Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I think the coast is clear.

Isabelle placed her hood over her head, staying out of sight as he hid beside the staircase. It had been a week since the night she had attempted to run from the ball, and nobody had given her a moment’s peace ever since.

Looking around the empty entrance hall, she tiptoed towards the door before glancing over her shoulder.

Nobody heard a thing.

She breathed a sigh of relief and opened the door before stepping into the early morning sun. It had been difficult to escape again without having a footman or maid report back to her aunt. It was a rare opportunity to go out alone, and she intended to take advantage of it.

“And just where do you think you are going?” Aunt Alice gripped her arm and stopped her from taking a step.

Isabelle winced slightly at the surprising amount of strength that her aunt displayed despite her frailty. Tugging her arm free, she took a deep breath and fought back the frustration that began to bite at her patience. “I was planning on taking a walk or is that a crime? It wasn’t the last time that I checked.” She removed the hood of her cloak after no longer having any use for it. Anonymity was no longer a friend now that she had been caught.

“It is just as serious as a crime while you are still unwed. It can tarnish your reputation far more than you realize.” Aunt Alice pursed her lips and looked down her nose at Isabelle.

Rolling her eyes in exasperation, Isabelle sighed. “I don’t care if my reputation gets tarnished. I do not wish to get married; what do I have to do to make everyone understand? In fact, I hope my reputation does get tarnished. Perhaps then my brother and his betrothed will give up on the notion of selling me to the highest bidder.” She shook her head in exasperation.

Pursing her lips until they all but vanished into a thin line, her aunt raised an eyebrow. “It is you who has to let go of this silly notion of spinsterhood, my dear. A life being shunned by the ton isn’t as glamorous as one would think.”

“It is freedom that I am after, not glamour.” Isabelle clenched her fists at her sides, reminding herself of the fact that her aunt more than likely had footmen stationed at every corner of the street. She would have been able to outrun her aunt but not a gaggle of footmen.

Cocking her head to the side, Aunt Alice chose to ignore her comment. “You seem to be looking remarkably well for someone who professed to be ill since the night of the ball. You must let the physicians in London know of your secret. You are too ill to receive callers but well enough to attempt escaping for the past seven days. Wonders will never cease.”

“Obviously I have not been well enough to succeed in my attempts, have I? Perhaps the London physicians might aid me in my endeavours.” She began to grow weary of the back and forth.

The day had already been spoiled, and she hadn’t even had her breakfast. She had wanted to be out of the house before another insipid calling card came from Lord James. The man was more relentless than a hungry dog with a bone.

Almost as relentless as Caroline.

Straightening the cuffs of her heavy brown dress, Aunt Alice sniffed. “Since we are already up and dressed, and I have missed my breakfast, we shall have a walk. Where were you headed? I would like to stop for a spot of tea when you are done.” She waited expectantly for an answer.

“I was headed to the Evergreen; I wanted to order a new book.” Isabelle resigned herself to the situation with a sigh.

“Very well, I can’t say that I agree with all the time you spend with your nose stuck in books, but it is an agreeable compromise.” She reached for a cane that had been leaning beside the door and proceeded to make her way down the stairs without waiting for a reply.

I should have climbed out the window.

Realizing there was no other choice in the matter, Isabelle descended the stairs and followed her aunt down the street. She had wanted to purchase fruit from a cart for breakfast and visit the circulating library without a chaperone.

Yet she reasoned with herself that being chaperoned was better than nothing. At least her future sister-in-law wasn’t the one who had caught her.

If Caroline had caught her, then Isabelle would have undoubtedly been forced to accept a visit from Lord James.

She quickly fell into step beside her aunt and occupied her mind with the thoughts of books.

The walk to the library itself was pleasant. Aunt Alice lectured away about socially acceptable behaviour for a young lady while Isabelle tuned her out.

