Linna : Historical Romance (The Brocade Collection, Book 5) (9 page)

“She’ll bring the soldiers with that screech
! Come, Blight! Leave her!”

The little man was running away, the scarred man on his heels
. Linna bowed her head and shook as she watched the scalding trail of tears blot her dress. Why would there be tears? She didn’t cry. She never cried. She wasn’t going to cry for any reason or for anyone. Ever.

“What’s this, young lady
? You need help?”

Linna caught the sob and looked up into her brother’s face.

“You! What are you doing here?”

Since they said it in unison
. That would have been amusing if Linna wasn’t shaking with the relief and emotion. She wiped at any remaining tears as he put his hands on his hips and blew out a sigh.

“Well, look
. If it isn’t Linnette Daniels, in all her grown-up glory. Color me surprised. You’ve turned into a beauty.”

“I always was,” she replied
. Her voice was still trembling, but she didn’t feel any further tears. That was a relief.

“Only my little sister would be fighting off admirers in pre-dawn like the cheapest doxie
. You gave as good as you got, I trust?”

“Of course
. I’m a Daniels,” she replied, lifting her chin and sliding the dress straps back into place at the same time.

He grinned
. “Well said. So...what are you doing here?”

“Well, I
—I was attending a ball...and I over-stayed my welcome.”  She stammered through the words. As lies go, it wasn’t a very good one. And she was a pathetic liar.  

He looked her over, then shook his head
. “Ryan will have their heads. And yours. Remind me of that story when you try to pass it off to him, will you? He doesn’t take to lies as easily as I do.”

“It’s the truth, Vince
. I swear. I drank too much, and next thing I know—”

“Spare me
. I haven’t got time for this, anyway. I have to get back aboard.”

“Aboard?”

“Shipping back to the island of Nouvelle Larroque. Got me a big plantation job. Big pay. Lots of opportunity. The wife likes me, too.”  He winked at her. “She likes me a lot.”

“I’ll bet
. She probably won’t like your visits to bawdy houses, will she?”

“Bright girl
. No wonder Mother sighed over you.”

“Uh, Vince...there’s something you probably should be told
. Mother...well, she—” Linna began, only to be interrupted.

“I haven’t the time for family reunions
! Weren’t you listening? We ship out at first tide.”

“But
—”

“I’ll be late
. They won’t hold the ship, either.”

“You won’t even see me home
? How chivalrous.”

“To the Daniels plantation
? Do I look stupid? Ryan will shoot me on sight. Or, I might shoot him. Either way, it’s too far.”

Linna winced
. “Not there.”

“No?” he prompted, lifting his brows.

“I’m staying...in town. I’d rather be disowned than go with him.”

“If I called you bright, I was mistaken.”

“Well, you did it and didn’t come to much harm.”  Linna thrust out her jaw.

“I’m a man
. I have avenues open to me that you don’t. Speaking of which, you aren’t...employed, are you?”

Linna rolled her eyes
. “Do I look like a fancy girl to you?”

He looked her up and down
. “I probably should have fought them over your honor, I suppose. I failed at being a son and then at being an older brother. Lucky me. Have you got a cloak, at least?”

She shook her head.

“Take mine. I haven’t time to see you home, but I’ll find you a driver.”  He untied it and tossed it at her. Then he stepped back and turned his head to call out. “You there!”

“Can’t you, at least, see me back to St. Charles Avenue?”

He turned back and his eyebrows lifted again. “You staying in the
Faubourg Ste. Marie
? The new section? I take back my comments over any lack on your part. Shows ingenuity, spirit, and a good sense of avarice. Good girl. Make him pay for everything. Start an account at the bank. Don’t spend any of your own funds. Did I leave anything out?”

“I’m staying with Rhea,” she replied
.  

The cloak was heaven-sent, she decided, pulling it close about her
. Vincent was more than nine years her senior, she hadn’t seen him in years, yet she still recalled his scent. Linna breathed deeply, then looked up.

“With Drake Taggett
? What kind of fool would send you there? The man’s a lecherous snake. His reputation bars him from several of the finer houses of um...well, I’ll leave that to just lie there. You couldn’t possibly be staying with him, and I can’t possibly be standing here talking about whores with my little sister. This is a strange morn. I have to go. My ship’s sailing and I’ve little enough time. Here. Here’s a Gilbert silver. All right. Two. See her to the Taggett house. Do you know the one?”

