She ate again in her room and then directed Janet to have her luggage taken down to the carriage. She dressed in peppermint, the color she had been told made her eyes seem almost green instead of the muddy hazel they were, and pulled on a darker pelisse. Tying the ribbons on her straw bonnet, she then studied herself in the mirror. This was a favorite hat of Claire’s and, looking at the mirror, she thought the façade she presented was exactly as it should be: a woman about to embark on a jaunt to the country with her dearest friend. The bonnet framed her face, and the few curls Janet had coaxed free made her look younger than her twenty years. Pinching her cheeks, she tried to put some color in them.
“You may leave now also, Janet, to visit with your family, and I will expect your return one week from today.”
“Oh thank you, Miss Belmont.”
Drawing in a deep breath, Claire then left her room. This would need to be the best acting performance of her life if she was to carry it off.
She tapped on the parlor door minutes later and opened it to find her brother and mother seated in silence. Her brother’s eyes were wary as they looked at her, and he did not rise as he normally did. Lady Belmont looked pale and did not meet Claire’s eyes when she entered.
“I am leaving to accompany the duke and duchess to Stratton. I bid you good-bye, and I have no idea when I will return.”
“Claire, you should eat something.”
“I have no appetite.”
“Please, daughter, do not leave like this–”
“I have nothing further to say to either of you,” she said, cutting off her mother’s words.
It hurt to turn away from them, even knowing they did not want the child. They were her family. Her mother, especially, had been a constant companion in her life since Anthony’s death. She was about to defy them with her actions, and in doing so, would likely ensure they played no part in her future, especially as there would be a child in it.
“We are only–”
She didn’t listen as Mathew spoke. Instead, she walked back out the door before they could see her distress. She closed it firmly behind her, praying silently that it did not open again.
Her feet felt leaden and her heart heavy as she walked down the stairs, her steps faltering when she saw Plimley at the base. If anyone would know she was lying, it was him, so she settled on a version of the truth. “Plimley, I am leaving for the Duke and Duchess of Stratton’s house now.”
He looked at her steadily as she continued down the staircase. “And is Janet to accompany you, Miss Belmont?”
“She is not. I have given her time off to spend with her family. She will return when I do.”
Again, a steady look as she stopped before him on the last step. “I would ask that you send word if at any time you need assistance, Miss Belmont.”
It was silly to want to cry because her brother’s butler was there for her when her family was not. “I…I shall be all right, Plimley, and the country air will be wonderful.”
“And I will reiterate that should you find yourself in any situation that you are not comfortable with, then you need only to send word, and I shall come.”
“Th-thank you, but the duke and duchess will care for me, Plimley.”
He didn’t speak again, simply helped her down the stairs and through the door. He then opened the carriage and settled her inside. “Good-bye, Miss Belmont.”
She wanted to urge Plimley inside with her, make him accompany her to Liverpool, but she could not, as he would think her reckless and alert Mathew. “Good-bye, Plimley.”
She didn’t look back as the carriage made its way out onto the street.
The skies were still grey, although the rains had stopped, and her journey to the Stratton residence took ten minutes, as the hour was early and the traffic light. By the time her brother’s carriage pulled into the driveway, she was beyond nervous. Claire had managed to leave her house without raising anyone’s suspicions; now she had to get Toddy, her brother’s driver, to drop her off and leave before he was aware that the duke and duchess were not in residence.
“Thank you, Toddy,” Claire said in a brisk manner as the driver opened the door and handed her down. “You may leave after you’ve placed my bags on the front step. I shall simply tell the duchess I am here. We are to leave immediately.”
“I can’t see the carriage,” the driver said, looking around the spacious driveway.
“It will be here in a few minutes, Toddy. Now please, just leave my bags there,” Claire said, pointing to a space beside the steps.
“I’ll knock on the door for you, Miss Belmont. Not right for you to be standing out here alone.”