“But won’t she be able to describe my costume?” Caroline asked.
“What, a fairy costume? Did you see how many fairies were here tonight? Doubtful any of these drunks will remember you specifically.” He turned to William. “Bring the carriage to the front and have one of the footmen bring Sullivan around. Ladies, tuck yourselves into the back and pull your feet up so no one cansee you when Caroline climbs in later. We’ll be on our way before you know it.” He held out a hand to Caroline.
She allowed him to tuck her hand in the crook of his elbow. They made their way back through the gardens.
“I thought I told you to stay put in that hallway.” Morgan admonished.
“I saw an opportunity, and I took it,” she replied. Really! She had been the one to find the girl.
“I know. But you promised to do exactly what I told you. I was terrified when I saw you were not where I left you. A million horrible scenarios passed through my mind.” He laid a hand on hers.
“And what about you? Disappearing on me, then returning with your missing sister in tow. What happened?”
Morgan sighed deep and low. “I thought I heard her laugh. And I was right; it was her.” He ran a hand through his hair. “She has been working for Gwyn.”
Too shocked for words, Caroline leaned her head against Morgan’s shoulder and squeezed his arm. They paused, and Morgan tipped his head up to stare into the night sky. His sorrow rolled off him in waves.
She found her voice. “Oh Morgan, I’m so sorry.”
As they approached the veranda, a loud girlish squeal broke the quiet.
“Oh, you are such a brute!”
“That’s why you love me, admit it,” a male voice replied. Another giggle pealed out.
Morgan looked down at her, both eyebrows raised, and she wrinkled her nose in response. She was more than ready to leave this vile party. His hand slipped around her waist as they climbed the stairs. Morgan weaved as if he were drunk when they walked by the couple, pulling Caroline with him. Taken off guard, she lost her balance and stumbled. Morgan picked her upwith a hand under her knees and bounced her once into the air. She laughed and grabbed hold of him around the neck.
The couple laughed as well. “Take her upstairs. You two look like you need a bed,” the man called out.
Cage carried her to the where the glass doors lay open to the drawing room. He set her down on her feet. “Now, we make our way to the front door quickly but without seeming like we are rushing out. All right?”
Caroline straightened her wig. “No problem. I have done this maneuver dozens of times. I’m practically an expert.”
Chapter 20
Cage let out a long breath into the warm night. Clouds covered the moon, and the air was thick with the promise of rain. His horse stepped carefully along the rutted country lane that led from Devonshire’s manor as they rode beside the carriage that carried the ladies. Cage kept an ear out for the sound of riders following them. They would soon hit Somerstown and more reliable roads. Then they could pick up the pace.
It had been far easier than he anticipated to leave the party without being noticed. Caroline was indeed an expert. She had taken his hand and weaved them through the dancing guests and around servants carrying large trays of wine. She’d plucked one glass as they passed by and drank the entire contents in one long swallow. A few people sitting on a nearby settee cheered. Caroline gave them a deep dramatic curtsy, without losing the wig on her head.
After that, they had headed for the front door. He’d thanked the boy that opened the door for them with a gold guinea, and they made their way out to the circular drive where William, always reliable, waited with the carriage and Sullivan. When Cage helped Caroline into the carriage, it was all he could do to keep himself from peering in to check on Grace. But he held back; they were not the only ones in the drive. Next to them, four young men tumbled from a carriage, the night’s revelry just beginning for them. And the crunch of horses’ hooves on gravel echoed as more guests arrived on horseback.
Caroline turned on the top step to address him quietly. “I will take both women home to Gilchrest House. You can come for your sister in the morning.”
“No, Grace stays with me.” He shook his head. He’d just found her. They needed to talk. He needed to know what happened to her. How had she gotten here tonight?
Caroline laid a hand on his shoulder. Behind her mask, her eyes filled with concern. “Cage, don’t you live in a flat? Do you have an extra room for her to stay? A maid to help her dress? Any food to make a meal?”
How did she know that he rented rooms at The Worthington? That he ate all his meals at the tavern down the street or at the club? He tore off his mask and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Morgan, trust me with your sister, for tonight. I promise to take care of her. Come in the morning, and we’ll figure things out. All right?”
He nodded. Then he cupped her face with his hands and gave her a brief kiss. “Thank you.”
A small gasp of surprise escaped her lips as he pulled away. But she nodded, then disappeared into the dark interior of the carriage.
A fine mist began to fall as they made a turn onto the Old Drury Road. Cage lifted his face to the sky and let the mist cool his cheeks. He stared up at the cloudy night sky for a long time, trying to settle the rage churning inside him. Rage toward his father, the Smethwicks, at himself for not being there when Grace needed him.
He remembered so clearly how Grace looked the day of her mother’s funeral. Cage received the news of Anne’s death from a friend who lived in the village nearby. He’d arrived at Taitlands just before the graveside ceremony but stayed out of sight in the woods that ran along the north side of the church and graveyard. Grace had been fourteen, tall and so very thin. Wrotham’s large hand lay on the back of her neck. One might think it was a gesture of comfort, but Cage knew that it was about control. He remembered well the feeling of his father’s hand squeezing the back of his neck when he was a youth, shaking him like he woulda dog who had misbehaved. Grace’s head hung down, and her shoulders slumped inward as she stared at her mother’s coffin.
