Prologue
"As I sat in my most comfortable chair with my favorite book, I relaxed for the peaceful evening before me. At least I did, until I heard the clop of horses' hooves on the drive. The courier who was admitted was weary with fatigue and he collapsed into a chair as I read through Percy's letter. His words left me only one thing to do…"
~Lady Katherine's Intro for the Study
Actually it did not seem like Percy's handwriting at all, but Marguerite's instead. I had seen enough of both to tell each apart, and after much thought, I deduced that it simply had to be that of Lady Blakeney herself. But why would she have so hastily written this small note:
SP in trouble. Come quickly to Rich. Bring K & M. Hurry!
M~
Percy in trouble? No it could not be true; he was here in England not France. What could have possibly been wrong? The Scarlet Pimpernel would have had glory in his own country not misfortune! So what difficulties could he have had?
"Melly!" I called to my maid frantically. "Hurry now dear girl and bring my horse to the front! I need to get to Richmond! Quickly!"
And that was it. The fine steed was sattled and I had sent the courier off to fetch my good friends, Lady Katherine and Lady Margot. If we did not make it to Richmond soon, it probably would have been too late…whatever "it" was!
Chapter 1
"Ah ladies, I am so glad you are here! Lady Blakeney has been expecting you all; follow me this way please," Jessup, Blakeney Manor's head butler said almost tearfully as he brought us inside in the study's direction.
"Odd's fish, dear Jessup, but what has happened? You look as if someone tried to attack you!" I asked my nerves growing by the minute.
"Alas, milady, you are not too far from correct. Please wait here." And with that, he entered the study doors and closing them halfway while we remained outside.
"What on Earth could possibly be wrong? And what did he mean by 'you are not too far from correct' about the attack comment?" Katherine asked, her face taking on a look of realization that this was more serious than we may have intended.
"I am not sure; I just hope that everything is better than it seems," Margot remarked, her voice taking on a hint of alarm.
However, I, Lady Faith, had no time to make my own reply (fortunate for all of you I suppose), for Jessup had reopened the doors and beckoned our entrance. It was also obvious as he held them open that tears really did appear in his eyes.
Inside the large room, sobs could be heard softly from the direction of the large wooden desk full of important documents of the Pimpernel. Lady Marguerite Blakeney sat in its chair as her young daughter Elisabeth sat by the fireplace, not knowing what was going on, pretty much like our trio. In various corners of the room were many of the league's bounders (members) except Marguerite's brother, Armand, who sat next to his sister comfortingly. But Marguerite could be anything but comforted as she rose from the chair to pace the room.
"What is taking so long? How hard or long does it take to diagnose someone? Something is wrong with him and damn it I want to know what it is!" she shouted, her anger and impatience overriding her choice for words.
As we walked into the room, all of the men gradually acknowledged our existence, and Armand, having given up since he knew not what to do, could only shrug helplessly. Seeing this, I gathered up my courage and approached Marguerite, who had turned her back on the miserable group and leaned against a wall. Gently I put my hand on her trembling arm, and once she realized who I was, she returned the embrace I offered, immediately crying on my shoulder. Then once she could walk steadily, I lead her to a secluded corner to talk.
"All right Marguerite, dry your tears and tell me what has happened," I told her simply and softly.
All she could do in reply at first was shake her head. "We do not know what is wrong with Percy yet. The doctor is checking him over as we speak, and I wish he would hurry! Percy has never acted like this before," she answered through sobs and gasps for each breath of air.
"Like what? Tell me what did he do?"
"He has gone mad! Insane even! I woke up this morning when I heard a crash from down the stairs, and when I found where it had come from, I saw Percy kneeling over a broken glass. He quickly noticed me, but I swear his eyes went dark with almost a hint of meanness to them. The only thing I could do was run; I was so frightened!
Unfortunately he followed me to our room, but for only a split second, he seemed normal again. Thinking that it had only been some wild episode, I succeeded in making him lay down. Yet, after a short time, he jolted back up and when I went to stop him, he grabbed my wrists. The next thing I knew I was on the ground, petrified and praying that Elisabeth would not wake up for fear that he would go after her as well."
By now she had completely broken down in sorrow, and I sat there stunned. I could not believe that she meant the same Percy that I had known for longer than I could remember. The unusual part was this chilling thought that had passed through my head, and I dared not mention it for fear of dispiriting her even more. Could Percy actually have inherited his mother's madness and insanity? No of course not! That could not have been true…could it?
