Saved By A Siren: Spencers in Love Book One Page 23

  Elise gulped nervously.

  "Is there any chance that I might get some whiskey?"

  The doctor consented and after two generous glasses for Elise, he set to work. Again, she tried to be brave and not scream. Miraculously, she managed to only moan and cry loudly while squeezing Mirabelle's hand violently. By the time it was done, Elise was exhausted and drunk. The last thing she was aware of before slipping into unconsciousness was being carried by a not quite sober Lucien and him telling her that he was "So very, very, very, very, very, very proud" of her.

  When Elise finally awoke, she was aware of three very major things. One, her head hurt. Hurt wasn't even an adequate word, she thought as she groaned. It was as if she'd gotten stitches inside her skull. The second thing was her arm. It felt like it was on fire and throbbed angrily. The third thing she was aware of was that her husband was sleeping soundly next to her. Relief flooded every ounce of her body and she forgot about her head and arm. Elise carefully reached out to touch him.

  "It's alright, my girl. His wound is on the other side. You'll not disturb him." Anna whispered. She was just next to the bed. She must have been sitting and watching over them. "Here, drink this."

  Elise felt her shoulders being lifted and a tea cup pressed to her lips. It tasted bitter. She shook her head.

  "That's the laudanum, dear. It will help with the pain." Anna urged.

  "It will make me drowsy and I want to stay awake in case he needs me." Elise argued.

  "Hush, child. He won't wake for hours and I can't imagine what you can do for him that I can't. his lordship would want you to rest and heal. He'd be upset if he woke and found out that you hadn't taken care of yourself."

  "Fine, I'll rest but I don't want that. Could I have some willow bark instead?"

  "If you insist." Anna must have anticipated Elise's preference. She moved about the room briefly and returned with willow bark tea.

  "Thank you, Anna. For the tea and for being here for us."

  "Nonsense. I couldn't be anywhere else. And I'm just relieved that you're alright. You don't know how worried I was. And poor Holderson! He's come to check on you about a dozen times."

  "I'm so blessed to have all of you, Anna." Elise yawned. How had she imagined she'd be able to stay awake? She drank the tea and obediently settled against Gilles and fell asleep.

  Chapter 44

  Two days after he was carried to his bed, Gilles finally woke up. He wasn't sure if he'd slept because he'd been shot or because he'd been hung over. He remembered yelling curses loud enough to wake the dead and having whiskey dumped into the hole in his side and his mouth. Aside from the violent ache in his side, Gilles felt surprisingly well. He looked to his left and saw that Elise was sleeping soundly next to him. He shut his eyes and offered a silent thanks to God for letting him wake up next to her again. Gilles opened his eyes and drank in the sight of her. His eyes fell to the bandage on her arm and then the purple and green bruises that bandage didn't cover. His jaw clenched and he pictured the man sliding down the tree, his blade sticking out of his throat and blood spilling down his front. He let the image calm him. Gilles looked to the opposite side of the bed and saw Anna. She was repairing the nightgown Elise had worn the night before the attack. He smiled as he remembered the events that led to it's damage.

  "You would make my life a lot easier if you'd be a little more careful with her clothing." Anna said softly. Her head was down but a Gilles could see she was smiling.

  "I'm afraid her ladyship's to blame for that one." He chuckled and carefully pulled himself up. Anna put her work aside and came around the bed to offer Gilles a glass of water.

  "Can I get you some tea, my lord? Perhaps some laudanum? Cook has broth on the boil whenever you want it." She whispered.

  "Tea will be fine. Perhaps something a little more substantial than broth in a little bit. Every time I've been injured like this, a few days in bed and some hearty meals and I'm back on my feet in no time."

  Anna looked dubious.

  "If I'd known you were in the habit of nearly getting yourself killed, I might have thought twice about letting you marry her." She nodded towards Elise. She was teasing but her eyes were full of concern. "Thank you for saving her, my lord. When I look at what that bastard did to her, I'm glad you sent his miserable soul to Hell."

