But his hands and voice remained tender.
She’d been trapped. Perspiration dampened her gown as well as the soft hair around her face. She must have been terrified!
Taking exquisite care, Garrett wedged his hands beneath her. Reaching under her knees and back, he then lifted her out of the confined space.
As he stood, Marcus appeared in the doorway. His countenance revealed both horror and concern. “Oh my God! Natalie? What’s she doing in there?” He gasped, rushing forward to assist Garrett in laying her on the settee.
“Has a doctor been sent for?” Garrett ignored the questionas he propped a small pillow under Natalie’s head and knelt. She did not stir.
Marcus looked pale but nodded. “Mr. Harris left for the stable as soon as you cried out. He’s taken a carriage so they can bring the doctor.” Then Marcus, too, knelt alongside Natalie’s inert form. “How in God’s name did this happen?”
Garrett shook his head. “The gash on her head must have been violent...so much blood.” The head wound appeared to be the only source of the vast quantities. Garrett forced himself to think clearly. If he focused on her pale face and shallow breaths, he would drive himself mad. Something must be done until the doctor could be fetched!
“Have Mrs. Harris bring washcloths and towels to my suite. I’m going to clean the wound and make her more comfortable. With this nuisance of a storm, who knows how long it will take the doctor to arrive?”
Garett was already cradling Natalie once again. He would not have her laid out in the parlor as if…no…he mentally shoved the thought aside. She would be all right. She would be well. She must.
Carrying her upstairs, he noticed her gown was torn and her knees chafed. Good God, how long had she been cramped in there? The last time he’d seen her she’d been fleeing from him out of the woods.
And then he’d overheard her defending him in her father’s study.
But why? How?
When he’d first placed her on the settee, her face had been flushed. Now she’d gone pale, her lips colorless. Tamping down his fear, he entered his suite and positioned her on one side of the tall, canopied bed. The counterpane and sheets were already drawn back. Garrett rolled her onto her side, so he could examine the wound on her head more closely.
Mrs. Hampden entered the room just as he turned to get awashcloth. Upon seeing Natalie in her torn and bloodied nightdress, the housekeeper’s brows rose questioningly, and she scowled at Garrett. “You might be the master, my lord, but I’ll not take part in anything criminal. We put up with enough of that from your father. I hoped things would be different around here now.” Nonetheless, the woman placed a towel over the pillow while Garrett wet a washcloth and set to cleaning the wound. And then, apparently realizing that Garrett would not be demanding treatment for the patient if he’d committed the crime in the first place, the middle-aged woman sighed. “What happened to the poor girl?”
Parting Natalie’s hair and smoothing it away from the gash, Garrett swallowed hard. “I wish I knew, Mrs. Hampden. She managed to get herself trapped in one of the trunks we traveled with last night.” The cut was still inclined to bleed. “Do you have something we can put on this? Some honey or ointment?”
“On the table, my lord. But let me do it. And I’ll get her in a clean gown, too. It isn’t proper for you to be here right now.” Mrs. Hampden touched the fine material of Natalie’s nightgown. Trimmed in a delicate lace, the neckline had tiny flowers embroidered along the edge. Garrett remembered her wearing it the first night he’d stayed at Raven’s Park, when she’d invaded his bedchamber.
“Her being a proper lady, I imagine her reputation will be in ruins after this business.”
Garrett did not want to leave Natalie alone, but he stepped toward the door. Mrs. Hampden’s assessment astutely described the situation. “Please call for me if,when, she awakens. I’ll be downstairs to receive the doctor.”
Garrett stepped into the corridor and closed the door behind him. He meant to head downstairs but instead found himself bent over, his hands on his knees as though he’d takena blow to the stomach. Terrified, he pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes and took in a few gulping breaths.
Somehow this was his own fault! He didn’t know how, or why, but he ought to have protected her. He’d suspected something awry but, with his emotions in such a tailspin, had ignored it.
When Farley’d acted so strangely, Garrett ought to have trusted his instincts. He should have unloaded and inspected the contents of the baggage then. He should have sent a maid inside to check on her.
He should have gone to her to say goodbye.
That was it. If he’d taken the time, ignored his inappropriate feelings, and taken proper leave of her, her absence would have been discovered right away. None of this would have happened. Imagining such an ordeal as she’d gone through, trapped in that damned trunk, Garrett felt sick. She must have been terrified.
Thank God it was not airtight!That had been his fear when he’d first touched her. If she did not make it…If she were to die…
But no, Garrett forced himself to stand again. He could not allow himself to dwell on things that were not going to happen. He must remain calm.
He must notify her family immediately. The earl and countess were most likely panic stricken. Rushing downstairs, he located parchment and a pen, but then paused. What to say? How did he tell a man he’d unknowingly kidnapped his only daughter and her condition was yet unknown? Damn! He’d best wait until the doctor gave them a prognosis.
Garrett walked to the window and peered out into the storm. Where was the damned physician? He cursed the roads. He cursed the rain. He cursed Farley, if it was, in fact, his doing.
But most of all, he cursed himself for remaining at Raven’s Park in the first place.
With a light knock on the open door, Marcus hesitated before entering. “Did she awaken yet, my lord?”
Garrett turned to the boy who’d known Natalie for most of her life. “Not yet.” His voice choked. Not knowing her condition would take its toll on both of them.