Just then, the doctor entered with a look of despair. Everyone held their breath and Marguerite ordered that Elisabeth be removed from the room. Once that was all done, she looked to the doctor, who gave her the answers she wanted.
Taking her hands in his, he said solemnly, "I fear, Lady Blakeney, that the worst thing possible has occurred, for I can not think of any other explanation for the previous event of this morning. Sir Percy has indeed fallen heir to the derangement his mother had before him."
Marguerite removed her hands from his grasp and seemed to have to bite her tongue to keep from weeping. "Is this permanent?" she asked quite simply.
"No one could say. It may be temporary or last for the rest of his life. All you can do is watch him and keep the child away as much as possible. You know what he did to you, and no doubt if he has become insane, Elisabeth will be no different from yourself."
Marguerite nodded slowly in grief. "Is there nothing that can be done?"
"Well I have a suggestion," the doctor said thoughtfully. "Try sending someone in that he knows quite well to see if he will react any differently towards them. But don't you do it yourself, Lady Blakeney; he has already seen you and does not seem to want you in the room any time soon. Other than that, time will tell."
Send someone in that he knows quite well, eh? Well I knew him very well, and the one thing I wanted more than anything else at that moment was to help my dearest friend. Despite the possible consequences, I knew I had to do this for Percy's sake, and therefore gathering up my courage, I said, "I will do it. Percy knows me well enough, thus maybe I can talk to him."
The doctor for some unimaginable reason looked at me strangely. "Are you certain you want to do this, Lady Faith? God forbid anything should happen…"
"Sir, I have made up my mind," I said firmly. "You may all object to this as much as you please, but Percy is just as close a friend to me as he is to any of you. I have to at least try to help him, and by God that is exactly what I am going to do. Now please excuse me."
Thus without any further interruption, I exited the study and headed up to Percy's room with my head held high…and my stomach in knots! Lord help me be strong!
Chapter 2
Good Lord how I shivered fearfully when I entered that room! I had always known it to have the drapes pulled back so the light could come shining through the crystal clear windows. But now, all one could see was pitch black darkness with only a solitary candle's light burning on a wooden table, and in the one chair by it sat the Scarlet Pimpernel himself, Sir Percy Blakeney.
The very sight of him was appalling! This was the man who was known throughout English society as the Prince of Dandies, the best dressed man in all the country, but certainly not when I saw him then. His bright blond hair was completely disheveled with loose strands hanging outside of the ribbon holding it back. As he seemed to have to peel his face from the table, I saw that Marguerite was indeed right. His fascinating blue eyes were just as she had described them with all the color drained from them leaving almost complete blackness as a replacement. I could not help but notice that the look about them appeared to resemble that of an angry predator ready to go in for the kill. But those were not the hardest parts to lose.
The worst was the disappearance of his real genuine smile that was adored by those who knew it well. It had vanished! That was the most horrible tragedy of all, for previous to this sudden change in him, the slightest upward curve of Percy's lips could have softened a heart or brightened a bad mood! My heart could not help but ache immensely thinking about the fact that it may never return, but I could not dwell upon that for long. I had a job to do that I would not fail in so easily.
Percy was the first to start any sort of conversation between us as I sat across from him at the table. "What do you want of me?" he asked hoarsely as if he had only just awakened from a drug-induced sleep.
"Percy, you do know who I am, don't you? It is I, your friend Faith, remember?" I said attempting to cover his hand cautiously. However, he pushed it away quickly and pulled his own back possibly like any caged animal could have done. Nevertheless, I continued. "I do not want, nor will I, cause you any harm, Percy; none of us want to. You are in England right now, not France."
He seemed to want to cower in his chair as the expression on his face almost froze in some sort of fear, yet he still looked as if he would attack at any given moment. He really was like a caged animal at that moment, and due to that, I actually had the urge to flee the room. If it were not for his sake I would have, but no matter how terrified I was I simply had to stay. He was my best friend and he needed me now more than ever. It would have been selfish to run.
Unfortunately, I had forgotten how keen his senses were and by the sudden change of his expression, I could tell that he knew of my discomfort. Smiling unusually, he asked, "You fear me don't you? Come now and admit it."
Alas he was indeed right. As hard as it was, I remained calm outwardly, but my insides cried out petrified. "You are correct; I do fear you right now more than anything. However, I must not worry about that. We are, all people, afraid at one time or another, Percy, but if we give up due to fear, nothing good will come from the bad. You taught the league and I that yourself, and I have not, nor will I ever, forget it."
