Chapter 16: Rescue

Despite her struggles, Helena could not break the grip on her arm and her frustration only served to increase her fury. "You will let me go this instant," she hissed. "Do you hear me, Roland?"

Her cousin's fingers dug more deeply into her flesh. "You bring this on yourself," he snarled. "If you would just get down from your high horse and do as I bid…"

"Roland, please!" Penny pleaded, plucking again at his sleeve. "Can't you see you are hurting her!"

"Don't waste your breath, Penny," Helena said, her cold gaze fixed on Roland's. "He is foxed and beyond being reasoned with. Can you not smell the ale upon him? He positively reeks of it."

This earned her a rough shake. "Enough of your sharp tongue. Just give me what I ask and be done. I've no more time for brangling."

Helena made another futile attempt to break his hold. "Even if I would, I have already told you it's impossible. Search our reticules if you won't take my word. You will find no more than a coin or two."

"You can get the rest. Your father…"

"Is down at the stables checking on Prioress. You can find him there and ask him yourself."

Roland's mouth twisted sourly. "As if he would oblige me, the old skinflint. He's as tight-fisted as any miser and with money, what's more, he as good as stole. My father had a right to his share in his mother's estate, a right he was denied on some flimsy pretext…"

Of a sudden, Penny dropped Roland's sleeve and, drawing herself up, stared into the crowd beyond Helena's shoulder, her face brightening with relief. Helena, following her gaze, was in time to see Lord Percy Clairborne stepping toward them, Walter Flavell at his back. The sight was so wholly unexpected, and so welcome, she could scarcely believe her eyes and was at a loss for words of greeting.

"Miss Damerel!" Lord Percy hailed her, with great good cheer. "This is a stroke of luck, indeed! You're the very person we've been hoping to find! Your cousin Will has come down for the race and is looking to let you and your family know he's here. He and Callie — she volunteered us to help in the search — were just a few paces ahead of Flavell and me. They won't have gone far." He shifted his gaze from Helena to Penny, and, acknowledging her with a tip of his hat, said, "Miss Penelope," with just enough hint of a question in his voice that she rewarded him with a nod and reassuring smile. He then turned to Roland and, as if entirely unaware of his grip on Helena's arm, said pleasantly, "I don't believe I've had the pleasure, sir."

Lord Percy's bold intervention had the effect of knocking Roland so far off-balance that he loosened his hold, and Helena took full advantage to wrench herself free. She resisted the temptation to rub the offended area, and, doing her best to match Lord Percy's easy tone, said, "My lord, may I present another of my cousins, Mr. Roland Lanyon, of Undershaw in Yorkshire. Roland, these are my friends, Lord Percy Claiborne and Mr. Walter Flavell."

Lord Percy reached out a hand, and Roland, responding more by reflex than decision, let his own be clasped and pumped. "Delighted," Lord Percy declared. "I daresay that makes you a cousin of Will's as well. He'll be pleased as punch to see you, I don't doubt. Ah! And, speaking of Will, here he comes now. There's Callie's parasol, the green and gold. Do you see it, Flavell? Try to intercept them, will you?"

Walter plunged obligingly into the crowd and reemerged only moments later escorting Callie and Will. A happy clamor ensued as cousins and friends greeted each other with pleasure and warmth. Roland was not included in these first transports and stood mute and ignored, a onlooker. When Will did at last acknowledge him, it was no more than a civil salute, devoid of any cousinly affection. This was hardly to be wondered at given that the two were virtual strangers. Unlike his sister, Conway Lanyon had not cherished his tie to his only aunt and had, with the exception of the very occasional letter or visit, had little contact with her or her children over the years. Will had only rarely been in Roland's company, and, on short acquaintance, hadn't much cared for him.

This reserve on Will's part resulted in an awkward and, for Roland, rather embarrassing moment as, an introduction between the two strangers being due, he nonetheless hesitated to make Roland known to Lady Callista. In the end, he effected a quick introduction, naming Roland a connection of both the Damerels and Hendreds. Callie, no doubt alive to Will's ambivalence and what it implied about the desirability of Roland's acquaintance, was suddenly very much the daughter of a belted earl. She treated him to a nod and a cool "how d'you do."

She then pivoted brightly to Helena. "Mr. Hendred, here, is set upon finding your dear mamma, and I should quite like to wish her good day as well. Can you point us in her general direction, or, better yet, if you have done exploring the stalls and booths, perhaps you might show us the way?"

"I should like nothing better," Helena assured her. "We have quite exhausted the attractions on offer, and were about to start back in any case. The carriage is not far off, just atop that small rise. It's but a few minutes' walk."

Will swept an arm out in invitation. "Lead on then, Macduff!"

