A moan issued from her lips and all thoughts of transportation fled his mind. Relief flooded his system. He had been beginning to think she wouldn’t wake up. She turned her head and looked at him with her good eye. “Hello,” she said.
***
Harriet woke to a man looming over her. Her head was muddled and thoughts flew in every direction but she was unable to catch any of them. What did catch her was the intense blue of his eyes. She was sure they could almost see right through her. In that instant she didn’t wish to know anything other than his name.
***
“Hello,” he replied cautiously, not wanting to frighten her. “Could you tell me your name, miss?”
“Harriet. Why am I lying down? Who are you?” Her voice was husky and softly spoken. “Are you all right, you don’t look so good.”
“Exceptional; thank you for asking.” Philip paused, a smile touching his lips. “It’s you I’m worried about, my dear. Are you all right?”
A confused look crossed her face. She opened her lips to reply at the same time she tried to sit up, but the breath caught in her throat. The pain of her fall finally reached her consciousness. “What happened? Why am I here? Why am I so sore? Who are you?” The panic in her voice rose as she looked frantically around at their surroundings.
“It’s all right, my dear. You’re safe.” He spoke to her like he was comforting his mare whilst foaling.
His calming tone seemed to work. Her eye didn’t look so wild when she looked at him again.
She spoke slowly, pronouncing each word carefully, “Where am I? Who are you?”
He looked her directly in the eye, making sure she understood him. She was obviously frightened and he wanted to reassure her as much as he possibly could. “You are in Hyde Park, and I am Philip Blade, Baron Eaglestone, but you may call me Philip. I think after watching you almost get killed, we can do away with the formalities.”
“What do you mean, almost killed?”
“Don’t you remember?” She shook her head, “I suppose taking a fall like that will affect your memory. You do have quite a knot on your head.” He reached out towards the large lump but thought better of actually touching it, and let his hand drop. Philip wasn’t sure how much to tell her now. He assumed she would be the one telling him what was going on, but if she didn’t remember, he wasn’t sure he should alarm her by telling her three men had chased her down and tried to shoot her in cold blood.
“Um, well, I suppose we should try to sit you up.” He reached under her shoulders and gently drew her forwards. Her body was firm beneath her clothes. Philip marvelled at the way her muscles bunched under his arm as she prepared to sit. She was not some miss that just sat around receiving visitors and having cups of tea. “How’s your head?” he asked.
“Sore.” The smile she gave was tilted on one side and a small dimple showed briefly on her right cheek. Philip was momentarily struck with the glimpse of her beauty beneath the blood and bruises.
“Come on then, I believe we should have you seen by a doctor. Do you recall where you live, my dear? No. Well there’s nothing for it then. I’ll take you to my sister. She’ll take care of you until we can contact your family. What is your last name, my dear?”
The woman before him opened her mouth to reply, but no sound emerged from her lips, panic filled her eyes again.
He grabbed both of her hands and rubbed them gently to get her attention. “Not to worry,” he said once she looked at him. “I’m right here. You had a very nasty fall and you hit your head.” He wasn’t about to tell her a man kicked her in it as well. “I’m sure it’s normal to momentarily forget who you are with an injury such as this.” He hoped so, anyway.
“I’ll take you to my sister’s and send for a doctor from there. You have a nasty cut on your head which should be looked at and I’m sure there are other parts of your person that are tender as well, yes?”
The lady bit her lip and gave a small nod.
“It’s settled then. It’s just the two of us, so it’ll be slow going. I don’t think we should wait for the haut ton to arrive for their morning carriage rides, do you?” He could just imagine the gossip that would come from this if he was noticed with this poor woman. Next thing he would be to blame. As for being alone together, in the dark? The consequences of that was something not worth contemplating.
Her body swayed alarmingly once they managed to get her to her feet. His arm wrapped itself around her before he had even formed the thought to do so. He pulled her tight against his body to support her.
They didn’t make it very far before she needed to rest. She leaned her head upon his shoulder. They stood in silence, waiting for her to catch her breath. He was worried the men would return to finish her off and he wanted to get away from here as quickly as possible. Her breath warmed the skin exposed above his collar. She wouldn’t be able to walk another hundred yards let alone all the way to his sister’s house.
She looked at him just then and smiled. She straightened up and started walking. Her endurance amazed him, but after another two stops he decided to take matters into his own hands. Philip leaned over and caught her beneath the knees and with his arm clasped tightly about her shoulders, lifted her into his arms. He would carry her the rest of the way.
It took them ages but they managed to make it to the other side of Hyde Park, to the residence he shared with his sister. The sun was lighting the sky by the time they made it up the steps. The relief he felt when the door was opened by his sister’s butler Charles, dressed immaculately in his blue coat, white breeches, stockings and powdered wig, despite the early hour, and at not being seen by anyone, was unsurpassed. The surprise on the butler’s face was also unmatched by anything he had seen cross his expression before and, if it hadn’t been for the lady he was supporting in his arms, he would have laughed outright.
“Don’t just stand there, Charles, shut the door, we don’t want the whole neighbourhood to be privy to our goings-on, now do we?”
“Very well, sir.” Charles hastily closed his gaping mouth before closing the front door. “How can I be of assistance, my lord?”
“Please inform your mistress she is needed in the drawing room.” Philip moved to the entrance of the room and just before he shut the door added, “And Charles, send for a doctor as well.”
“As you wish, sir.”
Mrs Hillary Barrett wasn’t usually up at this hour, but cook had been experimenting with spice from the Middle East this week and it wasn’t agreeing with her stomach. Last week she experimented with Chinese. Needless to say, Mrs Barrett found herself not only awake, but sitting in her front parlour with a cup of tea to calm her stomach just as the sun was creeping across the houses to greet the day. And since she had nothing to occupy her except her needlework, which she never enjoyed doing anyway, she found herself gazing out the window. And it was with this gazing, that she found herself privy to one of the juiciest gossip tidbits of the season.
Lord Eaglestone strolled down the street, which admittedly, if Mrs Barrett was regularly up at this hour, she would know was not a thing to remark upon, but it was the fact he was carrying a lady that was most notable.
The woman he carried was bedraggled in appearance but, although her clothes were askew, there was no mistaking that she was a lady of quality.
Mrs Barrett herself assumed the lady must have come to some harm and she was rising from her seat to offer assistance when Lord Eaglestone dropped a kiss on the top of the lady’s head before he mounted the steps of his sister’s home.
A gasp tore from her lips. That woman was not in need of help except from a priest. Mrs Barrett understood at once the meaning of her bedraggled