Chapter Eleven
Scarlett sighed in frustration, looking at the vanity and the full glass of water sitting on it.
She had been getting better and then sick again, the pattern continuing for two weeks now, but she was at a point where she was feeling better and very thirsty. She only had one problem: she was weak from her illness and that sapped all the strength from her body, making her unable to stand long enough to get across the room.
Resigned, she rang the small bell on her nightstand, a maid coming in the room to help her.
“How may I help you, My Lady?” she asked, curtsying quickly.
Scarlett picked up her empty glass and pointed to the full glass on the vanity. The maid took the empty glass and placed it down on the vanity, picking up the full one and bringing it to Scarlett.
“Thank you,” she croaked out, bringing a smile to the maid’s face.
“If you need anything at all, My Lady, just let me know. I will be right outside.”
She curtsied and left the room, shutting the door behind her and leaving Scarlett alone once again.
Scarlett sighed and snuggled down into her blankets, desperate for company. Unfortunately, she was devoid of all her usual company. Melody was out on a romantic picnic with Ragan and Alastair was talking to the staff about his parents’ visit. They were coming next week and Alastair wanted to make sure that everything was in perfect order for the previous prince and princess of the castle. Scarlett knew how important this visit was for him and was determined to be as well as she possibly could be.
While Scarlett wished for true happiness for Melody, she wasn’t quite sure how she and Alastair would end. She liked him well enough and while he had been taking very good care of her while she was sick, it didn’t necessarily mean it was made for marriage.
The way he cared for her made her feel special and she had never felt that way before.
When they talked, Scarlett felt that he listened to what she had to say and regarded her as something other than a woman’s opinion that did not matter and should not be taken seriously. When she was with him, she felt like she could be herself and not the cold, unfeeling woman people often thought she was.
Her mother had taught her to keep her emotions inside unless she was around family, but that was not very often. She showed her real emotion around her parents, Aunt Olivia, and Catriona, rarely ever showing any of kind of warmth towards her uncle.
Her uncle had always frightened her and so she had rarely spoken to him.
She sighed. Even though her uncle scared her, he had always taken care of her and her family, and she felt that she should be grateful. She reached out for the bell, giving it a gentle ring.
The same maid from before appeared, a bright smile on her face.
“Are you all right, My Lady?” she asked, coming to sit at her bedside.
“I am all right,” she said. “Just worried is all.”
A soft expression came over her face.
“I am sorry, My Lady. What can I do for you?” she asked, her smile returning.
“I would like to write something please. If you could help me get my writing things, it would be greatly appreciated. I will then need the missive sent out as soon as possible.”
The maid nodded.
“I’ll make sure it is sent out directly. Are your supplies in the sitting room?”
Scarlett nodded and the maid retrieved them for her, helping Scarlett sit up and set up the small tray that brought up earlier.
Once completed, Scarlett folded it and put her seal on it and handed it to the maid, who had taken the chair next to the bed while she waited.
“I am sorry I don’t even know your name,” Scarlett said, getting settled once the maid had removed her supplies.
“My name is Olive, My Lady,” she replied, curtsying.
“Thank you, Olive, for your help today. Would you mind mentioning to the housekeeper Eloise, that I’d like to have an audience with all the maids please? You have all been so wonderful to me, I’d like to know who everyone is.”
A slight blush came to Olive’s face.
“I will definitely let her know, My Lady, and get your missive sent out. It is also a pleasure to help you.”
She curtsied once more and left the room, leaving Scarlett alone once again.
Frustrated, Alastair walked absentmindedly through the guest wing, his search of Scarlett’s guest room turning up no evidence of the person who Alastair was sure was poisoning Scarlett. He was dragged from his thoughts by the sound of an argument, watching as the maid named Liza stormed out of one of the bedrooms, her hair and clothes disheveled. She went white when she saw him and turned when she heard someone exiting the room she had just come out of.
Alastair watched as Edward Holmes walked out of the bedroom, also in a disheveled state.
So, it was not a regular argument he walked in on, but a lover’s quarrel.
Alastair cleared his throat and they both turned to look at him.
“Tidy up and go about your business. You must be more careful as the next person to find you might not be so discreet.”
“Yes, My Lord,” they both replied, rushing off in the direction of the servants’ stairs.
Alastair continued his slow progression down the hall and when he reached the end of it, he turned around to head back. He was halfway down the hallway when he saw a piece of paper on the ground, curious to see what was on it. He picked up the paper and unfolded it, his blood running cold.
He recognized the paper as the one he’d found in the book in his office, and that meant the poisoner was still in the castle. He rushed back downstairs to the study and quickly drew up messages for all the hospitals to check their stock of the medicine written on the paper: Tapoxon.
In his hurry, he had not even realized where he found the paper.
Two hours later, he received an answer from one of the smaller hospitals on the island, letting him know that they had a break in months ago and Tapoxon had been one of the medicines stolen.
