To Walk in the Sun (Wiggons' School for Elegant Young Ladies - Book 1) (33 page)

She shook the stupid question from her mind.
He intended to take the map pieces and kill her. Did he think her
body would not be discovered if left inside?

The opening loomed and she stopped in the
doorway. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she saw Sophia
sitting on the floor. Tears streamed down the poor girl’s face.
Tess made to go to the girl. The moment she stepped away, Percer
yanked the back of her hair and jerked her back. “Stay.”

* * *

Vincent waited for Percer to show. As the man
approached Tess, he leveled his gun on him. He was still too far
away. A smile broke on his lips when he saw Percer and Tess turn in
his direction. The closer they got, the better chance he had of
shooting the man. The chance never came as Percer kept Tess in
front of him the entire time. Where was Wesley? Or Hopkins? Why
hadn’t they shot the man? Were they too far away?

As soon as he realized they were coming to
this crypt and he knew it would only be a matter of time before he
had his chance. His heart lodged in his throat when he heard Percer
tell Tess to stop, and she whimpered. If he harmed her in any way,
Percer’s death would be slow and without mercy.

“Show yourself, Atwood. I know you are in
here,” Percer called into the room.

How could he possibly know, unless he had
been watching? But Atwood had not seen him. Maybe Percer was
guessing.

“I am rather impressed. I didn’t want to make
this too easy for you, but I knew nothing would be impossible. Have
you recovered, or are you still crippled in the darkness, withering
in pain, waiting to recover?”

Vincent couldn’t believe this man had once
been a close friend. How had he never seen the madness, the
cruelty, before? He moved to look around the bottom of the casket.
Percer and Tess stood in the doorway. He used her as a shield, like
the coward he was. His gun pointed forward. Vincent knew the moment
he showed himself he would be shot and Percer also knew he would
not risk firing for fear of hitting Tess.

“Let Miss Crawford go, Percer. She will give
you the pieces of the map and you can be on your way.”

Percer laughed. “And allow you to shoot me? I
think not. Besides, Miss Ford-Creigh is coming with me. Once she is
no longer useful, I will turn her over to the authorities to be
tried for murder.”

“You know it wasn’t murder, but an accident,”
Vincent called out. The longer they talked the more time he had to
come up with a plan to save Tess. Where were Wesley and Hopkins?
Why hadn’t they moved in from behind?

“I will grant you that. She didn’t mean to
shoot her uncle, she meant to shoot
me
. But that won’t
matter to the authorities.”

“It will when they learn it was
self-defense.”

Once again Percer’s bitter laugh rang out.
“Nobody will be left alive to tell them.”

He could hear Sophia whimper and hoped the
girl remained strong.

He glanced at the two in the door again, and
tried to judge if there was an opening to shoot Percer without
harming Tess. He caught the movement of Tess’ right hand and
watched as she slowly pulled a pistol from her pocket. His heart
nearly stopped. Where had she gotten a gun?

She lifted her arm and bent it across her
body. He remained paralyzed as she pointed the gun behind her at
the left side of her body. Tess took a small step, bent to the
right and pulled the trigger.

Percer howled in pain and shot aimlessly into
the dark tomb. Tess dropped down and Vincent stood. Shots came from
his gun and from outside. Percer’s body jerked with each bullet
before he fell forward.

Sophia screamed and Vincent rushed forward to
check on Tess who held a hysterical Sophia against her bosom and
cooed soft words to calm the girl. Hopkins jumped over Percer’s
body, ran to his daughter and snatched her away from Tess. The two
embraced for a moment and he smoothed her hair as her tears calmed.
Vincent looked up to find Wesley standing in the doorway. He looked
down at Percer with disgust then knelt down to retrieve the man’s
gun.

Tess looked at him, her face deathly pale,
but she offered a small smile. Vincent reached out and she placed
her small, trembling hand in his. He moved to assist her until they
both stood. The pounding of his heart began to slow. They were safe
and Percer was dead. The nightmare was over.

