Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Being left with no choice, Alexander made his way towards the stables of the Russel Estate, hoping to find Ralph. Two weeks had gone by already with no word from Eliza, which made him terribly worried.

She had stopped coming out for her morning and afternoon strolls in the woods, and none of the servants in the house were talking to him.

In fact, he was no longer welcomed inside the grounds of the Russel Estate as if everyone had been instructed to keep away from him.

What made matters even worse was how Alexander, or more appropriately, the earl, had not even received an invitation to the summer masquerade thrown by the Russels, which was the very next day.

He had happened to hear about it from other people and was hoping this was a simple mistake. He was still waiting for his invitation, but the wait seemed futile now.

This only meant it would be impossible for him to get inside the house to both find the documents and see Eliza. He was certain she was still inside; he simply needed a way to find her.

Even Lara was afraid to speak to him and simply asked him to stay away. Although, he could simply no longer go on without doing something about it. He needed to speak to Ralph.

Alexander found Ralph standing in the stall of a little pony in the stables, filling up the feeding bowls. Noticing how the other stalls seemed empty, Alexander quickly made his way inside, closing the door behind him. He was dressed as George since he knew Ralph had no idea about his true identity.

“You!” Ralph seemed angry to see him, making Alexander even more confused about what could have gone so wrong.

“Ralph, I must speak with you immediately. Where is Beth?”

“Why do you care? You are the reason she is caught up in so much trouble!”

“I am the reason?” His eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean? What have I done?”

“What have you done!?” Ralph shouted in a whisper, growing angrier with every passing minute. “The countess is convinced that Beth is seeing you and some masked man and even accused the poor girl of theft.

She is keeping her locked indoors so she cannot meet you or that other man. Everyone knows Beth would never steal, but there is no way for her to prove her innocence, and she has to suffer. You and that other man are the troublemakers behind this whole thing!”

Alexander was stunned.

He could have never imagined that Lady Leicester would be able to find out about Eliza meeting with him and the masked man.

The gifts he had sent her must have been what she had been accused of stealing, but he knew no one went into her room. This only meant someone had betrayed Eliza, and someone had been following her on her visits to the woods.

“How did they find out about these things?”

“That horrible girl Amelia betrayed poor Beth. She told the countess everything.”

He had known it. Amelia had been causing trouble for them since the beginning, and there she was again. Now, he understood not receiving an invitation had been intentional, but it was still unclear to him since the Russels were angry with him, not with the earl.

His head was spinning.

All he knew was that he needed to save Eliza one way or another.

“Thank you for telling me the truth, Ralph. I appreciate it. I will leave before anyone finds out I was here, and you get in trouble too. Beth won’t be happy about that.”

“I do not care about these things, George. But you must remember the Russels will not let you come near Beth again, so it is best you stay away and not cause any more problems for her.”

“I won’t cause any other problems for her, Ralph. I promise.”

He quickly left the stall after glancing left and right and exited through the way he had come. His mind was still on Eliza, making him wonder if she could be mad at him for putting her into this mess.

He was not sure about her feelings for him already, and now, with all of this, he wouldn’t blame her for being a little more upset with him. He deserved it.

Alexander quickly made his way back to his house, continuing to think about ways to somehow get inside the Russel Estate tomorrow to extract the documents. This little glitch in the plan did not deter him one bit; in fact, it only made him more determined. Alexander had to do something or another.

But what?

He walked inside the hall, his eyes falling on Lady Margaret, who stood up from the sofa when he entered. She was the last person he had expected to see in his house, and she definitely did not look shocked to see him. What was happening?

“I need your help, My Lord.”

Alexander was shocked. It was evident she knew who he was. Perhaps she would be able to help him after all.

***

Even though Margaret was on the verge of a panic attack when she had escaped from her house to see George, being in front of him was strangely peaceful. Despite her terror, she had known she could not allow her family to ruin Eliza’s life any longer.

Even after everything Eliza had been put through, she had never once been unkind towards Margaret. It was about time she took things into her own hands, especially with the masquerade happening the next day.

“Lady Margaret.” He bowed, walking inside the hall.

“My Lord …” She curtsied back, noticing the shock on his face. “My family is well aware that you are not who you say you are. They know you are the masked stranger, and Eliza has been seen with you. That is one of the reasons they have locked her away.”

