Too Pensive to Notice

Chapter Eight

It was time, Ophelia thought to herself lying down on her bed watching that crooked vine. It was time to talk to the girls about all the ideas that were keeping her awake all night.

She had told them about most of what happened between her and Andrew, but the fact that the girls seemed to have been teaming up on her and trapping her with him, made her hold her silence about her true feelings. That in addition to Elizabeth being Andrew's sister. She had never done this; she was actually known in their little group to be the one who always spoke every single thought that flashed through her mind.

It was strange why she had chosen to keep such important news all to herself, but then again she was never sure of her true feelings or mostly of Andrew's true feelings. To think about it, she still wasn't sure but she was now at least confident that something was not right between them.

She devised a plan of how to get the girls together the next morning. She was almost ready to jump out of bed and go talk to the girls right away since of course when Ophelia had something on her mind; she couldn't rest before executing it even if it meant that she had to get the girls to worry a little.

The next morning, Ophelia was thankful that her mother was visiting with someone and so she slipped outside leaving a note with the butler that Lady Elizabeth had called for her. It was no mistake that Ophelia chose Elizabeth and not Renditia or Prudence since her mother would definitely not mind if her daughter would for a second be in the company of Lord Andrew whom she was favouring at the moment.

Ophelia ordered the carriage to be sent first to Prudence's house with a note, wait for her to get in and then wait for Prudence's orders. The note read as follows,

Dear Prudence,
I need you to get in the carriage, head over to Renditia's house, convince Jack to free Renditia from her house arrest for an hour and then both of you head towards Elizabeth's house. I will be there waiting for you and I will explain.

                                                                                                                                                                        Much Love

                                                                                                                                                                        Ophelia

She dismissed the idea of adding a note that everything was fine because Ophelia was afraid that that might put Prudence at ease and not actually do what she was asked to immediately.

She also sent Elizabeth a note with a poor footman who was asked to run quickly and deliver the note that said that she and the girls would be over in about fifteen minutes and that Elizabeth was required to make her household think she was expecting them.

"What is it with you ladies and these urgent meetings?" Prudence asked after dashing into Elizabeth's drawing room and making sure everyone was well and breathing with all their parts intact.

"You shan't hear me complain since what you just did saved me from an awful lecture from Jack just because I decided to recall my childhood memories and pulled out my old trunk," Renditia was saying all the while playing with her dress.

To the dumbfounded expression on the girls' faces, she replied, "Well it wasn't really heavy."

"And you decided to spare all of your twenty eight servants the trouble?" Elizabeth said sarcastically.

Ophelia was trying to patiently and politely wait for the conversation to end, but when she saw that Renditia and Elizabeth were getting ready to start a dispute, she interjected with, "so first of all, I'm sorry for making you all fret about me."