Rory:
The sun had long since gone down and large droplets of rain had pelleted down from the sky as I made the short ride back from the fields to the house, I urged my horse on not wanting to remain in the downpour any longer than I needed to.
The lack of workers in the fields had forced me to stay later than usual and my stomach had begun to grumble loudly. When I arrived back at the manor I handed my horse to one of the stable hands and hastened up the steps of the manor.
I looked down at my attire, my clothes were muddied and damp with sweat, I wrinkled my nose in disgust as the smell wafted up to my nose. I would definitely need a change of clothes. I made my way to my room knocking on Cecilia's door.
There was no reply so I assumed she was probably still trying to avoid me. "Dinner will be served shortly," I called through the wooden door before entering my own chamber and changing out of my cloths into fresh ones.
I waited at the foot of the stairs every so often checking my pocket watch, where was the damn girl? Just because she was avoiding me didn't mean she couldn't turn up to a meal?
Hell, I hadn't even seen her today except for briefly in the fields this morning. What had I done now to make her hate me even more? I sighed in frustration, my stomach let out another growl, where was the wretched woman?
I noticed one of the maids pass by and called out to her, as she came closer I recognised her as Edna, Cecilia's lady's maid, what good fortune, she could go and drag Cecilia down here herself. "Your grace," she bobbed a curtsey and looked up at me expectantly.
"Could you fetch Cecilia for me, she has not yet come down for dinner." He nodded his head at the girl expecting her to run off to fetch her mistress but instead she just threw me a baffled look.
"Her grace went out riding earlier your grace," she said. I ran my hands frustratedly through my hair, where had the girl gone to?
"What time did she leave for her ride?" I questioned the girl.
"Around two o'clock this afternoon your grace."
"Two o'clock? But it is nearing ten now, she surely hasn't been out riding for eight hours?" I felt a nasty knot twist in my stomach, something wasn't right. "Have you informed anyone of her departure?"
"No your grace," she replied, her voice quavering.
"Well why ever not?" I growled at the girl who cowered back instantly.
"I am sorry your grace, I did not think, her grace, she often comes and goes, it won't happen again your grace." the girl was visibly shaking now. I was about to tell the girl off once more for her lack of thinking when the front door burst open and a stable hand ran into the hall panting heavily.
"Yer grace," he stooped over to catch his breath. "Its 'er grace's 'orse, it's just come galloping back to the 'ouse your grace, I've ne'er seen a 'orse move so fast." I felt the blood drain from my face and could hardly focus on the boy's next words, my earlier hunger vanishing as fear consumed me.
"It's reins were broken too and all, and the 'orse looks 'alf scared to death it does, won't let no one come near it." Oh god, oh god, oh god. What could've possibly happened to warrant her horse running home scared out of its wits.
Maybe she'd fallen from it, or been attacked. Various scenarios swam through my head, what if she was dead? God no, please, please, she couldn't be dead.
I stood frozen for a second longer before rushing from the house, "My horse boy! Now!" I shouted at the stable boy.
"Right away your grace," the boy scampered ahead of me to the stables as I turned back to the distraught looking maid.
"Get Mr Hart, send out a search party," I called over my shoulder before turning back around and sprinting to the stables.
I grabbed Arrows reins from the stable boy and jumped onto his back digging my heels into his sides and praying that I found Cecilia soon.
My mind ran through all the possible places she could've gone to when it came to me, Stillers Hill. I would check there first, she had to be there. I pushed my heels further into Arrow's sides, willing him to move faster.
As we rode across the dark countryside I was oblivious to the heavy droplets of rain that cascaded down from the sky, all I could focus on was finding Cecilia and making sure she was okay.
"Cecilia!" I called her name yet again, but to no avail. We had reached the top of the hill before long and were welcomed with a blanket of darkness.
"Cecilia!" I shouted desperately. Nothing. I rode on along the flat top looking for any signs of her when I suddenly spotted it, a small heap of purple that stood out against the blackness of the ground as the silvery moon spilled its light onto the bundle.
As I rode closer the distinct form of a woman with pale skin and dark hair dressed in purple cloth became visible.
"Oh god, Cecilia," I murmured under my breath as I jumped from my horse and ran towards the small body. Bending down I carefully lifted her into my arms, moving the wet hair from her face I sucked in a deep breath, her face was badly bruised and the shape of a hand was imprinted on her purpled skin. Someone had dared to lay a hand on my Cecilia, I vowed to make sure that no one ever did again.
I felt my body trembling in anger as I held her limp, wet body close to me. It was as if a thousand knives had embedded themselves in my heart as I cradled her seemingly lifeless body to my chest.
I would not be letting her out of my sight until the person who had done this was brought to justice. It had been a deliberate attack that was for certain, and the person would hang for even thinking of hurting my wife.
Bundling her cold body into my arms more securely I climbed onto my horse whilst sheltering Cecilia's body. I removed my jacket to place over her as a blanket, it was a little wet from the ride to the hill but it would provide her with some warmth.
I was still bristling with anger and worry when we finally arrived back at the manor.
"Somebody call for the doctor and bring a bowl of hot water to my room!" I shouted as soon as I entered the house, hoping someone had heard me I hurried up the staircase and into my room placing Cecilia's cold body on my bed.
I removed the bulk of her wet clothes leaving her only in her damp chemise before placing her under the thick duvet. I moved to sit beside her, rubbing her arms and body to generate some heat to her numb body.
A servant promptly arrived in the room with a basin of steaming water and a cloth which she placed beside it on a side table before curtseying and informing me that the doctor had been sent for. I thanked her before grabbing the towel and dampening it in the warm water and wiping her shivering body with the rag.
The doctor arrived around half an hour later by which time Edna had joined me in the room and was helping me tend to Cecilia. The doctor was a doctor Harding from the next town, he was short and thin and carried a large leather bag with him.