He spoke outside her carriage, then stuck his head back in
. “You appear to be in luck, Lin. He may know the house. ‘Pink paint and lots of fancy iron scrollwork?’ he asks.”

She nodded.

“Good enough. Try to stay away from the docks, Linna. The men here aren’t your type. I should know. I’m one of them.”  He tossed his hat back on his head and grinned.

“Vince, wait!”

He stopped the motion of shutting the door and waited. Linna put her hand on his. “It’s not what it looks, honest. I wouldn’t do that to the Daniels name.” 

He looked her over
. “Right. Nobody with eyes would believe that,   Linnette Marie. Running about the docks in the early morning with very little clothing on? And completely unaccompanied? If I hadn’t seen it, I wouldn’t have believed it.”  He shook his head. “Stay away from these kinds of men. Promise me.”

“I was with my
fiancé,” she answered.

“
Fiancé, eh? Anyone I know?”

“His name is...Raoul
. Raoul Larroquette.”  Despite her every effort, Linna blushed through the name.

Vincent’s eyebrows rose
. “Larroquette, eh? Small world. Does he live on Nouvelle Larroque, too? Never mind this! I haven’t the time and if I miss my ship, I’ve lost my pay and a very fancy girl, if I do say so, myself. Raoul, you say?”

She nodded.

“Never heard of him. Tell the man to take better care of his property. I’ve got to run. Say hello to Rhea and the lads. Give my love.”

He had the door shut before she could answer and Linna slumped back against the cushions
. She hadn’t told Vince about the family troubles, but that was the least of hers at the moment.

She still had to sneak back into the Taggett house
.

CHAPTER NINE

She had her pathway to the house ready in her mind before they arrived
. As it was past dawn and all the staff was about, it took every bit of her ingenuity to sneak through the ironwork gates and to her room. Only the midwife saw her from the street and that only because she looked out the window at the wrong moment.

Linna shrugged the woman’s censure off
. She already knew what Rhea’s midwife thought of her - what everyone did. It wasn’t going to bother her another moment. She was escaping! She had a fiancé who was purchasing a special license and readying for their journey. Rhea would certainly be surprised, and that was before seeing him! As would her husband, Drake-the-snake. Linna closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before sliding further along the wall, using the shadow of the upper balcony as well as hiding from the height. It was a good thing she was in a room off the servant stair. They wouldn’t have that door locked.

I’m free
! she told herself again.  

All she had to do was ready herself for his arrival
. And rest. Linna sighed in relief as she gained her room and crossed to the bed. She hadn’t gotten much sleep. She could order a bath and sustenance for later. Raoul probably wouldn’t come for her before noon. She’d give him that much time.

Linna yawned as she watched the ceiling
. She wouldn’t sleep the entire time. She’d wake before he came, she’d pack. She’d have everything ready so he wouldn’t have to wait. She knew how to be the perfect wife. Raoul would have no complaints.

She certainly didn’t
. Linna hugged herself again, lay on her pillows, and didn’t remember sleeping.

“Linna? Are you there? You’ve been asleep all day. We would have awakened you earlier, but I told everyone to let you sleep. May I come in?”

Linna jerked
awake. She didn’t know what time it was - surely past noon. She rubbed at her eyes as she sat. She wasn’t in her ball gown anymore. She was in one of her nightgowns, buttoned to the chin, and tucked in her bed. She wondered when that had happened.

“I’ve waited to talk with you all day and I can’t wait a moment longer.”

“Come in then. It’s your house,” she answered crossly, pushing the covers away while she sat. She couldn’t possibly have been in bed all day, could she? What of Raoul? Had he come for her? And what would they have told him?

Rhea entered holding a lamp, a servant girl on her heels.

“We’ve brought you a bit of sup. Put it there, please.”  Rhea waved to a small table.

“Sup
? Surely it’s not that late.”

“It’s near seven
. Sundown is less than an hour away.”

“Sundown?”  Linna felt the quiver of what she recognized as fear in the pit of her stomach
. She swallowed it away. Fear was for spineless women - like Rhea. She turned her face away so her sister wouldn’t spot the disgust that was probably written over it. “You...didn’t wake me? Why not?”