I guessed for a minute that I had touched a sensitive nerve deep inside him, for the "smile of evil" had lost its eerie feeling, and his face became awe inspired. "You are a very brave woman for coming here, you know."
"And so was Marguerite for trying to help you, which leads me to another problem. Now why did you what you did to her, Percy? She is the love of your life, therefore how could you need or even seem to want to hurt her?"
At this, that threatening glare returned to him as he spoke more menacingly. "What would that matter to you?"
By now, I had become so annoyed with him that I could not help but to raise my voice slightly. "It means a lot, Percy! You hopefully know as well as I do what is wrong with you, and you must fight it!"
"Nothing is wrong with me!"
"Damn it Percy, you know there is! You would never harm Marguerite the way you did; you love her too much for that!"
"I command you to stop this now!"
"I would but think about this! What would happen to all those who need you? Not only Marguerite, but also your league of comrades, the prisoners of France that need to be saved…and even Elisabeth! She needs a father so what will happen to her if you do not fight your sudden change?!"
"LEAVE ME BE THIS INSTANT!"
I have to admit that I jumped at that, for as long as I had known him, I never recalled hearing Percy raise his voice to anyone. Regardless of that, however, I only rose calmly from my seat. "All right then," I started angrily. "I will go, but I refuse to allow you to forget what I have said. You have to fight this and win, Percy; I know you can successfully as long as you try!"
In reply to this, he only looked at me threateningly. "I told you to leave me now."
I could not answer him then, not in the state I was in. I knew that if I spoke again, my words would indeed come out all in the wrong way, and Percy really would have tried to attack me. Thus I did as he asked and left the room, slamming the door behind me and not wanting to look back at the horror behind it.
Chapter 3
I must have cried there in that hallway for hours before I realized Marguerite's presence beside me. Trying my hardest to smile, I stood up and we walked together to the presently abandoned study. Everyone had left some time ago, leaving us alone to talk.
"There is nothing to do now but try to wait." I said despairingly as possible. "I can not believe this, Marguerite! My best friend in the entire world is being torn to shreds slowly and here I am helpless and unable to comfort him. I feel like such a failure!"
"No you must not feel that way!" she exclaimed in the same sort of tone as she put her arm comfortingly around me. "This is not your fault!"
"Nor is it yours!"
"I know, but like you, I want to help him badly but I can not," she replied frustrated. "Faith, I love him so very much, and although I know that this could have really been predicted or prevented, I too feel like some sort of failure. It just feels like somehow at sometime or another, I may have fueled him to this."
I was about to answer her, to tell her that she was wrong about what she just said, when Elisabeth walked into the room. For a moment, we tried to ease our fears, calm our nerves, and smile falsely. Lisa, as we called her, was always a help to feel better, but even she, whose usually grinning face had formed a frown, could not completely erase our anxiety.
"My dear one, what is it? You look as if you are distressed," Marguerite asked her as she took her up onto her lap.
"Maman, what is wrong with Papa?" I had to give her admiration as she said that. It seemed so phenomenal to me that at such a young age of about three years, Lisa had such a keen sense of observing all the things and events occurring around her. But I also noticed the tears began to well up in Marguerite's eyes once again as she spoke. I even grew a little misty myself.
Her voice all choked up, she tried to answer her daughter as casually as possible. "Your papa is not feeling well, sweet one; he is, in a way, quite ill right now."
Not even all of Marguerite's years as an actress could have helped her with that answer, for now Lisa spoke even more fearful than before. "But he will get better again won't he?"
That had done it! Marguerite looked to me sadly as tears rolled from both of our eyes faster than the heads of prisoners eaten by Madame Guillotine over in France.
"We do not know if he will be well again, Elisabeth," she said in full sobs and using her daughter's full name to show how serious the situation was without having to come right out with it.
But that did not matter anymore. All the small child could do was look at us, her blue eyes that once had resembled those of her father went wide with sadness and horror. After a moment of silence, she asked piteously, "Maman? It is all right…to cry…isn't it?"
Holding her close, Marguerite's own tears came even harder. "Of course it is, ma petite, of course…" The last of her words were lost as her voice caught in weeping grief.
Lisa in the meantime had wrapped desperate arms around her mother's neck and soaked her shoulder with teardrops. Marguerite only held her closer as I, having wanted to help them, touched her arm and caressed Lisa's back soothingly at the same time.
