Chapter Five: Blood Moon by Rosaline Saul
IT FELT LIKE hours had passed when she heard the sound of a key in the lock, and her whole body went rigid when she looked up.
Count Burke was standing there, waiting for the prison door to be opened. He was staring at her; his eyes were narrowed, and his expression was grim.
Aware that she was trembling on the inside, Maggie was determined to make a show of resistance. She pushed herself up against the wall and got slowly to her feet, forcing herself to return his look of disdain. Maggie put her hands behind her back and squared her shoulders.
As soon as the door swung open, the prison guard left, and Joseph walked into the little damp prison cell. In the middle of the small room, he paused. He looked her over from head to toe.
Lifting her chin, she endured his scrutiny in silence. She was aware she looked a dirty mess. Not that it mattered. As far as he was concerned, she had already been found guilty.
He said, “Tell me exactly how you and Beatrice came to meet each other.”
Maggie asked icily, “How many times do I have to say it?”
He changed his tactic. “Where are you from? Your family name?”
“Abbot. My father is named John Abbot,” Maggie replied rudely.
He nodded. “A scholar. I have heard of him.”
“I am sure he will be overjoyed,” she sneered sarcastically.
His mouth tightened. “I advise you to keep a civil tongue.”
“Am I not behaving with sufficient deference, Count Burke? My sincere apologies,” she remarked with a grim tone in her voice.
“Again. How do you and my ward know each other?”
“I do not know her. We met when we were seeking shelter from the rain, that is all.”
He nodded his head. “Beatrice confirmed your story.”
“She did? Really?”
“You seem surprised.”
“I am surprised,” Maggie snapped. “I did not know what she would say to try and protect herself from the likes of you.”
His brows snapped together ominously, and Maggie looked down at the ground. There was a brief taut silence, then, a low, amused chuckle. “I am quite aware how she feels about me.”
Maggie gave him a defiant glare. “Which is why she was trying to run away from you. What are you going to do to Beatrice now? You cannot stop her; you know? She will find a way.”
“There will not be a next time,” he said curtly. “I believed she was sufficiently protected, but I was wrong and other steps will have to be taken.”
“Madame Anne was not doing a good enough job of keeping her a prisoner in her own home?” Maggie muttered.
His dark eyes raked her. “She seems to have taken you fully into her confidence.”
Maggie met his gaze. “If Beatrice confirmed my story, then I am free to go now?”
“Of course. Are you still in the employ of Lord Richard?” He looked at her while an amused grin lifted the corner of his mouth.
“No.” She did not feel the need to explain. It had absolutely nothing to do with him, especially now that she did not have to prove her innocence anymore.
“What are your plans now?” He asked.
“I am not sure what my plans are,” Maggie said guardedly. She did not want to tell this arrogant man, who thought all of humankind existed only to do his will, anything.
He looked at her, his lips twisting into a faint smile as he took a step closer to her, and asked, “Would you like to see Beatrice?”
The walls of the dank, damp cell seemed to shrink around her, startling Maggie with a sudden vivid awareness of his proximity to her. She felt a troubling sensation as if she was in more danger now than she had been all day, or even ever before. She had the urgent need to get out of the little cell. To get away from him.
She forced a smile. “I would prefer to leave things as they are. Please tell her I said goodbye, and... Good luck.” She added deliberately, “I think she is going to need it.”
Maggie moved toward the open cell door. For an uneasy moment, she was sure he was going to reach out to her. She could not afford to indulge in that kind of speculation. It was not safe. He was not safe.
She asked, “Did someone bring my belongings here or did they leave it on the sidewalk?”
Without a word, he followed her out of the cell.
She could feel him walking behind her, feel his eyes roam over her body but she kept walking, trying hard not to run.
A police officer stepped from around a corner, and she swung around in panic, feeling a scream rise in her throat until she realised he was simply handing her her suitcase. She managed to choke out a, “Thank you,” and walked out of the police station without looking back.
Outside it was still drizzling.
Maggie wondered if she should find someone with a horse-cart to take her home. She did not really want to spend the money, but she felt extremely tired and exhausted. It had been a long, long day.
She took her first step in the direction of home and the place where she always used to feel safe. She did not have those same feelings of belonging anymore, but she had nowhere else to go.
Tears she had held back bravely since this morning when she was dismissed from her job, now refused to be held back. They ran down her already rain-damp cheeks without any restraint.
Every time there was a loud noise behind her, she startled and stopped briefly to look over her shoulder. Her heart was thumping violently in her chest each time.
It’s over, she kept telling herself. You will never see him again.
Maggie did not even notice the persistent rain or the way her wet skirts clung to her legs as she walked. She did not notice her surroundings which usually brought her an immense feeling of joy. She just trudged along the road.
When she eventually stumbled into their house after sunset, Cathy was too distraught about Maggie to worry why she was there.
Her father and stepmother helped her to her room, and then her stepmother helped her strip from her clothes, before helping her into the bed and pulling the heavy blankets on top of her. Her father brought hot coals from the fireplace to warm up the room.
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