Edward’s cruelty?
Helena sniffed, her sobs echoing in the tiny space. It was the first time the women had been alone since their capture.
Suddenly Amelia saw Helena as she had when they were children, with her hair in plaits and ribbons. Her mind was rich with memories of a happy time when they would whisper secrets and share dreams. Regardless of how she had come to be here, the pain in Helena’s eyes tugged at her heart. Amelia scooted close, until her cloak brushed Helena’s. “Tell me, how did this happen? How did you get here?”
Instead of an answer, another cry escaped from Helena. Frustrated, Amelia repeated her question, this time louder. “I know you are frightened, but now is not the time to be hysterical. You must be strong, Cousin. You must. We haven’t much time. Do you know where he is taking us?”
Helena shook her head, her cloak carrying with it the scent of tobacco. Her whisper was barely audible. “You were right. About Edward. You were correct from the very first day Father brought him to Winterwood.”
The carriage lurched forward, and with an awkward flounce, Amelia fell against Helena. She was torn between her desire to comfort her cousin and the desire for truth.
Helena wiped her cheek on her shoulder. “He told me he loved me, Amelia. Said it was me he loved, not you. And like a fool, a stupid fool, I believed him. I wanted to believe him.”
Amelia chewed her lip. Right now was not the time to right past wrongs. They needed to find a way out of their predicament. Amelia spoke quickly to forestall another flood of tears. “Think, Helena. We must get out of here.”
But Helena ignored the question, seemingly unaware of the danger of their situation. “He told me to play the part. Told me that he was going to put an end to the engagement with you when the timing was right and marry me.”
Amelia winced in shock from the words. The reality of what Helena was saying nicked its way into Amelia’s conscience. What relationship had Helena and Edward developed? And how had she not noticed? Edward had betrayed her in every other way, so the news hardly surprised her. But the admission of betrayal by her cousin, her own flesh and blood, cut like a blade. She reminded herself to breathe. Of the need to stay calm and controlled. Nothing of the life she knew seemed clear. She held her breath. All would be revealed. Soon.
Helena’s whisper continued to tremble under the weight of her emotions. “When you announced the end of your engagement to Edward and your new engagement to Captain Sterling, I was optimistic, but then Edward changed. He grew angry. Distant. I never thought him capable of such coldness.”
Amelia frowned, trying to follow her cousin’s strange string of words. “Please, be clear.”
Helena adjusted, and a sliver of light slanted across her face, shining on the tears tracking down her cheeks. She looked away from Amelia. “I—I’m with child.”
Amelia jerked. The unexpected lurch of her stomach made her light-headed. She stared at her cousin in sheer disbelief, momentarily forgetting about the coldness of the carriage. The dirt caking her dress and hands. The fear clawing her chest. Amelia’s voice was lost between shock and dismay, and pity for her cousin at the dire situation she found herself in. She was not sure she wanted to hear more. She slowly swung her head from side to side and stared at Helena’s midsection. “I do not understand.”
Helena’s words were sharp. Short. “What do you not understand? I am with child, Amelia. Everyone will know soon, for I cannot hide it much longer.”
The carriage seemed to slow, and she heard voices shouting outside. A tremor of panic shot through her. “Quickly—we need a plan of action if we are to again see the light of day. You must tell me, how did you come to be in Liverpool?”
Helena’s words were frustratingly—nay, maddeningly—slow and limp. Did she not comprehend the urgency of their situation? “I told him of the child after the altercation he had with Captain Sterling. I thought it would bring him joy. We could finally be together. But instead his countenance grew dark. Gloomy. He left shortly after you and the captain departed for Liverpool in foul spirits. I thought he was angry with me, angry about the baby. He said he had some affairs to tend to and he would send a carriage for me. I had