To Walk in the Sun (Wiggons' School for Elegant Young Ladies - Book 1) (37 page)

And he had the perfect woman to stand by his
side.

“We are here. Who goes first?” Sophia asked.
She held back while Rosemary and Eliza peered over the edge.

“I will lead you down,” Wesley announced and
walked further away before he took a step down. Tess gasped. If one
did not know the path was there, one would think Wesley had stepped
off of the edge. “I am not sure it is wise the girls venture any
further.”

Vincent lifted an eyebrow and looked down at
her. “If we don’t allow them to accompany us they will investigate
on their own, which is far more dangerous.”

Tess worried her bottom lip but said nothing
further.

“I think the girls should be separated by the
adults in case there is a misstep.” Vincent addressed the only
three students who were allowed on this adventure because they were
the only ones who ever truly knew what was going on, even if they
couldn’t distinguish between fact and fiction. “You will go slowly,
stay close to the wall of the cliff. Watch every single step you
take. I don’t know when this path was used last or how safe it is.”
He glanced over at Wesley, how had returned to the top. “Wesley
will go first because he knows the path as well as I. Once he has
determined it is sound, only then will we proceed.”

They approached the path with slow,
deliberate caution. Tess looked over the edge once, her face paled
and she took a step away. Vincent wondered how afraid of heights
Tess was because they had a very steep decent ahead of them.

He bent over and whispered in her ear. “Are
you going to be alright? You can remain up here if it would be more
comfortable for you.”

“While I would prefer to keep my feet far
away from the cliff’s edge, I refused to appear the ninny in front
of my students, nor leave them with one less adult to watch out for
them.”

It was now time for Tess to begin her way
down the path. Vincent gave her hand a squeeze before he
relinquished it. She grabbed he skirts with the hand of her one
good arm to keep from tripping and moved toward the beach below.
Once she descended enough that the cliff wall was to her shoulder,
she put one right hand against it. Vincent wasn’t sure if it was
for balance or if she was hoping for a rock or sturdy root to hold
onto in the event she slipped.

Tess was much slower in her descent than the
others, but they waited patiently in the wet sand below. He would
rather she proceed slowly with caution than to risk falling and
injuring herself. After some time she reached the bottom and walked
over to meet the rest of the group.

“Now where do we go?” Eliza asked with
excitement.

Vincent pointed. “Right around the curve in
the cliff.”

The girls didn’t wait for the others and took
off toward the east, kicking up sand behind them as they ran. The
adults followed at a more leisurely pace. Tess only appeared to be
alarmed when the girls were out of sight. “They can’t get into any
trouble on the other side, can they?”

“Not unless they decide to enter the cave
without us.”

The adults shared an alarmed look and
hastened their steps. Once they rounded the ben, the saw the three
girls standing outside the opening to a cave.

“Is this it?” Rosemary called.

“Yes, it is.” Vincent walked forward and
peered into the darkness. He wished he would have thought to bring
a light, but knew further in there were some lanterns, if they
still existed. “I will go first.” He moved deeper into to the cave
and removed his glasses, putting them into his pocket. It took a
moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but soon he could
make out the outlines of rocks and steps. Once they traveled far
enough, they wouldn’t even have the outside sunlight shining into
the cavern to help.

The students turned and looked at him. “You
don’t want us to actually any further into
there
do you?”
Eliza pointed into the pitch black cavern that loomed ahead. It was
impossible to determine how deep the cave went.

“Isn’t that part of this adventure?” Vincent
grinned. “If I were seeking a treasure, I wouldn’t let anything
scare
me
away.”

He glanced up at Hopkins. “Ready?”

“I will follow behind,” Lord Hopkins
called.

“And I will remain in the middle so that we
don’t lose any of the ladies,” Wesley assured him.

