“Has anyone been by today?” Amelia murmured, eying the pie and cheese Sebastian placed before her. She had briefly had time for some broth in Sir Hubert’s kitchens, but that had been hours ago. She hadn’t realised just how hungry she was until her nose was assailed with the delicious smell of the pie. Without hesitation
, she began to eat.
“I haven’t seen or heard anyone all day. It has been as quiet as a graveyard. I don’t know how you bear it.”
Amelia smiled sympathetically. “I don’t really spend any time here during the daytime. I am at Sir Hubert’s all day.”
“Do you work from dawn to dusk every day?” Sebastian wondered why she didn’t get at least an afternoon off, but wasn’t surprised when she slowly shook her head.
“Sir Hubert is frail, and cannot fend for himself for too long. I don’t mind really. As you quite rightly point out, it is as quiet as the grave here - almost too quiet at times.”
She smiled when Sebastian nodded emphatically in agreement, and felt a pang of bittersweet yearning for something indefinable. Putting her plate upon the table, she took a drink and sat back down.
“I did learn something in the village that might be of use to you.” Her gaze met and held his across the dimness of the room. “I was chatting with Mrs Ellsworthy; a very nice elderly lady but a veritable gossip. Nothing happens in or around Glendowie without Mrs Ellsworthy hearing about it. Anyway, when I asked her if anything had happened lately, she told me there had been a carriage accident on the main road going out of the village last week. On the night I found you.”
Sensing Sebastian was about to interrupt, she held up a hand and continued. “There was only one man aboard. Mrs Ellsworthy couldn’t tell me much about the man, size or anything, just that there was definitely only one man aboard and he had died of a broken neck. His body is being held in the makeshift mortuary in the church crypt for the time being. Until the road to town becomes passable and they can summon the magistrate.”
“Damn,” Sebastian murmured with a frown.
“Why ‘damn’? Surely that is good news?” Amelia frowned, and watched Sebastian pace awkwardly around the room.
A small pang of disquiet settled about her as she watched him. She briefly wondered if she was going to cry. He had been with her for nearly a week now and already his movements were easier and more natural. His colour was back, and his now purple bruises had diminished considerably. It wouldn’t be long before he was well enough to return home to his family.
“It’s ‘damn’, because we need to identify whether it is Danvers or Rat in that crypt,” Sebastian murmured. “It is great news if it is Rat. I think Danvers may already have been dead when the horses were running. If it is Danvers in the crypt, then Rat is alive and well, and most probably already on his way back to report to Ballantyne.”
“He won’t know you have survived though. At least you have that element of surprise on your side, when you return home,” Amelia reasoned, eyeing his long-legged stride as he stormed from one side of the cottage to the other, turned and stomped back again. Clearly the inactivity of the day and the solitude had got to him.
“I know, but it also means Rat may be out there and close by. If he survived the carriage crash, he may have returned to check I was dead as soon as the weather improved. He would know roughly where I left the carriage, and would have to come back to look for my body.”
“Which wasn’t there?” Amelia concluded with a shudder.
Sebastian looked at her, clearly impressed that despite her exhaustion, she was quick thinking enough to be able to reason events out so rationally. She was also practical enough not to get all squeamish about the possible threat right on her doorstep.
“He will also see the cottage. The only cottage for several miles,” Sebastian added starkly. He didn’t want to scare her, but he didn’t want another day sitting twiddling his thumbs by himself again.
Amelia felt herself go cold, and sternly lectured herself not to be such a ninny. She had trampled about in the countryside all day, and had not seen anything untoward. No strangers. No strange carriages or people. Nothing.
“I didn’t see anything today, Sebastian. There was nobody new in the village. I asked Mrs Ellsworthy if there were any survivors of the carriage accident in the Tavern. She reported that the Tavern was completely empty of guests on account of the road being too muddy for carriages to get through.”
“Which points to the fact that if nobody can get into the village-.” Sebastian was unaware he had actually said the words aloud until Amelia finished his thought.
“Then nobody can get out either. This means that if Rat survived, he is most probably still in the village somewhere.” Amelia took a deep breath and felt a wave of weariness sweep through her. Stifling a yawn, she was trying to assemble the jumble of her thoughts, when Sebastian appeared in her line of vision.
“Bed for you, my lady,” he murmured softly cupping her cheek. “You look so tired.”
Amelia sat enraptured as the soft pad of his thumb swept tenderly across the dark smudges under her eyes.
“I was so worried about you,” he whispered tenderly, eyeing the soft curve of her rose petal lips. Longing built steadily in his chest and, although he didn’t want to spook her, he had to have some reward for spending his day worrying for her safety.
Amelia sat perfectly still and watched his head dip toward hers. She felt the feather-light brush of his firm lips against hers with a mixture of yearning and regret.
It was everything she had dreamt it would be, she mused, stunned by the silken brush of his lips against hers.
Sebastian longed to capture her lips and deepen the kiss. To take what he really wanted, and she so innocently offered, but knew that if he had a prayer of getting her to sleep in the bed with him again, he had to restrain himself.
Instinctively, he knew she was holding back from him. Still didn’t trust him. Although the knowledge frustrated him, he couldn’t blame her for being wary. They still had a lot to learn about each other, and circumstances of late had been rather strange for both of them.
After several long moments of tender exploration, he smiled gently at her and drew away.