CHAPTER 2
BATHED IN THE SOFTglow of the afternoon sun, the pleasant seating room in Hartfield Park, the seat of the Earl of Hartfield, was a haven of refinement and comfort. The large, graceful windows with billowing silk curtains frame views of the meticulously landscaped gardens, allowing dappled sunlight to spill across the room.
The room had been designed to provide solace and elegance to those who dwelled within its walls. It was Abigail’s favorite room. As the countess’s companion, she looked forward to sharing teatime with the lady in this room every afternoon. Yet today, the serene ambiance failed to soothe the countess's frayed nerves.
“Abby, do you think he will arrive soon?” Esther, the Dowager Countess of Hartford, sat on her wheelchair by the fire, her hands twisting the folds of the lap blanket covering her legs.
“I am sure the Earl will arrive within a few days, my lady, just as his last letter said. Now don’t worry. You know it is not good for your health.” Abigail tried to calm her, although she shared the countess’s apprehension.
The new earl had been away from England for over twenty years. Estranged from his father, he had never met his stepmother or half sister. It had been a year since he inherited and he had not deigned to visit in all that time. His brief letter was vague. Giving nothing away as to his feelings or intentions.
And he had more than enough reasons to resent his father’s new family. The old earl had treated his mother abominably. The suit for divorce he had entered against his first wife had shaken the entire polite society. Not that the countess had cared. She had already left with her son. But still. It was simply not done to divorce your wife and ignore your only son and heir. Now the heir had become the new earl. And they were all dependent on his goodwill.
Abigail shuddered. Oh, how she wished it were not so! After her husband had died and left her penniless, Abby had found sanctuary and contentment as a paid companion to the countess. Now that haven was threatened.
If only she had the means to be independent! She had scrimped and saved every penny of the salary the countess paid her. It wasn’t much, but she was willing to work and she didn’t need luxury. She would be content in a small cottage if it meant never to be dependent on the whim of a man again.
But what about Esther and Elizabeth? She could survive on her own with her meager funds, but couldn’t take care of them. And she wouldn’t leave them behind. They were more her family than the one she had been born to.
“Do you think he will allow us to stay here? What will become of me and my daughter if he harbors resentment towards us?”
“I’m sure that won’t be the case, Esther. Why would he? Everything that happened between the late Earl and his first wife had nothing to do with you.”
“I know that. But maybe he doesn’t. Maybe he hates us anyway. You knew him back then, didn’t you? What kind of person is he?”
She wished she could reassure the countess. But the fact was, the earl was an unknown entity. Once upon a time, she had known Colin. Their mothers had been friends, and they had visited often. She recalled he was a kind and shy boy. Scrawny and sickly looking, but with smiling chocolate eyes and a warm smile.
But that was before. Before the scandal that had started with some sort of incident at school and culminated with his parents’ divorce. When he returned from school, he was not smiling anymore. He seemed angry, hurt, and resentful.
What kind of man had he become? Had his own innate kindness and warmth won, or had the resentment and anger taken over? She shivered. If he had become a cruel man, she would have to go. Never again would she place herself in that situation.
So she answered truthfully. “He used to be an amiable boy. He liked to ride his horse, Blanco, who was much too big for him, but he loved that horse. Some of the neighboring kids used to pick on him because of a... deformity he had. On his back. I believe that was the reason he left school and later his mother took him away. He had changed by the time he left England. I don’t know what sort of man he is now.”
“At least it is reassuring to know he was a nice boy. Some of that amiable disposition must still be in him. I guess we will find out soon enough.”
“Yes, we will.”
Maybe even as soon as tomorrow her life could be upended once again. What would she do if he turned out to be intolerable? Ask her father for help? She shuddered. No, her father would just force her into another arranged marriage, and that would never do. She needed a spare moment to be alone, to think about her options.
“Milady, Mrs. Branford just had a baby. Would you like for me to take a welcoming basket to her?”
Lady Hartfield frowned at the sudden change of subject. But she was a kind lady, one who took her duties as lady of the manor seriously. Since her accident and subsequent confinement to the wheelchair, many of those duties had fallen on Abigail.
“Please, do. She is the wife of one of our tenant farmers, isn’t she?”
“Yes, milady.” And they were struggling. As were most of the tenants of the estate because of the manager’s greed and mismanagement. In that regard, the return of the earl might be a blessing. Surely, he would put an end to the manager’s abuse. She had tried to help the people, but not even the countess had enough authority over him, much less her.
“Go, then. Send her my best wishes. Maybe in a way it will be a good thing, the return of the prodigal.” The countess said, echoing her feelings.
Half an hour later, she was loading her basket full of goods onto the little pony cart she used for these errands. A distant rumble of thunder caught her attention. For a fleeting moment, she thought it might be wise to stay indoors. But she shook her head, took up the reins and drove away.