  Gilles nodded and stared at his sleeping wife. Seeing her safe and next to him was worth the pain in his side. It was a small price to pay.

  "Sir Alastair has been checking in and asked to be notified as soon as you woke up."

  "Send for him, please." Gilles took the tea she offered and settled against the pillows.

  "I'm not sure I want you worrying about anything right now, my lord. You're meant to be resting." Anna scolded softly.

  "I understand, but we have to figure out what happened here and he needs to keep me updated on any matters pertaining to the earldom. Please, send for Alastair." Gilles used his best smile.

  Anna rolled her eyes as she left the room. When she returned Alastair and Lucien was on her heels.

  "I want you to know that I don't like having you men in here while my lady is sleeping. You'll do your best not to wake her unless you want me to toss the both of you out." Anna pulled the covers up to Elise's ears and resumed her sewing.

  Lucien smiled widely.

  "She's delightful!" He whispered as he stretched out in the chair before the fireplace.

  Alastair nodded.

  "Who was that man, Gilles?" Alastair asked as he pulled the dressings away from Gilles' wound. Again, he nodded. Reassured he stood.

  Gilles shook his head.

  "I have no clue. I was hoping the two of you might have found something."

  "Nothing. No one remembers seeing him around the estate. No one in the surrounding villages recognized a man of his description." Lucien spoke softly over steepled fingers.

  "We have nothing, Gilles. We found his horse but other than being a privately owned animal and well cared for, there's little to learn. Whoever he was, he had the means to afford quality horseflesh, a fine saddle, a decent pistol and his clothes were of good quality as well. That's all." Alastair spoke softly as he paced.

  "What is it you want to do? I can see that you want to put something motion." Gilles asked as he set his cup down.

  Alastair pulled a chair close to Gilles and sat.

  "I want us all to move to London, as soon as you're able."

  Anna looked up and Gilles shook his head.

  "I think we're safer here and Elise won't be comfortable there. She'll be disoriented and overwhelmed."

  "I think I can help her adjust to Spencer Place. I would have liked more time to prepare before bringing her there but it can't be helped. And I think you're wrong about it being safer here. I can put a man every two feet along the wall and have the house under constant surveillance. No one could get within ten feet of it without me knowing what they had for breakfast."

  "I know, but we can put guards around the house here." Gilles rubbed his forehead.

  "You have good men here, Gilles. But they're just good men. They aren't trained to fight and kill. If an assassin tries to come at you, what better to stop him than an assassin? I've got a dozen at my disposal in London."

  "And it's not called Fortress Spencer for nothing." Lucien added. Gilles had to admit, Spencer Place was easier to guard. The grounds were surrounded by "the wall". Even at his considerable height, he couldn't see over it. Spiked metal posts had been built into the top of the wall to prevent any burglars from attempting to scale it. All of the windows were barred. The gate at the front was rarely closed but when it was, Spencer Place was all but obscured from view to any passers by.

  "I can't investigate as well from here. I need to be able to communicate with my contacts more directly, waiting a day to get a message answered isn't going to work. And some contacts will require me to move about the underworld myself. Before you even suggest it, I'm not leaving you all here and going myself
."

  Gilles sighed. Elise must have sensed his tension, she stretched and yawned. Due to his injury, Giles wasn't able to pull the bedclothes up as she sat. Clad in only a sheer satin nightgown, a great deal of Elise was on display. What wasn't was outlined by the clinging fabric. Gilles turned to find Alastair looking out the window and Lucien studying the fireplace. When he looked back, Anna had pulled a dressing robe on Elise and was tying it securely under her neck.

  "Sorry, darling. Alastair, Lucien and I needed to discuss some things and I'm not quite up to leaving this bed. We tried not to disturb you."

  "You should have woken me. I'd like to know what's going on and maybe to dress before I have men gather around my bed."

  Gilles felt his lips curve. Despite being abducted and put through hell, Elise still bravely made jokes to lighten the mood. And she'd called it "my bed". He liked that. Maybe they could do away with separate bedrooms altogether... Gilles shook his head and focused on the matter at hand. He took her hand in his.