He disregarded my pleas to stay in the room with her and sent me out of the room so he could carry out his examination of her.
"I must ask," he said before closing the door to me, "Is there a chance that the duchess is with child?" My eyes shot up to meet the doctor's enquiring gaze.
"No," I shook my head and lowered my eyes from the doctor.
"Very well, thank you your grace." He offered me a smile before closing the door.
I had been pacing back and forth outside the door for a good hour before the doctor reemerged, his bag in his hand. He looked at me and his eyes held a cold loathing.
"I thought you a gentleman your grace," his voice was dangerously low.
"I beg your pardon?" I asked, confused by his words, all I wanted to know was how Cecilia was faring.
"I never thought you would stoop so low as to lay a hand to your wife."
"Excuse me?" I seethed incredulously, was the man suggesting I had hit my wife and then called him to aid her? "I have never and will never hurt my wife in any way."
"The scars covering her body suggest otherwise your grace." The doctor said, his lips drawn in a tight line. The scars covering her body? Why did she have scars? Where had she got them from? Outrage rose up in my chest, had someone laid a hand to her before? Suddenly my conversation with Edward in the wood came back to me, was this the 'everything' he had meant.
"What scars?" I asked furiously stepping closer to the doctor. He looked slightly taken aback and his eyes looked slightly frightened.
"You are not aware your grace?" He asked almost tentatively.
"No, I am bloody not aware," I all but yelled at the man.
"Forgive me your grace, I did not mean to accuse you falsely, I see I was wrong in my presumptions." The man quivered as I stared him down.
"Yes you were, now tell me, how is my wife and what are these scars you have spoken of?" The doctor gulped.
"She will be fine your grace, I have given her maid the necessary medicines and ointments to help her recover faster. She was very fortunate, there were no broken bones although she has a slight concussion at the moment."
"But she is well?" I pressed.
"Yes she will be fine your grace, I cannot say how soon she shall wake up, she took a nasty bash to the head."
"And these scars, what are they from," I barely managed to control the anger that flared up in the pit of my stomach at the thought of someone laying a hand, or from the sounds of it something worse, to my Cecilia.
"They appear to be from thrashings your grace, there was some bruising as well, not only from the incident today, it looks like your young wife has been treated very badly for a long time. You are lucky she is here today. From what I could determine, from a visual inspection anyway, the scars seem to be from a whip or cane of some sorts, I couldn't say for sure. The best person to ask I believe would be the lady herself." I nodded.
Why had she never told me? I scoffed, of course she hadn't told me. The girl didn't trust me as far as she could throw me, nor was it likely that she would any time soon.
I felt disgusted at myself, I had treated her so appallingly all my life, she had been privy to physical abuse as well as verbal. I felt sick to my stomach.
"May I see her now?" I asked the doctor quietly.
"Yes, yes, but she needs rest when she wakes up." I nodded quietly.
"Thank you." I offered my hand out to the doctor who shook it. I smiled at the man before hurrying past him and into my bedchamber.
I noticed Edna standing by the side of the bed crying as she watched Cecilia, her already small frame seeming tinier in the huge bed. Edna, she was Cecilia's lady's maid, she dressed her, she would have known.
"You knew," I said quietly, my voice still thick with emotion. The girl nodded her head solemnly as the tears continued their course down her face.
"She, she asked me not to tell, I'm sorry your grace." The girl bowed her head refusing to meet my gaze.
"Did she ever tell you where she'd gotten them from?" The girl shook her head.
"No your grace, she asked me not to mention them." There was a lull in the conversation.
"How bad are they?" I broke the deafening silence that surrounded the room.
"Bad your grace, but they are better since she first arrived here, marrying you must've been a blessing." The girl lowered her eyes, "Sorry if I spoke out of turn your grace."
"Obviously not a good enough blessing considering she still got hurt under my care, I am meant to protect her as her husband am I not? I have already failed." I hung my head in shame. At this point I did not care that it was a servant I was pouring my heart out to.
I sent the girl away shortly afterwards, I needed to be alone with Cecilia for a bit. As soon as the door had closed I moved towards the bed before realising I was still dressed in my wet dinner clothes.
I tossed my clothes off and unceremoniously threw them across the back of one of the chairs in the room before changing into a nightshirt.
I retraced my steps back to the bed and slipped in beside Cecilia for a moment. "I know you cannot hear me, call me crazy but I wanted to make a promise to you, right now." I pushed a strand of hair out of her face, glad to see her wet chemise had been exchanged for a fresh nightgown.
"Cecilia Huntington, I promise to protect you from now on and forever more. You shall never be hurt again by anyone, especially not that monster who inflicted those scars on your body, I shall make sure to have him hanged for touching one hair of your precious person.
I hope you know that I would never hurt you like that, not ever, I know I have a temper, and I get angry and jealous, but I would never lay a hand to you, I swear it on my father's grave."
"I'm so sorry you got hurt, I'm so sorry I let you get hurt like that. And I'm sorry for everything I've done wrong in the past, I hurt you too I know. I will change, properly, I will be a better husband, I promise. I will try, you deserve better, I'm sorry."
I hung my head. I had failed her miserably. I sighed getting up from the bed, placing a gentle kiss to the unbruised side of her face as I did so. I walked over to the small sofa on the opposite side of the room, I wouldn't take the liberty of sleeping in her bed whilst she was unconscious.
Lying down on the sofa I pulled a blanket over me and rested my head on the arm of the sofa. I willed sleep to come to me although I feared it would be a while longer before sleep would take me after such an eventful evening.
Hey guys!
Sorry for the late update - only just got back from the countryside! Hope you've all had a great weekend - please continue to vote and comment!
Much love
xxx