Grasping the bundle, she tugged them out of the hidden space and held them to the light streaming from the window. Her heart turned over in her chest as she recognized her mother’s flowing script on the top envelope.
Dear lord, she had done it.
Relief raced through her trembling body. Her mother would be saved, and if she were quick enough, so would Stefan.
For a brief moment her relief was overshadowed by a pain that sliced through her heart, then with a shake of her head, she was replacing the box and journal back into the hidden safe and securing the lock.
She had just managed to roll the carpet back into place when the door was pressed silently open and Sophy stuck her head into the room.
“You must hurry. I just heard one of the maids saying that the Duke has returned.”
“I am done.”
With only a cursory glance to ensure the room appeared untouched, Leonida gripped the keys in one hand and hid the stack of papers in the folds of her skirt with the other. Then she rushed from the room.
She had just slipped into her chamber when the sound of Stefan’s voice echoed through the foyer and up the stairs. Her heart gave another twinge of painful regret before she was firmly pulling her door shut and throwing the bolt.
It was done.
Nothing mattered now but plotting her escape.
“Did you find what you were seeking?” Sophy demanded, her voice a nervous whisper.
Moving to her jewelry box, Leonida stuffed the letters among her pearls and amber necklace and used a small key to lock them inside. It would not withstand any serious attempt to open it, but for the moment it would have to do.
“I believe so,” she said, turning around to cross back toward her maid.
“Will you give it to that man?”
“Certainly not.”
“But…”
Leonida grasped her maid’s hands and regarded her with a somber expression.
“While I am at dinner I want you to pack your bags and when you are certain there is no one about I want you to go straight to the stables of Hillside and collect my carriage.”
A mulish frown settled on Sophy’s brow. “I will not leave you.”
“It will only be for a short time. We must devise some story…” Leonida chewed her bottom lip as she sorted through her mind for a suitable lie. “You can tell Lord Summerville’s servants that you received word that your mother is ill and I have allowed you to return to Russia to tend to her. That should hopefully keep them from becoming suspicious of your sudden need to leave.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Once the carriage is away from Hillside I want you to have Pyotr drive it to the line of trees just beyond the lake. Make sure it cannot be easily seen from the road.”
Sophy’s frown remained. “But what of you?”
Leonida summoned a confidence she was far from feeling. Perhaps if she pretended this hasty plan she was concocting as she went along could succeed, she could make herself believe it.
“I must attend dinner and wait for the household to settle for the night,” she said with a grimace, regretfully concluding that she dare not simply bolt. “Only when I am certain that no one will notice my absence can I leave. The more time we have before I am missed, the better.”
Sophy took an abrupt step backward, her eyes wide with disbelief.
“You intend for us to begin our return to Russia tonight?”
“I have no choice, Sophy. Once I am gone, I am certain my enemies will follow me and the Duke will be safe.”
The maid’s lips thinned with disapproval. “I am more concerned for your safety. What if that nasty man is keeping a watch on the house?”