Sophia turned from her father and stepped
toward Tess. Her steps faltered and her eyes grew wide. “Miss
Crawford, you are covered in blood.”

Vincent looked down. Her entire left shoulder
was saturated with red and it spread with each second. Tess looked
up at Vincent. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed
in his arms.

Is the chamber of the grave a warmer bed than
the couch of love?

Is the spectre death more welcome to thy arms
than

thy enamoured consort? Oh! return, my
beloved,

return once again to this anxious
disconsolate bosom.”

Wake Not the Dead

Johann Ludwig Tieck

Chapter 27

Vincent cradled Tess and lowered her to the
ground. A glance at the filthy floor and he adjusted so that she
rested on his lap. Sophia and her father rushed forward. Wesley
remained in the doorway.

“Get the doctor,” Vincent barked to his valet
before he returned his attention to Tess.

He lay her back further with Sophia cradling
Miss Crawford’s head in her lap so Vincent could take a closer look
at her wound.
So much blood
. A hole marred her dress. He
lifted her forward once more. A similar hole appeared at the back,
and the material was saturated. At least the bullet went through.
However, that didn’t mean all would be well. Not only was infection
dangerous, but they were sitting in a dusty, cobweb-encrusted
crypt. The last thing she needed was dirt in her wound.

Vincent once again pulled her to his chest
and held her close. He glanced at the door.
Where was
Wesley
? Even when he did return, how were they to get Tess to
the house? They could borrow a carriage from any of the homes
across the street. It was negotiating the cemetery, with Tess in
his arms, under the bright sky that concerned him. He knew he could
ask Lord Hopkins to carry her while he retreated to the woods and
meet them back at the manor. But Vincent loathed letting her out of
his sight, let alone his arms. What if she died while he was away
from her?

No, he mustn’t think that way. It was a shot
to the shoulder, not the heart. Surely people survived this type of
injury all the time, if not most of the time. He had seen it often
enough on the Continent, when infection hadn’t set in that is.

Blood continued to saturate her dress. He had
to stop the bleeding. “Sophia, tear off some of Miss Crawford’s
petticoat.”

The girl hastened to Tess’s feet and began
tearing strips of material. Vincent took them and began to wrap
them around Tess’ upper body. The white linen quickly turned red,
but he continued to add material then pressed the palm of each hand
against the entrance and the exit of the bullet. Sophia once again
cradled Tess’ head.

“There is so much blood,” the young girl’s
voice intruded on his thoughts. Vincent glanced into her worried
eyes.

“I am sure she will recover.”

“Where is the doctor?” Tears streamed down
Sophia’s face. Her father stepped forward and placed a comforting
hand on her shoulder.

“He will be here shortly,” Vincent assured
her, though he was wondering the same thing.

“I wish she would wake so we know that she
will be okay.” Sophia brushed the hair from the side of Tess’
face.

“The pain would be agony. It is best she is
unconscious for now.”

A shadow fell across the room and Vincent
glanced up.

“I’ve found the doctor and brought a
carriage.”

A young man stepped around Wesley and
approached Vincent before he knelt down to examine Tess’ wounds.
“We can move her to your manor in my carriage, Lord Atwood.”

Vincent stood and balanced Tess in his arms.
He tried not to jostle her more than necessary. With slow, steady
steps he approached the entrance. The moment the sun was on his
face, pain sliced through his head. Behind his eyes, black dots
interrupted his vision. He took a deep breath to control the nausea
and with his head down, stepped out into the sun.

“Sir, let someone else do this. You cannot
make it to the carriage.”

Vincent ignored Wesley. He would be the one
to take care of Tess. He would be the one to carry her to the
carriage. He would be the one to see her home. Even if it killed
him.

Had he been a man and faced Percer in the
beginning, this would not have happened. Tess would be whole,
happy, smiling. She would have never been put in the position to
shoot her uncle and forced to return to the school, change her name
and hide her identity. He may not have been able to save Veronica
but by God, he would have save Tess and he would do everything in
his power to keep Percer from taking another woman he loved from
him.

