Flawless My Dear ( English version )

Chapter 22

It looked like Colin was getting married to Felicity; he was just as nervous as she was the day before. He saw Portia appear with her daughter, but there was no sign of Penelope.

"Tell my daughter we're here," Portia asked Colin.

"But Penelope hasn't arrived yet," he said doubtfully.

"She can't be, she told me she was just finishing dressing and was on her way to the church," Portia said, holding her hands to her head.

At that moment they saw Varley appear through the door.

"Varley, what are you doing here? You should be making sure everything is perfect for when the guests arrive," Portia rebuked her.

"It's Miss Penelope. "She's had a problem with her dress and I'm afraid she won't make it in time," she announced.

"What?" asked Colin.

"Mum, I can't get married without Penelope. I need my sister by my side," implored Felicity.

"Calm down, everyone!" exclaimed Portia. "We'll explain later, but Felicity, you can't keep your future husband waiting; you must get married."

"But, Mother," protested the young girl.

Colin looked at Varley and noticed something unusual about her. Her eyes were red, and she was very agitated. It was clear that nothing had happened with the dress.

"The groom is getting nervous," said Eloise as she peeked in. "What happened?"

"Miss Penelope has had a problem with her dress, and will not be able to attend the ceremony," Varley said again. "If you'll excuse me, I'll go to Featherington House to finalize the details."

Colin looked at his sister, and they both understood each other with just that gesture. Penelope would not miss her sister's wedding over a simple dress.

"Mr. Bridgerton, we should go in," suggested Portia.

Colin nodded, but not before grabbing his sister's arm. "Go and find Penelope, make sure she arrives on time. I don't care what happened or if it's because of," he gestured to Lady Whistledown, "bring her back," Colin demanded.

Eloise nodded and left the church. However, her mother (Violet) soon intercepted her.

"Eloise, where are you going? You can't leave now," her mother pointed out.

"I'm going to look for Penelope. Varley told us she had a problem with her dress, but I have a feeling there's something else she didn't want to tell us," she said to her mother.

Before she could reply, Eloise was on her way to Featherington House. Something told her that something else had happened.

"Miss Eloise, what are you doing here?" asked Varley.

"I know nothing has happened to your dress. I am going up to your room, and I hope you will not prevent me. I may look like a sigh, but I'm strong enough to knock my brother down," Eloise warned her.

Varley made no attempt to stop her and she took the stairs two at a time. As she entered she saw her things laid out. As she approached her desk she found Lady Whistledown's farewell letter. What if she was actually saying goodbye to everyone and was simply going to disappear? She refused to let it be that, she picked up the paper and threw it into the fire so that no one would be able to read it. She turned sharply and bumped into Varley at her back.

"You're already telling me where Penelope has gone," Eloise said.

"I can't. It's too serious." Eloise cut her off immediately.

"She's almost like a sister to me, so you need to tell me where she is," she said again in a warning tone to the maid.

Varley did not say a word but handed her the letter that had arrived from Mr Crane. He read over and over what it said and had to sit on the edge of the bed to keep from falling on the floor.

"Penelope has gone to Lady Crane's, hasn't she?" she asked nervously.

"Yes, Miss Bridgerton.

That's all I needed to know." Eloise left the letter on the bed and ran for her coachman.

She had to go after her. She couldn't imagine what must be going through her mind at the moment, and it wouldn't be long before they heard in London that Marina had committed suicide. By now, the rain was easing and it was easier for the coachman to see down the road.  Eloise felt something strange in the air; it was a feeling similar to the fear of eternal loneliness, but she was not alone.

"Come on, please," she said to herself.

There was little left when suddenly she noticed how the coachman was slowing down to a complete standstill.

"Why are we stopping?" asked Eloise.

"Wait here a moment, Miss Bridgerton," he asked.

She heard the coachman get out and walk a couple of yards, and suddenly, there was a dead silence.

At that moment, she felt something break inside her.

Something had happened, she was sure of it.

"Miss Eloise, help me!" shouted the driver.

Eloise got out of the car and a few metres ahead, she saw a car completely overturned and cracked all over. As she got closer, her breath hitched as she realised that it was the Featheringtons' car. She hurriedly ran to her coachman.

"The coachman is dead, Miss Eloise," he said agitatedly, "We must find out where Miss Featherington is.

That's when it hit Eloise. Penelope could be dead and she would have died alone, with no one to hold her hand, no one to tell her everything was going to be all right. She would only be alive, and in a second she would have left her world.

She ran to the other side, and she didn't need to open the door because it wasn't even there. She could only see a pile of wood, but with the rain and the tears in her eyes, she couldn't focus. She heard a small creaking sound and, after turning her head to the right, she could see Penelope's feet; they were unmistakable.

She began to remove planks of wood as if she had always done so until she finally came upon her. Blood was pouring from her head; there was another wound near her mouth, which also caused blood to flow from her mouth.

"Miss Eloise," said the coachman, "Is she...?"

She took Penelope in her arms and hugged her tightly as she was drenched from the rain and shivering.

"God," she cried, "Penelope," she said, brushing her hair out of her face.

"I'm here, El," she weakly squeezed her wrist, "Please."

"No! Do you hear me? Don't you dare say anything to me because you're not going to die! You are going to lead a full life, you are going to marry my brother, you are going to have many daughters, and this will just be a story to tell your grandchildren.I need you to make my life miserable with your idyllic love."

"I need you to listen to me," she said with bated breath, "I have a feeling that I'm going to lose consciousness at any moment, and I want you to know," she said, swallowing her breath, "I will never forget you."

"Promise me you'll come back, swear to me," said Eloise, crying as she watched her friend lose consciousness.

"Miss Eloise, we should get you out and take you to someone who can help," the coachman instructed her as she was in shock.

"Stay alive Pen, please," Eloise pleaded with her friend.

Eloise nodded, and the driver pulled up the car they were in so they could take her back to the city. Penelope's blood was all over her dress, and once she was on her way into town, she was unable to process what was happening.