When the ladies arrived in London, they began to cry, they looked for a rented carriage without a roof. When they arrived at house number 5, they asked the servant to pay the coachman. They entered the main table, they were all having breakfast.
-Hello- Eloise said.
Everyone looked at them, screams and cries were heard, everyone jumped to hug them including Portia and Prudence who were also there.
After several minutes everyone finished greeting them.
-Where is Anthony? -Kate asked.
-Are Colin and Benedict with you?- Violet added.
-they are not here? -Penelope asked.
-They did go to Greece to look for you- Simon responded.
-We came back alone. Mother, this is Olivia -pointing to her- she was the one who helped us escape, could you give her a job here at the house?
Violet and Portia, crying, approached the young woman and hugged her.
-Thank you for helping our girls -said Violet- here you will have a job for life if you want it.
-Well, change your clothes, or do you want breakfast first? -said Portia
-We're hungry- they responded at once.
The servants brought them food and Olivia was sent to settle in. No one could stop looking at them while they ate.
-what? -Eloise asked.
-It's just that we didn't know if we were going to see you again- Daphne's voice faltered.
-How are we going to tell them that they are already here? -Gregory asked.
-We have to wait for them to write us so we can return the letter- said Simon.
After breakfast they both took a bath and slept in Eloise's bed. When they woke up it was almost night. Penelope came down first, Kate was alone in Anthony's office.
"Hello Kate," said Pen.
-Hello Pen, are you feeling better?
-Yes, thanks. I'm sorry to have separated you from the viscount.
-Oh dear, it's not your fault, it was from a crazy person who doesn't know how to take no for an answer.
They both smiled.
"How did Colin take it when he found out?" Pen said.
-At first there was a lot of confusion, we didn't know what had really happened, Colin was the last to find out, because he wasn't here. When we told him he almost fainted, but he was the one who thought of going to the port, even somehow he knew which of all the duke's properties was the right one.
"We never got there," Pen smiled. "We convinced the duke to wait one night, the following day the three of us got on the boat.
"How brave, I don't know what I would have done if it had happened to me," Kathe said.
"Same thing," she took her hand, "you're a Bridgerton."
"Speaking of which," Kate added, "I was filling in for you while you were gone."
"I don't understand," Penelope said, frowning.
-your work dear, Genevieve helped me, but I only wrote one. We haven't been to another dance, we were all too worried about the five of you. It is fascinating.
Penelope was surprised.
-Benedict told me because if there were no pamphlets while you were away someone might get suspicious, Colin agreed.
-He really loves me, right.
-Do you still doubt it?
Violet opened the door.
"It's great here you are," she said, "come with me to the living room," she take her by the hand, they begin to walk, "we're talking to Lady Featherington about your wedding, we've postponed Francesca's because we didn't have a head for anything." But with you here we decided that the right thing is for you and Colin to get married first, Mr. Stirling also agrees, you have been through a lot, you deserve it.
They entered the living room, there were Francesca, Daphne, Portia and Mr. Stirling.
"My dear, there you are," said Portia, "we are discussing the wedding day."
"But Colin hasn't come back," said Penelope.
"We estimate they should be here by next week," said Mr. Stirling.
"Tomorrow we will go to the dressmaker to prepare your trousseau," said Daphne.
"We shouldn't wait for Colin," Penelope insisted. "We don't know if he still wants to marry me."
"What are you talking about, dear," said Portia, "he told us before leaving that as soon as you set foot in house number 5 they were going to start the arrangements, he believed he was going to bring you but given the circumstances."
Penelope looked at everyone who was nodding, she felt so emotional that she started to cry.
"Oh honey," Violet said.
They all approached her and gave her a group hug, she heard someone saying "you're safe now" another said "you're home" and other words of encouragement. She couldn't feel more grateful.
At the end of the meeting, she said goodbye to the Bridgertons and returned to the Featherington home.
-Penelope, I must ask, did that duke hurt you? -Portia asked.
-Apart from kidnapping me with Eloise, no.
-That's good, because we don't know if Mr. Bridgerton would accept you if your honor had been compromised -she hug her- we were so worried. We didn't know if he was going to hurt you. It's the first time I've seen something like this, he's the first gentleman to take a rejection so severely. I really hope the Bridgertons find him and teach him a lesson.
"You're wrong, mom," Penelope said. Portia looked at her strangely. "That man is no gentleman, he's just a guy with a title."
"But he didn't hurt you," said Prudence.
-Maybe not physically, but Eloise and I will never feel safe in a carriage again. I'll have to ask my fiancé to give me a carriage without a roof. These nights I have had nightmares - she started to cry - what would have happened if Eloise wasn't with me, could he have held back just because she was? Would society have forced me to marry him? You mom, would you have forced me to do it? He already had the wedding scheduled for last Saturday!