When had he fallen in love with Tess? He
stopped and paused under one of the few trees in the cemetery. It
was a younger maple with a trunk that didn’t allow for anyone but a
small child to hide behind, but the limbs and leaves above offered
welcomed shade at the moment. His breathing calmed and he looked
down at the woman in his arms. Yes, he was in love with Tess
Crawford, or Theresa Ford-Creigh, or whoever she chose to call
herself in the future. He hoped the next last name was Latimer.
Tess Latimer, Lady Atwood suited her well.

With a deep breath, Vincent moved from the
shade. He kept his head down and concentrated on putting one foot
in front of the other. He could make it. He would not crumble to
the ground. He would not be sick from the pain. He would not pass
out.

Sweat dripped off of his brow and his jaw
hurt from the clenching of his teeth. He glanced up for a moment to
gauge the distance and groaned. He was only halfway there. Once
more he dipped his head to block as much of the glare of the sun as
he could and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the
other.

Wesley walked beside him and Vincent could
sense his valet’s concerned eyes watching his every move, step and
reaction. He knew that if he did go down, Wesley would be there to
see to Tess, but that was not going to happen. He would see this
through.

The ground below him was no longer clear and
began to blur. Vincent tried to focus and clear his vision, but it
was impossible. A wave of dizziness washed over him and he stopped
for a moment and closed his eyes to clear his mind. Once again he
concentrated on placing one foot in front of the other and with
each step, the pounding in his brain increased.

He looked up. The carriage was but a few feet
away now. He would make it. He had to make it. They had gone this
far.

A servant raced to open the door and Vincent
stepped into the cool, dark confines and sighed with relief. He lay
Tess on the back seat and sank down on the bench across from her.
He lowered his face into his trembling hands and took deep breaths.
The pain did not lessen, nor did his stomach calm.

Unable to warn anyone, he pushed the doctor
and Wesley unceremoniously out of the way as he bolted from the
carriage and ran behind to the shade and wretched up the entire
contents of his stomach.

Wesley stood by his side and offered a
handkerchief and canteen. Vincent wiped his face then took a swig
of the brandy. He swished it around his mouth before spitting it on
the ground and taking a drink. A moment later he was back in the
carriage, Tess on his lap and the others in the vacant seats as
they set off for the estate.

* * *

Mrs. Wiggons and Mrs. Zobard were waiting at
the entrance when they arrived. Teachers and older students filled
the doorways and watched as Lord Atwood entered with Miss Crawford
in his arms and took the stairs two at a time. Dr. Conrad followed
close behind as did Wesley, Mrs. Zobard and Mrs. Wiggons. Sophia
remained at the foot of the stairs watching them carry her teacher
afraid that was the last time she would see her alive.

“Come, dear.” Her father squeezed her
shoulder and led her to the parlor. “The others need an explanation
and you could use a bit of tea.”

Sophia allowed him to lead her into the room
and the girls made room for them on the settee. Miss Pritchard
poured a cup of tea and with a nod of approval from her father,
added a bit of brandy to it. Sophia reached for the cup but her
hands shook so much she spilled a bit on her lap. Her father
reached forward and steadied her hands and helped her hold the cup
to drink. The liquid burned the back of her throat, but she didn’t
care. After she drained the contents, she looked up at the faces of
her friends and teachers. They watched her with expectation. Sophia
promptly burst into tears and was pulled against her father’s chest
while he explained what happened at the crypt.

* * *

Vincent was pushed from the room so the
ladies could divest Tess of her dress and cover her modestly for
the doctor’s examination. He strode down the hall and entered his
own room and cracked the door connecting their two chambers. No, he
would not look, but he would listen in the event he was needed.

He could hear material rip.

“Leave the rest. I need to see her shoulder,”
Vincent heard Dr. Conrad insist.

“I suppose her chemise offers enough
modesty,” Mrs. Wiggons sighed.

“I am a doctor, Mrs. Wiggons and am only
concerned with the hole in her shoulder.”

Nothing else was said, but Vincent could hear
people move about the room.