Her mother attempted to stand but she wobbled on her feet.
Simone rushed over to steady her. “I have you, Mother,” she said as she held her tight. “It will be all right.”
Her mother’s eyes filled with tears. “I always hoped that you would find me.”
“I am embarrassed that it took me so long,” Simone said. “Had I known you were alive…” Her voice trailed off. “I would have come sooner.”
“You are here now and that is all that matters,” her mother stated. “Does your father know that you are here?”
“No, he doesn’t,” Simone replied.
“Good. He is the one who put me in this horrid place,” her mother shared. “He promised me that he wouldn’t hurt you if I never revealed who I truly was.”
Simone felt anger course through her. Her mother had been trying to protect her, even from Bedlam. Her father would pay for this. That was the only thing she was sure of at the moment.
Her mother tried to lift her hands but the chains prevented her from doing so. “Just seeing you has lifted my spirits. Thank you for coming.”
“We are going to get you out of here,” Simone said as she went to unlock the shackles.
Mr. Radcliffe’s shrill voice came from behind her. “You can’t unchain her!” he exclaimed. “There are protocols?—”
“Stop with the protocols,” Simone said, matching his tone. “I do not care about your blasted protocols.”
“Mr. Bolingbroke, you must talk some sense into your fiancée,” Mr. Radcliffe said, his voice frantic.
“I think she is making perfect sense,” Caleb stated.
As the shackles dropped to the floor, her mother wrapped Simone up in her arms. “I love you, Child,” she murmured.
Simone closed her eyes as she tightly embraced her mother, not quite believing that she was truly alive. All this time had been wasted. And it was her father that had robbed her of that time with her mother.
After she released her mother, Simone faced Mr. Radcliffe. “I am leaving with my mother,” she said in an unwavering voice.
Mr. Radcliffe’s face blanched. “You can’t just walk out of here with her. She is a patient here and there are?—”
“Don’t you dare say ‘protocols’!” Simone exclaimed.
“I will admit that this is an unusual circumstance,” Mr. Radcliffe started, “and I intend to look into it. But I can’t just let Lady Hungerton go free. Not now. Even if I wanted to, she is still under the care of a doctor, who believes she should be here.”
Caleb turned towards Mr. Radcliffe. “Mr. Underwood brought Lady Hungerton here under false pretenses. She is not mad, but her husband wanted her hidden away.”
“That may be true, but only her husband can petition for her release,” Mr. Radcliffe said. “I’m sorry but my hands are tied on this one.”
Simone didn’t know how but she refused to leave here without her mother. She would fight through anyone that stood in her way.
Fortunately, Caleb must have known that, as he stated, “I am going to make this very simple for you. We are going to leave with Lady Hungerton right now, and you better not stand in our way. Or there will be consequences for you- dire consequences.”
“Mr. Bolingbroke?—”
Caleb took a commanding step towards him, silencing Mr. Radcliffe’s words. “You do not want to make me angry, Mr. Radcliffe. The people I associate with can make you disappear. Is that what you want?” he asked. “I suggest you think ofyour family at this time. Would they be able to survive without you?”
Emotions flickered across Mr. Radcliffe’s face as he understood the danger he was in. After a long moment, Mr. Radcliffe said, “It is a shame that Jane escaped.”
“Yes, it is,” Caleb agreed, taking a step back.
Mr. Radcliffe waved them forward. “I will show you to the back door and I will inform your driver to come around to retrieve you. But I will sound the alarm in an hour’s time.”
“That should give us enough time to be far away from here,” Caleb mused.
