After luncheon, as always, she and her mother went to their bedrooms to study the scriptures. When Cecily heard her mother’s bed squeak, she donned her coat and bonnet and waited. A few moments later, she heard her mother’s snores through the wall.
She crept downstairs and carefully opened the front door. It was the maid’s afternoon off, so there was no one to stop her as she darted down the path to the gate. Her heart galloped. Was it because she would spend more time in Harry’s company? Or the chance to see the white lady? Both, she decided. And she was up for anything.
Harry waited for her at the corner. She rushed up to him and said, a little breathlessly, “Well, here I am.”
“So, you are.” His gaze met hers, with a hint of warm affection in his eyes. Did he like her as much as she did him? “Shall we go? We have quite a walk ahead of us and most of it uphill.”
She took his proffered arm, and they strolled toward the steep road. “Tell me more about this lady in white. She sounds very much like the ghost you met in the park.”
“If she had been a ghost,” he amended.
She turned to look at him. “You don’t believe she was one?”
He shrugged. “That’s difficult to say. I’ve never met a wraith before.”
“Did she float in the air?”
“No…not exactly.”
“Could you see right through her?”
He shook his head.
“Oh,” she said, momentarily disappointed.
“But the way she moved and sounded was decidedly odd.”
“Well, there you are!” she said, triumphant.
He patted her hand on his arm. “You are an irrepressible young lady. I hope you’re not disappointed.”
“I shan’t be,” she said a little defiantly.
“Well, I shan’t be either, whatever happens,” he said, capturing her gaze. “Because I get to spend the afternoon with you.”
Cecily’s heart started its gallop again. Her cheeks warmed, and for once, she couldn’t think of a thing to say. Afraid he would realize how his words affected her, she dropped her hand with the pretense of straightening her hat.
But his next comment was like a dash of cold water. “I’m surprised that your mother agreed to this jaunt.”
“Mm.” Cecily’s ribcage tightened with guilt. It wasn’t precisely a lie if she didn’t mention it. She’d left her mother a note explaining her absence in case she should come to find her, but Mother seldom did until dinnertime, and she would be home before then.
He reached for her hand and clasped it in his warm gloved one. “We’d better get a move on. The castle is closed to visitors at four-thirty, and it’s quite a way. We shan’t be able to stay long.”
“Oh, yes, let’s hurry.” She enjoyed his long fingers linked with hers as they tramped along the road. “What about the other ghosts? Did your friend say anything about them?”
“Yes, a woman wearing blue, but I’d rather we didn’t run into her.
A shivery chill ran down her back. “Why not?”
“It’s said she was an evil woman who killed her child. She leads people astray to make them lose their way.”
“She sounds horrid.”
“Nasty. Forewarned is forearmed, though, is it not?”
She grinned with more confidence than she felt. “In any event, I have you to protect me.”
“Sir Galahad at your service.”