Prudence hugged her - you're safe - she told her.
"I would never have forced you," Portia said, but she wasn't sure deep down. "Luckily, society believed the story we told them."
-what story? -Pen said.
"You were with Aunt Petunia in Scotland, even Lady Whistledown wrote about it," Prudence said.
"Don't think about it anymore, tomorrow you have to do several things for the wedding preparations, so go to sleep," Portia ordered softly
Penelope had been very busy with all the arrangements for her wedding, they had set a date for Saturday of the following week, since that would take time for the brothers to send a letter with their whereabouts, so that a letter would be returned to them in London so that they would find out. the ladies were safe and sound at home, then another three days to produce.
That afternoon Anthony arrived at house number 5, when he saw Eloise and Penelope, sitting in the living room drinking tea, he couldn't believe it, first he hugged his sister and then his future sister-in-law.
-I don't understand anything, how did they get here? -Anthony asked.
"Well," said Penelope, "luckily I had rented a carriage that morning, so I had money with me, Eloise also had some with her, so we made the duke believe that everything was fine, I even called him "your excellency" - both friends laughed.
"You would have seen her, she said it with a very seductive tone," Eloise added.
"Our plan was to leave as soon as we arrived," Pen said.
"But it was night, so we convinced the duke to stay in a hostel, we woke up early and arrived at the port," Eloise added.
"The person selling the tickets wanted to scam us, he charged us more money, luckily a friend of Colin's was there, and he recognized me so he helped us buy the tickets," Pen finished saying.
"It seemed very silly to me when we met the duke," said Anthony.
-Did you tell him that no one messes with our family? -Kate asked.
Anthony was so excited to see his sisters safe and sound that he hadn't seen his wife, he walked over to her and kissed her.
-I practically left it written on his skin -he smiled evilly- and I don't know how "gallant" he will be after Colin hit him all those times in the face.
"But Anthony, he is a duke, there may be retaliation," said Violet.
-Mother, he kidnap my sisters, they have a duke and a viscount as brothers-in-law. "So the retaliation is for him," he said proudly.
-My sister is a princess - Kate added - she is well aware of what happened, so if he tries something again, she will have to respond, remember that the prince is the nephew of the Queen of England. -She looked proudly at her husband and she kissed him.
"Anthony," Penelope added, "do you know where they are staying so I can send them a letter?"
-No, we must wait for them to write to us. It was the first thing I told them, Colin wanted to write to his friend Mr. Brown, surely they will stay still in the same place waiting for him -Anthony responded.
"But it was he who helped us," said Eloise.
Anthony was surprised.
-Was Mr. Brown in Greece then? -Anthony asked.
"Yes," they both responded.
-Let's hope it was still there so they return as soon as possible.
(...)
Echoes of Society
Dear reader:
The trip of Miss Eloise Bridgerton and the Sapphire was not as long as we thought because they were seen at the Roberts Ball, with their respective families. I must add that Sapphire was wearing a beautiful turquoise dress with a gorgeous style. It's good that Madame de Lacroix innovates and, no, has us seeing the same attire.
It is the first dance where the sapphire danced with excellent company all night. Is she taking advantage of the fact that the third Bridgerton is traveling, so that he doesn't scare away suitors?
Although Mr. Stirling and Miss Francesca Bridgerton are engaged, they have yet no announce a wedding date, will they want to compensate for the fact that it was a quick engagement, or are simply waiting for a better time than the sweltering summer.
Mr. Anderson was seen asking Miss Thomas for a dance, which she refused, saying that she had promised to dance, but no one saw her dance. Could it be that there was a compelling reason for rejecting the commitment or that the lady is simply playing hard to get.
Lord Fife was seen going out to the gardens, for quite some time, when he returned he had a carmine red cheek, what kind of insect could have made such an ugly bite.
Always yours
Lady Whistledown.
-how about? -she ask Eloise.
-It is stimulating to read everything for the first time. -she paused to re-read- shouldn't you talk more about the dance?
-you think? -Pen took the pamphlet-you're right.
Both friends edited the pamphlet. Penelope came out dressed as a governess, she rented a carriage, when she got in and sat down, she began to feel bad, she opened the window to put her face out of it, she tried to breathe calmly, but she was hyperventilating, she fainted, when she woke up the coachman was calling.
-Miss, miss?
-Yes?
-We're here.
Penelope got out of the carriage, handed over the pamphlet, when she left the printing press, she looked at the carriage and saw it twice as big, she entered again, she closed her eyes tightly. She said to herself.
-everything is fine Colin come quickly she thought.