“I am serious. This must be such a trial for you. Leah dearest, I cannot remember the last time I saw you smile,” replied Claire.
Over the past weeks, she had kept her own counsel, not daring to trust anyone with her secret. And while Claire Radley was her friend, and a young woman with a mind of her own, it remained to be seen if she could be trusted to help with her plan. There would be a real risk to Claire’s reputation if things went awry.
Leah faltered for a moment, unsure of her next step.
Claire, meanwhile, remained close. “If your heart is not in this marriage, then tell me what I can do to help. It is torture watching you suffer. Whatever you need, you only have to ask.”
“Give me your hand.”
Claire offered her hand and Leah took it in hers. She then placed it over her own heart. A solemn vow between friends.
“If I am discovered, I swear to keep your name out of this. Nothing of my plans will ever be linked to you or your family. I shall take all knowledge of it to my grave. Will you make the same pledge?” she said.
Claire nodded slowly. There was a wariness on her face which gave Leah hope. Her friend understood that the plan was not without danger. Leah was not just experiencing a case of pre-wedding jitters.
“My father is forcing me to marry Guy, but I have decided to run away. I am going to seek refuge with my grandfather, Sir Geoffrey Sydell, in Cornwall. He is the only man I know who is brave enough to take a stand against my father. The only one with the willpower to put a stop to this marriage,” confessed Leah.
Sir Geoffrey had long been an outspoken critic of his son-in-law. Something which had eventually seen the end of visits to Mopus Manor by the Shepherd family. It had been over two years since Leah had last been with her grandfather. Her father had forbidden her to write to him in the intervening period; and only the occasional message relayed through family friends had kept her informed of his life and health.
“Alright, so what do you need from me? I will do all I can,” said Claire.
Leah sighed. It was such a relief to finally be able to share her plans with someone else. She could trust Claire. Now it just remained as to whether her friend could actually render her any real form of assistance.
Leah knew where the greatest risk lay in her attempt to escape. Keeping it secret from her father and Guy was paramount. “I need money to buy a ticket on the mail coach to Truro. I also need to know exactly where the coach leaves from and at what time. My family and Guy are watching me like hawks. Even the coachman who brought me here today will be questioned as to where we travelled, once I return home,” she said.
Claire nodded.
“I have some of my allowance set aside for Christmas gifts. And, of course, I was going to buy you a wedding present. So, I have that money as well. Now don’t take this the wrong way, but I must ask, have you thought this through? I mean really thought it through,” replied Claire.
Had she thought it through? It was all Leah could think of from the time she woke each morning to the moment she blew out the bedside candle at night. Her whole existence consisted of devising ways she could escape from the clutches of her father and Guy Dannon.
In defying her father, she was risking everything. If she succeeded, there was every chance that he would never let her set foot in her home again—that she would be forever an outcast from her family. Leah had no illusions as to her likely fate. For refusing to yield to his command, Tobias Shepherd would sever all ties with his youngest daughter.
She had considered every possible option that had come to her mind, from the unlikely to the insane. Fleeing to her beloved grandfather was the only one with any real merit. “Believe me, if there were another way out of this marriage, I would take it,” replied Leah.
“First thing tomorrow, I am going to make discreet enquiries about the mail coach. It’s a good thing James is out of town. I can move about without the worry of him wanting to accompany me. Though we shall have to move fast; he is coming back from Derbyshire early next week in time for the wedding,” said Claire.
It was music to her ears to hear that James was still out of town. The last thing she needed was for him to discover her scheme and offer his assistance. Knowing how well his first attempt at helping her had gone, she was better off him not knowing anything about her arrangements.
Because if anyone could throw her plans into disarray, it was James.
Chapter Seventeen
Leah was being careful in whom she placed her trust. For all her kind thoughts and deeds, even Claire was only permitted to know parts of the escape plan. If things did go awry, Leah could not bear the thought of her friend suffering any sort of repercussions that might follow. She was in no doubt that Tobias Shepherd would find a sly way to make even the daughter of the Bishop of London pay for attempting to meddle in his affairs.
“The coach leaves midmorning from the Gloucester Coffee House in Piccadilly. If you are able to make your way there, you will only have to hide for a short period until the coach leaves. The ticket office assured me that the coach to Salisbury is never full so you should have no problems in securing a seat,” said Claire.
The two young women were in Leah’s bedroom a few days later, allegedly looking at fabric samples for redecorating Guy’s house, but in truth they were working on Leah’s plans to escape.
Claire handed Leah a copy of the mail coach timetable for the west country. Leah read it; and after having memorized the pertinent details, handed it back to Claire. She couldn’t risk her parents discovering it if her father decided to search her room.
The only time she could be certain of making her escape was on the morning of the wedding. While her parents and Guy were inside the vestry at St George’s, attending to the final wedding paperwork, she would make her move. She would have to hope that her precise planning and a healthy dose of luck would see her make good on her getaway.
“The time between you leaving the church and when the mail coach departs is the most dangerous. You cannot risk being discovered, so you must disguise yourself as soon as you can after making your way out of St George’s. I brought this with me. I thought it would help.”
After a quick glance toward the door of Leah’s bedroom, Claire looked at the box she had brought with her. She opened the lid.
Inside were the fabric samples and trims which they were supposedly discussing. Claire rummaged around in the box, then pulled out a piece of folded black cloth. She quickly handed it to Leah.
