The constable nodded and stepped aside, letting Graham take the lead position as they moved through the house.
He rushed through the dining room and up the stairs. There were only four rooms in the manor: the master suite, Bridget's room, and two guest rooms. Graham found the doors to each of the rooms open, with the blankets in the master suite—room—still Sarah's disturbed. That meant the maidhad not had time to make the bed. He proceeded to Bridget's room, where he found the blankets thrown back and a note discarded on the mattress.
Graham took a big step forward and snatched it up, greedily skimming the contents. It was a suicide note, he soon realized—Bridget’ssuicide note. He surmised with shock that she had planned to take her own life at the lake after their meeting. It hit him then what her departure from his life would have meant. He had already grown to see her as a feature of his future, and he could not bear the thought of her death.
When he got to the part of the note addressed to him and saw her despair put into words, it sent chills down his spine, and rage roared inside him once more. On the other hand, as desperate as the note was and as terrible as it made him feel, it was proof enough that she had always loved him, if he had needed any. Graham ran his hand over his mouth as he read the words again, shaking his head and wanting to take her in his arms once again.
Soon—soon, all this would all be over, and he could devote the rest of his life to making her feel safe, adored,loved.
Graham's head snapped up when he heard a thud behind him, and sawonly one of the village men. The house, as far as he could tell, was empty. Had they found Bridget's note and left? Had they gone to find her at the lake? Perhaps Lady Sedgwick was now at the constabulary, seeking assistance in finding her, and they had somehow missed her on the road.
No, there was something evil afoot. Graham knew it deep in his heart.
“Your Grace!”
It was the constable, calling from downstairs. Graham folded the note and placed it in his breast pocket, then hurried back down the hall to the first floor. The constable was standing in the foyer, a curious look on his face, his eyes narrowed, his mouth open.
“What is it, Hastings?” Graham said. “We must hurry if we are to—”
The constable put his finger over his lips, glancing at Graham. “Listen.”
He must have missed it due to the whistling kettle, but now he definitely heard someone calling for help!
“We must find them,” Graham said. “I’ll go to the drawing room, and you go to the kitchens. Have you checked the—”
“Found something!” someone called from the kitchens. “My God… it’s Lady Sedgwick! Please, come and help!”
Graham’s feet flew across the floor, and he was soon in the kitchens once again. The man’s voice was coming from an open door which appeared to lead down to the cellar, where the family stored food for the winter. It took a moment for Graham’s eyes to adjust to the dark, but he was soon able to make out the shapes within.
“Your Grace!” a woman’s voice called. “Thank God, it’s you!”
Lady Sarah Sedgwick and a maid were huddled together at the bottom of the stairs, and it appeared the maid was injured. She was an older woman, and Graham soon recognized her as Bridget’s lady’s maid, Tilda. He moved toward them, hissing out a breath when he saw Tilda’s head was bleeding quite badly.
“We must get you to a physician,” Graham murmured. “How bad is it?” The maid did not answer him directly because Lady Sedgwick grabbed him by the arm.
“Where is my daughter? Have you seen her? I…” He looked at the woman and realized she was not only terrified because of how Lord Bragg had left them but for another reason entirely. Her eyes were red, as though she had just recently shed tears. His thoughts went back to the note he’d found in the bedroom, the suicide note. Her poor mother must have been terrified twice over.
“Bridget is at my home,” he said, and the woman let out a sigh of relief that sent her shoulders rolling forward. Tilda crossed herself and looked at the heavens.
“Merciful Lord, thank you,” she said
“I-I was so scared. I thought I would lose her and…” Sarah’s words trailed off as tears and terror overpowered her speech. The maid patted her hand gently.
“Lady Sedgewick, it was terrifying, indeed, but you know she is safe now,” Tilda soothed. She looked up at Graham. “Your Grace, I am the one who found the note, and then, when I saw her bed was empty I feared for the worst. Now, with Lord Bragg about, I cannot rest until I set my eyes on her.”
“She is safe, she is with my mother,” he said and once again examined her wound. “We ought to fret over your injury. Shall a physician be called?”
“It is not all that bad,” Tilda grumbled. “The scoundrel, Lord Bragg, pushed me down the stairs, and I took a tumble.”
“You pretend too often to be strong, but you’re growing old,” Lady Sedgwick said to the maid. It seemed she had gathered her nerves again. “Yes, you need help. Your Grace, if you could assist me in helping her up?”
He bent to take Tilda’s arm, and the maid grunted in pain as she moved. He presumed she must have hurt her leg in the fall as well, though he hoped the injury was not too severe.
“Whatever happened?” Graham asked. “You said Lord Bragg was involved in all of this? Not that I am surprised.”
Lady Sedgwick’s face grew distressed, her lips thinning and her brow furrowing. “So, you know the truth. All of it? I assume Bridget must have told you. Her note spoke of guilt… guilt I should have alleviated. I failed her.”
“Many of us have much to think about and ponder once this threat is over, Lady Sedgwick. Myself included. For the time being, we must focus on the task at hand. As to your question, yes, Bridget has told me everything. I found her last night at the lake. I presume she intended to fulfill what was written in her note, but she wanted to tell me the truth first. A horrifying truth it is.” He fixed his eyes on Lady Sedgwick, who let out another puff of air.