The Outrageous Lady Read online

  Lord Marshall raised his eyebrows as if he doubted such a statement and replied,

  “Will Your Ladyship not sit down? Let me offer you some refreshment.”

  “No, no, I want nothing!” Lady Roysdon answered, “and I would not have dared to disturb you, my Lord, if I had not been begged to do so by someone who knows that you can be trusted.”

  “Trusted?” Lord Marshall echoed with an incredulous note in his voice. “I cannot, I am afraid, comprehend your Ladyship’s meaning.”

  Lady Roysdon looked over her shoulder as if she thought that they might be overheard.

  Then she said in a whisper,

  “I believe, my Lord, you have a prisoner here in your house.”

  “How are you aware of that?”

  “It is true?”

  “Yes, it is true. A man was brought here in the middle of the night who is, I understand, a notorious highwayman who has been terrorising the countryside for a long time.”

  “Is that what you were told?”

  “It was and, since I had been informed yesterday evening that this might happen, I was not surprised when the felon was captured and left in my charge until he could be interrogated by the Military.”

  “Of course. Where else would they bring such a criminal, if indeed he is one?”

  “I am sure there is no mistake about that and the Military will collect him some time this morning.”

  “That, my Lord, must be prevented at all costs.”

  “Prevented? What can your Ladyship be saying? These criminals must be brought to justice and, as Lord Lieutenant of the County, it is my duty to see that they are hanged for their crimes as a warning to others.”

  “That, of course, is right,” Lady Roysdon replied, “if in fact this man is a criminal. But I assure you, my Lord, he is nothing of the sort!”

  “That is something for the Courts to decide.”

  “That is exactly what I knew you would say, my Lord, and how right you are! Criminals who prey on lonely travellers are a menace and it is deplorable that more people have not your firmness and your determination where they are concerned.”

  The admiration in Lady Roysdon’s voice was very obvious.

  Lord Marshall preened himself a little and the coldness that had been very apparent in his manner since she arrived vanished.

  “What I have come to tell you,” Lady Roysdon said, again looking over her shoulder, “is that this man is not a criminal.”

  “I have already said, my Lady, that it not for us to determine.”

  “He is in fact a cousin of mine, Harry Saville, and he was on a secret mission. This is why he would not give his name or explain why he was in possession of a certain piece of jewellery.”

  “You think that you know more of this matter than I do myself?” Lord Marshall asked disagreeably.

  Lady Roysdon dropped her voice until it was hardly audible.

  “Harry was carrying a ring, my Lord, from a certain person of very great import, who counts you as his close friend, to a lady who must be nameless.”

  Lord Marshall stared at her incredulously.

  “Are you certain of this?”

  “I was woken before dawn to see if I could save Harry from being cross-examined. I am certain that he would not reveal anything about his mission or why he was sent on it, but they would certainly be extremely curious about the ring.”

  “And you say this piece of jewellery was intended for – ?”

  Lady Roysdon put out her hand and laid it against Lord Marshall’s lips.

  “You must never know, you must never even think of the person for whom it is a special gift.”

  She gave a little sigh.

  “We all believed that he had finished with her – completely finished, but you know how weak he is! And, if Maria Fitzherbert should learn of it, she might leave him again and that would be a disaster from the point of view of all his friends, as you well know.”

  “Yes, indeed!” Lord Marshall agreed.

  “Everybody is aware how much happier he has been and what an excellent influence Maria has upon him. But as she said to me once, ‘the Prince is too much every lady’s man to be the man of any lady’. That is so true, my dear Lord Marshall. You know it’s true.”

  “I must admit it has been true in the past,” Lord Marshall said slowly, “but I had hoped – ”

  “So had we all,” Lady Roysdon agreed, “and because he is weak and you are his true friend you must save him from himself.”

  Lord Marshall made a gesture with his hands.

  “What can I do?”

  “What His Royal Highness wishes you to do, to release Harry and let him carry on with his mission.”

  Lord Marshall looked at her and she added,

  “It is the better of two evils, for it would be utterly disastrous for Maria Fitzherbert to learn that the gift had been made.”

  “I see your point,” Lord Marshall said.

  “I have no idea how much this certain lady has been pressurising His Royal Highness,” Lady Roysdon murmured, “but we both know, my Lord, that she was always greedy, always demanding more and still more from him.”

  She gave a deep sigh and went on,

  “Perhaps the ring will satisfy her – who knows?”

  “Who indeed?” Lord Marshall said heavily.

  Lady Roysdon glanced at the clock.

  “What is important,” she said, “is that Harry should get away before the Military arrive.”

  “What can I say to them?” Lord Marshall asked a little helplessly.

  “Just tell them that he escaped and on no account let them think he is anything but the notorious criminal they have been searching for.”

  She felt that he was still unconvinced and added quickly,

  “Make sure the Military do not question your servants and in no circumstances let them suspect who is involved. I know I can trust you and I know too that the Prince will realise, as he does already, what a loyal friend you are.”