“Amelia betrayed her, I gather?”

“Yes,” Margaret nodded in agreement. “My family is suspicious of your intentions, especially since you asked questions about Eliza and the Gordons from both me and Victoria. Then you were seen with Eliza both as George and as the masked stranger, which is why my mother seems to think you might know the truth and could cause trouble for our family. Hence, it is best if Eliza stays away from you.”

A weight lifted from Margaret’s chest as she laid out the entire situation in front of George, his shock only increasing with everything she revealed. He sat down on the sofa, his worry evident on his face.

“How is she?” he finally asked, looking at Margaret.

“I have never seen her look so terrible. She has been diligently working to arrange the summer masquerade, which is tomorrow. I believe you did not receive an invite, and this happens to be the reason.”

“Yes.” Alexander nodded. “I was wondering why I had not been invited. Why are you here, Lady Margaret? Be honest.”

Margaret completely understood his suspicions towards her intentions since she, too, was only a Russel, but she was ready to prove him wrong. She had already decided to help Eliza in any way she could, and this was the time to stand up.

“I am here to tell you that my family is planning to get Eliza married off to Count Fife, who is a terrible, lecherous man, and Eliza does not deserve that fate. He is going to sign off on her inheritance to the family, and everything will legally belong to the Russels after he does so. I came here because I am aware only you can save Eliza.”

“And you are ready to stand up against your family to help your cousin? Why now? You have seen her be treated terribly all your life. Why this sudden change of heart?”

“I can’t allow my family to fall this low, My Lord. They have mistreated me all their lives as well, but not as much as they have mistreated Eliza. Despite all this, Eliza has never been unkind to me; in fact, she has been kinder to me than my own sister. I know she does not deserve such a life, and it is about time I help her, even if it means going against my own family. It is about time they pay for the sins they have committed.”

He stayed quiet for several minutes, closely assessing her.

“Lady Margaret, I do trust your intentions, and I thank you for coming forward in this matter. My name is not George, as you must have already guessed. I am Alexander Blackwood, Earl of Eastwood, along with being the Marquess of Lennox and a few other titles. I have known Eliza since we were just children because we used to be neighbours.”

Margaret was shocked at the introduction, realizing how important and powerful the man before her was. Even if she had not come forward, he would have found a way to help Eliza, but she was ready to help him in any capacity.

“What can I do to help, My Lord?”

“I just want you to find the documents in your father’s study detailing the inheritance and property deeds. They are all placed together in his bottom drawer. I have seen them there and you will be able to find them easily. You must bring those documents to me.”

Margaret was slightly scared, knowing it was not going to be an easy task.

“The ball is tomorrow, My Lord, and I am afraid they will send her away with Count Fife right after, which is why you must reveal the truth tomorrow. I will bring you the documents at the ball, but you will need to be present there right on time.”

Alexander stood up, followed by Margaret. A strange feeling filled her stomach, but she knew she was doing the right thing.

“I will do it at the ball,” he replied, his mind elsewhere. “I want you to do another thing for me.”

“Anything.”

“I got a dress made for Eliza. It is an ice blue colour along with accessories and all other necessary items. You must give it to her for her to wear tomorrow so she can be present at the masquerade, but I do not have a mask with it.”

“Do not worry.” Margaret shook her head. “I have a pearly, white mask, which will look beautiful with any blue dress. You must make your entrance at the ball and reveal the truth, while I will be present with the documents and will bear as an eyewitness to everything Eliza has endured in the past years.”

“Are you sure you will have the courage to step forward against your family? I cannot afford your faltering at the last moment.”

“I promise,” Margaret sighed. “I will lose my family, but even though I love them, they do deserve to be punished. It might mend my relationship with Eliza, but I am certainly not counting too much on it. I won’t hold it against her if she does not forgive me.”

“Knowing Eliza, she will forgive you in a heartbeat. Thank you for doing this, Lady Margaret. It takes great courage to stand up against your family, and you are doing just that. Saving Eliza right now might not have been possible without you. I will arrive at the ball exactly at the right moment.”

“I will see you there, My Lord. It is about time I grow a backbone.”

Margaret felt as if she finally had a purpose, and she was ready to fulfill it. As long as she remained strong and staunch, she would be able to get through everything, even if she had to defeat her own family to get there.

She was finally ready.