Secrets of the Night

Chapter 11

The next morning the thunderstorm had passed. It wasn't as warm as it had been the day before, but the sun was shining again and the air still smelled of rain, when Willow strolled through the gardens the next morning. It was still really early, around 7 o'clock. For some reason she had woken up with the first rays of sun today and felt the urge to get outside. She felt like she couldn't spend another minute in the house.

After getting dressed by herself and leaving a note for Elise that she was in the garden going for a stroll and that she should please collect her in time for breakfast, Willow tiptoed through the house and out the back door. Taking a deep breath the fresh air immediately calmed her senses and gave her the feeling of just the tiniest bit of freedom. Sure it was nothing compared to climbing over that wall, standing on top of it, knowing that there was no one there to stop her. But just being outside made Willow feel a little better.

The grass was still damp and after only a few steps the hem of her skirt had gotten wet too. Willow didn't mind though. It made her wonder if she should head inside a little earlier and get a change of wardrobe though. Would her brother mind? Would it be in any way inappropriate if the hem of her skirt was a little wet? Willow couldn't imagine him getting mad at something like that, but if he had a bad day...

Just to be on the safe side she decided to change to one of the pathways instead of strolling through the grass. Her skirt should have dried up by the time they would have breakfast.

As she continued her stroll, Willow's thoughts started wandering. Should she risk sneaking out again tonight? She had never been caught on her nightly trips. Not by anyone she knew at least. That stranger had happened to catch her breaking out. Yes... that stranger. The unknown man on the horse. Willow couldn't help but wonder who he was. Whatever could he be up to right now? Did he manage to resolve that fight with his father?

Let's see, maybe if she put all the pieces of information she had together she might get a little closer to who he could be. He had been riding a horse. That very probably meant that he wasn't just a commoner. His family had to at least have a bit of money to be able to afford a horse. It also didn't look as bulky as working horses usually do, so it was probably just for riding.

Unfortunately it had been way too dark to make out any clothing. That would have helped quite a bit. You can nearly always tell if someone is noble by their clothing. By the pick of fabrics, the pattern on the fabrics, by the state that the clothes were in and even by the way they were worn.

Willow had never been one to play close attention to her own clothing. When it came to picking out a new gown there were two aspects that had always had to been taken into consideration: 1. Was it suitable for a lady in her position? 2. Was it affordable?

Money had been tight since Willow could think. Or at least neither her father nor her brother had considered it a good investment to spend a fortune on a gown. And if Willow were to be honest, she didn't care much at all. She never really got to meet new people anyways so why wonder, what it would say about her if her gown was lilac instead of blue?

But back to the matter at hand. The stranger from the other night. Could he be a nobleman? There was a possibility. They didn't exchange too many words but the way he spoke, the words he used surely told that he had a good education. But there was also something a little foreign. Willow couldn't place her finger on it, but he seemed to pronounce some words a little different, like he wasn't from around here.

If that was to be true though, she would probably never see him again. What were the chances of him coming back here then? Hold on one second though. Didn't he know that she was sneaking off the Cornwall grounds though. If Willow recalled correctly he mentioned the Cronwall grounds when addressing her. That meant that he had to be somewhat familiar with this area.