Chapter Twenty-One

M rs. Chessy rushed to greet her husband when he walked in the front door an hour after O'Malley had left to meet with him. "Well?"

He bent to press his lips to the middle of her forehead. "I could use a cup of tea and something sweet. How was your morning, my dear?"

"Why don't you tell me about yours?" she urged. "I am certain your morning was far more enlightening than mine."

For a moment the vicar was silent, then he sighed. "Was Melanie difficult again today?"

"Not as much as our unwanted visitor," his wife replied.

"Unwanted? Who was it?" The vicar shook his head. "Don't answer that—tell me where Stanbridge and O'Malley are, and where in Heaven's name they were when you had an unwanted visitor."

Mrs. Chessy wrung her hands and confessed, "It was my fault. I insisted that Stanbridge let Mr. Humbolt in."

"And?" the vicar asked.

"Oh, Bertram! I should never have gone against O'Malley and O'Ghill's orders not to allow anyone inside."

He grasped her hands to still their trembling. "Tell me what happened."

She shuddered and repeated the insults Humbolt had tossed at their niece. Describing how Caroline tried to shrink and disappear into the settee, her voice wavered. "He even dared to call our Caro hatchet-faced!"

"Where are your guards now?"

She ignored the question. "Don't you have anything you want to tell me about O'Malley?"

"Why would I, when he is supposed to be guarding you, Melanie, and Caro?"

"Because I sent him over to speak to you after he handily dispatched Humbolt. It was good of him to take care of the puddle of—" She met her husband's frustrated gaze and asked, "If he did not ride over to speak with you, then where is he?"

"Was there something urgent O'Malley needed to tell me?" Vicar Chessy asked.

"Yes," his wife said. "Very important."

The heavy pounding on the back door had the vicar stalking through the house. "That had better be O'Malley or Stanbridge. I'll get to the bottom of what happened." He pulled open the door, and Stanbridge rushed inside, tugging Olivia by the hand.

"Vicar! I am so glad you are here. Where are Melanie and Caro?"

"I just walked in the other door. Why don't you ask my wife?"

Stanbridge shook his head. "I do not have time to chase after them."

"What is going on?" the vicar demanded.

"I have orders from O'Malley to ensure that all four women are safely tucked into the vicarage." He gave Olivia a slight nudge to get her feet moving.

"Caro and Melanie are upstairs," the vicar's wife replied. "O'Malley said he'd return this afternoon to speak with Caro and walk in our gardens." She looked at her husband and said, "Surely you know what he wants to speak to her about, Bertram. After all, he was on his way to ask you…" Her voice faded as she noticed the large stain on Stanbridge's coat. "Is that blood?"

"Aye," Stanbridge answered. At the quiet moan of distress, he reached out to steady Olivia. "Maybe you should sit down." He helped her onto one of the kitchen chairs and explained, "Olivia's never seen an injured prisoner before. There was more blood than I'd counted on when Dr. Higgins was taking care of his hand."

"Prisoner?" Bertram asked.

"Who was it, and what happened to his hand?" Mrs. Chessy asked.

"Mum?" Melanie glided down the stairs. "What is all the commotion about?" When her mother did not answer, she turned to her father. "Papa, aren't you a little early for tea? I just came down to put the kettle on." Her eyes riveted on Stanbridge. "Good Lord, is that blood?"

Stanbridge nodded, and Mrs. Chessy asked, "Why did O'Malley order you to bring Olivia here?"

"Safety in numbers. You'll all be in one place when…" His voice trailed off, and as if he realized he'd already said too much, he clamped his lips shut.

He did not count on Olivia speaking out of turn. "O'Malley shot the prisoner. But in all fairness, Greeley's a sharpshooter and shot O'Malley first."

"O'Malley's been shot?"

Everyone turned to stare at the woman standing wide-eyed at the top of the staircase.

"When?" Caroline asked. "How bad is it? Can you take me to him?" Her voice broke, but she held on to her composure.

"You weren't supposed to speak about what happened, Olivia," Stanbridge told her.

"Well then, you should have mentioned that little tidbit on our way over here," Olivia grumbled.

"No more questions!" The volume of the vicar's voice had everyone falling silent and staring at him. "That's better." He locked gazes with Stanbridge. "Where is O'Malley now? How many other men came with this Greeley?"