Feeling that I could do no more, I turned my head up to face the heavens. Lord, I prayed inside my head, help Percy return to his normal state before everything goes awry. He has a family that needs him as does those he helps as the Scarlet Pimpernel. Help us all to be strong enough as he fights his way through this, I beg you…And the rest was lost to grief as all thought flew from our heads through our sobs. What else was there to be done?
Chapter 4
Time seemed to slowly drag on without the presence of Sir Percy Blakeney at any of the grand galas and when the time came for the annual ball my Lord Grenville had always hosted, what usually would be a day of exciting preparation seemed a dull agony of discomfort and displeasure. Even Melly appeared to have caught the contagious feelings of sadness as she pulled my damn corset tighter, and while I used to groan and complain, I could do nothing but think of how lonely the night ahead was going to be.
Coming to the decision of walking my way to the ball that evening, I left rather a bit more early than usual. The air, I thought, would do me good, but my mind could not pull itself away from the misery of the past month no matter what I had tried. The memories of seeing Percy in his dandified outfits, Marguerite in all her beauty and glory eventually taking a liking to his little ditties, and more recently the adorable sight of the Pimpernel heiress trying to mimic every move her father made. And if they were not so tortuous, the most agonizing of all things crossed my vision's path as I neared the side of the road, a few small pimpernels, all scarlet in hue.
My feet must have been the cause of my walking to the wild flowers, for the last thing I had wanted to do was be near them. Nonetheless, I kneeled down beside them and with a mist forming over my eyes, I began to pick them roughly out of my anger. How could this madness and misery come upon the most wonderful man alive? Percy was my dearest of friends and the most brave of them as well, and of all people, he was the least deserving of the fate that had come upon him!
My tears finally beginning to fall, I buried my face in my hands, and remained in my hunched over position for who knows how long! But after a few moments, I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder, and I whirled around fearfully to see whom it belonged to. To my surprise, it turned out to be another acquaintance of mine.
"Leggett my dear friend, you gave me quite a fright!" I remarked with a laugh as the man himself helped me rise to my feet.
Sir James Leggett was a fellow member of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, and despite his shy character, he was one of the few people I knew in high society with a good heart. With his fair hair and young features, he always reminded me of an innocent little boy, but was never one to allow any sad feelings go unchanged.
"Lud, I do apologize for that, milady, but do you really think that I as a gentleman would let a pretty girl like you attend a ball without an escort?" he replied laughing along with me, and for once since Percy's transformation, I had felt my emotions turn completely around in the other direction.
"My dear sir, I would be honored!" I accepted linking my arm with his as we made our way to the ball together.
"Now may I ask, milady, what on earth you are even doing out in this blasted weather to begin with?"
"First of all, my friend, you should have known by now that you may use my name instead of the whole milady bit," I answered scolding him with maternal sarcasm.
"I apologize again, Faith, but then I must insist that you call me James."
"Fair enough call, that! But to answer your original question, what else must one do when the life of a close friend is in total jeopardy?"
"Ah! That I can understand, for you know that I sympathize with you."
"I never doubted that for a moment, James."
For a split second, I thought I could see him smile as I said his name, but I decided against asking him. Englishmen were known during that time to never want to reveal their true feelings, and as much as I wanted an answer, politeness overrode my curiosity as we continued to the ball in silence.
* * * * *
"Sir Leggett and milady! I did not know you were arriving together!" Lord Grenville exclaimed as we entered arm in arm, and I blushed.
"My Lord Grenville, we would have done so separately, but as the gentleman I am, I would never have just let her come alone!" James answered on my behalf and I mouthed a thank you.
"Oh in that case, good show, lad! Now go on and enjoy yourselves!"
I would have left it at that, but a thought had only just occurred to me. "My Lord Grenville?" I shouted returning to his side. "Could you tell me if Lady Blakeney has arrived yet?"
"Lady Blakeney? Of course she has arrived, her daughter as well! Charming little thing she is, that child!"
With a smile of gratitude, I excused myself from him and returned to my self-proclaimed escort. "Milord would you be insulted if I said that I must leave you for a while?"
"Not at all, milady Faith! I myself was about to ask you the same since I have been challenged to a game of Hazzard by our friends, Ozzy, Elton and Hastings. Shall I join you later?"
Now that had surprised me! "Of course if it pleases you."