Vincent looked back to make sure everyone was
accounted for. Eliza and Rosemary clung to each other though their
eyes were wide with excitement. Sophia had slipped back and grasped
her father’s hand. Tess offered an encouraging smile and nodded for
him to continue. With that, he began the assent into the damp gave.
His feet soon left sand and met stone. The path continued up,
curving away from the entrance and all light. Once he had ascended
about twenty feet, he began to feel along the wall and was
eventually rewarded when his hand hit the metal of an old lantern.
Fishing into his greatcoat, he brought out the flint and lit the
first one he found.

Light pierced the darkness and he looked
around for the remaining lanterns. Three more hung further ahead
and continued in that direction, lighting all three. Tess, Wesley
and Lord Hopkins each took one of the lights.

Five feet further Vincent stopped when his
foot hit a step. He had never gone this far into the cave before.
As a child he always stopped at the lamps, too afraid of what he
would find deeper in the abyss. Now he would find out.

The steps were steep and he continued to
climb until they stopped abruptly at a door. Vincent fumbled around
for a handle. When one was not located, he stepped back and moved
his lantern to shine on the door. He gave the handle a good twist.
It barely turned. He lowered the lamp to study it.
Rust
!
Even if there was a key it probably wouldn’t turn the lock. He
jiggled the handle a few more times. I felt loose. Perhaps it was
still possible to get into the room.

He slammed his shoulder against the door,
eliciting frightened shrieks from the girls. Two more blows and the
seal broke. He stumbled into the room. His shoulder throbbed. It
was the same one he blocked the tree branch to protect Tess less
than a month ago. Vincent rolled his shoulders to ease the
ache.

Lord Hopkins moved to the front of the line
and followed Vincent into the room. The two men lifted their
lanterns high and turned circles, taking in the old room of stone
walls and a damp wood floor. Crates lined every wall, stacked onto
each other. Most were open and lids lay to the side.

The girls filed into the room with Tess and
Wesley close behind.

“This is surely the treasure,” Eliza
exclaimed as the girls rushed forward to rifle through the crates.
They went from one to the next, their enthusiasm diminishing with
each failed search.

“They are all empty,” Eliza cried with
disappointment as she joined Sophia and Rosemary in the center of
the cavern.

“Did you really expect to find a treasure?”
Tess asked.

“Yes. If there is a map there should be a
treasure.”

Lord Hopkins turned once again and laughed.
“I am not surprised. Whatever was here is gone. Our ancestors would
not have left it behind. Maybe for a short time to avoid being
caught, but certainly not forever.”

Vincent turned to look at him. “Exactly who
were our ancestors?”

Lord Hopkins chuckled again. “Haven’t you
heard the stories?”

Vincent shook his head. Maybe in his youth
but he did not recall them now.

“Pirates, Smugglers and Spies.”

“Really?” The excitement in Eliza’s voice
worried Atwood.

“They were a small group of young men, all
within a day’s ride of here, and attended school together. All of
the families had estates along the coast so they would spend time
at each other’s estates when not in school. Eventually they found
favor with the king and were sent to Continent and other places to
spy. They soon learned that pirating and smuggling was more
profitable and while going about the king’s business they lined
their one pockets on the side,” Hopkins explained.

Tess turned and took in the room, sadness in
her eyes. “So many people dead, for nothing.” She focused back on
Vincent. “How did Percer even learn of the map?”

It was a day Vincent wished he could forget,
or wished never happened. If that had been the case, nobody would
have died needlessly. “Percer had come home from school to visit
me. My father and uncle were joking about the map piece. I had
always known about it, but not the origins. They believed an
ancestor won it in a wager, but nobody was really sure.” He glanced
around to find interested faces watching him. “They quit talking as
soon as Percer and I entered the room, but we had both heard. When
he questioned me later, I assured him it was nothing and just an
old family oddity.”

“But he didn’t believe you,” Tess
guessed.

“I thought he had until years later when his
family cut him off. He asked me a few times about the map and if I
had bothered trying to find if it led to a treasure. Soon he became
obsessed with the idea. I thought it was only the idea of a
treasure hunt and not the dangerous greed that accompanied the
intent to find one until it was too late.”