"Two, and they should be at Summerfield Chase by now. Which is why O'Malley tasked me with delivering the prisoner to the empty stall at the smithy before I went to fetch the physician to take care of his wound."

"And then…?" Olivia prompted him.

Stanbridge raised his eyes to the ceiling. "Then I was to bring Olivia here and stand guard until further notice."

"Stanbridge?" Caroline's voice sounded strained. "Please tell me how O'Malley looked when he rode out of the village."

The young man shook his head. "I am not at liberty to discuss the situation other than to say that Mr. Coleman sent for the constable and is keeping an eye on the prisoner while I'm standing guard here."

Mrs. Chessy drew in a breath and gathered her composure. "Melanie and Olivia, please set the table. Caro, please set out the plate of scones, and another with the teacakes we baked early this morning. Stanbridge, you are welcome to join us for tea."

"I'll be standing guard out back, where I can see the smithy in the distance. I'll breathe easier when I see the constable arriving. That leaves only my most important duty left to do."

Mrs. Chessy was about to ask when the vicar said, "Guarding the women."

"Aye."

"Did you tell Dr. Higgins that O'Malley had been shot?" Mrs. Chessy asked.

"I did. He will be on his way to Summerfield Chase shortly."

"Who will be riding with him for protection?"

"O'Malley and O'Ghill have messengers stationed all around the village. One of the men will accompany the doctor."

"Will another messenger ride out to alert the duke's guard when the constable arrives?"

"Aye. If you'll excuse me, Mrs. Chessy?"

"Yes, of course, Stanbridge. I'll send a cup of tea out—"

"No, thank you. I'll wait until I hear from O'Malley."

The vicar's wife placed her hand on Stanbridge's forearm. "I understand. We are so grateful that you are here guarding our precious girls, Lyman. Thank you."

He nodded and walked out the back door.

*

Why had her aunt all of a sudden demanded tea? Caroline's hands trembled, but she did her best to control them. Upended teacakes just might be the trigger to send Melanie and Olivia into a bout of tears. She held hers inside—she would cry later when she found out the full extent of O'Malley's injury and knew that he would recover. With his build, he was such a large target. There was no telling where he could have been hit. Until she knew more, she would pray that he would recover.

Her breath hitched as a dreadful thought occurred. She immediately shoved it aside, refusing to believe the worst.

Finally, the table was set and the tea poured, but the normal camaraderie was absent. Her aunt and uncle drank their tea in silence. Melanie kept staring at Olivia, who kept her head down, staring at her uneaten teacake.

Caroline felt as if she'd go mad if they did not receive word of O'Malley's condition soon. Unable to bear the pall that hung over the room, she rasped, "No one mentioned where O'Malley was shot, or how much blood he lost."

Aunt Josephine reached over to pat Caroline's hand. "No news is good news."

Uncle Bertram cleared his throat and said, "Your aunt is correct. Bad news travels quickly."

"Really, Caro," Melanie added. "Do you think O'Malley would have ridden all the way out to the baron's estate if he was on the verge of collapse?"

Caroline didn't have to think—the answer burst from inside of her. "Yes! I have no doubt O'Ghill would have, too. I have yet to meet Garahan or Flaherty, but if they are anything like O'Malley and O'Ghill, they would do all in their power to uphold their vow to protect and defend."

Her aunt smiled, and it bothered Caroline.

"Really, Aunt Josephine, I cannot think that is anything to smile about."

"Forgive me, Caro. I was thinking of something else entirely."

Silence descended once more. Caroline had been fearful when her brother and David went off to war, but the fear simmering inside of her now was somehow more volatile than that. Was this how it felt when the man you loved was in danger? Why had it taken his being shot for her to realize how deeply her feelings went? They had been thrown together in a desperate situation from the start, and feelings and emotions were bound to bubble to the surface at some point. Now she knew they weren't based on a volatile situation.

Unlike her feelings for David, which were based on the admiring way he looked at her when he promised to court and marry her when he returned, her feelings for O'Malley were born out the way he'd treated, respected, and protected her. She sighed and admitted to herself that there were also the sparks of desire swirling in the depths of his brilliant green eyes… Desire for her! Caroline had learned all too well how fragile, and precious, life was. In that moment, she promised herself that she would do whatever it took to sneak out of the vicarage tonight and make her way to Summerfield Chase. Nothing and no one would stop her from reaching O'Malley's side!