Not one of them seemed to care that their employer was inside. Lilly shivered. They were going to let him die. It was no wonder. Why would they have any loyalty for such a villain as he?
But would any of them come after her? She needed off this estate! She would ride!
Running into the stable, Lilly located a mare who appeared to be calm and gentle, and yet strong enough to carry her. Good Lord, how was she going to do this? When she’d ridden before, there had been a mounting platform! And she’d had Michael and a groom to assist her.
She was going to have to get her own self onto that horse.
One of the adjacent horses whinnied. And the others sounded restless. The nearest of them stared at her with a vulnerable look reminiscent of Miss Fussy.
She could not abandon them.
Unwilling to leave the animals trapped in the barn, Lilly rushed about, opening stalls and encouraging them to escape. They too, would have their liberty.
Fearing she’d wasted too much time already, she frantically returned to the enclosure holding her chosen mount and unlatched the stall door. Stepping on the slats, she climbed to the top of the wall, took hold of the mane, and then swung one leg over the horse’s back.
She did this as calmly as possible. It had been nearly adecade since she’d ridden. She didn’t wish to spook the horse, for already chaos abounded outside, and she was a strange rider.
“It’s all right, sweetheart. You and I are going for a ride, that’s all. I’ll take you far away from that bad man.” Lilly spoke in a soothing voice and gently allowed her weight to settle on the horse’s back.
Instinctively, she gripped the mare’s flowing mane and urged the horse forward and toward the door. As soon as they exited the barn, Lilly headed down the long drive.
Afraid of being thrown, but even more fearful of someone stopping her, she urged the horse from a canter into a full-out gallop. “Good girl,” she said, squeezing the mare’s girth with her legs. She continued talking to the horse. “Let’s get out of here, but please, please, please don’t throw me!” She hadn’t ridden since Edgewater Heights those many years ago—and that had been with a sidesaddle.
She only knew she must travel as far as possible,as quickly as possible. But to where? She hoped they were headed in the right direction.
Not really knowing what she was doing, she allowed the horse to run freely for what seemed like a very long time. When they finally slowed to a walk, every bone in her body felt as though it had been jarred loose.
But she’d kept her seat. She’d not fallen off!
When a thunderous roar echoed behind her, Lilly glanced back and saw the entire manor engulfed in flames. But that was not all. The tree she had used for her escape had caught fire. It had fallen onto the stables.
Thank God she’d left the barn doors open. The horses inside had fled in all directions.
As the roof collapsed onto the manor, Lilly patted her horse’s neck. “Well done, my lady. Now let’s get out of here.”
RESCUE?
After changing their horses in Reading, Michael and his men found the going slower after turning onto the less-travelled route to Maple Hall. Muddy and full of ruts, the condition of the road required the mounts to pick their steps carefully. Slowed but not deterred, Michael tamped down his frustration until something unusual caught his eye.
Off in the distance, an orange glow lit the horizon.
“Lilly.” Michael mouthed her name.
A shiver ran down his neck as he realized the pungent scent hanging in the air was smoke.
And then, like a mirage, he spied a lone rider in the distance approaching. He remembered the young grooms who had assisted him and John the last time they had been there and hoped they were safe. The fire appeared to have engulfed several of the estate’s buildings.
“Oh, God, Lilly…” he whispered raggedly into the darkness.
Rightly suspicious of the rider up ahead, John and Arty both pulled out their pistols.
“Ho, there!” Michael called out roughly. “Hold up!”
The rider seemed to consider them for just a moment before turning off the road and racing into the woods.
“Oh, hell, he’ll kill himself andhis horse running in this mud.” Arty put his pistol back into his waistband.
Michael wasn’t sure, but he’d thought he’d seen a flash of silver-white hair in the moonlight as the rider turned. Pulling his reins to the right, he spurred his own horse into the darkness in desperate pursuit.It had to be her.He couldn’t bear the thought of a world without her ever again.
