“Whoa there, boy!” I cautiously rose to my feet, keeping his head at a safe distance. Sounds of confused footsteps were circulating in the direction of the kitchen. If I didn’t move now, I was going to get caught cavorting with the family pet.
My eyes darted to the front door. The handle was beginning to rotate from an entering servant. I clutched my inverted skirt anxiously as I spun my eyes around the room for another escape. My sight landed on the front parlor, but I wasn’t certain I could make that distance before the door opened. I looked at the stairs behind me and did the dumbest thing I could have ever done... I ran up them.
Everything inside me was screaming to turn around and stay near the exit, but my fear of getting caught was greater than my desire to leave. As I ran up the steps two at a time, Bartholomew chased after me. I began to panic once I noticed his pursuit. A black Great Pyrenees was not exactly discreet when you were fleeing. The door swung open just before I reached the top step.
I gasped at the sight of Lawrence walking in the front door and quickly ducked behind Bartholomew. He may have been a huge eye-catcher, but he was big. As a matter of fact, he was big enough that a petite blonde could fully hide behind his fuzzy torso. My fingers dug into his soft fur, clutching tensely from fear. Suddenly, I was far more grateful that he had followed me up the steps.
“Hello there, Bartholomew,” Lawrence projected up the steps to my fluffy shield. I did my best to keep my body aligned with his, which left me in an awkward hunching position.
“Why don’t you come outside with me for a bath? We wouldn’t want your winter coat to shed everywhere, now would we?” He whistled lightly, causing Bartholomew to raise his head at the noise. I tightened my grip on his fur, desperately pleading with him not to go. I would be left entirely exposed if he followed the summons.
Somehow, he must have recognized my distress, because he remained completely still. My breath stilled as my appreciation for the animal grew steadily by the second. Lawrence’s polished shoes clicked on the floor with an approaching resonance.
“Come on now, Bartholomew. Let’s not make this difficult.” His voice was growing nearer, along with his tapping shoes. The distinct click of a heel hitting the bottom step echoed with a looming intensity.
My defender definitely noticed as I stiffened in stress. A moment after I tensed, the sweet creature stepped away from the oncoming servant. It took some awkward shuffling to keep in step with his movements, but he moved slowly enough that I could easily follow. He continued to shift up the final two steps until both my feet and his paws touched the top of the second floor.
“Don’t make me chase you down like last time.” Lawrence was halfway up the steps.
With his eyes trained on Bartholomew, perhaps I could dart down the hall without him noticing. I shifted my weight into a more maneuverable position. It wouldn’t be much longer until the butler would see me. Preparing to run, I leaned back on my left foot, releasing the dog’s fur. Apparently, my hold on him had been holding him back, because he used the freedom from my grip to make his escape.
As I took off, so did Bartholomew. He surprisingly managed to keep pace with me as Lawrence shouted at the creature from the stairs. I breathed a quick sigh of relief at the dog’s continued provided cover, but unfortunately, he was still directing attention to us both. I needed to split off from him as soon as possible.
Once we were fully out of sight of the stairs, I stood to my full height to increase my speed. Bartholomew sped up with me, keeping pace alongside me. His long pink tongue flapped joyously out the side of his mouth as he galloped through the halls. He looked like he was having a blast. I turned down the twisted halls of the upper floor and found myself colliding with a narrow table that lined the wall. A few decorative trinkets and vases crashed to the floor, causing me to wince from the startling sound.
“Bartholomew! Get back here right now!” Lawrence’s voice was growing impatient, and so were his footsteps. He must have heard the crash as his footsteps had quickened to a run.
My eyes swept across the room for the closest hiding spot and fell upon a bedroom door. It wasn’t the master, so it wasn’t the worst option. I flung the door open and tried to close it, only to be thwarted by a big black nose poking through the crack. The dog’s doughy brown eyes pleaded with me to let him hide too, but I knew if I let him in, Lawrence would find us both.
“I’m sorry!” I whispered apologetically to the pathetic creature. He whimpered as I gently pushed his snout out of the doorway to close it shut. The solemn pup whined and scratched at the door for a moment, causing a rise of anxiety to well up inside me. What if Lawrence checked the room? I turned to look for another hiding spot when suddenly, the scratching stopped.