The party began to move off, all but Roland who, pleading some business which could not wait, took his leave of them and strode off in the opposite direction. Helena watched his retreat with fierce satisfaction, and then, dismissing him from her thoughts, gratefully accepted the arm Will extended. With Callie on his other side, they set off toward the spot where her mother and siblings were settled. Lord Percy, Penny and Walter fell into step behind them, and Helena, glancing once over her shoulder to check on her sister, was gratified to see Lord Percy lending her his arm and bent toward her in a most solicitous manner. She was too far away to catch their conversation, but Penny's shy smile and shining countenance assured her all was well.

It was some time before Helena was, herself, able to converse with Lord Percy. The sisters' return in the unexpected company of friends occasioned a good deal of happy surprise, and what with greetings, introductions, and the proffering and accepting of refreshments, the commotion was a good while in dying down. At length, Callie engaged in chatting with her mother, Will regaling Penny, Cassie, and Iris with his morning's adventures and Walter inveigled into playing a game of catch with Daphne and Jason, Helena had the opportunity to approach Lord Percy. They stood a moment in companionable silence, watching the pleasant activity taking place before them. Then, Helena, pitching her voice low, said quietly, "I must thank you, my lord, for coming to my aid earlier. Your intervention was timely and of very great service."

Lord Percy stole a look at her face, his own shadowed with sympathy and concern. "I am only sorry you were subjected to such loutish behavior. That grip on your arm must have pained you."

She nodded. "I will have bruises, no doubt. But that is nothing new. Whenever he is thwarted, my cousin's first recourse is always to force and intimidation. He has ever been a bully. As a rule, I keep my distance."

"How did you happen to be with him, then?"

"Oh, he can be charming when he puts himself to the trouble, and my mother, for all she knows his faults, is soft-hearted enough to grant him chance after second chance. When he offered to provide me and Penny an escort so we might amuse ourselves exploring the stalls and booths, my mother was pleased to believe he was being thoughtful and selfless, and wouldn't hear of our refusing."

"I take it his true motive was less than generous."

"Oh, yes! We were no sooner out of sight and hearing than he began to press us to lend him — that is to say 'give' him, for he never honors a debt — what money we had. He was incensed to discover we had only a few pounds between us and accused us of lying so as not to oblige him. He has this fantastical notion that we carry large sums on our persons at all times or can access them with the snap of our fingers. And what is worse, on the strength of being family, he believes himself entitled to make claims on us whenever his pockets are to let."

"And that was the case today?"

"As it is all too frequently. He has no discipline where money's concerned, no idea of economy. Just today, for example, if he'd held some of his funds in reserve instead of spending lavishly on drink, he'd not have needed to come badgering us."

"Did he say what he needed it for?"

"Need you ask? It was to place a wager. He'd received a tip, he said, from a track insider, a solid-gold informant. It was a safe bet, a guaranteed winner. He could recoup his money tenfold, and, of course, the larger his bet, the more he stood to gain. He was looking to raise fifty pounds."

Lord Percy whistled. "That's a hefty sum to gamble. Did he happen to say which horse he planned to back?"

Helena regarded him with an arched brown, her lips quirking up in half a smile. "Why? Are you thinking to lay a bet yourself?"

He smiled and shook his head. "It's simple curiosity. These last two days, I've heard such a range of predictions as to which horse will win, I'm interested to know how this one compares. Grey Momus is the general favorite, I believe, with Ion given the best chance of beating him. Was it either of those two?"

"No, it was a different horse. I didn't recognize the name. Something with a 'p.' Prosperine, maybe."

"Not Prioress," Lord Percy teased.

Helena laughed. "Certainly not. She's a game little filly, but not a contender."

A short silence fell as, a throw having gone astray, Lord Percy retrieved the errant ball and tossed it back to Jason. Retreating back to Helena, he remarked, "I expect, without quite meaning to, you've done your cousin a favor. In all the many discussions I've heard about the horses and their merits, I never once heard mention of Prosperine. That tip was probably worthless. In all likelihood, that horse has as much chance of winning as Amato."

"Amato?" Helena echoed.

"The horse that's been given the very worst odds," Lord Percy explained. "As of this morning, they have him at 33 to 1."

Helena could not repress a chuckle. "Well, if that's not the funniest thing!"

He smiled in response, but hesitantly, his expression quizzical. "I'm afraid I don't see…"

"No, you wouldn't, not unless you'd talked to Cassie. My darling sister, you see, has been urging absolutely everyone whose ear she can bend to put their money on Amato!"

Lord Percy shook his head, bemused. "I understand she's an exceptional horsewoman, but, even so, what can she know of the matter?"

"I assure you she believes herself to be very well-informed, and not in any common way, either. No, Cassie has visions, or I suppose it would be more precise to say dreams that foretell the future. They come upon her periodically, and, in the aftermath, she is always thoroughly convinced she's been afforded a bona fide glimpse of things to come."

