Chapter 39
The doctor, young, tall, lean, and fairly recently out of medical college, arrived in short order. Fortunately, he had just delivered a baby at a nearby farm. He removed the bullet from Gentilly’s leg, stitched him up, and dosed him with laudanum to calm him down, as he continued to rave like a madman in the bedroom in which they’d settled him.
Quite a while later the magistrate, old, ponderous, corpulent, and put out by a call farther out in the country so late in the day, arrived in a wagon escorted by two stout outriders. He’d crossed most of the county to take on the task at hand.
This local judge interviewed each witness—George, Margaret, Chase, Drew, and Marianne—separately, took their statements, and examined them for similarities or discrepancies so he could validate their honesty.
He did not speak to Gentilly, who was still sedated, but had the outriders carefully bundle him up, trundle him down the stairs, and gently load him into the wagon. The magistrate explained he would thoroughly interrogate the accused later when he was fully awake and stronger.
The magistrate promised Gentilly would be properly cared for before he was transported to the penal colony in Australia where he would spend the rest of his days. If he should return, Gentilly could face the harsher penalty of death. The magistrate would see to it.
After the lawmen left, the family settled down to a quiet dinner Chef Jacques prepared with his usual enthusiasm. Andrea, once again permitted to dine with the grown-ups, chatted happily through the meal, already recovered from the trauma of the afternoon.
Marianne and Drew tucked the little one into bed, then retreated to the veranda with George, Margaret, and Chase to watch the sun set at the end of a long, traumatic day.
As if to signify that the future would now be much better than indicated by the actions of the day, the sun graced the sky with myriad hues of blues, pinks, lavenders, yellows, oranges, and more. Each onlooker sighed with exclamations of appreciation as well as relief.
The sun set, the family retired early for bed, much exhausted by all of the day’s doings, sharing wishes for restful sleep and better tomorrows before heading to their rooms.
Now Marianne sat at her dressing table as her maid ran a brush through her hair counting the strokes and nearing one hundred. Marianne watched the reflection in the mirror as Drew came up behind them.
“I’ll take over from here.” He gently lifted the brush from Ellen’s fingers. She acquiesced with a curtsy and left quickly and silently through the dressing room door.
“Seventy-six, seventy-seven . . .”
“You can stop, Drew. I don’t need all one hundred strokes every night. I’m sure I won’t suffer from the loss of a few.”
He went right on brushing. “Eighty-one, eighty-two, have you not thought that maybe I enjoy brushing your hair? Enjoy feeling the silkiness of your tresses? Watching how they glimmer in the candlelight as they cascade down your back?”
She felt the flush up her neck into her face and rose from the bench. “Well, be that as it may”—she extracted the brush from his fingers and placed it on the dressing table—“I think my silky tresses have had enough attention for tonight.”
“Mmm. Maybe.” He tilted his head down to hers and placed a gentle kiss upon her lips.
“Mmm. Definitely,” she whispered as her arms stole up around his neck and kissed him back. When the moment passed, she pulled back. “I can’t help but wonder about Robert.”
“I think we’ve spent more than enough time on Gentilly. He’ll be transported and we’ll never have to think of him again.” Drew tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“But what made him do it? What made him change so completely?”
“What makes any man go mad? I saw it happen at sea to a number of sailors. For one, it seemed to be days of looking out at nothing but water and needing to put his feet on dry land. For another, it was just the opposite. He ran onto the ship like a madman so anxious to go out to sea he’d have signed without pay. Yet a third was crazed after so many months of not seeing his wife and children. We all have a different threshold, a different need. Evidently, he obsessed for you, Marianne. When he couldn’t have you, his mind simply broke.”
She shook her head. “But I wouldn’t do that to anyone, least of all a friend.”
Drew placed a hand against her cheek and tilted her head up. “Trust me. You did nothing except be the wonderful person you are. What turns a person into a dangerously obsessive individual is not caused by forces without, but how he chooses to handle those forces from within. When he is far away from here and busy making a new life, he may heal and learn to be happy. Or, he may be mad forever. We may never know and it’s just as well. It’s time to continue our lives together in the best way we see fit.” He brushed his lips against her ear. “I’m going to start with my favorite activity. I’m going to seduce you once again.” His hands rested on her shoulders, then slid off the straps of her nightrail which susurrated to the floor.
Marianne couldn’t help but purr at this enticing announcement, then tugged on the cord of his robe. When it fell open, she slid her hands up to his shoulders and pushed the fabric off. “You certainly are my Dandy Lion.”
Drew pulled her close and she experienced the thrill of his firm chest pressed against her aching breasts and the hard length of his aroused manhood against her stomach.
Their lips met in a kiss that promised many tomorrows of love, joy, togetherness.