The others had been found, but that was the one that had never been recovered.
Alastair swore loudly and slammed his hand down on the desk.
Scarlett was being poisoned by Tapoxon.
There was very little antidote on the island and the hospital had sent all of the antidote they had to help Scarlett.
He stalked to the door and yanked it open, calling for Bard.
Striding back to the desk he re-read the letter he received from Elfyre Memorial Hospital.
The head of the hospital had also told Alastair that they had hired a new orderly a week before the medicine had disappeared and he had not been seen since. They were almost certain he was behind the theft.
He had used the name George Hames and he was tall and had dark hair and dark eyes.
He sent his regrets that they had not caught him and wished Alastair luck on finding him and making Scarlett well again.
Bard walked in the room and immediately noticed him upset.
“What is it, My Lord?” he asked, walking briskly to the desk.
“Please shut the door, Bard,” Alastair said.
Bard walked back over to the door and shut it, coming back to stand in front of the desk.
“Is Lady Scarlett all right, sir?” he asked, a look of concern coming over his face.
Alastair growled in frustration.
“I hope she will be. We need to get this antidote to her as soon as possible.”
He held up a small vial of medicine.
“Do you know what made her so sick?” Bard asked.
“Tapoxon poisoning. It looks as if she is being given small doses, but if they decide to give her one big dose, it will kill her. This antidote will fight off any of the poison that they try to give her and should help rid her of what she has already ingested, but I have no doubt that her vomiting has helped tremendously in that respect.”
He looked up at Bard with a hard stare.
His voice was a hard whisper when he said, “I need you to tell no one about this. No one can know that we have a potential cure for what is ailing her. Do you understand?”
Bard nodded fervently.
“Not even Melody or Ragan?”
Alastair shook his head.
“Not even them. Not until we can find out who is behind the poisoning. I do not want to put Scarlett in any more danger than she already is in.”
Bard nodded.
“Yes, sir.”
“I would like to give it to her now. Come with me upstairs and go in first to make sure that there is no one else in there. If there is, I need you to tell them that they are needed elsewhere.”
Bard nodded again.
Alastair grabbed his emergency medical bag and pulled out a needle, measuring the correct dose out.
He capped the medicine and put it in the same locked drawer as the key from Everett with the other vial that had been sent.
“I believe, sir, that she was meeting with the maids of the house and so she should be finished by now. If there are any maids left, I will be sure to let them know they are needed elsewhere at once.”
Alastair halted what he was doing and looked up at Bard.
“The last maid?” Alastair asked.
Bard had to hold back his laughter at Alastair’s face.
It would not have been quite an appropriate time.
Bard could not remember seeing Alastair’s face ever like this, and he had been around Alastair his entire life.
“Yes, My Lord. She wanted to meet with all the maids and learn their names because of how wonderful they are. I suspect though that she wanted to interview them all and interrogate them without their knowledge. See if she could learn anything from them. If anyone would know something, it would be a maid.”
After Alastair’s run in with that maid and houseboy today, he was certain that Scarlett was correct.
He shook his head with a sigh.
“Let’s go see Her Royal Highness now,” Alastair said, a chuckling Bard following close behind.
Scarlett sighed happily and waved at Olive as she left her bedroom, content now that she had actually spent the afternoon being productive. The house had ten chambermaids, four housemaids, and the housekeeper who oversaw them all. She had spoken first to the chambermaids and it had gone so well that she asked to speak to the housemaids.
When that had been completed, she had spoken to Eloise to tell her what a wonderful staff she had. She of course had beamed at the praise and had reassured Scarlett that her staff was excellent and that she always checked fully into her staff before hiring them.
When Eloise had left, Olive had come back in the room to check on her.
“Do you need anything, My Lady?” she asked.
Scarlett shook her head.
“No, thank you. If I do, I will let you know.”
With a quick curtsy and a small wave, Olive left the room, almost getting knocked over by Bard and Alastair who came to see her. Scarlett’s pulse quickened and her breath caught in her chest, scrambling to set up and make herself look more presentable.
Olive blushed and curtsied low, murmuring, “Please excuse me, My Lord. I did not see you there.”
He put on his best charming smile and said, his voice sweet, “It’s all right, Olive. I haven’t hurt you, have I?”
She shook her head furiously.
“Good. Thank you for all your help today. Eloise let me know on the way up how you attended to Lady Scarlett and made sure she was comfortable.”
“It was my pleasure, My Lord,” she murmured, glancing back at Scarlett once more and scurrying down the hall.
Scarlett smiled and chided him, “You scared away my maid. Shall I be cross with you?”
With a mischievous smile, he replied, “No, for I have a secret to tell you.”
Her face turned serious.
“A secret?” she asked.
Alastair’s smile disappeared and he nodded to Bard, the older man shutting and locking the hallway door and the connecting doors to the sitting room.