She couldn’t help blaming the man who had stopped her on the street. She likely wouldn’t have got very far even if he hadn’t, yet she still felt angry over the interference.

If I ever see him again, I will give him a piece of my mind.

She promised herself revenge while her aunt prattled on just as they got to the library.

“I shall wait for you on this bench. I shan’t go in; I can’t stand those stuffy little buildings.” Aunt Alice stopped beside a bench in front of the Evergreen circulating library and made herself comfortable.

“Yes, Aunt Alice.” She was about to head inside and seek solace when her aunt put out her cane and stopped her.

“I won’t be moving an inch; in case you were getting any funny ideas about escaping again.” Her aunt pursed her lips in her usual look of displeasure.

“I would not dream of trying to pull the wool over your eyes for a second time in one day, Aunt Alice.” Isabelle curtsied politely before hurrying into the shop.

The bell over the shop door tinkled lightly, announcing her presence to the friendly man behind the counter.

“Good morning, Miss Sutton.” The old man with wispish grey hair and eyebrows that reminded her of an owl greeted her with warm familiarity.

Relief flooded her body almost as soon as she inhaled the wonderful scent of books. “Good morning, Mr Charleston. Has the book I ordered come in yet?” she enquired before looking around the cosy room with its wooden flooring.

The Evergreen circulating library consisted of a main room with a counter and a few shelves of catalogues. All the available books were kept in a room behind the counter, while others had to be ordered.

“You are in luck; it came just this morning. I will pop back and get it for you.” Mr Charleston raised his knobbly index finger in the air and winked before slowly disappearing through a door behind the counter.

She took a moment to peek into some of the lounges just off the main room. The small nooks with sparse decorations provided enough privacy for any patrons who wished to linger for a while after receiving their books.

“Ah, here it is.” The old man came back after a few moments and handed her the book over the counter.

“Thank you. I can’t wait to get into it. I have someone waiting for me, but I think I will linger for just a little while.” She gave him a mischievous smile that elicited a chuckle from the old man.

Making her way into one of the nooks, she chose her favourite spot in an armchair that overlooked the rest of the shop. The position provided her with just enough coverage not to be seen while still affording her a view of the counter and door.

She had just settled in and opened her book when a familiar voice jolted her from her thoughts. Peeking over the top of her book, she noticed a tall man standing in front of the counter with his back turned to her.

“Good day, Mr Charleston …”

A second customer entered the shop, muffling the conversation between the man and Mr Charleston.

It has to be him.

Her heart beat a little faster as she leaned over the side of her chair, trying to get a better look.

The thick mop of messy brown hair with plenty of grey unmistakably resembled the man who had stopped her. What had Richard said that his name was again? Lord Ashton, or possibly something like it. Her thoughts were once again interrupted when the man thanked Mr Charleston and left the store, causing the bell to tinkle above the door once again.

Seizing her chance, Isabelle slammed her book shut and shot up from the chair.

Mr Charleston was almost startled when she approached him in haste.

“Mr Charleston, who was that man who was just in here? I thought I mistook him for an old friend.” She quickly came up with a lie when she realized he may have misinterpreted her question.

“Lord Henry Montague, the Earl of Ashford.” He lowered his hand from his chest and ran his tongue over his wrinkled lips.

Ashford. That is what it was.

“Does he come in here often?” She smiled warmly at the man who was now regarding her with a slight amount of suspicion.

“Every other day, usually in the afternoons. It is rare for him to come this early. Perhaps that is why you haven’t seen him in here until now?” Mr Charleston raised an eyebrow.

Feeling an idea take root in the back of her mind, she allowed her smile to brighten even further. “Yes, I think that is the reason. I was pleasantly surprised to see him. May I ask what book he was ordering? He didn’t seem to leave with one.”

Mr Charleston narrowed his eyes slightly and reached for the leather-bound ledger he used for orders before raising his monocle. “It’s a novel about war, but Lord Ashford did not place an order. He prefers to come in and read the books when they are available.” He left out the title and author.

