The Heiress - Lynsay Sands [57]
As annoyed as he was at having to leave Suzette behind, Daniel had to admit it was safer. They were also traveling much more swiftly with just the three of them and one carriage. They had stopped three times to change the horses, and it wasn’t yet midnight, but he thought they were probably already about three quarters of the way back to London.
“They will get over their anger,” he said now, hoping that was true.
“Trust me,” Langley said dryly. “I have known the Madison sisters all my life. You will not get off easily for this. Either of you,” he added, and then glanced to Richard and said, “I was glad to see . . .”
Daniel didn’t hear the rest of what he said, his gaze had slid out the window to the moonlit sky as he wondered what Suzette was doing. He imagined she was still fuming over his defection. He supposed he would have some fence-mending to do when they returned to Radnor to collect the women. He would purchase a gift for her while in town, Daniel decided, and then brightened at the thought as he decided on an engagement ring and wedding band. He hadn’t considered the need for either item before this and he was trying to decide if she would prefer something simple like a solitaire or a more elaborate multi-jeweled ring when his thoughts were interrupted by a loud crack and the carriage suddenly pitching to the side.
Daniel grabbed instinctively for something to hold on to as the night filled with sudden shouts and whinnies, but he was too slow and found himself tumbling about inside the carriage. He crashed into one wall, then another, all the while taking blows from the various body parts of his companions as the three of them banged about inside the vehicle. The carriage seemed to roll several times before it came to a stop, and then everything was suddenly still.
Silence was a heavy cloak inside the carriage until Daniel found the breath to groan. He had come to rest on his back on a relatively flat surface except for something that was poking him in the lower back. It was damned uncomfortable, but not nearly as discomfiting as the fact that he couldn’t breathe. Something heavy had landed on top of him and was squeezing the breath right out of him. Probably one of the men, he thought a little faintly, or both of them, he corrected as the weight on top of him began to shift, stealing even more of his ability to breathe.
“Lord Woodrow?”
The darkness enveloping them suddenly gave way to blinding light as the carriage door opened above and his driver leaned in with a lit lantern to peer about. The light showed Daniel that it was indeed both Richard and Langley on top of him, but now Robert scrabbled to remove himself, making Richard grunt on top of Daniel as the other man sat up and then reached for the opening and pulled himself out.
“Damn, Richard, get off me, I can’t breathe,” Daniel gasped the moment he could get more air into his lungs, but Richard was already moving and muttering apologies as he inadvertently kneed and elbowed him during his efforts. Richard didn’t immediately follow Robert out of the carriage, however, instead shifting his weight to the side to kneel beside Daniel as he asked, “Are you all right?”
“Battered and bruised, but otherwise fine I think,” Daniel decided as he sat up. “You?”
“The same,” Richard said and glanced up.
Daniel followed his gaze to the opening and the still waiting driver. Robert was now also peering back in at them, but Daniel’s eyes sought out his driver.
“What happened?” he asked as he stood up.
“I’m not sure, my lord,” the driver admitted, sounding unhappy. He and Robert both shifted back to get out of the way as Daniel began to pull himself out through the open carriage door, before he continued, “We were riding along fine and then I heard a crack, and the carriage pitched and began to roll. Fortunately, the carriage body snapped just behind the boot and the horses