Beauty's Doom: The final instalment of the romantic Victorian mystery (His Majesty's Theatre Book 4) by Christina Britton Conroy

Author:Christina Britton Conroy [Britton Conroy, Christina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Endeavour Press
Published: 2017-11-15T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

The days blurred together. Each dawn, Elly woke to the cursing voice of an unseen woman. A tin tray of black bread and weak tea appeared through the hutch in her cell door. Shivering with cold, she quickly forced down the wretched breakfast. That done, she fluffed her long hair over her shoulders for warmth, wrapped up in her thin blanket and curled on her uncomfortable mattress. From there her imagination took her to a midsummer night in a wood outside Athens. She was Helena, asleep on the cold ground. She imagined Helena as a child, and created a character back-story so full of detail, even Jeremy O’Connell would be impressed.

Some days Elly was escorted to the consulting room to meet with the barrister’s assistant. Rory waited with a picnic lunch, and the newest scene staging from A Midsummer Night’s Dream rehearsals. He walked her through the scenes staged with her understudy. After lunch, Elly went back to her cell. The matron knew Elly ate with Rory, but still left a tray of ghastly gruel by her cell door. Elly forced herself to eat every scrap.

Ned arrived each afternoon with a fresh flower, encouraging letters from friends and family, stationery so she could respond, and a piece of sweet candy or cake. She adored his stories of growing up at Hereford Castle, and his homes in the Scottish Highlands, Paris and the south of France. He was eager to show her all of them. When Elly’s supper of bread and rusty water arrived, Ned had to leave.

At 5 o’clock, the thirteenth day of captivity, Ned sat on her cot with samples of yarn from his highland mill. Her cell door opened.

“Sorry, sir. Time to go.” The matron nodded politely.

He was surprised not to see the meal trolley outside the door. “No supper today?”

“Beggin’ yer pardon, sir, but they’re inspectin’ today. Miss Roundtree’s meal will be a bit delayed.”

“An inspection? Well, that’s good news.” He smiled at Elly. “Whoever ‘they’ are, are sure to be shocked by these conditions.” He pulled on his coat. “I wonder if our friend Sam had anything to do with this?” He did not see the matron glower. Knowing Elly would never hug him in front of the matron, he smiled and nodded. “Until tomorrow.” He nodded to the matron and took long strides, disappearing down the dark corridor.

The matron waited until his footsteps disappeared. A soft cackle escaped her almost toothless mouth. “You’re what’s goin’ to be inspected, m’ lady. The doctor’s on ’is way. With ’is tubes.”

“Ned!” Elly ran to the cell door, her heart in her mouth.

The matron grinned, blocking the way. “’E can’t ’ear ya, now. Dan worry. The doctor ’ll take care o’ ya. ’Is job is to keep all the prisoners well nourished.”

“I eat three meals a day, often more. You know I do.” She saw a bowl of gruel on the floor outside her door, lunged for it, and the matron pushed it away with her foot.

“I ate my dinner downstairs.

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