Captured Dreams Book 2 May McGoldrick

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.He finally stopped and glanced helplessly about the large ballroom.“I cannot imagine where she went.”“You probably frightened her off, Captain,” Pierce replied, keeping his tone light.“Perhaps I shall have the good fortune of meeting this mysterious lady another time.”“As you wish, sir,” Turner said, still looking.As soon as Pierce moved toward the terrace doors, though, Turner was beside him.“Perhaps she stepped out for air.She was just remarking on how warm it is.”With the officer still at his side, Pierce stopped on the empty terrace.Trying to appear unhurried, he looked out at the spires and rooflines of Charlestown across the moonlit river to the north and at the masts of ships in the harbor to the east.“Your elusive maiden is not out here,” he commented, breathing in the smells of the sea and freshly cut hay that mingled with the scent of roses in bloom.“Perhaps you should take another look in the ballroom.”“Indeed…perhaps.”Turner’s indecisiveness irked Pierce.“’Tis best if you go inside and ask a few of the other guests.A young and beautiful woman unescorted in a ballroom draws attention, Captain.”“Indeed, sir.My apologies.” Without another word, the officer bowed and disappeared inside.With a practiced air of leisure, Pierce casually made his way down the stairs and along the brick pathways through a small orchard.Although the guests were eagerly showing off their wit and clothes to their peers and their betters, there was no saying that some of them would not venture out onto the terrace.He did not want anyone to see him leaving.Beyond a cherry tree, the path led toward the stable yards.He paused to cast a final glance toward the house.No one was on the terrace.All was calm.Then, as he turned to go, a scream cut through the night.*****This was clearly not the time to explain anything.At the sound of her mother’s response, Portia nearly lost her grip on the railing.When Helena staggered back from the window, Portia tried to regain her footing on the trellis.As quickly as she dared, she began her descent.All around her, it sounded as if the household had come alive.The barking of dogs in the kennels followed Helena’s scream, and shouts of running servants could be heard through the open window.Halfway down, Portia’s dress caught on some thorns.Trying to disengage it, she felt the trellis begin to come away from the house.She had no choice.Tearing the dress free, she jumped, grabbing at a branch of the pear tree as she fell.As she dropped onto the soft ground, she was aware of her dress tearing and the laces of the corset snapped.Leaves and branches showered down on her, but she couldn’t stop to worry about any of it.Quickly, she struggled to her feet and started running from the window and the commotion taking place in the chamber above.Crossing the rose garden, she spied an arched opening leading out and turned her steps toward it.Then, as Portia looked back at the house one last time, she collided with a tall and very solid body suddenly blocking the archway.Stunned, she fell back, but a pair of strong hands grasped her shoulders.Portia looked up in panic, expecting one of Admiral’s servants.Instead, she was relieved to find her captor was the Scotsman she had sent Captain Turner after.Shouts of “Thief!” and “Housebreaker!” rang out in the darkness.“’Tis not what you think!” she exclaimed, already knowing that she could not reveal the truth if she ever wanted to come back here to carry her plans through.“And what do I think?”“I am no thief.” She tried to move away, but the man’s hand wrapped tightly around her wrist.She could hear the loud voices of servants coming across the rose garden.“They are mistaken.I was only walking in the gardens.I…I must have frightened a lady looking out her window.”“It must have been an arduous walk.”Portia winced when his free hand touched her cheek.She had scratched herself in the fall.He pulled a twig with leaves still attached to it from her hair.The pursuers were almost upon them.She tugged on his arm and tried to hide in the shadows of the garden wall.Being caught would prove disastrous, she was sure.Admiral Middleton was vicious enough to lock his own daughter away, and Portia did not want to think of what he would do to her if he guessed the relationship between them.“I came here as a guest.’Twas too warm in the ballroom.I needed to come outside for a walk.” Panic seized her.If he held her for another instant, she would be lost.“Please, you must help me.It will be impossible to try to explain this to them.”“I agree.You are having difficulty explaining it to me.”“Mr.Pennington,” she pleaded.“I beg you to believe me.I am no thief.Where I was and what I was trying to do is perfectly justifiable and explainable to a rational person…but not to a pursuing mob.If you would help me get out of here…”“There!” The shout was nearby.“Someone is there!”Portia glanced over her shoulder and saw men approaching.Several had torches.She shrank against him.“Please,” she whispered against his chest.He pulled her wrist sharply, forcing her to his side as he called out.“Over here.”CHAPTER 2The servants’ shouts rang out in the adjoining room and then beneath her in the gardens.Helena shrank back against the heavy curtains at the sound of the latch lifting on her door.She looked toward the balcony [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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