Three years ago...
Alex was startled when Ralph immediately settled in the spot beside her. She quickly scooted away from him and he used the relieved space between them to rest his thigh, slanting his position, facing her.
He smiled and she waited for his words. "And where did you grow up?"
She smiled in return. "You are digging these details so you could investigate and find out my name."
Ralph merely chuckled. He was intricately handsome, Alex thought. He was not as handsome as Levi, the first Everard brother she met. Nor was he carrying a brooding mien about him like their eldest.
He looked like a boy, yet also a man.
"Would you ever tell me your name? We do have some time to spare in this garden, see?"
Alex sighed. She looked around and realized he might be correct. She loved the festivities inside the ballroom, but she also loved this game with him.
"Perhaps if you could play this game very well, my lord, I might be inclined to give you one," she said with a hint of challenge.
Ralph's smile broadened. "Then we ought to know each other more, my mystery lady."
*****
Alex was not certain whether she ought to join the Everards inside the small cottage.
She could hear talking and even angry outbursts inside and she had to admit that she worried over what this problem could bring upon the relationship of the people inside.
She turned her head to look at the footman. "Yer quite certain the mother is inside?"
The footman turned to steal a glance at her. "Yes."
"Tsk," Alex clucked her tongue, shaking her head. "Poor woman."
The footman gave her another look, cleared his throat and said under his breath, "Just so you know, Miss, the chaos inside is not entirely new."
Alex grimaced as Ysabella and Emma were heard yelling, "Stop it, Ralph, you bloody idiot!"
"Everyone leave me alone!" came a louder voice, one Alex suspected as Nicholas'.
"Have they ever tried te kill each other?" she asked the footman, flinching when a loud crashing sound of a wood, perhaps a chair, vibrated through the open window not far away.
"Aye," said the footman. "But not to a point we had to actually arrange for a burning ritual."
"I don't think there'd be a body te burn if they actually end up killin' one another," she muttered.
"Don't fret, Miss," said the footman. "And you are?"
She waved her hand in a dismissing fashion. "Oh, just passin' by."
The footman did not believe her but kept his silence.
"There're spectators, me friend," Alex said, watching villagers walk toward the direction of the cottage, their faces curious.
"They're not curious about the squabble inside, Miss," said the footman. "They're curious about you."
"Me?"
"Aye."
"Why?"
The man looked at her again. "You look like a bandit."
*****
"You cannot be bloody serious, Nick," Ralph indignantly uttered. "You go and confront the bastard and you are dead."
YOU ARE READING
Masterful Trickery
Historical FictionTHE BANDIT She merely meant to steal and get away with it. She did not mean to find a dying woman and be chased for it. She merely meant to help. She did not mean to be dressed in a gown and be a target for murder. THE GUARD He was tasked to chase...
