The scene proved uglier than Livvy could have imagined. Her heart ached for Dale, who had to deal with the unhinged woman. She was vicious, and Dale refused to defend himself, likely because of his guilt. The lady was attacking him where it hurt the most.
Livvy thought she’d helped Dale heal a little since their first night together, but this encounter would set him back. Indeed, it was probably tearing him to shreds. The woman had not seen her, and she longed to run back down the stairs and confront her, to defend Dale the way he was not doing for himself.
But he had asked her to go. He probably didn’t want her present in this conversation. She could imagine how humiliating it was for him. Caught between the urge to run to him and the duty to leave as he’d requested, she hesitated for a second; and suddenly, the decision was taken from her.
The countess had noticed her. “You! Are you the usurper?”
Livvy opened her mouth to reply that she was Dale’s wife, not an usurper, but Dale spoke first.
“She is my wife, Lady Cavendish. I understand this is a shock to you, but I demand that you accord her the respect due a duchess.”
“Respect! You are one to talk about respect. But maybe what I should feel for your new bride is pity.” Turning a gaze full of malice towards Olivia, she asked, “Did he tell you the story about how my daughter died?”
“He did, madam. He also told me how much he loved your daughter and how he has been grieving her death all these years.”
The countess’s eyes filled with tears. “If he grieves, it is because of a guilty conscience. But I doubt he has suffered more than me, or more than my daughter suffered at his hands.”
This was getting ridiculous. Olivia could understand this woman’s suffering; but someone needed to make her understand that blaming others solved nothing.
“My lady, with all due respect, I know you are grieving, but blaming Avondale for your daughter’s death won’t ease your pain. Nobody can know all the complexities of a marriage except the two people involved in it. Maybe theirs wasn’t an easy union, but I don’t doubt Avondale loved Eloise and would have never purposely hurt her.”
“And how would you know that? You know nothing! You are nothing more than—”
“I am his wife now, and I can say with certainty that I have seen no trace of cruelty in his behavior. What happened was an accident. It was very tragic, and it has brought a lot of pain to everyone who loved Eloise. But she is at peace now. Could you try to find peace yourself?”
“What do you know about anything? You were not even here when all of it happened. What gives you the right to tell me how I should feel?”
“That is not what I’m trying to do that, madam. I am just saying that blaming others is not the solution. I have also lost someone very dear to me. My sister died in an accident a few years ago. For a while, I was angry at the unfairness of it all; and the anger and pain almost consumed me. It wasn’t until I let go of the anger that I began to heal.”
Lady Cavendish didn’t seem to have an answer. She stared at Olivia with frenzied eyes. She seemed deflated, as if all the fight that had sustained her had drained away, and she didn’t know how to go on.
She turned to her companion. “Helen, I wish to leave immediately. Let’s go.” And without a backwards glance, she exited the house as if the hounds of hell were at her back.
They watched her briskly descend the front stairs of the portico and climb into the waiting carriage. Olivia hoped she would be able to grieve properly and find a measure of peace, but wasn’t sure what else she could do. She really felt sorry for the woman. Losing a child was, without a doubt, one of the hardest things that could happen to a human being. She had seen her own mother grapple with this pain.
She turned to Dale. He was watching the carriage depart, but he didn’t seem to look at anything at all. In truth, he seemed lost in his thoughts. She went to him, wrapping her arm around his waist and leaning her head against his shoulder, offering comfort.
His right arm came around her shoulders automatically, but he didn’t pull her closer. He had retreated into a familiar shell of stoicism and self imposed penance. She desperately looked for a way to draw him out and came upon something that had been nagging her at the back of her mind.
“Dale, why does Lady Cavendish blame you for her daughter’s accident?”
He looked at her, surprised. “What do you mean, why? I told you what happened that day.”
“Yes, but how does she know all the specifics? What occurred between Eloise and you was a private matter, which should have remained between the two of you.”
“Eloise’s maid told her. That same night, while we were still looking for Eloise, the maid ran to the Cavendishes’s house and told them I had mistreated her mistress and that’s what had made Eloise run away.”
“Why would she do something like that?”
Dale shrugged, as if the matter was of little consequence. “It was the truth.”
Livvy gave him a look, exasperated at his relentless need to blame himself. “It was one version of the story. The truth is more complicated than that. Besides, why would she take it upon herself to go to Eloise’s parents to tattletale? I have little experience with servants, but from what I’ve seen of their behavior, that seems out of the norm. Look at how discreet Ms. Simmons and all your staff have been about the irregular circumstances of my arrival.”
“She was Eloise’s maid long before we married, and she was very devoted to Eloise and never too fond of me. I think she always knew the problems in our marriage, and she blamed me for her mistress’s unhappiness. She was never impolite to me, of course, but I could feel her hostility. Her actions did not surprise me.”
“Hmm. What became of the maid after that?”
“She stayed with the Cavendishes for a time, I think, but after that I was told she returned to France. Why do you want to know?”
