‘He is meeting me at the end of the drive. I will be quite safe.’
Tilly wiped her tears on her sleeve. She sniffed loudly and straightened, her expression was unreadable, although the blankness behind her eyes unnerved Evelyn a little. She had hurt Tilly’s feelings and was paying the price. It would take time for the warmth in their friendship to return and Evelyn did not have the time to try now.
Evelyn hugged her maid for a final time, painfully aware she did not hug her back. ‘One day I will visit you. I promise. Now go to bed before you are missed.’
Tilly left, silently shutting the door behind her and without saying goodbye. Evelyn listened for her footsteps to disappear, before returning to her packing. Her earlier difficulties at choosing what to take seemed unimportant now. She was running out of time and did not have the luxury of being indecisive. She selected a few important items and put them in the bag. Soon, Drake would be waiting for her at the end of the drive. She had no idea where he was planning to take her, but she did not care as long as she was with him.
* * *
Tilly fled to the laundry house before she allowed herself to burst into tears again. Miss Evelyn was leaving and she was leaving with Drake. Tilly had tried not to think of Drake Vennor since he’d left. She had even started courting the baker’s son with a view to being married. Drake’s sudden return had evoked old feelings she thought were a long time buried. Drake’s handsome looks now made the baker’s son seem a poor substitute. She hated him for coming back and reminding her of what she never had. And now he was going to destroy Miss Evelyn’s life too, for that was what would happen if their plan was carried through.
A movement in the corner startled her. It was Abel, lounging on a pile of laundry with a gin bottle in his hand. He stood, swaying a little as he did so, and smiled at her.
‘What are you doing here?’ she snapped, hastily brushing the tears from her face.
Abel lifted the bottle in his hand. ‘Warming my innards. Want some?’
Tilly eyed the bottle suspiciously, before taking it and drinking deeply. She made a face as the foul tasting liquid slid down her throat.
‘Finding it difficult to find work and lodgings since Timmins sacked me.’ He indicated the laundry pile with a sweep of his hand. ‘This place is dry and comes with bedding. Beats sleeping in the woods.’
‘Best get back to the woods. This place will be swarming with people by dawn.’ Voicing the commotion and panic to come set off a new trail of tears.
Abel noticed. ‘Ay, you’re cryin’, Tilly.’ He frowned in concern. She drank some more and would have drained the bottle if Abel hadn’t gently prised it from her hands. ‘Steady, girl. ’Tis potent stuff. It goes straight to the ’ead. Wham bam.’
‘I need it.’
‘Why?’
She thought of Drake, handsome and kind, but oblivious to her feelings. She had loved him and he didn’t care. He only had eyes for Miss Evelyn and was now prepared to ruin her. And Miss Evelyn didn’t seem to care.
‘Have you ever loved someone and no one else will ever compare?’ she asked him.
Abel’s eyes softened. He swallowed; his reply to her question was as gentle as a doting lover. ‘Yeah, I’ve felt that love.’
Finally someone appeared to understand her. Buoyed up by solidarity and gin, she nodded enthusiastically. ‘So have I. I think I still love Drake.’ And then she told him all that he did not want to hear and more . . .
* * *
A hive of activity by day, at night Carrack House was peacefully silent, however, Evelyn remained wary. Despite no one being around, she knew that Carrack House was like a sleeping, ill-tempered beast. If provoked, it could wake at any moment and turn on whoever had disturbed it. A clock chimed, marking the quarter of the hour. It was Evelyn’s cue to leave.
Evelyn stepped out into the corridor and began to make her way down the stairs with her bag clutched tightly in her hand. The full moon, although casting inky black shadows along her route, lit her way, whilst the family portraits that adorned the walls silently witnessed her escape. She had made it down the stairs, across the hall and through the front door before she dared pause again and draw breath.
She had managed to cross the gravel turning circle at the beginning of the drive, before she heard the first shout to raise the alarm. Another quickly followed and servants began to appear from various directions as if they had been waiting for her. Evelyn lifted her hem and bag and began to run. One handleof her bag slipped from her fingers in her panic. It became unwieldly to carry and she almost tripped as she tried to lift her hem and offset the imbalance of her bag. The bag fell from her hands. She halted and turned quickly to retrieve it, her feet sliding treacherously in the gravel as she did so, but when she saw the scattered trail of garments behind her she knew she did not have the time to collect them.
Evelyn turned and ran as fast as she could, aware she was leaving everything behind her. All she had to do was reach the end of the drive where Drake would be waiting for her and then everything would be all right. She was young and healthy and soon the servants’ shouts and footfalls gradually grew muffled as she left them behind to be swallowed up in the darkness. She soon found herself passing beneath the trees that lined the drive. It was quieter here and she felt quite alone. In her confidence, she slowed to a gentle jog.
In the far distance she could hear the sound of a horse and gig turning. Drake was waiting for her. Evelyn almost managed a smile before she realised that the gig was fast approaching from the direction of the house and not from the road ahead.
Evelyn attempted to increase her speed, but the mile long race had begun to drain her of her energy. Soon every breath rasped her lungs and throat. She grew clumsy and twice stumbled on the hem of her dress. The sound of the horse and gig grew louder and she called out to Drake to warn him. Finally she passed between the large pillars of the entrance to the estate, watched by the two imposing stone lions, and stepped out onto the road beyond.
Evelyn turned back to look behind her. She could make out the shape of a gig and horse approaching, with the distinct bulky figure of her father sitting beside the driver. She turned to Drake. The road stretched to freedom in both directions, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Chapter Twenty
Evelyn imagined the scene outside her room. Her undergarments abandoned on the gravel drive of Carrack House, their lace trimmed forms appearing like fallen ghosts, twisted and white in the bright light of a winter’s full moon. Tilly running down the granite steps, quietly sobbing, before beginning to gather the strewn garments that littered the driveway. She had seen the haphazard scattering and her abandoned bag with its torn handle for herself when they brought her inside. It somehow represented her life — destroyed, torn apart and a stark contrast to the orderly grounds surrounding it.
Evelyn tested the straps that tied her wrists. They continued to hold strong, tight enough to prevent movement, yet just loose enough to allow the blood to flow — not too dissimilar to her parents’ care and life at Carrack House. She yelled out in frustration and was startled to hear her maid begin to sob on the other side of the door. She was not alone. Tilly would help her.
