“My dear, you are not making me angry,” she said. “You may ask me questions, and I will answer what I can, but you must listen as well, because we have very little time and we cannot afford to hesitate.”
“Where are we going, and why are we going with him?”
Charity reached for her cloak and began to fasten it, then turned to face her sisters.
“We are leaving York for now,” she said.
“And going where?”
“Somewhere…” Charity hesitated briefly, “Well, somewhere that is a lot safer than here. Trust me, you shall be grateful for it.”
That was as much as she could tell them at this moment.
“Is it really that hard to tell us the name of the place?” Augusta’s brows rose. “You are guarding it as though it is a palace secret, and you’re the only one who has been entrusted to keep it.”
“I ask for some empathy,” Charity said in a tired voice. “What difference would it make if I told you the exact place? We will only end up arguing and lose time, which is already scarce for us.”
“Why do you expect an argument in the first place?” Augusta said, ironically proving Charity’s point, though she did not understand that herself. “Do you think of me a child? That needs to be managed, perhaps? Matilda, sure. But I am older, and…”
“Augusta, please,” Charity said. “I am trying to keep you safe without frightening you more than you already are.”
“Who is to say that I am frightened?” Augusta said stubbornly.
“What about Uncle Edward?” Matilda asked, innocently. “Will he not wonder where we are?”
“My dear, it is best that we keep our distance from him,” Charity said.
“Does he… does he not like us anymore?” Matilda asked.
“It’s nothing like that,” Charity sighed. Once again, they were losing time, and Charity did not know how she could explain complex matters in a situation like this. “But he wants to have a very prominent role in how our lives are to unfold, and any resistance from our side would only make him angry. That is why we must leave, and keep our distance.”
Right.That was enough of an explanation, she thought.
“And where does the Duke of Blackford come into this?” Augusta leaned in.
Duncan’s gaze flicked to Charity. He was going to let her handle it.
Charity mustered up the extent of her courage. She had to tell them now.
“He is here because I am going to marry him,” Charity said.
“You are going to marry him?” Matilda repeated, blinking wildly.
“Say that again,” Augusta said quietly. She seemed more alarmed.“I am not sure if I heard you correctly? You… are marrying him?”
Augusta and Matilda were looking at the duke now as though they were seeing him for the first time. Surely, marriage was a rather permanent thing, and they had just learnt that the person whom they had considered to be a stranger was going to be a permanent fixture in their lives.
“It is the safest arrangement available to us, and it will keep our uncle from claiming we have no protection,” Charity said, not meeting the duke’s gaze as she said the word.
Matilda’s hand flew to her throat, clutching the little cross she wore beneath her gown.
“But why,” she whispered. “Why would you do it so quickly, and why would he agree, and why….”
“Matilda,” Charity said, and she reached for her hand, squeezing it. “Look at me.”
Matilda looked at her, eyes bright with tears.
“I chose this,” she explained.