  "Alastair thinks we'll be safer in London and that he can investigate more effectively from there."

  Elise was very still but Gilles could feel her pulse racing against his wrist.

  "What do you think?" She asked softly.

  "I want to think on it." He looked at Lucien and Alastair, silently telling them to drop the matter for now.

  "Why do you need to think on it? If you think Alastair is right, then you have to do what's safest. If you don't think he's right..." Elise was interrupted by a knock at the door.

  Gilles rolled his eyes. The last thing he wanted was more visitors. His brother and Lucien had already had a generous glimpse of his wife's body.

  "Enter." He called and was slightly relieved to see it was Mirabelle and The Mothers. "Ladies."

  "Good. You're all here." Mirabelle swished in. She was upset.

  "How are you, mon fils?" Maman asked as she pressed her hands to Gilles' face. He tried to dodge her.

  "Much better, maman."

  "Good!" She moved around the bed towards Elise and began doting on her.

  Madeline kissed his cheek, rounded the bed and began refilling tea for Elise and Anna.

  "What is it, Mirabelle?" Gilles asked, trying to gain some control of the situation in his bedroom.

  "This." She dropped a news sheet on his lap. It was opened to the gossip page. Lucien and Alastair moved in. Gilles read the bold letters of the headline and swore. He looked away, he didn't need to read the rest.

  Earl of Cambroke marries his own widow in hasty wedding!

  Alastair's lip curled and he got up to pace the room. Lucien continued reading, cursing under his breath every few seconds until he flung the paper away.

  "This is a problem." Alastair stated flatly.

  "No. It's filth. We expected it and right now, I've got more important matters to worry about." Gilles argued.

  "What is it? What's happened?" Elise asked.

  "Your marriage made the gossip pages and it's pretty awful." Lucien said softly.

  "Lucien." Gilles warned.

  "She has a right to know, Gilles!" Mirabelle argued.

  "What does it say?" Elise asked forcefully.

  Gilles closed his eyes and groaned.

  "It says that Gilles married the opportunistic widow of his predecessor. It implies that you are of low moral character and most likely seduced Gilles and somehow, probably by orchestrating to be caught in a compromising position, forced him to marry you. It also implies that Gilles is disgraced and embarrassed, therefor does not want to introduce you to society." Mirabelle spat the last part out. She was practically seething.

  Elise was silent for many moments and had gone pale. She nodded her head slightly but otherwise was still.

  "It doesn't matter what they think. I told you, I would protect you." Gilles squeezed her hand.

  "I knew this would happen." Elise whispered.

  "We all have to go back." Alastair said gently.

  Gilles glared at Alastair.

  "It's one thing to take her some place she's never been, away from the only place she feels safe. But to expose her to that-" he pointed at the paper, "is too much. She's been through enough."

  "We have to do something, Gilles! The two of you can hide here but the rest of us have to go back." Mirabelle was pacing too. Gilles was starting to get dizzy from trying to keep up with her and Alastair.

  "Oh, God!" Elise gasped. "You're all going to be shamed because of me!"

  "As if any of us would give a damn, Elise. We can handle that." Mirabelle reassured her.

  "She's right but it's not just us. What about your children?" Lucien added gently.

  Gilles sighed.

  "Lucien, it will blow over by the time our children are of age. We'll have time to slowly introduce her and everyone will see that the gossips were wrong."

  "You know that's not how it works, Gilles!" Madeline returned.

  "What about our children?" Elise asked.

  "They could be shunned and denied their place in society. They might not be able to make advantageous matches." Mirabelle rolled her eyes as she'd said it.

  "You know how much I care about advantageous marriages." Gillies said sarcastically.

  "But your children might wish to go to good schools and move within society, mon garçon." Maman added and she held Elise's other hand.

  "It doesn't change the fact that Lucien, The Mothers and I will have to go back and hear what they're saying. Mark my words, I won't stand for it, Gilles." Mirabelle was nearly yelling.

