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easy routes for trade and commerce. Any average visitor to Worcestershire would surely react to the
scenery with pleasure. However, Nick became increasingly morose, emanating sullen reluctance from
every pore with each turn of the wheels that brought them closer to the Sydney lands.
At last they turned onto a long, narrow drive that extended for a mile before a stately house came into
view. Light from the outside lamps cast a warm glow over the entranceway and caused the front
windows to glitter like black diamonds. Eagerly Lottie pushed aside the curtains at the carriage windows
to obtain a better view.
 It s lovely, she said, her heart beating fast with excitement.  Just as Sophia described. The large
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Palladian-style house was handsome, if unexceptional, the combination of red brick, white columns, and
precise pediments designed with tidy symmetry. Lottie loved it at first sight.
The carriage stopped before the entranceway. Nick was expressionless as he descended from the
vehicle and helped Lottie down. They climbed the steps to the double doors, and Mrs. Trench welcomed
them into a large, oval-shaped hall floored with gleaming rose-colored marble.
 Mrs. Trench, Lottie said warmly,  how are you?
 Very well, my lady. And you?
 Tired, but relieved to be here at last. Have you encountered any difficulties with the house so far?
 No, my lady, but there is much to be done. A single day was scarcely sufficient to prepare things& 
 That is all right, Lottie said with a smile.  After the long journey, Lord Sydney and I will require
nothing more than a clean place to sleep.
 The bedrooms are in order, my lady. Shall I show you upstairs at once, or will you want some
supper&  The housekeeper s voice trailed away as she glanced at Nick.
Following her gaze, Lottie saw that her husband was staring at the main hall of the house as if transfixed.
He seemed to be watching a play that no one else could see, his gaze following invisible actors as they
crossed the stage to speak their lines. His face was flushed, as if from fever. Wordlessly he wandered
through the hall as if he were alone, exploring with the hesitancy of a lost young boy.
Lottie did not know how to help him. One of the hardest things she d ever have to do was to summon a
casual tone as she replied to the housekeeper, but somehow she managed it.
 No, thank you, Mrs. Trench. I don t believe that we will require supper. Perhaps you will have some
water and a bottle of wine sent to our room. And have the maids take out just a few things for tonight.
They can unpack the rest of it tomorrow. In the meanwhile, Lord Sydney and I will have a look around.
 Yes, my lady. I will see that your personal articles are set out immediately. The housekeeper strode
away, calling out instructions to a pair of maids, who rushed quickly through the hall.
As the overhead chandelier had been left unlit, the shadowy atmosphere was relieved by only two
lamps. Following her husband, Lottie approached the archway at one end of the hall, which opened to a
portrait gallery. The air was laced with the crisp scents of new wool carpeting and fresh paint.
Lottie studied Nick s profile as he gazed at the conspicuously bare walls of the gallery. She guessed that
he was remembering the paintings that had once occupied the empty spaces.  It seems we ll have to
acquire some artwork, she remarked.
 They were all sold to pay off my father s debts.
Moving closer, Lottie pressed her cheek against the broadcloth of his coat, where the edge of his
shoulder flowed into the hard swell of his muscular arm.  Will you show me the house?
Nick was silent for a long moment. When he glanced into her upturned face, his eyes were bleak with
the knowledge that there was nothing left of the boy who had once lived here.  Not tonight. I need to see
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