Authors: Sarah Thorn
When they turned between two lodge
houses,
Jane knew they were entering the estate. It was close to eight in the
evening,
and the sun was setting. On both sides, she saw green parkland dotted with chestnut trees and grazing sheep. She was anxious to see the Hall and keep a close watch out. After an age, they rounded a
corner,
and she gasped. Ahead of them was a huge house, with what seemed like a thousand windows, each lit by candles. It
was built
of red brick with sandstone lintels around the windows. There were more
chimneys than
Jane could
count in
a short space of time.
Despite a line of carriages waiting to offload their inhabitants at the ballroom, Jane's coach didn't
wait
. She felt very special indeed as everyone watched her pass them and head to the front of the line. They pulled up under a stone canopy at the far end of the house. A footman opened the door and when Jane looked out she saw a tall and very handsome man coming down the stone staircase to greet her. He
was dressed
in military uniform. A red tunic and white trousers with the most highly polished boots Jane had ever seen. On each shoulder, he had gold braid and on his chest a row of medals from recent military campaigns.
''I am the Duke of Longford. It is an honor to meet you Miss Glossop.'' He held out his
hand,
and Jane took it. She was careful when she left the
coach;
she didn't want to stumble and make a fool of herself in front of the crowd that had gathered to see her. When she reached the
ground,
she looked at the man, who for some reason, had invited her to the ball.
A small group of people burst into applause when they saw how beautiful the Duke's lady was. He looked disapprovingly at
them,
and they stopped. He had a small scar on his left cheek. It was the first thing Jane noticed about him. Far from being distracting, it added to the mystery of him. His eyes were deep
blue,
and she thought she saw kindness in them, but they seemed to be distant,
in a
far away place.
''Thank you for inviting me,'' she said as they walked up the stairs towards the huge glazed door that led into the ballrooms entrance hall. He was a head taller than Jane and walking next to him she could feel the power he emitted. It was inexplicable, but she knew
instantly
that he was a man with
tremendous
strength of character. He was the same kind of
man as
George, only richer. Reliable, honest and trustworthy.
For his part, he was bowled over by her beauty. Never had he seen such raw elegance in a woman. The way her body moved as she walked gave him ideas of a sexual nature that he hadn't had before. He was surprised by the images flashing across his mind and mildly chastised himself.
''You will sit next to me in the ballroom,'' he said as they crossed the black and white tiled entrance. To the right there was a garderobe, and in front of them another
huge
glazed door at which an announcer stood.
''Lords, Ladies, and Gentlemen, the Duke of Longford and Miss Jane Glossop,'' he shouted. Jane felt hundreds of eyes on
her,
and she became very self-conscious. She was just a farm laborer, not a society lady. She wasn't of the upper class and nowhere near as beautiful as most of the glamorous women staring at her.
The Duke leaned to her and whispered. ''I know this is a big
occasion for
you. But you must remember that you are worth a thousand of anyone of the ladies here this evening.''
Jane looked at him in disbelief. He'd said exactly the right thing, at exactly the right time.
He
'd made her feel important and
special
. But why did he say it? What possible reason could he have for telling her she was worth more than any other woman? He didn't even know her. Why did he want her to be at the ball and why was he treating her so well?
''Please, sit down here,'' he said, pointing to a throne-like chair
on a
raised platform against the long wall of the ballroom. He sat next to her and for a moment they looked out over the guests as some of them danced and others stood and conversed.
''Why did you invite me here this evening? You don't even know
me,
and I certainly have no idea who you are.'' She looked over the dancers to the orchestra on the stage against the opposite wall.
''That is where you
are mistaken
. I know perfectly well who you are, and I know enough about you to realize that you are a lady I wish to know better.''
''How, my Lord? How do you know me?''
''Later. I would like to enjoy the evening. We will dance, drink a little and talk.''
''But you know that I am just one of your farm hands and that any association you seek with me will render you the talk of society.''
He glanced at her without
smiling,
and she wanted to retract what she had just said when she saw his face. He didn't care what others
thought;
she could it written all over his expression. He knew what people would think, but he was his own man. ''Miss Jane, if you think I have given that any thought at all, you are mistaken.''
''Yes, I can see that now,'' she said bowing her head in deference. She closed her eyes for a second trying to drive away the image that was forming in her mind. The
image
of him holding her in his arms, crushing her to him and kissing her passionately.
After a while, they danced. Everyone watched to see how Jane performed, many of them waiting for her to fall short of what society expected. But she impressed the Duke. Her mother had taught her the most important dances when she was young, and she'd gone over them again with Charlotte a few evenings previously. Jane watched him as he circled her. His eyes never left
her,
and she realized for the first time that she wanted him. She wanted more than a
kiss;
she wanted him to put out the fire raging deep inside her.
''Please tell me how you know me and why you invited me here this evening,'' she pleaded when the sat down again.
''I saw you one
evening
, in the village. And I thought you were
very beautiful
. More beautiful than any other woman I have ever set eyes on.''
