Page 93 of A Winter Scandal

“Apparently a number of people have seen a strange man lurking about the village the last day or two. The apothecary’s wife said she saw a stranger in her garden two or three days ago, but …” Damaris shrugged.

“Mrs. Foster has an active imagination,” Thea supplied.

“Exactly. But Mr. Gilchrist also looked out the window as he went to bed and saw a stranger walking past. It created a bit of a stir, though my opinion was that the butcher was right in saying it was probably only a peddler passing through. But this morning, not one but two different people reported seeing a man last night. I would discount it as hysteria, frankly, except that my own housekeeper was one of those who saw him.”

“What? You mean here?” Thea felt a leap of alarm. She could not help but think of the man who had taken Matthew from his bed, and she had to fight back an urge to run back to the vicarage to make sure Matthew was safe. After all, it was daylight and several people were watching over the baby, including the sturdy guard supplied by Gabriel. Matthew would be fine.

“Yes. I did not see him, but Mrs. Clemmons did, and she is a most phlegmatic woman, not the sort given to fits and starts. She said he was in the back garden, and he slipped through the hedge and was gone when she came out of the house, shouting and wielding her broom.”

Thea had to chuckle. “I would have slipped away, too.”

As they talked, Thea had pulled off her dress, and Damaris’s maid had dropped the remade gown over Thea’s head. Now, the maid fastened it up the back, and Thea turned to look at herself.

“Oh.” She let out a quiet sigh of satisfaction. The ball gown was even lovelier than she had thought it would be. With the bodice taken in to suit her more modest curves and the hem lowered slightly to compensate for her extra inches of height, the dress suited her perfectly. She turned this way and that, admiring the way the jewel-like tones of the dress caught the light. “Damaris, it’s beautiful. Thank you.”

“The dress isn’t all that is beautiful,” Damaris assured her with a smile. “It looks much better on you than it ever did on me, and I am so happy to see you looking as you deserve.”

Thea did not linger long at Damaris’s house. She knew that Damaris doubtless had a number of things to do to prepare for the party the next day, and Thea was eager to get home and reassure herself that Matthew was all right. It was all very well to say that ample people were looking after him, but until she could look at him and hold him herself, she could not help but worry about the man who had been seen in the village. After the kidnapping incident, the presence of a stranger here seemed far too coincidental.

One of the maids folded the red ball gown and put it in a box for Thea to carry home, and she set out for her house, thoughts of the stranger occupying her mind. She wondered whether she should send the footman over to the Priory to tell Gabriel of the news from the village. Gabriel usually came to call at some point during the day, but she could not help but feel a sense of urgency.

“Lolly?” She walked into the house, and her sense of alarm heightened when she found the kitchen empty. “Lolly?”

Thea hurried into the hallway and stopped, letting out a sigh of relief as she saw Lolly coming down the stairs, holding Matthew. Peter sat at the foot of the steps, waiting for them. He popped up as soon as he saw Thea, offering her a bow.

“Miss.”

“Hello, Peter. Lolly. There’s my boy.” Thea smiled, setting the box down on the hall table and stretching out her hands to the baby. With a grin, Matthew dove into her arms, and Thea laughed. She glanced at Lolly. “How has he been?”

“A bit fussy. I think he’s starting to teethe, miss.”

“Really?”

“Aye. Look at his gums.” Lolly pulled down his lip, pointing to the lower gum, where a bit of white showed through.

“A tooth!” Thea grinned and lifted the baby’s chubby hand to kiss. “Well, aren’t you the little man?”

Lolly offered to take up the dress box to Thea’s room while Thea played with Matthew. Thea went into the sitting room, where she spent the next half hour sitting on the rug and entertaining Matthew with games of peekaboo, singing, and patty-cake. Later, after Lolly had returned and whisked Matthew off for a snack, Thea went upstairs to put away her dress. Lolly had taken the gown out of the box and spread it out on the bed. Thea smiled at the sight of it. She could not help but wonder what Gabriel would say when he saw her in it. Carefully, she folded it up and put it away in the dresser. Turning, she started toward her secretary, stopping when she almost stepped on a square of white on the floor. She bent down and picked up the piece of paper.

It was folded, with a red wax seal holding it closed. On the other side, in uneven block letters was written LORD MORECOMBE.

Thea stared at the writing, her heart slamming in her chest. Turning, she ran out into the hall. “Peter! Peter!”

The footman came running through the door to the kitchen while Thea was still on the stairs. “Miss! What is it?”

“Have you seen this? Did you see anyone leave this in my room?”

“No, miss.” Behind him, Lolly came out of the kitchen door. Her eyes big, she shook her head, as well.

“I’ll sit with Lolly and the baby,” Thea said, coming the rest of the way down the stairs and going over to lock the front door. “Peter, you run over to the Priory and tell Lord Morecombe that someone came into the house and left a note for him. Tell him I need him.”

Eighteen

Thea locked the kitchen door, as well, after Peter left and sat down across from Lolly and the baby, the sealed note on the table before her. It seemed an eternity before she heard the sound of a horse’s hooves on the road outside, but she knew it had been little more than thirty minutes. She ran to the door to look out, and seeing Gabriel tying his horse to the fence, she flung open the door and rushed out to meet him.

Gabriel vaulted lightly over the low iron fence and scooped Thea up in a hug, which she later realized would have been scandalous had there been anyone on the road to see it, but at that moment, she did not care for anything except that Gabriel was there.

“What is it? What happened?” He turned and walked with her to the kitchen, his arm still around her shoulders. “Peter said someone had come into the house?”