“There you are!” Lawrence’s shrill voice dripped with irritation. “Do you realize what a mess you made? All you had to do was come quietly. Now hurry, we have already wasted enough time.”
A rush of guilt flooded over me as the sound of retreating foot and paw-steps disappeared through the door. Bartholomew had essentially saved me, and I had abandoned him to the horrific fate of a bath. I was turning out to be quite the villain.
chapter seven
Once sealed inside my newest prison, I took a moment to lock the door and explore my surroundings. I had peeked inside this bedroom on my first visit, but hardly gave it a glance over before moving on. The room was extraordinarily frilly and girlish. All the drapery was adorned with floral patterns and delicate pink bows. The rugs were plush with feminine paisley patterns, all in red and blush tones. It was hideous. No wonder I ignored it the first time.
I crossed the flowered room over to a bay window surrounded by lace drapery. Pushing past the frou-frou fabrics, I gazed through paned glass only to see the back of the gardens. There were four gardeners in view just from this window alone, and perhaps more in the front garden. Just how many staff did this Lord Luke need? Honestly, nobody’s gardens needed that much attention.
I paced the room for a bit, only walking on the thick rugs so my steps remained muffled. My body was relishing in the freedom to move and stretch without constriction. Taking full advantage of my new enclosure, I performed as many exercises as I could manage in silence. My muscles ached from the confinement I had put them through over the past days, but it felt incredible to work them out again. Usually, exercising wouldn’t be suitable for a lady, but at this rate, I was hardly a lady anymore. I was a sneak, a snoop, a thief, and probably many other improper things my parents would disown me for. My mind flooded back to the conversation I had overheard earlier.
Had they truly hired a bounty hunter? Or was that just a rumor to try to scare me back home? Knowing my family, it wasn’t likely a hoax. If my father wanted something desperately enough, he would throw all the money he could into attaining it. Unfortunately, the thing he now wanted most was me, and not in a sentimental way.
A sleepy yawn escaped my lips as I sprawled out across the fluffy pink bedspread. My torso instantly sank into the soft mattress, making it near impossible to sit back up again. I thought back to my last two nights’ sleep and considered turning in early for the night. It wasn’t even suppertime yet, but if I slept now, I should be up before dawn. Then I might have a better chance of slipping out of the manor in the morning.
I turned the idea over in my head a few times as I munched on the spare nuts I had stuffed inside my pockets earlier. There was a bounty hunter to consider now. Whoever he or she was, I wasn’t certain how far they were planning to search for me. Surely, I could evade just one person, right?
My mind didn’t ease at all from the consideration. One thing was for certain, though—I couldn’t keep hiding out here. It was sheer luck that I managed to even eat today. If I kept testing that luck, I was either going to get caught or starve. I crunched the last nut I had pocketed, then let out another yawn.
With a bit of effort, I managed to peel myself off the bed, and approach the locked door. I grabbed a small wooden chair and shimmied it under the door handle as a preventative measure—in case the door’s lock possessed a key I was unaware of. Although, I wasn’t terribly worried about anyone entering since this was clearly a bonus room that had already been well cleaned. Any further attention to its upkeep would likely only be done before a guest arrived.
Kicking off my shoes, I burrowed under the covers of the cushy bed. I probably sank a solid three inches into the mattress before it finally showed any resistance. Typically, I preferred a bed with a little more firmness, but I wasn’t going to complain after having slept on the master’s rock-solid bed. The overwhelming softness made it difficult to move without simply burying myself deeper into the plush. Though soon enough my body’s desire for rest overcame my need for adjusting, and my eyes fell closed.
I awoke before the sun rose, just as planned. However, it wasn’t necessarily an intentional waking. The soft bed ended up being as horrid as the rest of the room. No matter how I shifted, the cushiony surface completely enveloped me in the most suffocating of ways. After hours of attempting to ignore the claustrophobic sensations, I finally gave up and crawled onto the floor. The thick rug made a surprisingly decent bed, but it was still unpleasant.
I dragged my body off the floor, feeling the exact opposite of my typical sunshine-self. Three days without proper sleep definitely had a way of spoiling a young girl’s mood. My stomach gurgled hungrily as I sloppily returned the blankets to their bed. I looked out the window and saw that the moon still hung low in the sky. Perhaps the kitchen staff wasn’t awake yet?