Tess reached over and clasped her hand in
his. “It is not your fault. You tried to discourage him.”

Vincent looked down at her. He knew what she
was saying was true, but had he not dismissed Percer and his
interest long ago things could be so much different now.

Eliza sighed and slumped her shoulders. “Not
even one gold bullion,” she grumbled.

Vincent laughed. “Feel free to explore. You
never know. Something may have been left behind.”

The girls grinned at each other and set off
in different directions. “What of you, Tess? Don’t you wish to
explore?”

A gleam came to her eyes. “Perhaps I will.”
She joined the girls in looking through empty crates and moving
casks aside. A moment later she gasped and reached down. Vincent
walked over to where she stood to examine her find. In the center
was an uncut emerald. Too large for a ring, but not a broach.

“See, there was treasure here at one
time.”

Tess looked up at him, eyes wide with
excitement. “What do we do with it?”

“Keep it, of course.” He laughed and put an
arm around her shoulder. “It wouldn’t be possible to return it to
the original owner, even if we knew who it was.”

The girls renewed the exploration with more
diligence.

* * *

A fortune was not found, but Sophia wasn’t
disappointed. It was a fun adventure, even though the circumstances
leading up to it would probably haunt her for a very long time.
And, she did find a pretty gold locked, which now hung around her
neck. Best of all, her father had joined them in this search.
Rarely was she able to spend time with just him, at least when they
were with her family.

Rosemary slipped a slight gold chain around
her wrist and stepped out into the sun. Sophia followed, her
slippers sinking in to the sand.

Eliza stopped and Sophia almost ran into her.
“Why did we stop?”

“Did you see that door on the other
side?”

“Yes, I did.” Rosemary fairly bounced with
excitement.

Eliza put her hand to her chin. “I am just
wondering where it may lead.”

Sophia groaned. “I am sure no place good, now
come on.”

“Girls?” Miss Crawford had turned around and
looked at them.

Eliza grinned and walked toward their
teacher. Sophia knew this was not the last she would see or hear of
that door.

Fearing no obstacles to his transports,

he embraced with all the fervor of a deeply
enamoured

and successful lover.

Wake Not the Dead

Johann Ludwig Tieck

Epilogue

Tess wandered through the grand ball room,
her hand on Vincent’s arm. Music played from a small orchestra in
the far corner. She and Vincent had broken from tradition and
allowed the students to remain following the Wedding Breakfast. It
seemed unfair of her to allow them to see her wed, but send them
away after they had eaten.

Besides the students and teachers, most of
the town was present. She could hear conversations being carried on
in English and in German and smiled to herself. It was because of
the German population the book had become infamous in their
community and Tess doubted anyone else in England had read it. That
same book had caused them to fear the man who was now her husband.
But, that was a long time ago. Once Vincent returned to visiting
town in the daylight hours, the townspeople feared him less and
actually renewed their former acquaintances.

Vincent turned her and pulled her out onto
the terrace. She looked up at him. A thrill ran down her spine.
Once the guests left, they would be alone in this house for the
very first time. With the exception of servants, of course. The
school was complete and the students and teachers, when not
preparing for the wedding, had moved their belongings to the new
building. They would all sleep there tonight for the first time.
All except Tess. She would be with her husband. Another thrill shot
through her.

He put his hand on her cheek and brought his
lips to hers. “You look beautiful,” he whispered when he pulled
back.

“You should tell Wesley,” she smiled. “He
designed the dress, chose the material and suggested how I should
arrange my hair.”

“My love, if you wore sackcloth, you wouldn’t
be any less gorgeous than you are at this minute.”

Tess sighed. He said the sweetest things to
her. How could she not love him?

“Excuse me, Lord Atwood,” Wesley’s voice
intruded on their privacy. “But the guests are beginning to
leave.”