The Duchess out of Time

XXXIII

"Land" The soft whisper left Liz's lips as the ship drew nearer to port. A soft glow was capturing the busy city before her as the sun was setting behind her. The blanket was still clutched around her shoulders as Thomas beside her silently kept watch over her. Thomas didn't mention or ask after Henry, which Liz was forever grateful for. She did find it strange he wasn't interested in knowing the whereabouts of his fiancées son. Maybe he had already asked one of Liz's men and they had told him. Whether he knew or didn't know she was grateful that she didn't have to utter another lie or speak the truth. Her heart was going to break when she faces Charlotte. Sweet dear Charlotte, this news is going to kill her.

Thomas had kindly told Liz what happened after they had been separated all those weeks ago. Beth had managed to keep Charlotte and herself hidden away when members of the Golden Empress were searching the ship. After waking up from Beth's' concoction to find Henry and Liz missing Charlotte had gone into a fit of hysterics. It broke Thomas, as he had to restrain Charlotte to allow Beth to give her a sedative through all her screaming and wailing, as everyone on board the Georgiana feared she would do something drastic.

When she had managed to calm down long enough she had pleaded and begged for Thomas to go searching for her son and for Liz. She was desperate to find them, every night since then she would get down on her knees and pray for her son to be returned to her. She prayed that Liz was safe and that her quick wit would keep them both safe until help would arrive. Help arrived to assist the Georgiana four days after they had been attacked.

The Commodore and a small fleet of ships were on their way back from settling troubles in Jamaica and the pirate island of Nassau. Settling was probably a polite word to describe the business that the Commodore had been assigned to deal with. It had been a blood bath, wiping out parasites of the water (otherwise known as pirates) and the Commodore revelled in his victory. Upon site of the ruined ship the Commodore's mood turned sour and has remained sour ever since.

Charlotte and Beth were escorted onto one of the other ships of the fleet returning home to England while Thomas joined the Commodore. A message was sent to the Duke by bird, along with another letter signed by the Commodore that was sent with the Captain. Charlotte had been hesitant to split up initially but she was glad to be far away from the insulting pig that was commissioned as Commodore. Commodore Roosevelt was quick to disperse the fleet to search for the missing Duchess.

At first he was against searching high and low on the seas for one missing woman. Why would he venture off searching for a woman he never met? Even if he happened to come across her, how would he know who she was over some common wench? He put up a pretty good argument to keep heading their original course for England until Beth said one sentence that made him freeze. What will you to say to his Grace when he finds out you wouldn't look for her?

The Commodore was a powerful man at sea and held some power on land but the Duke was another man entirely. He wasn't stupid to pick an enemy with a man like him. Any favour he held amongst nobility and with the King would be washed away with one word from the Duke. He didn't want to see the day when he stood before the King with an angry Duke beside him, asking him one question 'why'. On the other hand if he found the missing 'Duchess' he would be branded a hero and the woman would swoon at his feet granting him riches.

There was no surprise that when he finally met Liz he was furious that she didn't meet any of his expectations. Maybe that was also the reason why he didn't believe the woman to be who she claimed to be. She was a woman that he thought needed to be broken into, her spirit was too lively and full of fire to be a respectable young lady of society and yet there was something about her he couldn't put his finger on.

Liz very happily kept to the side and out of the way as the men brought the ship into the dock. Thomas being a gentleman held out his arm for Liz to take as they disembarked from the boat. Liz was happy to be holding onto his arm as she wobbled against the dry land. She had been on a boat for so long that she was used to predicting and countering the sway of the ship. Walking on land almost felt foreign for her but it wasn't long before she regained control of her feet. A small yawn escaped her lips as a fresh wave of exhaustion filled her body.

Liz wasn't really paying any attention to where the men were leading her. Higgs was at the front of the group, her and Thomas were next and the rest of the men of the Golden Empress were behind Liz in a protective semi circle. They were making their way towards a large prestige building. On the side was a large local tavern that was filled with music and laughter. As they neared the doors the man inside kindly opened it greeting them with a warm welcoming smile.

"Mr. Higgs welcome. We've been expecting you" He smiled at the site of his familiar friend.

"Wilson" Higgs smiled as they shook hands and walked over towards the counter. Mr. Wilson was dressed in a worn out suit that was almost eight years old. He believed in never spending a dim on anything, except for a daily drink at the local tavern. That was something he deemed to be a worthy expense. He happily ran his establishment without any problems and ensured that he kept his patron the Duke of Devonshire happy.

Liz recognised that this was equivalent to a five star hotel of the time period. It was warm and cosy, a fire roaring in a large fireplace off the left. There was a soft scent of wildflowers as Liz noticed a fresh bunch of flowers in a vase in the corner.

"We were expecting you a week ago" Wilson whispered in Higgs' ear as the two men spoke in hushed tones in the corner.

"We had a few setbacks." Higgs muttered under his breath.

"Where is his...." Wilson began as he looked over at the group that had entered his establishment. Upon the sharp glare that Higgs was giving him he stopped asking questions. He recognised the men but not Liz or Lord Thomas. When he saw the sour face of the Commodore enter in last his back stiffened as his lips pursed together as though he had bitten into a lemon.

"Shall I have the usual rooms prepared?" He offered as Higgs nodded with relief. They were all tired and in desperate need for a warm meal and a soft bed.

"Only ten tonight Wilson. Two for his lordship and the Commodore. Seven for myself and the men and the best for the Duchess." Higgs spoke as Wilson froze before he glanced at Liz and then back to Higgs.

"The...I didn't realise that...." He stuttered before he brushed his thinning hair on his head away from his face. He straightened out his vest and suit brushing off imaginary dust trying to make himself look presentable. Higgs just gave him a snorted laughter before he patted his shoulder and shook his head.

"Shall I ensure that the Commodore receives the house special?" Wilson asked with a sour grin on his face.

"Tempting but no, just a warm meal and no surprises tonight." Higgs chuckles as the thought of upsetting the Commodore even more before he decided against it. They had enough troubles with the man as it was they didn't need to make it any worse.

"Of course sir." Wilson nodded as he rang a small bell behind the counter.

"Oh and have a bath drawn up for the Duchess's chambers." Higgs added as he turned back towards the group with Wilson nodding.

"Of course sir." A chambermaid appeared out of nowhere along with Mrs. Wilson. Mr. Wilson whispered in his wife's ear and the serving girl before their eyes widened and nodded at him. They smiled and bowed deeply before Liz as they began to show her to her room. Higgs gave her a nod of encouragement to go as she kindly climbed the stairs and followed after them.

Liz could hear the Commodore complaining and arguing with Thomas and Higgs in the background. He wanted to hire a coach and set off for the Duke's residence immediately. He didn't want to waste another moment longer than necessary with Liz and her men. He wanted to know if she was an imposter and then begin the paperwork for wasting his time. But the men were all exhausted and needed a good nights rest. Even the Commodore couldn't complain especially when Higgs assured him that the Duke would be fitting the bill.