Putting his good hand on the frame of the window, he tried to hold as much of his weight as he could with it as he stepped onto Mantheria’s back, and she sagged underneath him.Sunny almost got off of her when two pairs of beefy hands grasped him underneath his shoulders and hauled him out like a sack of wheat.The movement caused exquisite pain in his right arm, but he gritted his teeth to keep his scream inside of him.He didn’t want Mantheria’s opinion of him to sink any further.
The hired hands eased Sunny down the roof of the carriage and onto the dirt road.Mantheria needed no such assistance.She climbed out again on her own and down to the road.Shame covered him like sweat.Without a word, the two men hauled Sunny into the back of the gig with Robert.Glancing down at his right hand, it was swollen to nearly twice its usual size.It was worthless, and so was he.
He watched her set the two bandboxes in the wagon bed beside him.Then Mantheria climbed onto the perch next to Mr.Walpole and took the reins.Sunny wished that he could help her instead of being another burden for her to carry.
5
Every muscle in Mantheria’s body was protesting by the time that they reached the village a second time.Her own carriage was expensive and perfectly sprung so that the jostling and bumps were minor.She felt every rock the old wagon went over and each bump in the road.Most of the time, when a gentleman or footman assisted her from a carriage, she didn’t actually require the help.This time, she did.Mantheria didn’t know if it was her bones jingling or the rest of the coins that she had taken out of the secret compartment in the carriage when she’d climbed back in to help Sunny out.Grasping her coin purse tightly, she entered the posting inn and was met by a slender woman with graying brown hair underneath a mobcap and wearing an apron.Her eyes widened when she saw Mantheria—her clothes must be in a state!
Mantheria allowed the female innkeeper to guide her to a chair near the fire.She hadn’t realized how cold she was.Or how tired.She could barely keep her eyes open.Through the thin slits of her eyelids, Mantheria saw the two large men half carry, half guide Sunny up the stairs.Then they returned for Robert, whose injury was worse.But she supposed that they helped Sunny first because he was a duke.Mantheria was relieved when Robert was also brought through the taproom.
She allowed herself to close her eyes for only a moment and was surprised when she felt a hand on her shoulder, shaking her awake.“Lady Sunderland, you must awaken.The physician, Mr.Cannon, wishes to speak to you.”
Blinking her eyes open, Mantheria saw the same matron of the house and an older man standing next to her.His hair was snowy white and reached his shoulders.His clothes were old-fashioned, but in the excellent condition of a gentleman.He swept a leg before bowing.“Lady Sunderland, I have seen your husband and your servant.Both will make a full recovery, I am certain.”
Her husband.
They thought that Sunny was her husband, and Mantheria was too tired to correct them.“Were you able to set the bones?”
“For both men, my lady,” the doctor said.“Lord Sunderland’s shoulder was disconnected, and I was able to snap it into place.The swelling has already gone down considerably, and I administered a few drops of laudanum.His arm might be sore for a few days, but no other lasting effects.”
“And Robert?”
Mr.Cannon bowed his head again.“I was able to set the leg and splint it.But the young man should probably stay at the inn or my home for several weeks while it heals.Our town boasts an excellent nurse whom I would recommend that you engage immediately.”
“Of course.Send any bills to the Duke of Sunderland.”
Mantheria would pay Sunny back, but she had to be more careful with her own purse if she was going to catch up with Andrew and bring him back to London safely.
“A duke!Why, I thought he was merely a baron,” the woman said, her mouth wide.“I should be calling you Your Grace.My name is Mrs.Amber.”
Yawning, Mantheria forced her tired body upright.“You may call me anything, ma’am.If you will take me to my room?”
Mrs.Amber put an arm around Mantheria’s shoulders and guided her up the stairs.They walked through a nice private parlor decorated in green floral wallpaper to a small but clean room with a fire already burning in the hearth.The blankets and sheets appeared to be fresh, and Mantheria decided not to worry about mites or bedbugs.Usually, her servants brought their own sheets.“Do you need help getting out of your dress, Your Grace?”
She did.Mantheria’s arms were very sore from climbing in and out of the carriage window twice and driving the gig.She doubted that she could raise them above her head.“Thank you so much, ma’am.I should indeed like to request your assistance.”
The matron helped Mantheria out of her dusty pelisse and travel dress and into her clean nightgown.“I’ll have one of the maids tidy up your clothes, Your Grace.They are too fine to leave in such a state.”
Leave.
Mantheria’s tired mind remembered the reason for the trip.“I need to depart on the first stagecoach in the morning.My son—our son—is already on a stagecoach headed to Bath, and we were hoping to catch up with him before ...”
Mrs.Amber nodded her head, making her mobcap flop back and forth.“Before he gets into trouble.Lads can be right foolish sometimes when they decide to embark on an adventure.But if you want to catch up with your son, you should take the mail coach.It is faster and makes fewer stops.”
“That would be perfect.What time does it leave in the morning?”
“Five o’clock.And mail coaches don’t wait for anyone.Not even duchesses, Your Grace.”
Mantheria would do anything to make sure Andrew was safe.“Very well.Might I trouble you or a servant to wake me up at four o’clock in the morning and help me dress?Then I can settle my account and purchase a ticket for the mail coach.”
“What about your husband?”
She thought first of Alexander.Then Sunny.
“He’s very well able to take care of himself.”
* * *