Stella sobbed again, as the slamming door made the pictures actually rattle on the walls.
Hetty took a steady breath, unsure how to proceed.
‘I know it can be hard to find happiness. I was terribly sad, before I came here, but then I met you, and now Elliot, and all the acquaintances I’ve made online. You have all helped me immensely.’
She paused, taking Stella’s hands in hers.
‘And, well, I also take the most ingenious tablets every morning. They seem to have helped, too. Perhaps – perhaps they can also help you?’
Stella smiled through her tears, squeezing Hetty’s hands back.
‘Oh, Hetty, bless your heart. There aren’t any pills for this sadness. I think it’s just going to take time to heal.’
Hetty dabbed at Stella’s wet cheeks with a tissue and squeezed her hand.
‘Will you … Will you perhaps spend that time with me? I care for you so very deeply, Stella. I truly will do everything in my power to help you – how you have helped me.’
Stella took a deep breath and managed a genuine smile. ‘Oh, Hetty. Oh yes. And – well, I care for you back. Very deeply indeed.’
And there it was, Hetty realised: the happiness she’d travelled two hundred years to find.
Chapter 51
1818
In unspoken agreement, the travel-worn trio went in search of food. In no time at all, they were drawing towards an impressive-looking, bustling pub. Etta suddenly felt extremely shabby in her mud-covered borrowed dress: she wasn’t entirely convinced there was going to be room at this inn for them.
Max and Charlie had also clearly realised this as they entered the yard. She saw an ostler point to her and start asking questions. Max approached him and said something in an angry voice. The ostler went off, giving her a cynical once-over on the way. Max offered her his hand as she got down from his horse and brushed down her skirts.
‘So, old chap,’ said Charlie, ‘you got us rooms, then. How on earth did you explain Etta’s appearance?’
Max raised an eyebrow. ‘I told them she had been kidnapped.’
‘Kidnapped?’ Charlie asked.
‘Couldn’t think of anything else to explain her lack of baggage, maid, or clothing. Charlie, they didn’t have two rooms available, so we’re going to have to share.’
Charlie gaped at him. ‘Share? With my damned sister?’
‘If your mother wants us to marry in your family church, I don’t see any other option.’
Hetty looked down at her crumpled, mud-strewn dress. ‘What about my clothes? I can’t wear this dress. I’m filthy.’
Max smiled, guiding her inside. ‘Don’t worry. I’ve hired a carriage to take us home first thing tomorrow. We’ll smuggle you in through the back entrance.’
As Max’s breathing evened out from the floor beside them and Charlie and Etta settled awkwardly, top to toe, into a small, lumpy bed, Etta realised she could hear sniffling by her feet.
Charlie tossed and turned next to her. ‘God, Henrietta, stop moving the blankets. You’re making my feet cold.’
His voice sounded hoarse, almost like …
‘Are you crying?’ asked Etta.
‘Never you mind.’
She sat up and got out of bed, shuffling around to his end.
‘You might as well tell me, you know. A problem shared is a problem halved.’
