Trapped in Time Read online

  “When I think of all I have done for you, Caroline! Of how I have sacrificed for you in order to get you into the best circles! And now you throw it all back in my face!”

  “Stop.” Caroline held up a hand. “I told you, guilt won’t work on me.”

  “It’s that Kindred!” the other mother raged. “He’s gotten into your mind, somehow! He’s brainwashed you. For the past several days, you’ve not been yourself at all. And I know you’ve been sneaking around with him—Mary Ann told me about how your chemise was torn and your corset strings were all in knots after the ball the other night.”

  So now she knew for certain which side the lady’s maid was on, Caroline thought. Well, good to know. She hoped to be done with Mary Ann as well as the other mother very soon.

  “May I remind you that Richard and I are married?” she said icily. “I was hardly sneaking around with him. I was exercising my rights as a wife to spend the night with her husband.”

  The other mother’s face grew pale.

  “Please tell me that you did not consummate the Joining he forced you into last night!” she exclaimed.

  “That’s none of your business,” Caroline said evasively. But her expression must have given her away because the other mother sighed in relief.

  “I know that look, young lady—you may pretend all you like but you have not done the marital deed with that horrid Kindred. You’d tell me outright if you had.”

  “I said, it’s none of your business,” Caroline repeated.

  “No matter.” The other mother waved her hand, as though brushing the whole matter aside. “As long as you’re still pure, Lord Harkens will be happy to have you.”

  “How many times do I have to tell you, I do not want to be married to Lord Harkens?” Caroline was beginning to feel like nothing she said made any difference to the other mother at all—it all went in one ear and out the other.

  “You’ll change your mind once you’re away from that horrid Kindred,” the other mother said, nodding sagely.

  “I told you, I don’t want to get away from him. I love Richard!” Caroline exclaimed, thoroughly exasperated now.

  At that moment, there was a knock on her door and Mary Ann entered with a full tea tray. She was followed by Richard, who gave Caroline an anxious look.

  “Darling, I’ve just gotten an urgent call from a patient who needs me to attend him. Will you be all right if I leave for a moment and come back? I promise if I cannot make it back to the house in time, I will certainly meet you at the park.”

  “You go ahead.” Caroline raised her chin. “I’ll meet you there and tell everyone we’re going to stay together.”

  At this, she heard an indrawn breath from the other mother, but she chose to ignore it.

  “Very well.” Richard nodded at her. “Until two o’clock then.”

  “Goodbye. I love you,” Caroline told him, smiling. Despite everything the other mother was putting her through, she had one consolation—she would be ending her day with Richard and then spending the rest of her life with him. That was enough to cheer anyone up.

  He smiled back. “I love you too, my darling.”

  Then he left, closing the door behind him and leaving Caroline alone with the other mother and her duplicitous lady’s maid once more.

  Caroline mentally braced herself for another attack but to her surprise, the other mother was silent.

  “Will you have tea, Ma’am?” Mary Ann asked her but the other mother shook her head.

  “I find myself unwell at the moment, Mary Ann. You may pour some for Miss Caroline, however. Please see that she is dressed appropriately for the announcement in the park. I am going to retire in my room for a few hours.”

  “Yes, Ma’am. I will, Ma’am.” Mary Ann bobbed a respectful curtsey and the other mother exited the room without a single further word to Caroline.

  As soon as she was gone, Mary Ann began laying out the tea things on the little table beside the bed.

  “Well now, seeing as how you missed breakfast, I thought you might like some early tea, Miss,” she said to Caroline.

  “All right. Thank you.” Caroline nodded grudgingly. She knew better than to trust the maid and she fully expected Mary Ann to work on her now that the other mother had gone. But to her surprise, the lady’s maid simply poured her a steaming cup of hot, sweet tea and handed it to her quietly.

  Caroline took the teacup and sipped it while Mary Ann went about getting her afternoon dress ready. It was a flouncy pale green organdy with lots of tucks and gathers and entirely too many ribbons for Caroline’s taste.

  I swear, once Richard and I get Bonded and move up to the Mother Ship, I’m never wearing a corset or those horrible hoop skirts again, she thought to herself as she sipped. And if they don’t have yoga pants there, I’m going to start the fashion myself. I’m tired of having to dress up everywhere I go—especially in such uncomfortable clothes.

  As she sat and sipped and thought, she felt something wet on her front. Looking down, she was surprised to see that she had spilled tea on herself. How had that happened?

  “Mary Ann,” she said to the maid, who was still working with the afternoon dress. “I seem…seem to have tead some spill—I mean spilled some tea on myself.”

  It occurred to her that her speech sounded a little strange, but she wasn’t sure why.

  “Yes, Miss. I’ll clean it up directly, Miss.” Mary Ann came forward and blotted the wet spot with a towel. Then she refilled Caroline’s teacup and put it in her hands. “Drink up now, while it’s hot,” she said briskly.

  Caroline took another soothing sip. She had to hand it to the lady’s maid—she might be a spy for the other mother but she certainly made a good cup of tea. Although, it was very sweet. So sweet, in fact, that her tongue felt like it was going numb.

  Wait—was that right? Caroline frowned and realized that her thoughts were growing somewhat fuzzy. What was happening? Why was her tongue all numb and tingly and why did her hands suddenly feel so weak she could hardly hold the teacup?

  “Mary Ann,” she said again but this time it came out as, “Mer’Annnn,” with a definite slur. “Mer’Annnn, wha’s happening t’ me?” she managed to get out.

  The lady’s maid gave her a sharp look and then nodded, as though to herself. She took the teacup, which was dangerously close to spilling, out of Caroline’s hands and set it firmly on the table. Then she stepped out of the room and walked briskly down the hallway. Caroline heard her rap sharply on a door and then Mary Ann’s voice said, “I think she’s ready now, Ma’am.”

  “Oh good—excellent work, Mary Ann! I’ll go in to her and you run and fetch Dr. Lovings. He’s just downstairs waiting.”

  “Yes, Ma’am,” Mary Ann’s voice said and then there was the sound of footsteps and the other mother came back into the room.

  Caroline eyed her sharply—as sharply as she was able, anyway, now that she had a strange floaty sensation all over and everything felt fuzzy.

  “Wha’s goin’ on?” she demanded, as strongly as she could. “Wha’s wrong w’ me?”

  “That is to be determined. You’re to be examined, my dear—for your own good,” the other mother told her.

  Caroline started to protest but just then the door opened again and Mary Ann reappeared, followed by a small, fussy-looking man in a dark suit. He had a thin black mustache and was carrying a black bag, not unlike Richard’s. Caroline realized he must be a doctor.

  “Oh, Doctor Lovings, there you are!” the other mother exclaimed, confirming her suspicion. “Thank you ever so much for coming on such short notice.”

  “Not at all, dear lady—happy to be of service.” The little man nodded genially. “Now then, your maid tells me that you have administered some of the medicine I dispensed to you into the patient’s tea to relax her. If this is so, let us proceed with the exam.”

  “Ezam?” Caroline slurred. “What ez….ez…exam?” she got out at last.

  “Why, an exam to find