CHAPTER 30

The ducal estate waseven grander up close than was evident from afar. The grand foyer was a symphony of opulence. A sweeping staircase, adorned with a plush velvet runner, ascended to a gallery adorned with portraits of the noble lineage that has called this estate home. Crystal chandeliers, suspended from a gilded ceiling, cast a soft glow over the marble floors, reflecting the gleam of polished mahogany furniture and ornate mirrors.

The Langham hotel, where they had stayed, was certainly extravagant and luxurious. But it couldn’t compare with the timeless elegance, the understated and yet grand opulence of this house. The Langham was designed to amaze. This house amazed by the simple fact of existing. From the architecture to the decor, it proclaimed its multi-generational wealth.

The solemn butler was expecting them. The duke had informed him they were expecting visitors, and the servant was all courtesy as he solicitously escorted them to their rooms.

Had the duke explained who they were? Unlikely. The explanation was far too complicated and fantastical for the servants to understand. What plausible explanation had he given them? How would he explain the disappearance of the duchess after tomorrow? Was it even her place to ask?

Dariux and she were shown to two sumptuous bedchambers that adjoined each other and had a connecting door. She inwardly smirked. It was the duke’s way of saying their sleeping arrangements were up to them and none of his business.

She sighed. In other times, they might have taken advantage of it. But not tonight. Never again. She squashed the hollow feeling that thought produced in her chest. It wasn’t just the sex. She could get that any time she wanted from a parbot. She missed the warmth, the closeness. The indefinable feeling of being embraced by another sentient human being.

She almost wished she were pregnant, just to have something of his forever in her life. Wasn’t that pathetic? He had made his feelings on the subject clear. He would consider a child an unwanted duty. She didn’t want him to feel trapped. Much less make him think she did it on purpose. And yet, she couldn’t make her heart desire any other outcome.

The knock on the door that led to Dariux’s room interrupted her thoughts.

“Come in,” she called, and he walked in his shirtsleeves and waistcoat that emphasized his toned torso.

“Are you settled in?” he asked, wandering to her window that overlooked the expansive gardens now shrouded in shadows.

“I suppose. There’s not much ‘settling’ to do. We depart tomorrow before dawn, so I’m just taking what we need for tonight.”

“The duke and duchess have invited us to dinner. Do you need help to get dressed?”

The offer was innocuous. A simple offer of help, acknowledging the complications of getting dressed in this epoch. But the thought of him helping her dress, his hands touching her impersonally, was more than her emotions could bear.

“No, thanks. I’ll wear the same gown I have on. I doubt they would notice, or even care about what I’m wearing. They have their own problems to contend with.”

Dariux nodded. “I’ll see you in an hour, then.”

With that, he left, and she could finally sink into a chair and relax. What to do to pass the time? She was sleepy but didn’t want to take a nap for fear of missing dinner. Writing in her journal seemed like a better idea. She could finish the entry she had to abandon when she got nauseous on the train.

The next knock on her door came as a surprise, for she had lost track of time while absorbed in her writing. She had a lot to unburden. Dariux, always punctual, had found the time to wash and dress with his usual efficiency.

“Ready?” He raised a brow, looking down at her.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she replied, raising an eyebrow.

“Let’s go down to dinner, then. Wouldn’t want to keep our hosts waiting.”

She doubted their hosts were even aware of their presence. They both looked so miserable that it hurt to see. No instruments were necessary now to discern their feelings. Utter desolation lurked under the thin veil of the duke’s polite manners, and Olivia was no better.

The servants brought out the food and, at a nod from the duke, departed. It was better this way. They had much to discuss and couldn’t risk being overheard. After eating in silence for a couple of minutes, Dariux spoke, addressing the duke.

“Have you thought of a story to tell the servants and any other person who may have seen the duchess to explain her disappearance after tomorrow?”

Both the duke and duchess looked up with such confusion and sorrow in their eyes that she wanted to kick Dariux under the table. Was he that oblivious? Did he have to be so insensitive to other people’s feelings? Yes, the issue needed to be discussed, but he didn’t need to be so blunt in his speech.

“I had not thought about that,” the duke replied, chagrined and bemused.

“Oh, Dale, but we must. I wouldn’t want you to be blamed for my disappearance, the way you were...” Olivia trailed off, and Kalli sensed there was a story there.

“I don’t care. People can think whatever they want. They always do, no matter what I say.”

“Nevertheless, we should try to come up with a plausible story,” Kalli intervened.

“Would it be ok to say Kalli and Dariux are friends, or relatives from America, and that I went with them to take care of some business? Then, after a while, you can say I died in America.”

The duke’s eyes flashed with pain, but his voice was calm and controlled as he replied, “I supposed we could say that. That’s as good a story as any.”

“Will you have problems with the law?” Dariux asked.

The duke shrugged, unconcerned. “I doubt it. The most likely outcome is a scandal. But either way, I can handle it.”

“Are you sure, Dale?” Olivia said, placing her hand on top of his.

His hand turned to grasp hers, and the gesture was so heartfelt and intimate Kalli averted her gaze. “I will be fine, love. You need not worry about me.”

They continued eating in silence for a few minutes, before the silence became oppressive and she felt the need to fill it.

“Do you think the weather will be good tomorrow for our expedition?” God, what an inane line. Who cared about the weather?

The replies were as unenthusiastic as her idiotic comment deserved. The rest of the dinner passed in the same way, with desultory conversation punctuating moments of charged silence. No one ate much. Kalli was sure the food was excellent, but she barely tasted it. She was sure that was the case for everyone. Even Dariux, who claimed not to be controlled by emotion, was subdued.

When the painful dinner passed, they all retired to their rooms. She could not even imagine the pain Olivia and the duke must be going through. She didn’t know the reasons Olivia had decided to return to her time, and it wasn’t her place to ask, but she knew they must be mighty indeed. Because the love Dale and Olivia shared was so powerful that it was like a tangible thing in the room.

Were her feelings for Dariux as intense? They had already separated. Their affair ended, and he had no intention of resuming it. She was sad, but even without measuring, she knew her distress could not compare to Dale and Olivia’s. Was what she felt real love, then, or just an infatuation that would pass?

She didn’t know. But she was not in the same position as them. Dariux was not being taken away from her, never to see him again. Forever out of her reach. How would she feel if that was the case? The sense of hollowness and loss was swift and devastating.

She had to find a way for Olivia and the duke to reunite if they wished to. But what could she do? The expert in the time-travel technology was Dariux, and he was adamant that every person must live in their own time.

But that was now. Maybe something will change in the future. Her generation had found the way to travel in time. The technology was incipient; they were the pioneers in the field. But further down the line, time travel could become easier. Maybe she would one day find the way to reunite these two star-crossed lovers.

She had time. Her whole life and beyond. But how would she know if they wanted to reunite? How could they send her a message that would travel through time? An idea sprouted in her mind. She turned it around in her head as she fell asleep.

These people knew how to love. It would be a shame to take that most precious of gifts from them.