  “I am gratified that His Royal Highness should have so much confidence in me,” Lord Marshall said in a tone of satisfaction.

  “The Prince begs that you will not mention the subject to him. Even in the Royal Pavilion the walls have ears and Maria might catch an echo of what was being said.”

  “My lips are sealed,” Lord Marshall declared pompously.

  “Your Lordship is a tower of strength in trouble, just as I knew you would be. I know too how very grateful the Prince will be – in fact, although he cannot tell you so, I will say it for him. He thanks you with his whole heart.”

  There was a little throb of emotion in her voice and Lord Marshall said,

  “I will release this man. Will you take him with you?”

  “Yes, I will set him on his way again. You will not let anybody be aware that I have called here so early in the morning?”

  “You may trust me,” Lord Marshall answered.

  He went to the door of the salon and Lady Roysdon heard him giving some orders to the butler.

  She waited, finding it hard to breathe, afraid that at the last moment he might change his mind or the Military would arrive before they had left.

  Lord Marshall returned.

  “I have told them to take the man to your carriage and the sooner you are away, my Lady, the better it will be for us all.”

  “Most especially for the Prince,” Lady Roysdon added in a soft voice.

  “He has a good friend in your Ladyship.”

  “I am also a good friend of dear Maria,” she answered. “You hold the happiness of both these people in your Lordship’s capable hands and, although they cannot personally thank you, perhaps one day posterity and England will thank you.”

  She almost saw Lord Marshall’s chest expand.

  Then with a somewhat old world courtesy he was showing her into her carriage, the door was closed behind her and the horses moved off.

  Only as they turned out of the drive did she throw herself into the arms
of the man sitting beside her on the back seat.

  “My darling! My sweet!” he exclaimed. “How could you achieve it? How could you be so completely and utterly wonderful?”

  “I told you I would give up adventuring,” she said, “but never have I acted a part better, never have I played a role that was so important!”

  The horses were turning off the Brighton road onto the lane that led to the wood.

  “Tell me about it,” Sir Just begged.

  In answer Lady Roysdon pulled her bonnet from her head and threw it onto the floor of the carriage to say,

  “Hold me, kiss me and make me sure that you are alive and safe at least for the moment!”

  He kissed her until the carriage swung dizzily around her and when it came to a standstill they drew reluctantly away from each other, their eyes shining with a radiance that seemed to come from a light within them both.

  “I love you!” Lady Roysdon cried. “I love you, Just, as I never thought it possible to love anyone.”

  He put out his arms and would have held her close again, but she shook her head.

  “You must go! Lord Marshall will say that you have escaped and the Military will come searching for you.”

  “It was not the Military who took me there.”

  “Denzil thought that they were somebody’s servants.”

  “They were the servants of the Earl of Sheringham!”

  “Oh, no!”

  She had half-suspected that that was the truth.

  “How did he know? How did he guess – ?” she began.

  “He loves you in his own way,” Sir Just answered, “and love makes one very perceptive about the object of one’s affections.”

  “If I had not been able to rescue you and knew it was my fault that you were put to death, I should have – died too!”

  “But I am alive,” Sir Just said quickly, “and that is all that matters. Come, my darling, you are right in saying that I must get away, for you must not be suspected of being concerned with me.”

  He stepped from the carriage and, as they walked through the wood, Lady Roysdon told him briefly the stories she had told to Lord Marshall and how she had pretended he was carrying the ring on behalf of the Prince for a lady friend in London.

  “Lord Marshall is one of those men who like to think that they know everything,” she finished. “I did not give the lady a name and I am sure that he will lie awake for weeks wondering which of the Prince’s past loves was to be the recipient of such a valuable present.”

  “That is one thing I must not forget,” Sir Just said. “They left the ring with me as incriminating evidence. Fortunately I have it safe for you.”

  He took her hand as he spoke and slipped it onto her finger.

  “You are – fortunate they found – nothing else,” she murmured.

  “Not fortunate,” he answered, “merely good planning.”

  She laughed and suddenly because he had escaped the whole escapade ceased to be a near-tragedy and became almost a joke.

  “I would love to see the Military Commander’s expression when he finds that he has been sent on a fool’s errand.”

  “Quite a number of people would look foolish if they knew the truth,” Sir Just said. “It is fortunate, as I have said before, that you have a fertile imagination.”

  “It was actually your idea, not mine,” Lady Roysdon replied. “I thought of you and you seemed to tell me what to do. When Denzil brought me the news, I found that I had not a single thought in my head.”

  “Your little Grecian head!”

  There was a note in his voice that Lady Roysdon vibrated to as if she was a musical instrument.

  They reached the clearing and found that Denzil was waiting for them with two horses and he had also brought his Master’s hat, riding boots and pistol.

  The expression of delight on his face was very touching, Lady Roysdon thought, and she could not help saying,

  “As you see, Denzil, our prayers were answered.”

  “And thank God for that, my Lady.”

  “Yes – thank God!” Lady Roysdon replied.

