A Bright Particular Star (10 page)

Sophie realized they were being followed as t
hey
travelled
through
the
Savernake Forest some fifteen miles from Newbury
Trees
flanked the road o
n either side, forging a dense
curtain of shadows which cut out the
late afternoon sun
.
The road was still busy
—
they had
encountered
several post-chaises and carriages
—
but the surrounding
woodland deadened
the noise, creating
an eerie
,
threatening microcosm
.

S
he
had been vaguely aware of the curricle beh
ind them for some time, but
assumed
it would drop back as Theo gathered pace.
Instead, it
had matched their speed
and maintained its dista
nce.
S
he had glanced over her sho
ulder from time to time
to observe it and h
er conviction
they were being
followed grew
.

Had her absence been discovered sooner than expected?
The carriage was too far a
way
to see
it
clea
rly, but
perhaps
Perry had somehow found out
she was travelling with Theo and was
even
now in close pursuit
?

This seemed unlikely
.
E
ven allowing for Peregrine
’s
ne
w carriage, it was difficult to see how
he c
ould have caught up so quickly.
And
,
if he had managed to find her
, he would
o
vertake them rather than hold
back.
Despite the implausibility
of this theory
, Sophie could think of no other explanation.
Perry was the only person with reason and
the means to follow her.
T
he thought of an imminent confrontation
made her shiver
.

She stole a look at Theo.
An uncomfortable silence had
followed their departure from
T
he Castle.
Although she felt guilty
he had been drawn into a brawl
for
her sake, she was
confused
, upset
and angered by his manner
afterward
.
The situation
had not been of her making.
S
he could have ignored the boy
’s
plight and thus perhaps escaped Melville
’s
attentions
,
although she doubted it given the way the man had been looking at her,
but
it was not in her nature to do so
.

He
must be
regr
etting his decision to help
.
In such circumstances, it was mortifying
to have to rely on him and
if there had been another
way o
f reaching London in good time
, she would
have taken it
.
Unfortunately, she had no
option but to remain in
Theo
’s
company and endure
the
strained atmosph
ere as best
she could.

Should she tell him
about the carriage
?
A blush rose to her
cheeks.
She
did not want to appear foolish
or cause anoth
er argument, but it seemed
right to tell him.

“
Mr
Cavanagh,
”
she began, in a hesitant voice,
“
it may seem a fanciful notion, but I believe we are being followed.
The carriage behind has been keeping the same pace and distance for some miles now.
”

Sophie waited for his denial and curt observation that she had windmil
ls in her head.

Instead he replied,
“
You
’
re right
.
I
’
v
e been aware of it since shortly
after we left Marlborough.
”

She blinked in surprise.
“
You have?
I did not think you had noticed!
I-I was worried you might laugh at me for suggesting it.
”

“
I wouldn
’t
.
Despite what you may think, I do
n
’t
behave like an idiot all
of
the time.
”
Theo uttered
a beleaguered sigh.
“S
ophie,
I’m
truly sorry for what I said
.
Dash it all, I never thought I
’d
say this to a woman, but it
’s
deuced un
comfortable not talking to
you! I don
’t
like it at all
.
You won
’t
have forgiven me yet
and I can
’t
blame you but, please, can we
at least
call a truce?
”

Sophie bit
her lower lip, considering.
She still believed
he was regretting taking on the
role of escort,
but
she
was not vindicti
ve.
His apology appeared
heartfelt and made in good f
aith
.
And
it was
better to complete their journey on amicable terms, rather than a
rguing or enduring long
, awkward
silences.

“
Very well,
”
she murmured
at length
.
“T
ruce.
”

Relief lit up
his features.
“T
hank you!
Let us
then
co
nsider who is following us
.
Do you think it is your cousin?
”

“
It s
eems unlikely given the timing, but we will know soon enough
.
Peregrine
’s
carriage is distinctive.
”

Theo glanced
over his shoulder.
“
I don
’t
think we will.
The driver is staying far enough aw
ay to prevent us getting a good
view.
I’m
not even sure if he is alone or not.
”

“
W
h
at should we do?
”

T
heo shrugged.
“
Continue on to
T
he Pelican
.
If the driver had wanted to catch u
p with us, he would have
already
done so.
We
’
ll get through Savernake as
soon
as possible though
.
I
’d
welcome a meeting
with your cousin, but
not in these surroundings.
”

She studied his profile, a frown creasing her brow.
“
But
I have no
idea who else it could be other than
Perry.
”

“
Nor
I.
”
A
whimsical smile touched
his lips
.
“
Are there other secrets you haven
’t
disclosed?
Maybe you have a diamond necklace hidden in your reticule and the Bath Fox has learned of it?
”

Sophie jumped, startled by his comment.
“
I don
’t
own a diamond necklace.
”

“T
hen it
cannot be our infamous thief
.
And I haven
’t
upset any
travellers
enough to have them follow us
, other than the appalling
but
currently indisposed
Melvil
le
.
”
Theo
’s
expression became
thoughtful
.
“
Hmm, let us see how eager our pursuer is to stay with us.
”

Wit
h a
crack of his whip, Theo
urged his team to a gallop.
He negotiated the ruts in the road, i
ncreasing his speed until
the curricle was bowling over ground.
Sophie gripped the side of the swaying carriage out of a need to steady herself rather than from fear.
She had no
qualms over his driving
skill
even at this pace.
Afte
r
a mile, she thought
they must hav
e outrun the other carriage
,
but when she peered
behind her
, she saw to her dismay it was matching their speed.

“T
he fe
llow
’s
persistent,
”
shouted
Theo, raising his voice to be heard over the drumming of the hooves.
“
He
’s
got a well
-
spr
ung carriage and a good team
.
I ca
n
’t
lose
him
.
”

Sophie gave a deep groan
.
“
It must be Peregrine!
”

As
Theo slowed his carriage to
a steadier pace,
determination
gleamed
in his eyes.
“
If it is your cousin, I
’
ll make sure h
e doesn
’t
trouble you further.
H
e will not stop you going to London.
”

Sophie had to be satisfied with this, altho
ugh t
he prospect of Theo meeting
her cousin was disturbing
.
Perry was generally lazy
, but he would
be furious she had slipped away from Ludstone
.
She crossed her fingers in her lap, ho
ping that
if
they
did meet, it would no
t result in another
brawl.

They reached the toll gate at the end of Savernake and travelled through Froxfield, past Halfway House and up Spe
en Hill without incident.
By the time
they headed past New
bury
’s
main street,
the pursuing
carriage had disappeared
.
It seemed it was not
Peregrine after all, but t
his
did not cheer Sop
hie
much
.
If it wasn
’t
h
im
, then who
on earth
was it?

Theo turned his
curricle under the archway of
T
he Pelican
and it was not long before ostlers had seen to the horses and rooms had been bespoken for
the night, along with a
parlour to dine
in
.

Once in
her room
, Sophie
peered
out of the window.
There w
as still no sign of the other carriage
, leaving her
feeling
puzzled and
uneasy.
After a change of clothes and the chance to tidy her hair
, she
was r
eady to go back downstairs
.
H
er stomach fluttere
d with
anticipation at the thought
of dining
alone
with Theo.