''Thank you, you are very kind. But my Lord, I am not of your class.'' She looked at his Roman
nose,
and his angular
jaw,
and she wanted to trace a finger along the scar on his cheek. He gave her the same look as before.
''You are mistaken Jane. You are of the same class as I am. You just don't know it.''
Jane thought for a moment, suddenly frustrated, even a little angry. He hinted at things she had no idea
about,
and he wanted her to be honest and tell her what he knew. ''My Lord, I must say you frustrate me.'' He looked at her, this time, she could see he did care. ''You invite me here, make me feel terribly
special
, dance with me, yet tell me nothing. I
feel
you are keeping me in the dark. None of it makes any sense.''
''I fear if I tell you, you will think badly of me.'' She was flattered that he cared what she thought but didn't care what others thought.
''Tell me, please.''
He wanted to take her in his arms, carry her to his chamber and strip her naked. He was beginning to get an erection at a very inconvenient moment. He hadn't realized when he'd invited her to the ball that he would fall in love with her. He only wanted to right a wrong. A wrong that had wracked him with guilt. Now he was fearful.
Fearful
when he told her, that she would think badly of him and leave.
''I invited you here this evening to right a
wrong.''
''What?'' The alarm in her
voice
already confirming his worst fears.
''
Your late father was wronged by my family
in the most terrible
way,
and I wanted to make it up to you. I would like you to marry me.''
Jane's jaw dropped. What was he saying? Was he using her to alleviate his
own
guilt? ''Marry me? But you hardly know me.''
''You will marry me and the wrong the Longford family has done you, will be righted.''
''What are you
talking about
? Do You want to marry me because you feel guilty? I have never heard such nonsense.
Marriage, my lord,
should be created out of love, not guilt.''
He felt trapped. Now he was in love with her. He hadn't expected to be, and he knew he'd made a significant mistake. He should have courted her gently, piece by piece as if reeling in a fish on a thin line without telling her anything about how her father
been wronged
. It would have been enough for him to know, she needn't have ever realized.
''Whatever wrong your family did to my late father cannot be corrected by an offer of marriage. That is
a shallow
thought. I would like to go home now, please.''
The Duke lowered his head.
*****
Dr. Brown knocked on the door. Jane was at
home;
it was her day off.
''Jane, how is your mother?'' He looked at Jane's face and immediately knew the answer. She had a black eye and a bruise
around
her neck again.''
''She can't help it,'' she said. ''And she doesn't mean it. It's the rotten illness.''
''Yes, of course.'' Dr. Brown patted her arm. ''Let's go to the kitchen for a moment,'' he suggested. Jane set about making
tea,
and he sat in one of the Windsor chairs. ''Jane you must be strong, but the time has come when your mother has become a danger to you.''
Jane's eyes filled
up,
and her lips began to tremble., ''Perhaps a few more weeks?''
''No Jane. I cannot allow it. I am worried about your welfare. I will ask them to come tomorrow from the sanitarium. Pack some of your mother's things. She'll need nightwear.''
''But it's so harsh in those places.
There will be a lot of violent people around her. I'm afraid for her.''
''It is not an ideal
place
, I will give you that. But it is the only place we
have,
and she can't stay here. Jane, she could kill you, do you know that?''
Jane didn't believe her mother could kill
her,
but she'd been telling herself for weeks that it was no longer her mother. ''Alright, but it isn't easy to bear.''
''Of course, it isn't. In a way, it's worse than if she had died.''
Jane nodded
in agreement.
That evening Jane went up to the bedroom that her parents had used. She opened a wardrobe and took out some night dresses.
She
went to the chest of drawers and opened a draw that she believed contained towels. She took out three thick
towels
and put them on the bed, next to the night dresses. She was about to close the drawer when she noticed a cardboard box. She picked it up and saw that it
was stuffed
with letters. She sat on the bed and looked at the first of them. They were letters her father had sent to her mother. She found out that he'd been an officer in the Royal Artillery and that he'd fought in the French Wars in the early part of the century.
''My love, I hope this letter finds you well. I love you more than I can
say,
and I thank
God
that every day that
passes
is a day closer to
being reunited
with you.''
Jane felt a lump developing in her throat. Reading about her father was emotional enough, but
reading
of his love for her mother, at the very moment she was to go
into
a mental hospital was heartbreaking.
She
read some more letters, all of them love letters, with
very little
news. She found out, however, that her father was on the front line, about to go into battle. There were three letters left in the bottom of the box. They seemed to have
been read
more than the others. She took the first of them from its envelope.
My love. Please be assured how much you mean to me. Without you my life means nothing.
Usually, I try to protect you from the woes of
battle
for fear of alarming you. However, I feel it necessary to tell you about what happened today. As you
know,
I am fighting alongside my good friend the Duke of Longford. We had a terrible time today. Many of our men
were killed
. It was the most frightening day of my life. Poor John has seen more than he is capable of standing and today he ran from the battlefield in fear of his life. I understand
fully
why he did so. He was scared, as we all were. Unfortunately, he was captured by our side and accused of desertion, a crime for which men
are usually executed
.