Midsummer at Eyre Hall: Book Three Eyre Hall Trilogy by Luccia Gray Page B

time,
encouraging her patiently until she had eaten every single drop.
    The admiral returned and spoke to Jane.
“I should never have helped you bring him back from Jamaica.”
    Jane looked away from her cousin. “Michael,
let’s go. We shouldn’t have come.”
    “You’ll do no such thing,” said Mrs. Fitzjames.
“There’s a blizzard out there.”
    The admiral coughed. “This is what
you’ll do, Jane. You’ll stay here until Dr. Carter sees you, and then we’ll
decide what needs to be done to get out of this mess.” He shook his finger at
her. “You’ve disgraced your family, Jane. Now you had better do as you’re told or…”
    I stood and faced him. “Admiral, I don’t
care what you say to me, but be careful how you address Jane in my presence.”
    The admiral clenched his fists, but fortunately
Mrs. Fitzjames stood between us and pulled her husband’s arm. “Charles, please.
Be kind to Jane. Michael is right. She’s suffered enough. Don’t speak to her
sternly. You know she’s like a sister to me.”
    “Not any more. She’s chosen to be a
fugitive.”
    “Michael, let’s go,” Jane said, but I
reminded her that we should wait for Harry to come and the blizzard to pass.
    Diana suggested Jane should rest in bed.
“Can you walk upstairs, Jane?” she asked, but I offered to carry her, sliding
my hands behind her knees and lifting her effortlessly. She put her arms around
my neck, rested her head on my chest and sighed. I kissed the top of her hair
and noticed there were tears in my eyes. How were we going to make them
understand we would never be parted?
    I turned to the admiral before walking
up the stairs. “Thank you for your help, Admiral.”
    “Carry her upstairs and come down at
once. I want to talk to you.”
    I lay Jane on the bed. Diana spoke
gently. “I’ll put her to bed and give her some drops. She’ll sleep well, but
I’ll stay by her side for a while, just in case.” I nodded, kissed Jane, and
walked downstairs.  
    The admiral was waiting for me at the
foot of the stairs. He grabbed my arm. “You couldn’t keep your hands off her,
could you?”
    I knew I was in no position to argue. I
didn’t reply, but he insisted. “You’ve ruined her. I hope you’re pleased with
yourself.”
    “Could we move to the drawing room, Admiral?
I don’t want Jane to hear us.”
    He huffed and I followed him in.
    “You’ll spend the rest of your days in
jail, and Jane will be confined in an asylum. They’ll catch you in the end.
There’s no way out. You have to leave Jane. This has to stop now.”
    “I’ll think of something.”
    “You’re out of your depth, both of you.”
    I sat with my head in my hands as the admiral
paced relentlessly.
    When Diana came down, I asked her how
Jane was.
     “Asleep,” she replied.
    “Thank God. You should have seen that
place. She was manacled to the wall…”
    Diana gasped. “Good grief, how did you
manage to get her out of there?”
    “I bribed one of her jailers. No one was
hurt.”
    There were some moments of silence.
    “Where were you while Jane was at the
Retreat?” asked the admiral.
    “The archbishop had me confined at Eyre
Hall, first in the ice house and later at the stables.”
    “How did you escape?”
    “I managed to overpower Joseph when he
brought me my food.”
    “Poor Joseph! Did you hurt him?” asked
Mrs. Fitzjames.
    “No, of course not. I tied him up so he
wouldn’t follow me or alert anyone.”
    I didn’t tell them Annette had unlocked
my chains and Joseph had let me leave without any opposition, while Fred had
been called away on an errand and the archbishop was in bed with flu.
    “May I go upstairs to see Jane?” I asked
the admiral.
    “Certainly not! Haven’t you heard a word
I’ve said to you?”
    “Jane needs me. She won’t be able to
sleep.”
    “She’ll sleep all right. I told Diana to
make sure of it. Now listen to me, you foolish boy, this is what is going to
happen, and you have no choice in