" 'Til later then," he answered with a bow and kiss to my hand before he left. For a moment I could only watch him leave, but as my senses returned, I made my way around the large ballroom searching for Marguerite.
It was not hard to find the most petted woman in all society for in her most beautiful of gowns, Marguerite Blakeney stood out like a rose surrounded by weeds. I had seen enough of her however to be able to tell the smile she wore as she presented Elisabeth to the other women was one of a great actress than of a genuinely happy woman. Nevertheless, I had to speak with her about Percy or else I would have died from lack of news!
"Pardon my asking ladies but may I steal both of the Blakeney women from you for just a moment?" I shouted with a polite curtsey.
As they all agreed and slipped away to other parts of the room, Marguerite exaggerated her greeting to throw off suspicion, for she was talented when it came to doing so. "My dear Faith it has been far too long!"
"Undoubtedly I return your feelings, m'dear, for I do have a surprise for the younger Lady Blakeney that I have been meaning to give to her!"
As she had been hiding behind her mother's skirt the entire evening, Elisabeth finally began to look up as she recognized who I was. "What kind of surprise?"
"I believe I had made a promise to show you a real pimpernel for quite some time!" I replied as I knelt to give her the flowers I had gathered from the walk. As she smiled her thank you for the simple gift, I had continued. "Now little one, why not show them to our friends in the card room? I am sure they would love to see them while I speak with your mother. Will you do that for me?"
A quick nod was enough to suffice as she made her way out of the room with the directions I had given her and both Marguerite and I watched with amused smiles.
"She is growing up so fast!" I heard Marguerite comment with a sigh before we faced each other at last.
"Marguerite, you know that was not the only reason I came over," I replied bringing her back to reality with a frown to match.
"He is not getting any better, and I regret to say that I doubt he ever will," she explained, a choke in her voice to give every feeling away.
"Nothing has changed at all?"
"Not since the last time I had checked."
I gave her an admonishing look to accompany my words. "Marguerite, you did not go back in there?"
"I had to!" she argued. "I could not bear to be away from him, insane or not!"
"So what happened when you did?"
With a quick breath to prepare herself, she spoke quietly. "Just the other day, I had been passing his rooms in the "forbidden" wing, and my heart had overruled my head in deciding to open the door and see him. As I walked into the room, he looked up from his table and said nothing, but I could tell that he wanted to give me a soundest thrashing the world could ever know. However I would not let that stop me from seeing the man I love; if he had to be in agony, so would I."
I could hear her voice begin to sound as if she would begin sobbing right then and there, and I brought Marguerite out to a secluded hallway as I made up my mind's decision to not give this display to an audience.
"All right, this may be a better place to talk, so continue if you will."
Once again, she breathed and spoke again. "I had managed to sit beside him with my prayers to keep me brave, but the look he gave me seemed to scream "Get out!". Not being able to control myself, I reached my hand to his shoulder and luckily he allowed me to touch and hold him. My God, Faith I had never felt him be so tense and angry in the entire time I had known him, but nothing frightened me more than…"
The poor dear had finally broken down as she tried to finish her sentence. "More than what Marguerite? You can tell me."
"I felt him change position in the chair and for a moment I thought nothing of it. However as I heard footsteps in the room, I had looked up and found that Elisabeth had followed me, and sweet Lord above my heart pounded its way right up into my throat."
"He did not harm her, I trust?"
Her expression altered at this and her eyes took on a rather entranced sort of look. "I thought he would but as he saw her, I could have sworn I saw him gain a bit of color back into his pale face, and for a second I could only watch in fear, praying that he would not do anything to her. But his eyes, Faith, his eyes! When he saw his little girl right there in front of him, I swear to you he could have been normal again!"
For a second our expressions shared her intrigued look, and it was then that it hit me! The one answer that could possibly have assured us our victory over the madness of Sir Percy!
"Marguerite, meet me here with Elisabeth in an hour! We must get back to Blakeney Manor as soon as possible!"
"Why? Is something wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong whatsoever! I think I may have the cure for Percy's insanity! We may have won after all!!"
Chapter 5
I had to admit that all of us, Marguerite, the league and I, were a little more than a bit nervous, for everyone must have been holding his or her breath as we stood outside Percy's door. Nevertheless if Percy was going to change then this was certainly the way to do it.
