The Maid

Chapter Eight

A/N: To all my fans: this story will be finished shortly, so I'll try to excel in my writing! Thanks for the comments and views, up to over a hundred now! I'm so grateful!

Chapter Eight

Bess was in love with a highwayman! The thought was scarcely comprehensible. I was both angry at and worried for my cousin. She was playing a dangerous game, and hurting her family into the bargain, and that I felt was worst of all.

When Bess realised I had put two and two together, she tried to speak to me, but I didn't listen. I hurled the poster away and walked off to the wagon without waiting for her. On the journey back to the inn, I didn't speak to her, and even Dominic noticed the tension between us and stopped his light-hearted whistling.

As soon as we got home, I ran upstairs to my room. I had to sit down and think before I exploded.

I knew about highwaymen, of course. Not a week went by in London that one of them wasn't hanged before an adoring crowd while ballad sellers handed out dramatic, often over-exaggerated accounts of their robberies. Nell had attended two or three of these hangings and had come back to our close bragging about it, but she later confessed to me that she had felt sick the whole time. And now Bess was in love with one. What would Mam say? And Uncle Henry, if he ever knew? And worse, the Major?

There was a knock on the door and Bess came in. "Rose..." she said softly. "I'm sorry."

"Why, Bess?" I asked. "This is dangerous; you could be arrested for aiding and abetting a criminal, and he could be hung!"

"I'm willing to take that risk, though." Bess sat down on the bed next to me and took my icy hand in her warm one. "I love him."

Where had I heard those words before? Once, when I was a little girl, I had gone to visit Grandma, Mam's mother, and while Mam was out Grandma had told me the story of how my parents had met.

"I pleaded with your mother, alright," she said, sighing heavily. "'He won't last long on land; he'll go off and leave you without a second thought,' that's what I said. But what did she answer? 'I'm willing to take that risk, Mam. I love him.' Look how much good it did her."

Those words had stuck in my head throughout the years, even though Grandma had died the following month, and now they stabbed me like a spear. "My mam loved my da, even though he was a sailor and hated staying on land for too long. She got married to him, had me, and then when I was two he ran off and left us. Look how much good taking risks did her!" I said bitterly.

Bess was silent for a long while. "I'm sorry, Rose," she said again, before getting up and leaving the room.

Uncle Henry called me for dinner, but I pleaded a bad headache and stayed in my room. I was just about to get ready for bed when someone rapped on the door. "Who is it?" I called

"Dominic. May I come in?"

"Yes."

He brought in a tray and laid it on the bed. "Here. Last of the stew and there's some hot bread too. The navvies arrived today and we've got even more downstairs than usual." His blue eyes were concerned as he turned to me. "Are you alright?"

I nodded, feeling a catch in my throat at his unexpected thoughtfulness. "Yes, thank you. I just got too much sun today."

"Alright. Good-night then." He left the room.

I gratefully ate the stew and bread and then slipped into bed. For a while my eyes remained open, but then weariness took over and I fell sound asleep.

I was roused by someone shaking me. I opened my eyes and saw Bess leaning over me, a finger on her lips. "What is it?" I asked, annoyed.

"Come with me," she whispered. "I want to you to meet someone."

Grudgingly, I slid out of bed and put on my wrapper before following Bess to her room. She opened her window and called down softly, "Arthur. It's me. I've brought a friend."

I leaned over the sill and looked straight into the face of Bess' highwayman. He had taken off his hat and I saw that he had long brown hair and steel-grey eyes that, surprisingly, had a look of kindness about them.

A small smile played around his lips as he said, "So, you are Rose."

"Yes," I replied bluntly, refusing to be taken in by his good looks. Handsome is as handsome does, Mam always said, and what this man did for a living certainly wasn't handsome.

"Bess told me about you. I saw you the first night too, at her bedroom window." He smiled again. "You know what I am. Are you going to say anything?"

I thought a moment. I could report him, if I wanted to. It would be easy to find Major Warrington and inform him I knew the whereabouts of the highwayman he was looking for. But on the other hand, I had made a promise to Bess. And I always kept my promises.

"No," I said. "I promised Bess I would not. But that does not mean I like you and her together."

"Rose, you should go back to bed," Bess interrupted our conversation. "It's late."

"Or early. It's past midnight, by the look of the sky," Arthur said. "Good-night, Rose."

I nodded curtly and headed for the door, but was stopped by his voice. "Rose?"

I turned around.

"Honesty and loyalty are two of the most admirable traits found in a human being. Never lose yours...like I did." The last three words were said in a low tone, but I heard them, and I felt an undeniable rush of pity for him. I nodded slowly and left Bess' bedroom while she and Arthur spoke.

Little did I know that someone else had observed our meeting that night, someone whose jealousy and anger would bring a terrible vengeance on us.

The next day passed normally, all of us attending to our daily tasks. I wrote another letter to Mam and put it away for when we next went to town. It was near evening when we heard a thunder of horses' hooves and redcoats burst into the inn.

Uncle Henry made to welcome them, but they did not speak to him, instead ordering ale from me. As they drained their mugs, Bess came down the stairs, and one of the men nudged his commanding officer. "That's her, Lieutenant."

"Sieze her," the lieutenant ordered brusquely. Two soldiers grabbed Bess's arms and marched her back up the stairs.

Uncle Henry stepped forward, his face as pale as a sheet. "What...Why are you doing this?"

"She's been consorting with a known criminal, a highwayman by the name of Arthur Langley," the lieutenant snapped. "We've received information that he's doing a robbery and will be here with his stolen property in just a few hours' time."