Rose raised her hand and waved at the carriage, a genuine smile on her lips even though she knew the next week would be harder without Lady Digby’s presence. Rose had experienced her fair share of scoundrels and wastrels throughout her life, but she had known truly kind people as well. Lady Digby was one of the kind ones.
Rose’s suggestion she take a few days to herself had not been entirely selfless. Rose and Mr Watkins did much of the physical aspects of Lord Digby’s care, but Lady Digby was his emotional support, his one constant. There would be much disruption while she was away, but at least Mr Digby would be there to shoulder some of the burden.
She’d suggested the idea for her mistress to have a few days’ rest as soon as possible for she wasn’t sure how long Mr Digby would stay. He had a haunted look about his eyes and every so often she caught him staring out of the window as if wishing he was somewhere else.
Mr Watkins came hurrying from the house, concern etched on his heavy features.
‘Miss Carpenter,’ he said, his voice low, ‘we have a problem.’
‘A problem?’
‘Lord Digby became a little distressed when he saw Lady Digby get into the carriage. He broke free from his rooms and made a dash through the house.’
‘Where is he now, Mr Watkins?’
‘Running round the garden, Miss Carpenter.’
‘Is there a problem?’ Mr Digby said.
Rose exhaled slowly. ‘Nothing we cannot handle, Mr Digby.’
He gave her an assessing look and then took a step closer.
‘I think we need to discuss what is going to happen while my mother is away, Miss Carpenter.’
‘Certainly, sir,’ she said, clenching her jaw to bite back the harsher words she wished she could say. ‘Although perhaps it could wait until we have your father back in the safety of his rooms.’
‘Where is he, Miss Carpenter?’
‘In the gardens.’
Mr Digby moved quickly, and Rose had to almost run to keep up. They rounded the side of the house together, Mr Watkins a few paces behind. Lord Digby was nowhere to be seen at first glance and Rose felt her heart sinking. The last thing they needed was to start the time with Lady Digby away with a farcical chase around the grounds of Meadow View.
She saw a flash of colour and some movement out of the corner of her eye and spun quickly, taking off down the garden towards the river. Behind her, she heard Mr Digby following and she hoped the rest of the servants would have the sense to fan out through the gardens and block off any routes of escape.
‘He’s heading for the river,’ Mr Digby said as he ran past her, jacket tails flapping behind him.
Rose felt her heart sink. The river was not fast flowing here, but it was deep and at this time of year there was a bloom of underwater plants that could tangle Lord Digby’s feet and pull him to the bottom. That was assuming he could swim, which wasn’t guaranteed even with living in such close proximity to the water.
‘Father, stop,’ Mr Digby said as they neared the end of the garden.
Lord Digby was on the bank now, teetering wildly, his eyes fixed on the far side of the river.
‘I need to get out.’
‘Stop, you’re going to fall in the water.’
Lord Digby ignored his son, taking another step down the bank. Thankfully, they had not had any rain recently and the ground was dry, otherwise he would have slid into the water.
Rose came to a halt a few feet away. She felt a deep dread. Water scared her. Growing up in London, she had never learned to swim, never had the opportunity. Here in Cambridgeshire, she would sometimes see the young people jumping from the banks of the river in the summer, confident and carefree, but the thought of something pulling her into its murky depths was too much for her.
‘What are you doing, Lord Digby?’ Rose asked, her voice calm and gentle. She moved slowly, trying not to show her true emotions.
‘I need my Penelope,’ Lord Digby said, taking another step to the water. ‘I can’t find her and those people are keeping her from me.’
Mr Digby went to speak, but Rose held up a hand, ignoring the indignant look on his face. She couldn’t have him blundering in and saying the wrong thing, not with such a delicate matter. If he wanted to be angry with her later then so be it—she would put her master’s safety before Mr Digby’s pride.
‘Penelope is coming back soon,’ she said, her voice soothing. ‘She asked if you would wait for her in the glasshouse, she wishes to see what you have been planting.’
‘My Penelope is coming back?’
‘Yes, she will only be a few minutes. Shall we get you to the glasshouse, so you are there waiting for her?’
‘They said she had gone,’ Lord Digby said, turning his confused eyes to Rose.
‘They were wrong. Come, take my hand and we will get you ready to see your Penelope.’
Rose let out a shaky breath as Lord Digby turned away from the water and took a step up the bank. She kept her eyes locked on the old man’s, knowing he found reassurance in them.
‘What are we going to do when he realises she isn’t coming back?’ Mr Digby murmured in her ear.
‘Distraction is a very powerful tool.’
‘Someone said my boy was coming home, my Richard. He’s off at school, you know. He’s a strapping lad.’
‘I cannot wait to meet him, my lord,’ Rose said, reaching out for the old man’s hand. The two footmen had arrived now, although had the good sense not to crowd in.