I remembered that night at the ball that Marguerite had said that the moment Lisa entered his room, Percy had somewhat changed back to normal, and that had struck the nerve in me to come up with this plan. If there was anything that Percy loved, besides Marguerite of course, it was his daughter and his other life as the Pimpernel, and in some unusual way, the madness had seemed to blind him from that. Therefore, we would simply have to show him what was missing from this insane lifestyle in order to bring him back to his former self.
"All right, little one, you know what to do?" I asked as the brave little child nodded, and I could not help but think of her father. Elisabeth was just like him in every way with their matching blue eyes, their warm smile, and their inability to give up…and that is why I knew this plan would work. Neither father nor his daughter was going to back down.
"Are you certain that you want her to do this?" Marguerite suddenly burst out, protective maternal instinct forcing her to grab her child back to her and away from the door she was about to enter.
I smiled reassuringly. "It will be all right; I shall not leave her for one instant, and nothing will go wrong." As she continued to keep her strong grip on Elisabeth's shoulder, I asked, "Do you or do you not want Percy normal again?"
"Of course I do, but I also do not want my daughter harmed," she stated firmly, not loosening her hold but tightening it. I was about to reply again, to convince her that I had every detail under my control, but I did not have the chance. Elisabeth spoke up with her innocent voice instead.
"I can do it, Maman," she said, her tone sounding so much more grown up for her age. "I can make him all better again. Please let me try!"
The mother in question could only kneel down to her daughter's height as she stared into those youthful eyes of hers. "Mon ange, do you really believe that you can do this?" Elisabeth simply nodded as Marguerite lowered her head in defeat. "You are as stubborn as your father," she said with a laugh. "And that is why I know that I can not stop you." Before releasing her to me, Marguerite kissed her small forehead quickly. "Sois prudent, ma fille!"
And then after a quick embrace, Elisabeth walked over to me, and, grasping my hand nervously, we walked into the room ready to face the moment of truth.
* * * * *
I really can not have recounted if the room had looked better or worse, for once again, there was absolutely no light inside whatsoever. Percy as usual was seated at his precious table hiding from the entire world as we entered, and at the sight of him, the poor child at my side let out an all too audible gasp. Thus, upon our arrival, the man we were attempting to help looked in our direction.
He said nothing and could only stare at me, I guess ready to express his desire to throw me out as he did not so long ago. Fear flooded my body once again while his eyes seemed to pierce into my soul and not even acknowledge Elisabeth who could only hide behind me in terror.
Slowly Percy rose from his seat as time passed. Never before in my life had I ever seen him look so completely disheveled outwardly and worn internally, and as he moved closer, the urge to run that I had the last time I saw him returned slowly but surely.
Squinting his eyes to adjust his vision, he laughed rather maliciously. "Oh it is you! How did you get in here?"
"I opened the door, genius!" I answered sarcastically, for no matter how afraid I was, I refused to show him that. "But this time I brought a visitor who wanted to give you a gift. Lisa? You may speak with him now." At this I nudged her forward with a supportive nod.
Returning it slowly, Elisabeth walked cautiously towards him, and the sight could not help but amaze me. The girl had not yet appeared to have inherited Percy's towering stature, making her the little David to his Goliath, but despite that she stood up to her fullest height, attempting to show no fear.
"Papa? Do you know me?" she asked with a timid shake in her voice, and after not receiving any reply, she continued. "I…I brought you a present!"
Percy could only stare clueless at the child before him as she handed him the pimpernels I had given her previously. Nonetheless, he accepted them, grunted a thank you, and headed back to his table…but he never made it.
With tears in her eyes and not heeding my warnings, Elisabeth ran to her father with desperate arms clutching his knee.
"Papa please!" she cried refusing to let go. "Papa why do you not see me? I am here! I am here next to you! Why can you not see?"
Good Lord I still to this day do not know what frightened me more: the fact that the innocent girl tugging at Percy's leg might not have had a father anymore if we failed or that he may severely snap and do something to hurt her.
I would have continued my attempt to intercede, but then I noticed Percy look down to his daughter with a confused expression forming over his strong features. Elisabeth must have caught it too, but as she nervously began to back away, he bent down to place his hand on her shoulder. Her tears began flow freely and audible cries were the only sounds filling the room…as Marguerite, the protective mother that she was, ran in to get her child.
"No!" she screamed, struggling to get away from the hold I had on her. "Let me go! Percy stop!"
Percy looked up in his wife's direction before clutching his head so tightly as if it was ready to split open in two and his knees unbuckled under him. Moments on end passed as the three of us watched mystified…until his head rose again and his eyes met those of the girl in front of him. With a smile forming over his lips, his hand rose to trace her cheek gently.