“You were exhausted
. I had you undressed and it’s by the grace of God it was Midwife Jenkins assisting. I quail at what anyone else would have said at the state of your attire, and your...general condition.”

“So?”
she countered.

“Well, you
—uh. You didn’t even stir the entire time.”

“What did you tell him when he came for me, then?”

“Who?”

“I don’t have time to talk
. I can’t take time to eat either,” Linna replied, covering the floor to her armoire before the servant girl reached the table. “I have to get ready. You let me sleep the day away when he was arriving at any moment?”

“He who?”

Linna tore the nightgown over her head and started tossing on underthings. She didn’t look to see what expression either woman had. She didn’t care. Caring was also for women like Rhea.

“What are you doing
? You don’t need to dress. It’s nearly bedtime again.   I didn’t mean for you to get all het up and—”

“Why didn’t anyone wake me?”

“Because I told them not to. You looked exhausted. You were exhausted.”

“
What? You don’t know how much it meant! You may have ruined everything!”

“What are you talking about?”  Rhea shook her head as she spoke
. Linna tossed her hands in the air.

“What am I talking about
? My future! What else?”

“Perhaps we should be speaking alone
. You’d best leave, Molly.”  Rhea sat in one of the chairs and waved the servant girl out. Nobody said anything as the door shut.

Linna tore a thumb through the weave of one stocking and made a face at it
. She couldn’t go to him with torn stockings, too!

“Now, come and sit and tell me what this is all about.”

Linna looked over her shoulder at her sister and bit the acidic tone back. “I don’t have time to sit. Aren’t you listening? I have to get ready. I’ve found a husband. He was calling for me today.”  Linna finished gartering a stocking into place and dropped her petticoat.

“You did
? You really found a husband?”

“I said I would, didn’t I?”

“That’s amazing. It’s more than—”

“What it is, is moot, since you let me sleep the day away
! He probably called for me and no one answered his knock.” 

“No one called, Linna.”

“How can you be so certain? He might have come during your nap.”

“I was awake all day
. I swear. I’ve not had an easy time with this babe, and...Drake was here. He...was out late. He drank too much. Let’s just say it wasn’t conducive to sleeping. I was up all day. No one called. I swear.”

Linna sat on the other chair
. She might have been reacting inside, but nobody was going to know about that. She forced the calm into place, took a big sigh, and turned her head to her sister. “No one called for me? All day? That’s impossible. You must have missed him.”

“Who?”

“Raoul.”  Linna said the name and had to hold involuntary shivers at bay. She couldn’t believe it! She closed her eyes to keep it hidden. Raoul Larroquette was such a man. That was the problem. As amorous as he was? He didn’t call for her? What trick?

Her eyes flew open
. “Oh, dearest God! I didn’t tell him where to find me! Oh, Rhea, what have I done?”

She slapped both hands to her cheeks
. He was probably headed to the Daniels estate, if he knew how to ask of it. He could hardly ask that coachman where to find her. The blackguard had tried to ruin her. Raoul would need to know about that, too. Linna covered her eyes. Even if he found the Daniels Plantation, what good would that do? There wasn’t but the staff there. What would Raoul do then?

“What now?”  Rhea asked.

“I think...he’s gone to the plantation,” she told the floor.

“But why?”

“I didn’t tell him where to find me.”

“Have some broth
. We’ll sort it out. I promise.”

“Broth?” Linna exclaimed and despite every bit of control she exerted, her voice rose
. “Broth! Who gives a damn about broth when my future hangs in the balance! I’ve got to get to the plantation. Now. Tonight!”  Linna was on her feet again and racing for clothing. There. A skirt. Weskit. Where had she put her broadcloth striped blouse? It was made from the sturdiest material. It would travel well.

“Linna, calm yourself.”

“Calm? I don’t have time for calm either!”  Linna slammed the armoire door shut. It banged right back into her palm.  

“You can’t leave
at night. It’s dangerous.”

“So
? Everything’s dangerous according to you.”  Linna crossed to the dresser. If their maid had folded her broadcloth blouse and creased it haphazardly, she was going to shake the girl. She wanted that particular blouse, she wanted to be dressed as befitted her station, and she wanted everything in her past put behind her. Far behind her. Linna glanced up, kept the cry of dismay at her mirrored image inside with all the other emotion, and picked up her hairbrush. She looked like a banshee. She couldn’t go to him like that.