Scarlett felt a momentary panic well up and she looked at Alastair, her eyes full of fear.
“I am not here to hurt you; I would never do that. We just need to make sure no one knows what we are going to do.”
The fear dissipated when she asked, “What is going on?”
Alastair sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled the needle that he had been holding out of his jacket.
“This is the antidote for a poison called Tapoxon. It has not always been a poison, but since you do not have the disease it was made for, it is slowly killing you. I am going to give you this shot and it should start helping.”
She looked at Alastair, and then to Bard who nodded reassuringly. If anyone knew that Alastair was telling the truth, it was Bard.
“The Tapoxon was stolen from Elfyre Memorial Hospital a week before you came here. It was stolen with a group of medicines but that was the only one not recovered by the hospital. The thief used a fake identity to gain access to the hospital and stole it. The thief is still out there, but this antidote is going to help you fight him off.”
Scarlett listened and processed everything, trying to understand.
Alastair waited for her to process the information and then, after a few moments, she stated, “This will help me to get better but the thief is still out there somewhere.”
“What will happen if he gives me a large dose?”
“The antidote will fight it off. We have two vials of the antidote, so we should be able to keep giving it to you so that you will get better.”
He grasped her hand in his and whispered, “I promise that you will be all right.”
Scarlett sighed and squeezed his hand.
“I trust you,” she whispered.
With a smile, he pulled up the arm of her dress, tapping the vein to make it appear. Scarlett looked away and Alastair removed his hand from hers to give her the injection.
Close enough to the bed, Bard was surprised when Scarlett reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing gently. He didn’t let go; instead, he held tighter to her hand, letting her squeeze his hand through her discomfort.
When Alastair was finished, he placed a small towel over the injection site and handed the needle to Bard to dispose.
“The antidote should take effect quickly and will make you sleepy.”
Scarlett nodded and then smiled.
“Thank you both for taking such wonderful care of me. I would not get better care anywhere else.”
He smiled. “I will always take care of you,” he whispered, taking her hand in his.
She stared at him and felt her heart melt, knowing that after this, her life would not be the same.
“Scarlett Kensington, when this is all over, regardless of the outcome, will you consider becoming my wife?”
Scarlett felt her jaw drop open at his words.
“You do not need to answer right now. I can wait until we have found out what happened to Catriona, but I wanted to ask you so you would know how I feel.”
She nodded mechanically, just trying to understand that he had just proposed to her.
And so suddenly as well.
A full minute passed with no response and Alastair felt awkward waiting for her to answer so he said, “I am going to remove the towel now, all right?”
All the air came rushing back into Scarlett’s lungs and she gasped out, “Yes!”
He stared at her, and removed the towel, handing it to Bard.
She searched his face with her eyes and asked, “Are you sure about this?”
“The antidote?” he asked, thoroughly confused.
“About marrying me? You haven’t even met my parents yet, although I did ask them to come next week at the same time as your parents.”
Alastair grasped her hand and held it tightly in his.
“We are very compatible in many ways, we enjoy each other’s company, and I feel as if I can be myself around you without fear of judgement. You also love children. That is everything I could want in a wife. I also am very excited to meet your amazing parents who raised such a great daughter.”
Not exactly the declaration of love that Scarlett was hoping for, but she knew that not all marriages began with love. She wasn’t even sure that she loved Alastair, so she could not be upset if he did not know either. Her parents’ marriage had not started with love, but they loved each other very deeply now.
“I know we will have to wait until some trace of Catriona is found or they declare the search over, but I would be very comfortable marrying you,” she said, smiling almost timidly at him.
His smile brightened and he leaned over and kissed her.
Not a full kiss, but just a brief one that was almost over as it began.
“For now, it will be a secret the three of us know,” he whispered.
She nodded in agreement and she noticed that Bard nodded as well.
“Let us go. You need your rest, and I need to tend to some business. I will make sure that Bard stays with you until Melody gets back.”
With a sudden yawn, she said, “Thank you.”
He looked back at her as he headed to the hallway door.
“It is undeniably my pleasure,” he whispered, walking out.
He left strict instructions for Bard to stay with her and headed back down to his study.
Marriage?
“What happened?” he asked aloud.
He had been sitting there staring at her, knowing that he didn’t want to lose her, and it had just come out.
He would not lose her if he married her. She wouldn’t go back to Ciomodors Garden and leave him behind if she married him. He had no idea why the idea of her leaving made him so nervous, but it was so unsettling to him.
She had agreed, which was excellent. Alastair did want to marry her.
He went back over the list of reasons he gave and couldn’t help but agree that they were perfectly valid reasons to get married.
So, they were now engaged, and there was still an attempted murderer and thief on the loose.
He also had both of their parents coming next week.
When he got back to his study, he banged his head down on the desk.
It was going to be a long week.