Authors: K. R. Richards
Mrs. Bingington’s eyes widened
.
“
Yes, o
f course, my Lord. I have brought some gowns already made which can be altered quickly
.
And the rest I can make
up within several days
.
I did bring some chemises, petticoats and stockings with me today.”
Libby led Mrs. Bingington into the bedroom
.
Owen and Micah decided they would wait until the modiste left before
drawing up
their plans.
An hour later, Mrs. Bingington left after assuring Micah
she took all
of
Libby’s
measurements and
she would deliver at least
four
dresses and
the undergarments
and accessories to go with them
later
that afternoon.
S
he would
also
enclose hair pins
.
Libby happily anticipated
hav
ing
a clean gown to change in to
, as well as clean
undergarments
.
And hair pins
!
She sat
in the sitting area
and listened
while the men discussed their plans.
They all
agreed
they needed to
leave Salisbury
before the Brown Coats realized they
added
three men to their party.
They sent for
Mr. Banfield
when
they decided what they needed for the next morning
’s departure
.
They would set out
well
before dawn, and try to get away in the hour just before daylight
.
According to Mr. Banfield, the brown c
oats watching the inn seemed to number less during the
wee
hours
.
Baskets of food would be packed into the carriage so they would have it later when they needed it
.
They would leave from the
side of
the inn
through the kitchen,
and enter the
stables
.
Their horses
and the carriage
would be ready at that time
.
The stable lads were instructed to be very qui
e
t in their duties
.
Micah and Libby would be inside the carriage
.
Mr. Banfield’s cousin would drive
, l
eaving Owen,
Jack
, Charlie and Sinclair armed and surrounding the conveyance.
Libby assured them she could ride i
f
it would make their journey faster, but Owen and Micah both d
ecreed she would not ride
.
They felt
Libby was not fully recovered and needed to travel comfortably
in the carriage
.
Both
men
also
declared it
safe
st
for her
to ride in
side
a conveyance
.
They would all dress in the dark, for they did not want any lights coming from their
rooms that early to
prompt
the Brown C
oats on guard
they were
departing
.
Nor did they wish to allow them time to send for more men
.
Later in the afternoon, Mrs. Bingington arrived with
four
dresses and accessories
.
Libby was very pleased with them
.
They all fit perfectly
and were well made
.
Tired of her dirty, light blue frock, she
put on a midnight blue day dress,
which
would be
suitable for the next day’s travel
.
It felt wonderful
to
be wearing
clean clothes
!
Libby
left a matching shawl of light
gray and midnight and her
new
bonnet in the bedroom
at the r
eady for tomorrow morning
.
The modiste
left a sturdy bag for her to carry her new clothing items
in on her journey
.
Libby left her h
air pins in the bag
.
She saw
no point in putting her hair up tonight
.
Nor would she be able to do it in the morning in the dark
ness
.
She felt a little
nervous about the danger they faced in leaving
.
But she was with Owen and Micah and four other able-bodied men.
Surely they could make it to Templecombe
.
It was not that far
.
“You
are a vision, Pet
.” Owen smiled at her when she entered the
parlour
.
“You look as
though you
feel
better
this evening
.
T
here is more color to your cheeks.”
Libby happily accepted the kiss to her temple from her brother.
Dinner was being brought in
.
The
ir party
would eat, get everything ready for tomorrow, and get to bed
.
“Thank you
, Owen
.”
Libby smiled
.
She
glanced at
Micah who winked at her.
She ate some
of her meal
.
N
ervous
ness about their upcoming
journey
plagued her
.
Despite their difficult
ies with the Brown Coats
, the men’s conversation
remained
jovial.
“You haven’t eaten much,” Micah
, who sat next to her, asked
softly
enough that only she could hear,
“Are you not feeling well?”
“I feel very well
.
I’m a little nervous about tomorrow, I think.”
“All will be well, Libby
.
Please d
on’t worry
.
Eat a few more bites
.
Mayhap some cheese and fruit?”
Libby took some cheese and apple off the platter Micah held before her
.
A knock sounded on the door.
“Who is it?” Micah asked and rose to go to
the door.
“Mr. Banfield, my Lord.”
Micah opened the door
.
“
There is a Lord Alloway downstairs asking after you, sir
.
He noted the message he
recently
received c
a
me from
the Rose and Crown. He
is inquiring if you are still
occupying rooms here
.”
“What does he look like?”
Micah asked.
“He sent up this, sir
.”
Mr. Banfield opened his hand to reveal a white feather.
Micah took the feather
.
“Ah. Send him up. I think there shall be enough food
here
for him
.
Mayhap a pint for him?”
“Yes, sir
,
I shall send him
a
t once.”
“A white feather?” Owen asked in a curious tone
.
“A lot happened in Glastonbury, Ow
en
.
When we get to Horethorne Hall
we who were there shall explain everything
that transpired in Glastonbury
.
I think Charlie has told you some
.
But
as to the feather,
some of us
were witness to an appearance by the Archangel Michael
in the tower on the Tor
.
He left white feathers behind
.
Oddly enough, there were enough for all who were present.
A knock sounded again.
“Who is it?”
Micah asked
first
, though he stood near the door.
“The Angel of Death.”
“That’s Newt!
”
Micah opened the door
with an amused grin
.
Newton Lambrick, Lord Alloway,
appeared to be weary and a bit
dusty from his ride.
“You got here quick, Newt.”
Micah pointed him to an empty seat.
“
I t
hought I
should
check to see if you were still here befor
e
going on to Templecombe.”
“Is Lyon no longer in London?” Micah asked curiously.
“He’s there
.
He is unable to
join us
.
I left h
im in the capable hands of Lachlan
and Cleve
.
When Lyon is more like himself, they shall bring him on to Templecombe
.
I believe Lyon leak
ed a lot of our information
.”
“Impossible!” Charlie set down his fork with a clank.
“What are you talking about, Ne
wt
?
There must be some mistake,
”
Jack
said
.
“Not Lyon!”
“No mistake
.
It would seem Lyon has been taking quite a lot of laudanum since he received his injury in Glastonbury
.
When he arrived in London, he began drinking heavily
.
He was always foxed when I saw him
.
When I
noticed
him at a certain establishment that I shall not mention in the presence of Lady Elizabeth
,
” Newt paused to give a quick bow to Libby,
“
it appeared he was more than just
intoxicated
.
I caught him answering questions asked by
a
woman
about Glastonbury
.
Let’s just say,
she knew exactly what to do to get
information out of him
.
She promptly stopped her
inquiries
when I made my presence known
.
He was not himself
, o
ut of his mind
,
truly
.
He could not speak a coherent sentence
.
So, I got him out of there
.
I t
ook him to his house.”
“I followed him the next day
.
He only went one place
.
He went
to Limehouse
.
He w
alked right
into an opium den
,
The Jasmine Star
.
O
utside
on the street
I noticed the same gentleman who
sat
near
Lyon
and the
woman
the
previous evening
.
I w
atched him enter the den shortly after Lyon did
.
I made my way in
.
That
same
gentleman
lounged on a cushion near
Lyon
.
They were conversing
, and
I
managed
to get close enough to hear some of the conversation before
I made
my presence
known
.
He
asked
Lyon
what we were
searching for
and what
we
found
in
Glastonbury
.
”