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“About your mortgage being bought out from under you?” Miles said frowning. “I must say I was surprised. I did not think even he would stoop quite that low.”
“Well yes, we knew that,” Vern said.
“Stoop…who has stooped?” Star interrupted worriedly.
“Sir Edward. I was at the bank this morning when he was just leaving. I saw him shaking hands with the bank president who congratulated him on his acquisition. Told him that Berkley would fetch a wondrous penny when it was refurbished,” He shrugged, “I was shocked and hoped I had somehow misunderstood?” He eyed them, “Have you sold out?”
“Devil you say! No, we have not!” Vern returned sharply. “I don’t know what all this stuff and nonsense is, but yes, we knew that someone had bought up the mortgage from the bank, and yes, I had heard something that led me to believe it was Sir Edward who had purchased it. We hoped that they meant to allow us time, with interest, of course, to continue to make our payments until we were in a position to retire the loan,” Vern growled.
Star had gone white. The room started to spin for her. Had he betrayed them? Had Sir Edward used their ill fortune to increase his own? And what was that wrenching sound in her chest? Was that her heart breaking in two?
Chapter Twenty-Three
DAWN ARRIVED AND Star saw her brother and Miles on their way. They trotted their horses sedately down the drive and she sighed as she watched them go. They made their slow progress down the drive, with Miles amiably complaining about the earliness of the hour.
Luckily it was a fine summer’s morning. The air was crisp and she took a long gulp of it before turning away from them. They had agreed with her that they would leave their horses at the Rye livery before boarding the Vision and sailing her to Hastings, where Star would hopefully meet with them around noon.
She closed the door, sighed wearily and she smoothed her white silk robe around herself. She had not slept ve
ry much. Troubled over what Miles had told them about Sir Edward buying out their mortgage. Her mind had felt swollen with her chaotic thoughts.
She couldn’t believe Sir Edward would serve them such a trick. He wouldn’t buy up their mortgage just to turn a profit. Yet, there was no other reason for doing so. She could think of no other viable reason.
She could see his dear handsome face as he told her to remember the moment they were last together. She had tried to remember it all, the feeling, the look in his eyes, the hope she had felt. Now, in the face of this new development, it seemed like a fairy tale.
In addition to her awful doubts, was the fact that she had an awful ‘feeling’. Every instinct in her body made her dread the upcoming day. Why? She could not find a reason why she should feel this way. It was as though she knew, absolutely knew, that something quite dreadful was about to take place. But what?
She hurriedly bathed because she had a full day ahead of her.
It wasn’t an overly long journey to Hastings, the good part of an hour or more and she knew she shouldn’t drive the gig there alone. Hmmm, what to do?
It wasn’t quite the thing. She never minded breaking rules, but although it was one matter to go into town alone, it was quite another to take on such a lengthy trip in an open gig. Of course, she would be met by her brother and Miles, but what if they were late? Hastings was a large seaport town and she would subject herself to social criticism if she were seen unattended there.
Jeffries couldn’t be spared from the stables and thus, taking the coach was out of the question. It would have to be the gig as she would have to drive herself.
Dilly then? She could ask Dilly to accompany her.
Her mood immediately brightened as she realized she could ask Georgie—she would ask Georgie to accompany her.
Why hadn’t she thought of this yesterday and sent a note around in time? Georgie could have spent the night. Well, never mind, she told herself, she would send a note round to Georgie at once. No—she had better just take a quick ride over there, just in case, Georgie’s mother, needed some gentle persuasion. In fact, she would just have the gig hitched up and if Georgie could attend her, wonderful. If not, she would return for Dilly and only lose thirty minutes.
She called to Dilly to get word to Jeffries to hitch up the horses to the open gig and have it ready for her.
Yes, Georgie was just who she needed with her cool common sense. She would tell Georgie as much as she could and see what she thought.
* * *
Early morning magic swept through the streets of Rye, bringing it to life in quick stages. On Mermaid Street, milkmaids were already making their rounds. Several of the popular inns found their innkeepers up and about and making certain a robust breakfast would be waiting for their guests.
Ally, one of Farley’s men, perhaps his favorite watched the passing bustle of the morning scene, stopped to look at the harbor. He loved looking at the boats. He should have been a seaman, he often told himself. He shrugged and watched a fisherman taking out his boat. There was an honest man, living an honest man’s life.
He wished he could do the same. It had always been his plan to squirrel enough ready away and do just that. He’d been with Farley for more years than he cared to count. Perhaps it was time to pull up stakes and do what he always dreamed of, taking to the sea and making his living at it.
Suddenly he went dead still.
He watched Vern of Berkley and his friend laughing as they boarded The Vision’s deck. His eyes narrowed and his thoughts bumped into one another. Here was something Farley should know about right away. Mayhap the little sister was all alone? Mayhap this was how they could get enough ready together?
Ally hurried up the sloping cobbled streets and rushed into the inn like a man on fire. All he could think was this was his last chance for a last job.