  "I'm sure you're all capable of handling a little gossip. Aside from that, it shouldn't effect you too much."

  Lucien jumped to his feet, his eyes were wild.

  "Shouldn't effect us much?" He was definitely yelling. He pointed at Elise. "She's ours too, you know! If you think I'm going to hear any man say anything disparaging about her and not call him out, you're quite mistaken."

  "I've had to exercise an amazing amount of restraint in the past. I've wanted to slap legions of women. I don't think I'll be able to help myself if someone says something about Elise." Mirabelle announced.

  "There you have it. We have to do something. For the sake of Mirabelle's reputation, at least. She's already on the verge of being unacceptable, her going about slapping people won't help her standing." Lucien joked.

  "Oh, but I'd truly enjoy it!" She giggled.

  "We have to go, Gilles." Elise whispered. "We have to save Mirabelle and we can't have Lucien fighting duels over me."

  "That's my brave girl!" Lucien laughed and sat down.

  "It seems I'm outnumbered. And how do you propose that we'll move safely within the ton?" Gilles sounded exhausted.

  "I can arrange security for any situation. Not that you'll need it with me and Lucien there. Between the three of us, we should be able to manage just about anything." Alastair answered.

  Mirabelle smiled and clapped softly.

  "Well, there's one good thing to come out of all of this!"

  "What's that?" Gilles asked dryly.

  "Alastair is finally going to go about in society. If he attends a few ton events, the ladies might actually kiss Elise's feet if they think it's because of her."

  "I'm so sorry, Alastair!" Elise giggled.

  Alastair looked pained. Without saying anything, he left the room.

  "Oh, my!" Elise clapped a hand over her mouth.

  "Don't worry about him. What we need to do is figure out a way to milk this for all it's worth." Mirabelle began tapping her lower lip, no doubt plotting.

  "Come along, brat. I think it's time we let them rest." Lucien said as he gestured towards the door. Mirabelle sailed out.

  "Do you think we'll be able to get him to dance?" She asked, taking Lucien's arm in hers as he laughed.

  "We shall leave you to your rest as well." Maman kissed Elise's cheek and made her way to Gilles, kissing him on the top of the head before she exited. Madeline pressed a kiss to Elise's cheek and went to leave.
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  "You will be glad to have this dark cloud lifted from over your young family, Gilles. Je vous promets." With that she left.

  Elise snuggled against Gilles' side and sighed.

  "Poor Alastair..."

  Gilles shrugged.

  "It will do him some good. Not to mention, he's quite good at dancing."

  "Is he? Then why doesn't he attend balls?"

  "You're surprised? He can't abide being bad at anything, he practices obsessively until he's mastered whatever he's trying to do. As for balls, he hates society in general. With good reason. Most of the ton is stupid and useless. He has no patience for that and he doesn't interact well with false people. Society isn't kind to him either. He's considered awkward and rude. The women of the ton are curious about him because they are convinced he hides some wild side. And despite his unusual reputation, he's still considered eligible because of his wealth and family connections."

  "Good at everything, you say? A secret wild side? I might have to get to know Sir Alastair better." Anna got up. "I'll give you two some privacy for a bit but don't get carried away. Can I get either of you anything before I go?"

  Elise laughed but Gilles could only stare in shock.

  "We'll be fine, Anna. Thank you!"

  Once the door was closed, Gilles pulled Elise closer to him and sighed.

  "You seem remarkably calm. Aren't you worried about traveling?"

  He felt Elise nod and what he suspected was a tear land on his chest.

  "I'm terrified but I'll have you and the family. And if Alastair says this is safest for everyone and we can stop all of the terrible gossip, I don't see a choice."

  "I love you." Gilles took Elise's hand and spread it across his chest.

  "I love you too." Elise whispered.

  Gilles felt a familiar warmth spreading in his chest and he knew that whatever happened, they would prevail. After all, they had already survived worse than the ton. Then again, he thought, he'd almost rather get shot again than endure the rest of the season. He shut his eyes and within minutes he and Elise were both sleeping soundly.

  Chapter 45