Liam saw the flicker of fear in her eyes and steeled himself, waiting for the rest.
‘Two years after I left, I was working as a housemaid in Norwich. I liked it, even thought I might stay there forever. I had friends.’ She smiled sadly. ‘I was returning from an errand, and there was my prince, striding right up to the front door. I stayed hidden, for hours, until I managed to get a message to one of the girls I worked with. She brought me my things, and told me his arrival was no accident. He’d come for me, armed with some tale of being my lost brother. I fled as far and as fast as I could. That is when I became Rebecca Hardwicke.’
Rebecca drew in a deep breath, and stared unseeingly at the glass before her.
‘I was careful, I covered my tracks, I kept moving, years passed... Over time, I became complacent. I took a position in London, even though I knew that was where my prince usually lived. It had been twelve years...’ Rebecca laughed mirthlessly and shook her head. ‘I quite literally ran into him on the street. There was, this look, in his eyes. A promise. I had not been forgotten, and I would never be free. He would make me pay. I was lucky again that day,’ she said, clearing her throat. ‘I lost him in the crowd, and disappeared again. It will never end.’
‘And you’ve never had a desire to settle down, been tempted? Somewhere quiet?’
‘I suppose I could find some remote village, but would that not be another cage? I have a life, better than I ever dreamt of. Independence, and freedom many women can only imagine.’
‘If you met someone...’
‘I could never ask someone to give up their life for me. And I have never met anyone I cared enough for to be tempted. Well,’ she sighed. ‘Now you know. The truth.’
Liam nodded despondently and looked out onto the gardens, now a brightly glittering rainbow of colours in the fading lights of the fireworks finale.
He wished the man who had forced her into this life was before him, so he could show him the true meaning of suffering. He wished he could hold her hand, or holdher, swear that he would keep her safe, protect her. But he couldn’t. It wouldn’t be right, and she wouldn’t accept it. But even so, he promised to himself. That so long as she was here, in his life, hewouldkeep her safe.
She was his employee. He owed it to her as much as he owed it to the others.
Yes, that was all it was. And he liked her, no denying that. So he did not want to lose her.
Like he’d lost Angus, and Peter, and Hal.
Like he’d lost everyone he had ever cared about.
‘Perhaps,’ he said finally, ‘one day you might find someone willing to share a life, any life, with you.’
‘Perhaps.’
‘I thank you for trusting me with your tale, Mrs Hard—’ Liam stopped himself. ‘Might you share with me your true name? I shall not use it, unless in private, I promise.’
‘Merrickson.’ She smiled. ‘Rebecca Merrickson.’
‘Mrs Ffoulkes,’ Liam said, fully understanding now. ‘The man she spoke of...’
‘One of my mother’s cousins, I suspect. Some scandalous marriage as I recall.’
‘She won’t say anything, to anyone.’
‘I know... It’s just...’
‘I understand,’ he said gently, and Rebecca smiled gratefully. ‘Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Merrickson,’ Liam said with a bow of his head.
The chiming of the clock reverberated loudly through the hall, and all the way through the conservatory, bringing them back to themselves.
‘I should return downstairs. The others will be back soon,’ Rebecca said, pushing the past back to where it belonged. ‘Good evening, my lord.’
‘Good evening, Miss Merrickson.’
A tiny curtsey, a rush of skirts through the plants, and she was gone.
Liam remained there, watching the landscape fade away into colourless night, for a long while. Even the bonfires seemed to have dimmed now. He should have asked her, he thought belatedly, who the man was. The one who had tried to buy her virtue, her life. Though he sensed she would not have told him. She had already trusted him with so much. Too much, he knew she must feel, for had he not felt the same?
Instinctively, he knew her tale had not been shared before, and it filled him with pride that she should with him. Filled him with longing, to know it all, to know her fully, and for her to know him.
How tempting it would be to share the rest of his sorry tale with his elusive little housekeeper. She had seen many of his secrets already, and not shied away. For someone who had seen and experienced the wickedness and depravity of men, she had not been afraid of him, nor his demons. She had not been afraid of this house, of its secrets and its ghosts, as so many had before. She could see past the surface, see the truth beneath.