“I’ll send a man out to check
. Just let me get Molly back....”

“Stay seated
. I’ll do it. You’re much too slow. Molly!”  Linna crossed to the door, yanked it open, and surprised the girl perched at the keyhole. She barely stopped the snarl on her lips. “Don’t stay there eavesdropping, get a man to go to the plantation! Send one immediately. You heard the mistress.”

She slammed the door on the girl’s face
. Her heart was moving too rapidly, and she put her free hand to it. She was going to miss Raoul, and all she had was his promise. He already took what he wanted.

Linna moved in a daze over to her full-length cheval mirror
.
That’s not true, Linna
, she told herself
. He didn’t take it. You gave it to him.
She was too distraught to eat. Her stomach warned her of it, too. She sat on the chair again, wrapped her arms about her middle, and rocked back and forth.

“Linna?”  Rhea said softly, “I know I’m not good for much, in the Daniels’ eyes, but I’m here for you
. We’ll get to him in time. I know it.”

“You don’t even know him
. How can you know that?”

“He’s been promised your hand in marriage, hasn’t he?”

It’s not worth much, anymore.
Linna kept the words inside, where they wouldn’t hurt as badly. She pulled in a shuddering breath and held it. She wasn’t going to cry and definitely not in front of Rhea. She was going to push any emotion to where no one could see it,  then she was going to force it away. That was what she was going to do. She was getting very good at it.

“We’ll reach him, Linna
. I promise. The man gave you his promise, didn’t he?”

Linna ignored her, unwrapped her arms, and brushed at her hair again.

“All you have to do is exercise some patience.”

“Patience?”  She pulled the brush out and with it came uprooted strands
. She winced. “It will take all night to get there and back! I can’t wait that long.”

“Well, you’re going to have to, just like the rest of the world.”

Linna shot her sister a look from beneath her eyebrows. Rhea smiled. “How like Father you are. I can’t even believe it sometimes. No wonder you’re his favorite.”

Linna rolled her eyes
.

“Give it some time, Linna.”

“Time? That’s your answer to everything. Well! I don’t want to give it time! I want to find my bridegroom, wed with him, and leave this horrid place once and for all. It shouldn’t be too hard. Damn me for not telling him where I am! Damn me! Damn! Damn!”  Linna pounded at her own temples as she said it, banging the brush handle against the right side. Rhea didn’t say anything for so long, Linna peeked over to see why. Her sister was watching her with the strangest smile on her mouth.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You’re acting like one of my children when they don’t get their way. Angry. Spoiled. I find it hard to believe you’re grown and that we’re trying to locate a husband-to-be for you. You didn’t net this proposal with behavior like this, did you?”

Linna dropped her arms
. “No,” she replied finally.

“So tell me about this
fiancé of yours.”

“Why?”

“Time passes more swiftly if you fill it with something. Talk is good. Memories the same.”

Memories
?
Her sister was mad. Memories were painful and just made one cry. They should be avoided.

“Well?”

“There’s not much to say,” she replied, finally.

Rhea clucked her tongue
. “Describe him. What’s he look like?”

“Why?”

“Because I asked you to. That’s why.”

She recognized the rebuke in Rhea’s tone
. How like their mother she was; putting the reprimand in her tone so nobody could see it coming. Linna forced the instant thought away and looked at her image. Her eyes sparkled strangely. That wasn’t good. At all.

“Well?”  Rhea asked again.

Linna blinked and looked inward. She no longer saw her image. She was remembering Cord. “He’s big. Strong. Much more so than...,” she almost said Drake, but caught it, “...Vincent, or Father. He’s very handsome, too. All the girls last night thought so. Everyone did. I did.”

“They did?”

“The musicians even stopped playing when he entered. He’s that eye-catching. That manly. That—”

Her voice stopped
. She blinked again and focused on her pained expression.

“So...what did he do?”

“This is stupid. You’ll know what I mean when you see him. If you meet him. If I don’t run out with him the moment he comes.”

Rhea sighed
. “Did he dance? What happened then? How did he say it? How did you get him to ask?”