Lord Percy smiled softly, entertained by Cassie's eccentricity. "And has she ever proved right?" he inquired lightly. "Have any of her predictions come to pass?"

Helena shrugged offhandedly. "I honestly can't say. We never pay her any mind."

"This most recent dream, though?" he persisted. "I admit I'm intrigued. How was the outcome revealed to her? Did the race play out before her eyes? Was Amato declared the winner?"

Helena shook her head. "The dreams are not so straightforward as that. They're cryptic, like the prophesies of ancient times. Cassie, herself, doesn't always know what they mean. This time, she did indeed dream she was at the track and watched the race from the start. When the horses crossed the finish line, the crowd gave a great roar and the name on everyone's lips was 'Beloved.'"

Lord Percy frowned. "Not Amato."

"No. As I said, it's never so explicit. Some interpretation is always required. Cassie was, as usual, mystified at first, but once she'd obtained a list of all the horses entered, the name 'Amato' jumped out at her. She's been certain ever since that Amato will finish first."

Lord Percy's gaze travelled to where the young prophetess sat on a picnic blanket, her hand curled over her cousin's arm as she leaned into Will and addressed him with great earnestness. "I believe she's urging Will even now to heed her premonition and chance a bet."

Helena allowed herself a small sigh. "He'd do well to ignore her, but, knowing Will, he'll place a small wager just to please her."

"Do you know," Lord Percy said, "I've a notion to do the same. She seems to set great store by this dream, and, if it will give her pleasure, it's a very small indulgence on my part to place a token bet. Will you tell her I'll be acting on her tip? I would do so myself but I see Callie is making her good-byes and, indeed, it is past time we were returning to our friends. They will be wondering what's become of us."

Lord Percy and Callie went on their way, and Will and Walter left as well, though in their case it was only to venture as far as the betting pole and back. And then, finally, the moment for the day's last and long-anticipated race had arrived: the horses were led onto the track and positioned along the starting line, the jockeys in their brilliant silks bright splotches of color against the glossy black, browns, and grays of their mounts. Helena was able to pick Prioress out of the throng, the Priory's colors of sky-blue and snow white making their jockey easy to spot. A breathless hush fell over the spectators as they awaited the signal to 'go,' but three times the start was delayed by horses shying, bucking, and breaking ranks. At last, the flag was lowered, and the horses leapt into motion, the majority at speed while several were quickly outdistanced and two remained standing as though rooted at the start.

The horses had, first, to negotiate a steep uphill slope and that, followed by a sharp descent into a turn, proved too much of a challenge for some of the field. The leaders remained tightly-grouped for a time but gradually some of the horses began to flag and fall behind. Helena was proud to see Prioress keeping pace with the half dozen frontrunners but then, as the horses rounded Tattenham Corner and made for the straightaway, she, too, faded and dropped off the back. By the mile marker, it had become a three-horse race, with a large gray and two bay colts running neck and neck. The crowd was in a frenzy of excitement, some cheering Ion on to victory, others shouting for Grey Momus. The big gray, however, was the first to run out of steam and was left to bring up the bay colts' rear. Side by side the two contenders sped, their jockeys making liberal use of their crops, until, suddenly, with an incredible burst of speed, the horse on the stand side shot past the other and crossed the finish line not by a nose but a full length ahead.

There was an instant of silence as the crowd drew a collective breath, and then, loud groans exploded on the one hand and cries of wonder on the other. Beside Helena, Walter, like so many in their vicinity, tore his betting slip into shreds and tossed them in the air. Will, for his part, held onto his, and regarded it with eyes gone round. "What happened?" Helena asked. "Who won?"

She heard the name being bruited about her even as Will framed his reply. "Amato…"

"Can you believe it?"

"Where'd he come from?"

"Talk about a dark horse!"

"In his very first race!"

"There's some as'll've lost their shirts for sure!"

Helena returned Will's wide-eyed stare. "Never say it's true! Amato won?"

Will's grin was almost giddy. "He did! And I'm the richer for it! To the tune of some thirty pounds! Cassie was right, by God! Where is she?"

Cassie, when located, did not gloat as Helena half expected, but was instead rather downcast. "If only more of you had listened!" she said, mournfully. "And you, Will! I'm glad you won, but only imagine if you'd wagered more than a measly pound!" She shook her head ruefully. "Perhaps Lord Percy will have been more daring and won himself a small fortune! I sincerely hope he may have.

"As for the rest of you! Maybe next time you won't be so quick to dismiss my visions! Though," she muttered, half under her breath, "you very likely will."

A/N: Thanks to all who have read this far; I appreciate your faithfulness (and patience). I would take it as a favor (and a great help) if you would leave a comment or feedback as to how you feel the story is progressing (nor not!). Thanks in advance.