Novels?

She found it odd that an earl would read a novel, but she pushed the thought aside. “May I ask how many copies are available for ordering?”

Glancing back down at the ledger, Mr Charleston chewed the inside of his cheek. “Four, but I am sure that other sellers in London will have more.”

“I would like to order all four,” she blurted out a response a little too quickly.

Mr Charleston raised both eyebrows now as he looked at her. “You have never ordered one of these novels before.” His words posed a statement rather than a question.

“It’s for a book club I am thinking of starting,” Isabelle said, thinking of a lie as quickly as she could.

“Very well, I will place an order for all four copies.” He shut the ledger with both hands, causing a small cloud of dust to fly into the air.

“Thank you very much.” She gripped her novel a little tighter and rushed from the little shop before he could ask her any questions.

“What took you so long?” her aunt snapped almost as soon as she stepped out the door.

Isabelle clutched her chest as she jumped; she’d forgotten all about her aunt during the onset of her grand scheme. “My book was lost; they had to find it for me among the others.”

“Very well. We shall be going then.” Aunt Alice placed both hands on her cane and steadied herself as she stood.

Doing a quick calculation in her mind, Isabelle stopped her aunt. “Aunt Alice, do you mind if we make a few small stops on the way home? There is another book that I wish to find. After we have our tea, of course.”

It took her aunt a moment to respond before shaking her head. “Oh, all right. I guess I will have to accompany you lest you decide to run away again.”

“Thank you. I promise that I will be as quick as I can.” She offered her aunt a bright smile.

“As long as you do, we must hurry back home.”

***

The rest of the day passed in a whirlwind as Isabelle visited bookseller after bookseller. Her family would be angry with her when they realized that she’d spent all her allowance in one day. The fact would be difficult to conceal when they noticed all the packages arriving at home, but she reminded herself that everything would be worth it in the end.

I wish I could be there to see the look in his eyes.

She pictured the deep pools of brown with flecks of gold swirling with anger. It served him right for meddling in her affairs.

Her pleasure was short-lived when she stepped into the entrance hall of their home and sighed.

“Isabelle, what took you so long? Lord James has been waiting for you.” Caroline informed her at once.

Taking a step back, Isabelle considered running, but she knew instantly that she had been led into a trap when her aunt placed her hands on her shoulders.

“Lord James, it is such a pleasure to see you. Isabelle has rushed through all of her errands so that she could see you. Isn’t that right, Isabelle?” Her aunt tightened her grip on her shoulders. “Thank you for taking care of Lord James while he waited, Miss Sedgewick.”

Swallowing hard, Isabelle relented to the situation at hand. “Of course, Lord James. I apologize for keeping you waiting.”

James puffed out his chest in a manner that Isabelle detested. “I am glad to see that you are looking well, Miss Sutton. I feared the worst when Miss Sedgwick wrote back to say you have been ill. Of course, it does explain your little outburst at the ball.”

Caroline jumped in again and answered for her in an annoying habit that grated on Isabelle’s nerves. “She was feeling very ill that evening, weren’t you, Isabelle?”

“I certainly was; my apologies if my behaviour struck you as rude.” Her fingers clutched the book in her hands as she apologized again.

“There, now that we all understand what happened, I think we should have our tea in the drawing room. I am quite parched, as I am sure you must be too, Lord James.” Aunt Alice gently pushed Isabelle towards the drawing room.

Glancing over her shoulder, Isabelle noted the smug look of triumph in Caroline’s eyes. If they had been alone, Isabelle would have retorted, but given the fact that they were in company, she decided to hold her tongue.

The afternoon that lay ahead promised to be a boring one where Lord James discussed nothing but politics and his plans for the future.

The only solace that Isabelle could take was the thought of Lord Ashford’s face when he realized what she had done.

Vengeance was sweet, even if she had to enjoy it from afar.