Diamond by Jessie Keane

Author:Jessie Keane [Keane, Jessie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781529363050
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Published: 2022-02-02T16:00:00+00:00

72

Of course, the child – a little girl – was dead. Diamond’s first feeling was one of utter, devastating loss. Eventually she all but crawled from the toilette and tidied herself up as best she could. Then, shaking, still bending double and clutching at the hard stone château walls with every step, she made her way upstairs, taking the servants’ staircase. A maid or two passed her but they looked the other way. Well good. She had nothing to say to them, nothing to say to anyone.

Up in the safety of her room, she stripped off her clothes, bathed, put on her nightdress and wedged a towel between her legs. Would the bleeding stop soon? She had no idea, and she didn’t want to ask anyone about it. Maybe she would simply bleed to death and join her poor dead baby. She lay on the bed and wept. She was painfully aware of how badly she had wanted this child, no matter how much of an inconvenience it might be to her. She had already thought of names for it. Had already pictured its sweet, smiling face. Jacqueline for a girl, Jonathon for a boy. Jacqueline, then. Somehow, she would have managed and her child – her daughter – would have been her most treasured possession. She would have fought like a tigress to keep her safe.

But that option was gone now.

In the wake of the hurt, the sorrow, the devastating loss and the pain of her cramping, agonised belly, came something worse – a crashing, roaring anger. Men had caused all this to happen to her. Men were the cause of all her problems. Her bullying uncle. That blond RB, raping her when she’d had no choice in the matter, none whatsoever. Fabien, using her and then tossing her aside. Fucking Toro Wolfe, robbing her family of their livelihood and then holding her presence in Paris and Arnaud’s death over her head like the sword of Damocles.

Bastards.

She lay there and it was hours before the pain subsided, the bleeding slowed to a trickle. More hours while darkness fell and she could still distantly hear the gaiety down below in the ballroom, the laughter. It was unearthly, coming from another world, one that did not involve her or her own private loss and fury.

Then – way past midnight, she guessed – there was a faint knock at the door.

‘Diamond?’ hissed Mimi’s voice. Then she knocked again.

Groaning, Diamond hauled herself to the edge of the elaborately carved four-poster bed with its lavish blue and gold draperies. She sat there, literally drained, knowing she didn’t have the strength to endure Mimi’s chatter right now. She reached for the light, switched it on. The clock said a quarter past two in the morning.

Struggling to her feet, she went over to the door and unlocked it, swung it wide. Mimi took one long horrified look at Diamond and said: ‘In the toilette downstairs, all the ladies are talking about it. Someone lost a baby. They could see it was .

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