Page 23 of Rescuing a Tantalising Heiress
“My lady, how happy I am to see you,” came another voice at the door, and Isabella looked up to find her maid, Anne, hurrying towards her.
“Anne, Caesar, oh, how wonderful,” Isabella exclaimed.
She was so delighted to see them both. They were a reminder of home, and she was particularly glad to see Caesar safe and well after his ordeal at the hands of the kidnappers.
“We left early this morning, my lady. Your father was most insistent on it. I was so relieved when I heard you were safe. You don’t know how worried I was when you didn’t return from your walk that night, and then Caesar appeared. Oh!” Anne exclaimed, bursting into tears as Isabella rose to embrace her.
The butler looked surprised at this display of affection between a servant and her mistress. But Anne was far more than a maid to Isabella, and Isabella was only too glad to be reunited with her.
“I’ve got so much to tell you, Anne,” Isabella said as Caesar continued to bark excitedly.
“Your father says to tell you he’ll write very soon. But, in the meantime, I’ve got a letter for you from him. We had to come in secret and leave in haste, but he wrote a few lines for you,” Anne said, and from her pocket, she took out a letter.
Isabella opened it, reading over the hastily scribbled lines in her father’s curved and sweeping hand.
“My darling Isabella, I left in haste, but not without ensuring your safety. Remain with the viscount and his sister. I will send word when I learn more about this horrible business. How sorry I am to think of what you have suffered on my account. I promise you I shall find those responsible and see them brought to justice.
For now, remain at Howdwell Heights, and know I love you more than anything in this world. Ever yours, your loving father,”she read.
Tears welled up in Isabella’s eyes, and she folded the letter, shaking her head and knowing the coming days and weeks would be difficult. But she could only be grateful to Edward and his sister for their kindness, and she knew she was in a place of safety where she would be well taken care of.
“I’ll leave you and Caesar to reacquaint yourselves. But please, promise me you’ll send your maid to walk him in the gardens. Don’t leave the house,” Edward said, and Isabella nodded.
“I promise I won’t,” she said, and he smiled at her.
“It will be all right, I promise,” he said, and with a nod to the butler, he left the room.
Anne breathed a deep sigh and shook her head.
“I’m so happy to see you, my lady. But there’s still so much I don’t understand. Your father only gave me the bare facts of the matter. What a terrible ordeal you’ve faced, and to end up so far away. I’d never heard of Howdwell Heights,” Anne said, tutting as the butler now excused himself.
“Let’s go upstairs, Anne—did you bring some clothes for me? I’m wearing Lady Augusta’s dress. It hardly seems right,” she said, and the maid nodded.
“I’ve brought all your own things, my lady—though hastily packed, I’ll admit. And I brought you some of your books, too—though it hardly seemed necessary now I see this magnificent library,” she replied.
Isabella took Anne by the arm, calling for Caesar to follow them. She was glad to have her maid with her, even as she had enjoyed the time she had spent alone with Edward. He had been nothing but charming, and whilst he had not entirely shared her love of poetry, he had not dismissed it, either.
“I was ever so lucky to arrive here. I feared I might’ve been walking into a trap. But I had no choice but to knock at the door. I was desperately in need,” Isabella said as she explained to the maid everything that had happened to her since leaving Burlington Grange.
Anne shook her head.
“It’s quite astonishing, my lady—and terrifying, too. I blame myself, of course. If only I’d come with you,” she said, brushing a tear from her eye.
But Isabella would not hear such talk. If Anne had accompanied her, she would only have faced a similar fate, and it would have been far harder for the two of them to make their escape than just Isabella alone. She was safe now, and that was all that mattered. Protected by a man whom she could not help but find utterly charming, even though she hardly knew anything about him.
“There’s nothing anyone could’ve done. The kidnappers were intent on snatching me. But I’m safe now. My father and Edward are going to find the people who did this and bring them to justice,” Isabella said.
They were upstairs now, and Anne was laying out the dresses she had brought for Isabella, who now stood by the window, looking out over the gardens. She could see Augusta tending to her roses, and the peaceful scene made her think nothing bad could possibly happen in such a beautiful place. But danger still lurked, and Isabella knew she had to be on her guard.
“You’ve certainly taken to the viscount, my lady,” Anne said, and Isabella smiled.
“Yes, he’s quite charming,” she replied, surprised at the force of her own feelings for a man she barely knew, and yet had already done so much to prove his worth to her.
Chapter 10
“I can’t see what harm it would do,” Augusta said, looking pointedly at Edward, who sighed and shook his head.
They were sitting at breakfast, and Edward had just helped himself to a dish of devilled kidneys from a tureen on the sideboard when his sister had raised the subject of Isabella’s confinement to the house.