  Sir Just put on his boots and then, as Denzil turned his back, he drew her a little to one side behind a protective fir tree.

  “Where are you going, Just?”

  “I am not certain yet,” he replied. “I may go to Cornwall, in which case I will write to you. But I may think it is too far away and you might need me.”

  “It would be dangerous to stay around here,” she said quickly. “I shall return to London in a week or two. We could meet there?”

  “Perhaps, but I want to think it all out. I want to do what is best for you.”

  “I love you!”

  “And I adore and worship you, my darling, which is why it is agony to leave you in such an uncomfortable position and not be here to protect you.”

  She knew that he was thinking of the Earl of Sheringham.

  “Without the ring he cannot prove I have any connection with you,” she said. “He may suspect a great many things, but that is very different from proving them.”

  Sir Just smiled.

  “You sound very wise and sensible all of a sudden.”

  “That is what I want to be where you are concerned.”

  He put his arms around her and then he was kissing her wildly, passionately, frantically, as if he was saying goodbye to everything that mattered in his life and could not bear to let her go.

  Suddenly they were interrupted.

  Jake came running through the trees and they heard his voice before he came tearing towards them.

  “Sir. There are three riders coming up the hill!”

  “Soldiers?” Lady Roysdon asked sharply.

  “No, my Lady, ordinary gentlemen, and one is riding faster and well ahead of the others.”

  Lady Roysdon turned to Sir Just.

  “Go – go quickly!”

  “I will do that,” he answered, “and, as they must not find you, I will give them a run for their money.”

  He ran to his horse, swung himself into the saddle and turning rode along the path that led to the side of the wood from where Jake had seen the riders approaching.

  Only as he went did Lady Roysdon realise that he had not picked up the pistol that Denzil had laid ready for him on the trunk of a fallen tree beside the boots.

  “Your pistol!” she called. “Just, your pistol!”

  She picked it up and ran after him, but already he was out of hearing.

  She crossed the track that the carriage was standing on and which Jake had turned round while they were in the clearing.

  The wood on the other side was only a narrow slip of trees on the edge of open country.

  Sir Just was already galloping away, riding towards the Downs, but at the top of the hill he pulled his horse to a standstill and turned to wave defiantly to the riders coming laboriously up the incline.

  Then, as he rode on, Lady Roysdon looked back and saw that the leading horse, which, as Denzil had said, was far in advance of the others, was one she recognised.

  There was no mistaking the big black stallion that was the Earl’s favourite mount and which he boasted could outrace any other animal it had ever challenged.

  Now, as the stallion drew nearer, she could see the Earl spurring it, an expression on his face so vicious, so malicious, that she felt as if she must cry out at the horror of it.

  She knew that when he reached the top of the rise and was on straight ground it would only be a question of time before he would overtake Sir Just and either kill or capture him.

  It would be a matter of no importance to him that Sir Just was unarmed. He would be congratulated and commended for having gunned down a criminal who was undoubtedly trying to escape.

  Nearer and nearer came the black stallion and now, almost as if a voice told her what to do, Lady Roysdon raised the pistol she held in her hand.

  The horse’s hoofs sounded like thunder in her ears and pieces of turf were fly
ing out behind the stallion as he passed her.

  Then she fired, aiming at the Earl’s back and hearing the report of the pistol like an explosion in her ears.

  The horse galloped on, but she saw the Earl slump forward in the saddle.

  Even as he did so, she felt a hand clutch her by the arm, turn her round and start pulling her through the trees.

  She wanted to protest, to say that she must stay where she was and see what happened, but she was running because she could not help herself.

  Then she was picked up and literally thrown into the carriage and Jake sprang up onto the box. Denzil stood back from the horses’ heads and they started down the path through the wood at a pace that made the carriage shake and rattle.

  They reached the road and there was a great cloud of dust billowing out behind them as they galloped at a crazy speed back towards Brighton.

  Chapter Six

  “Really, my Lady! I don’t know what’s going on here, that I don’t!”

  Lady Roysdon did not answer and Hannah continued,

  “When I comes to call your Ladyship this mornin’ and finds you not there, I couldn’t imagine what had happened.”

  “I went out very early, Hannah, and did not wish to disturb you.”

  “You knows as well as I do, my Lady, that you shouldn’t have dressed yourself without my help.”

  Lady Roysdon had expected that Hannah would be affronted and resentful that she had not been told that she was leaving the house at such an early hour.

  Hannah was very possessive and extremely touchy about being set on one side or having it thought that her Mistress was not completely dependent upon her.

  “You’ve done some strange things in London, my Lady,” Hannah went on, determined to air her grievances, “but, as I says to his Lordship last night, there be even stranger things a-goin’ on here in Brighton.”

  Lady Roysdon stiffened.

  “You spoke to his Lordship?”

  “Yes, my Lady, he calls after you left and Mr. Fulton couldn’t tell him where you’d gone, so he sends for me. ‘I thought her Ladyship was dinin’ with me, Hannah,’ he says, ‘but now I learn she has another engagement.’