Lord Digby gripped her hand and smiled at her and Rose felt her heart squeeze in her chest. There was trepidation in his eyes and she knew he was having a moment of near lucidity where everything he was experiencing seemed so petrifying.
One of the footmen shifted a little and Lord Digby turned quickly, startled by the movement. He was still holding on to Rose’s hand, his knuckles turning white as he gripped her firmly.
Rose felt him topple and lose his balance, his free arm trying to grab at the air to steady himself. He was still on the slope of the bank, not yet on safe ground, and as he began to slip Rose lost her balance, too, tumbling with him.
Mr Digby lunged for them. As Rose slipped towards the water, she felt Lord Digby wrenched away as his son caught him by his shirt and pulled him to safety.
Without the weight of Lord Digby pulling her backwards, for a moment Rose thought she might be able to save herself from the water, but it was too little, too late, and with a scream she fell from the bank. There was a big splash and instantly Rose plunged under the water.
She panicked, feeling the weight of the water as it soaked into the heavy material of her dress, trying to drag her down. Desperately, she kicked for the surface, her head breaking free long enough for her to take a gulp of air before the water closed over her head again.
In her terror, Rose couldn’t think straight. Her lungs burned in her chest and her vision darkened. She had this urge to open her mouth, to take in a mouthful of water, but she knew if she did that it would be the end of her.
Her feet struck the bottom of the riverbed and she tried to push up, but she was becoming disorientated. It was dark in the water and she couldn’t see more than a foot in front of her as the murky river water stung her eyes.
She let out the last puff of air as strong arms gripped her, pulling her upwards. She gasped as they broke through the surface of the water, petrified they would sink again, but this time her head stayed above the water and she was able to take in a few shuddering breaths.
‘Kick,’ Mr Digby urged her, his lips close to her ear.
Rose didn’t react for a moment, so he spun her to face him in the water.
‘Miss Carpenter, I need you to kick.’
This time she obeyed, kicking her legs and cursing her skirt every time her legs got caught.
They were only a few feet from the bank, although they had travelled a little downstream, but within ten seconds Mr Digby had propelled her to the bank, holding her steady as the footmen and Mr Watkins pulled her out. Rose lay panting on the grass, her head pounding and her heart hammering in her chest. Beside her she was vaguely aware of Mr Digby pulling himself from the water and collapsing on to the riverbank.
Rose struggled to sit up. She felt nauseous, but she needed to see Lord Digby was unharmed. She did not think he had entered the river, too, but she wanted to see for herself. He was standing a good way back from the bank, the two footmen by his side in case he decided he would like to assist in the rescue attempt.
‘Are you hurt, Miss Carpenter?’ Mr Digby said. He was breathing heavily, but otherwise did not look too unsettled that he had just had to dive into a river to save her from drowning.
‘No—at least, I do not think so.’
‘Good. I am sorry, I could not reach you in time to stop you from falling in.’
Rose shivered despite the warmth of the day. Her clothes were stuck to her body and all she wanted to do was stand in front of a warm fire until she was dry.
‘Thank you for coming to my aid.’
‘You cannot swim.’ It was said as a statement, but Mr Digby was looking at her curiously.
‘No, there is not much opportunity to learn in London.’
‘I suppose not.’ He stood, looking down at his soaked clothes, and shook his head ruefully. ‘Come, Miss Carpenter, we need to get undressed.’
She knew what he meant, but all the same she couldn’t stop her eyes from raking over his body where his shirt stuck to his torso. Quickly, she forced herself to look away. Mr Digby was an attractive man, but the last thing she needed was for him to get the wrong idea about her because he caught her staring.
Allowing him to help her to her feet, Rose self-consciously adjusted her own dress before starting the walk up through the gardens. Mr Digby sent the other servants on ahead with his father and he kept his eyes averted, but Rose was acutely aware of the way her dress clung to her curves. In front of them, Lord Digby was ushered into the glasshouse by one of the footmen and Rose was pleased to see Mr Watkins go hurrying in to join them.
Before they entered the house, Mr Digby stopped her. For one mad moment Rose thought he might ask her to take her clothes off outside so she did not drip through the hallways, but instead he stood in silence for a moment until she met his eye.
‘I cannot imagine how traumatic that must have been if you cannot swim,’ he said softly.
‘I will be fine, Mr Digby.’
‘I am sure you will, Miss Carpenter.’ It was said with a half-smile and he held her eye for a moment. Rose felt a surge of warmth deep inside and had the sudden urge to reach out and take his hand.
Quickly, she stepped away before she could do anything inappropriate.
‘I would like to see you once you have changed and cleaned yourself up, although I know your duties with my father come first. Perhaps you can come to my study after lunch and we can discuss how we are going to manage these next few days.’
‘Of course, Mr Digby,’ Rose said, her heart sinking. She might have been the one suggesting Lady Digby take a few days away, but it didn’t mean she wanted Mr Digby upsetting their routine.