The Roswell Legacy by Frances Statham (ebook pdf reader for pc .TXT) 📕

with a muscular physique that spoke of his outdoor life. But now, underneath the sweep of dark hair, his brow was wrinkled in a frown, an unusual thing since his gentle temperament had been the one trait inherited from his mother.

“Did you see the family carriage along the way?” Jonathan called as he walked down the steps toward Rad.

“No. Is your mother still out?”

“Yes. She’s been gone far too long, and I’m worried about her.”

“Isn’t this the afternoon she was to call on Mrs. Forsyte?”

“Yes.”

Rad laughed as he swung down from his horse. “You already sound like an impatient bridegroom, son. Your mother is all right, I assure you. But if something’s gone wrong with the carriage—a loose wheel, perhaps—then remember, Browne is with her. He’ll take care of the problem.”

“Well, if she isn’t back in a few more minutes, I’m going out to look for her.”

Rad called Higgin from the carriage house by ringing the bell at the hitching post. “Sumi has had a hard run, Higgin. Walk him a bit and then give him a good rubdown.”

“Yes, Mr. Rad.”

Rad had merely pretended to be unconcerned to Jonathan. He was worried, too. It wasn’t like Allison to be out so long, especially because of their important dinner engagement. Even though they were friends, Senator Drake was a stickler for protocol and he didn’t brook his guests being late, unless they’d gone to their own funerals.

As Rad began to remove his dusty clothes, he listened to every small sound, straining to hear the familiar crunch of carriage wheels along the driveway. A leafy branch rubbed against the second-story bedroom window and a sudden gust of wind swept one of the giant ferns from its balustrade, sending the greenery tumbling down the steps.

Rad put on his robe and walked downstairs. “Jonathan,” he called out. “I think you’re right. You’d better go look for your mother before the storm breaks.”

The water in the park bubbled over the gray rocks, polished smooth from the constant bombardment of the stream. Occasionally, a twig from a nearby tree floated on the surface, became prisoner for a time between the rocks, and then steered its way downstream.

Allison watched the trickling of water as if her life depended on its steady flow. And she stared at the small twig that had not budged from its prison between the rocks as the others had done.

Strange how something as insignificant as a twig caught between rocks could affect her—it was as if it were an omen for her own life.

She had been so happy these past years, putting all the old heartaches behind her. Now, in one afternoon, her world had crashed around her. And she was no more certain of what to do about it than she’d been two hours previously.

“Miss Allison, a storm’s brewing. Are you ready to start home now?”

Allison looked up to see her servant standing on the bank. “What time is it, Browne?”

“Almost six o’clock, ma’am.”

Allison quickly stood and brushed the debris from her skirt. “I didn’t intend to stay here so long.” Her voice was apologetic. “Yes, let’s start for home immediately. Everyone will be wondering where I am.”

She took one last look at the water lapping against the rocks and then hurried to the carriage. As the wheels picked up speed, Allison came to only one conclusion. For the next several days, she must keep this heartbreaking revelation to herself. Neither Rad nor Jonathan must learn the truth until she’d had a chance to meet Coin face-to-face.

Jonathan had ridden only several blocks when he saw the family carriage. The horses were at a steady trot, as if trying to make up for lost time. He brought his horse alongside the carriage. “I was just coming to look for you, Mother. Are you all right?”

“Yes. I’m sorry if I gave you cause for alarm.”

Jonathan smiled. “You and Mrs. Forsyte must have gotten along remarkably well to have spent the entire afternoon together. What were you doing? Planning every detail of the wedding and the honeymoon, too?”

Allison forced herself to smile. “It didn’t get quite that far, Jonathan.”

“Well, how did you like her?”

“Mrs. Forsyte?”

“No, I mean Ginna. She’s beautiful, isn’t she, Mother?”

“I’m sure she is. But I didn’t see her this time. She wasn’t at home. I only met Mrs. Forsyte. Ride on, Jonathan,” Allison urged, “so Browne can get me home. We’ll talk at length later.”

A disappointed Jonathan looked at his mother closely. Her bright smile almost achieved the illusion that everything was as it should be. But he knew his mother too well. Something had gone wrong and she was doing her best to hide it from him.

“Oh, Lord, I have to do better than this,” Allison said to herself as she watched Jonathan’s horse break into a gallop. Her son was too perceptive. It would be much harder to deceive him than Rad, preoccupied as he was with the upcoming legislative session. Now, if she could only get through the dinner that night without having Peggy Drake suspect that something was drastically wrong with her best friend.

The fact that she was late in arriving home worked in her favor. Allison dashed up the stairs and into the bedroom, where Rad was struggling with the studs of his shirt.

“Hello, darling,” she said, turning her face upward for a quick kiss. “I’m sorry I let the afternoon get away from me.”

“We were beginning to get worried about you.”

“So Jonathan told me.”

“Well, no harm’s done. Unless you take an hour to get dressed for dinner,” Rad teased. “I just got home a few minutes ago myself.”

Allison walked toward the bath, but as she reached the door, she had a desperate need to stop and look back into the bedroom, to watch Rad as he casually ran the silver brush through his dark hair. He was gray at the temples now, and only slightly heavier than on that day he’d ridden home from the war.

As he turned around, their eyes met.