t give for this kind of money!
Diana stilled as a plan hatched in her mind. She did not have to wait for Tyburn to take her home. She could take one of their horses and some of this treasure and go home on her own. If she left now, she might ride fast enough to lose them even if they pursued her. She recalled passing a stream on the way here; she could ride in the water for a time to disguise her trail before she continued home.
That way, her newfound money could not be taken back by Tyburn and the others. She frantically searched the lodge’s small kitchen, where she found two burlap sacks with twine ties. She hastily moved as many of the banknotes as she could into the two bags. She left the coins behind since she knew they would jingle too loudly, and silence was crucial.
Diana paused by the doorway to the chamber where Tyburn still slept. An invisible tie seemed to hold her still. If she left now, that tie would break. What she did now didn’t come from aplace of greed, but survival. However, she doubted Tyburn and his friends would see it as anything but betrayal. It would be best to cut all ties with this man.
And yet she could not. Part of her wanted him to know what she had done wasn’t about gaining wealth, and the only way she could imagine that was if she gave up that which was most precious to her now.
She reached for her mother’s pearl necklace, and with a sudden pang she knew she must leave it behind. Her wicked highwayman needed a way to remember that he was not alone, that for however brief a time, they had shared each other and eased that ache within their hearts. She only hoped he would understand, even if he could not forgive.
She undid the clasp of her necklace and crept back into the chamber. Tyburn still slept soundly. She carefully lifted his hand to twine the necklace around his wrist, then redid the clasp to turn the necklace into a bracelet. The pearl gleamed like a drop of frozen dew upon the highwayman’s wrist. She hoped he would keep it, that he would want some small vestige of her to carry with him.
Lord, she had become foolishly romantic. All because she’d given herself to a man whose true name she didn’t even know. Her gaze drifted from the pearl that rested on Tyburn’s skin to the man’s face. She had to leave. It was time to leave all thatcould have beenbehind.
She retrieved the bags and carried them, one in each hand, out the front door of the lodge.
The stable was only a short distance away. She found six horses inside, ranging from black to snowy white, each with different markings upon their noses and hooves. Six horses and three men, at least one of whom could change his accent at will. Now she understood how Tyburn and his friends had not yetbeen caught. She couldn’t help but admire the man’s cleverness. They were quite good at this.
And I will have stolen from them,she thought with guilt. Tyburn had treated her well, hadn’t taken anything from her that she hadn’t freely given him, and she was betraying his trust. Still, she had to take the money. Everyone who lived on her estate was counting on her to protect them, to see them through these tough days and into a time of financial security. Tyburn could steal more, and likely would soon to cover this little loss. Even though her chest ached at the thought of leaving, she had to focus on her own future and the future of her servants.
She chose one of the brown mares and quickly saddled her, then strapped her burlap bags on each side and guided her out of the stable. The mare was a patient creature, allowing Diana to use a footstool to mount up and sit astride. The thieves would be short one horse, but she could not think of a way to return the mare.
Mist cloaked the dawn landscape as she rode far from the hunting lodge—and the highwayman who’d changed her life forever. She pushed away thoughts of last night, of how she’d felt when he’d first touched her and how she’d felt when she’d woken in his arms, weeping for a life that was long gone.
When her sister had left, she’d had to surrender the moonspun dreams of her girlhood. She’d become the master and mistress of her home after her father died. She had no time for love, no time for the foolish dreams that her heart once called out for. She was practical now, because she had to be.
As she got farther from the lodge, she felt confident she knew where she was, even though she’d been blindfolded. She knew this part of the country well since it wasn’t far from Foxglove. She had a good sense of direction, and after a short while, she found her way back to the road where she had been taken. There was no sign of the family she’d shared the ride with northe coach, but that was to be expected. The highwaymen would have let them continue on their way after enough time had safely passed.
It took her two more hours to finally reach the gates of Foxglove. She was halfway down the path to the manor house when Nelson, her old groom, came to meet her. He rode one of the estate’s draft horses, a lovely beast with a pale-gray coat and large feathered hooves. A steady and reliable creature for the older groom, who wasn’t as spry as he’d once been.
“Miss Fox!” Nelson swept his cap off his head as he greeted her.
“Good morning, Nelson,” she replied, hoping to hide any signs of weariness. They rode the rest of the way toward the house together. When they reached the steps to the front door, he dismounted and took the reins of her horse.
“You were supposed to be here yesterday,” the old groom chided. “We’ve been worried sick, we have. Especially Mr. Peele and Mrs. Ripley. I was just about to ride to the next coaching station to find you.”
“I’m sorry to have worried all of you. But I’m all right, Nelson,” she told the groom.
“Was it carriage trouble, miss?”
“You might say that. It’s a long story.”
“Well, I’m right glad to have you back.” Only now did he realize she was sitting astride a horse that didn’t belong to Foxglove. “Who is this beauty, eh?” He gave the mare an affectionate pat.
“She will be one of our new horses. I collected her on my adventure back home.”
Nelson’s eyes narrowed. “Sounds like you don’t want me asking questions about it, miss?”
She chuckled. “Fear not, Nelson, the owner is not in a position to demand where she’s gone off to—or in a position to find me.”