"Oh Lisa, my sweet, why do I see tears coming from your eyes?" he asked with comforting good humor, and I doubted that we had ever been more happy to hear that annoying tone he was well known for! "Is the sight of my preposterous appearance so completely horrible that my own daughter should cry?"
"Percy?" my ears caught the simple whisper of his name from Marguerite, and I realized that I was not the only one who was thrilled with excitement. Nevertheless, the man in question looked to her again, but this time he stood and as if some force between them were pulling them together, husband and wife met midway in their moving across the room.
I never remember Marguerite looking so deeply into her husband's eyes as she had the moment they were but inches apart. Her hands slowly ran up his arms until finally they reached his face, caressing it with all the tenderness of the world. Closing his eyes as if to savor every moment, Percy covered them with his own and drew her palms to his lips, and the woman before him allowed her tears to flow and smile to shine as she embraced him ardently.
Elisabeth in the meantime had joined me in my place, tugging at my dress to express her need to be picked up. Growing a bit misty myself, I laughed slightly as I did so, and we left and pretended to turn away as her parents shared a long awaited kiss.
"I did good didn't I?" she asked with a proud smile.
Laughing even harder, I answered, "You most certainly did, little woman! I offer my thanks on a job well done! Name your price since you most definitely deserve it."
At this, she looked thoughtfully at me with a mischievous smile that undoubtedly she had inherited from her father. "Well I want to see Papa for a while, but until he comes down, the kitchen will be a good choice."
* * * * *
My carriage must have been waiting for the longest time by now, I realized as I walked outside to go on my way back to London, but it would have had to wait longer as I heard my name being called behind me.
"Faith wait!" Percy's voice carried over the walk.
Turning to greet him, I smiled politely, "Blakeney, you must forgive me, but my driver is unquestionably getting impatient with me! I do not want to keep him any longer!"
"This shall only take a moment! I feel I need to say this face to face."
"Odd's fish, I suppose another quick minute will be just fine. What is it, my friend, that can not be said through a letter?"
"I simply wanted to thank you for all your help in this matter. I do not remember going mad, but for some reason I know that I did. Now that it is over, I want to give my gratitude for your assistance to not only finding the solution, but also to your kindness to my family."
"Percy, anyone would have done as much, and you are more than welcome. A man like you certainly deserved any help another person can offer, for you have already given enough. You needed some in return and I gave it to you."
He smiled warmly in reply and after giving me a gentle nudge in the chin that friends share, we embraced quickly. "Say good bye to both the Blakeney ladies for me, will you?" I added as he helped me into my carriage.
"Indeed I will; Godspeed my friend!"
* * * * *
That must have been the longest night I had ever been through in my life I had decided when I made it home, and Melly assisted me in changing for bed.
"Sir Percy is well again, milady?" she asked quietly, possibly as tired as I was.
"Thanks to that little angel of a daughter he has, he most certainly is!" I answered rather happily despite my fatigue.
"They are indeed the most closest of pairs, and I hope they remain that way!"
"Oh they will; I shall bet everything I own on that!"
With a small laugh and yawn, Melly turned to leave, but not without whirling around to hand me the paper she held in her hand.
"Before my silly mind forgets, milady," she explained, "A gentleman asked to give you this."
"Did he leave a name, Melly?" I asked taking it to read.
"Not that I can remember."
"All right, you may go to bed; I shall take care of this from here."
"Very good then; good night, milady!"
"Good night, Melly!"
A yawn creeping up from my throat, I determined that even if my candle must burn for a little while longer, I simply had to get into bed before I did anything else. Once under the cool sheets, I broke the seal on the back and began to read:
My dear lady,
I know this was a wretched hour to send you this small invitation, but since you left so early that night of Lord Grenville's ball, I had not a chance to ask you. There is a garden party occurring fairly soon at the home of our dear friend, Andrew, and I thought I might ask to escort you there as I did the night of the ball. I should hope that you accept.
Your humble servant and friend,
James
I do not think I realized I had smiled until the very end of the letter, but indeed I did! After all, to think this lucky time came from simply the madness of Sir Percy was the silliest thing I had ever tried to comprehend, but it was true. Deciding to relay my agreement in the morning, I placed the note on my side table, and blew out my candle. That party was indeed going to be interesting, but that is a story for another day!
The End!