together in silence until the doctor arrived.
After examining Anne, he stood, a frown firmly in place. “I don’t know her history, but she seems very fragile. She has a fever, and it seems to have taken a firm hold. I’ll give her some laudanum, and I advise she is not left alone. Try to keep her cool. But without knowing her previous complaints, I cannot offer any real hope. From the look of things, she is severely ill.”
Prudence sucked in a breath before speaking. “Thank you. We shall care for her as best we can.”
“I shall return in the morning, but if she should worsen…”
“We will send for you immediately,” Prudence said. She waited until the doctor had administered the liquid. It was painful to watch how unresponsive Anne was.
The housekeeper led the doctor out the door, and Prudence rang the bell. A footman knocked on the door, and Prudence opened it. “Where is the coachman?”
“In the kitchen, Miss. He was a little shaken but has calmed down now.”
“Good. Please have him sent to the morning room. I shall see him there in a few moments.”
Prudence had decided on the smallest room so as not to intimidate the coachman. She needed to know the whole situation and quickly.
“I shall return soon,” Prudence said once the housekeeper had returned to the room. “I will stay with Anne tonight.”
“I can look after her overnight, Miss Prudence,” the old retainer said quietly. “You look after her during the day when I have my other duties to fulfil.”
“You’ll be exhausted doing both.”
“The days will seem long for you. Don’t wear yourself out. I think we’re going to have to learn patience and forbearance.”
Prudence looked at Anne. She was so tiny and frail in the huge expanse of the bed. It grieved her to see her lovely cousin so ill. Setting her shoulders, she stepped away from the bed. “I shall return as soon as I can.”
Walking into the morning room, Prudence was immediately joined by her father.
“Keen to find out what has been going on,” Mr. Bamber said.
The coachman looked terrified, but Prudence smiled at him in encouragement. “Please take a seat. We would be grateful if you would tell us everything that has happened.”
The coachman sank into a seat. “It has been a nightmare, Miss,” he said. “I didn’t know what to do.”
“Start from how Miss de Bourgh came to leave Rosings. It’s such a long distance from Manchester, and there seems to be just the two of you.”
The coachman looked as if he were about to burst into tears. Mr. Bamber stood and poured a drink from the side table. “Here, get this down you. We can’t have the two of you collapsing on us, or we will never get to the bottom of it,” he said, but his tone was gentle.
“When Mr. Huxley was dismissed, the house was in an uproar,” the coachman started. “I’ve been with the family for fifteen years, and I ain’t ever seen anything like it,” he continued. “Lady Catherine was screaming and shouting. Lady Anne was crying and shouting ― yes shouting at her mama.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Then Lady Catherine had some sort of spasm and had to be carried to her chamber.”
“Is she well?” Prudence asked.
“I think so. I don’t really know, to be honest with you, Miss. Lady Anne demanded that the coach be brought around, and she climbed into it as soon as I arrived at the front of the house. She insisted that I take her to her cousin in London.”
“Which cousin? Did she pack a case?” Prudence asked.
“I don’t know which she was intending to visit, if any. I think now that her aim was always to come here. There wasn’t time for her to bring anything. It all happened very fast.”
“Did she bring her abigail with her?”
“No, Miss.”
“Good God!”
“What happened at the coaching houses you stopped at?” Mr. Bamber asked.
“I took control, asking Lady Anne to remain in the carriage, and I brought things to her. I also employed a maid, but she was very poor, and I had to send her back. Miss Anne had to do without female assistance.”
“When did she tell you to bring her north? And what did you do overnight? My mind is racing, wondering how you managed to overcome these obstacles!”
“Lady Catherine always keeps a supply of money in the carriage. Hidden in case we get robbed. It’s never used because she is rarely out after nightfall,” the coachman admitted. “It gave us money to get