A Principle of Honour

Chapter 17

'Get in there,' Captain Richardson said sharply to Verity and Maisie, 'and take one of those blankets and cover yourselves up.'

'Thank you,' was the sheepish reply Maisie gave.

'Do not thank me,' he snapped, 'I had no idea that either of you was there tonight. I only came to retrieve Stanford and stop him from ruining himself. However, it was not Stanford I had to worry about; just his foolish sister and her even more foolhardy friend.' He scowled at Maisie, and she looked down at her hands that were tightly clutching the blanket. Then he looked at Verity, and said, 'I will take you to Colonel Mitford, and you,' he said turning back to face Maisie, still scowling, 'I will deal with you myself.' And with that proclamation, he slammed the door of the carriage.

'I didn't know that Arthur could get that angry,' Maisie said to Verity after they started to trundle down the road in the carriage. Then she shrugged her shoulders, 'I do hope that he will calm down before he talks to me again.'

'I am sorry, Maisie,' Verity replied, 'but I think he has every right to be angry with you. I do not agree with your relationship, but it is clear as day that he cares for you. I am just angry with myself for embroiling you in such a madcap scheme. I should have gone by myself.'

'Do not blame yourself. I would have come whether or not you agreed to take me. In fact, I feel rather ashamed of myself. I came for the excitement and adventure because I imagined your sister's life to be glamorous and exhilarating. Instead, it was all rather seedy and squalid.' Maisie put her hand on Verity's arm, 'I am sorry that we could not help her.'

As the coach came to a standstill, they sat in silence for about ten minutes. The door was at last opened by Captain Richardson, who stood glowering at them by the steps. 'Miss Stanford, you are to come with me, and you,' he said, still looking cross at Maisie, 'will wait here until I return.' Verity turned to Maisie and gave her a hug, 'Thank you, Maisie, you have been a good friend to me.'

Captain Richardson gave Verity his hand and helped her out of the carriage. 'Goodbye, Maisie,' she said, taking one last look at her friend, 'I will see you later.'

Captain Richardson then slammed the carriage door. 'Do not be too harsh with Maisie,' Verity said to the Captain as they walked up the steps into a large imposing hallway, 'she is a very loyal friend.'

'Yes, Miss Stanford,' he said with a sigh, 'but one who lives with her head continually in the clouds.'

'I know that she is a hopeless romantic, Captain Richardson,' she replied, 'that is why you should be careful with her. Please, do not break her heart.'

Captain Richardson said nothing in return; he just motioned for her to follow him.

✽✽✽

James was exhausted. He had been awake since dawn, and it was now past one thirty the following morning. After he had met Miss Stanford, nearly two weeks ago, he had tried to keep an eye on her wayward younger brother. James quickly concluded that the young man was probably not worth the effort, but he did it for Miss Stanford's sake and not his own. But there were several occasions when James was least expecting it, that Stanford did show some promise. The young man had even shown some initiative when faced with a difficult situation. However, just when James thought he could make an officer out of him, he was led astray by his so-called friends.

Just over an hour ago, James had received intelligence that young Stanford had been seen entering a gaming establishment. Based on this information, he had sent Captain Richardson to retrieve the foolish young man, and stop him from destroying his family's reputation. James had wanted to go himself, but he knew that the club was owned by Ellington. The two men had met several times since the house party at Highfields, but neither man had wanted to acknowledge the acquaintance.