Angie awoke in a dark room. Regaining consciousness felt like pulling herself out of the relaxing embrace of a warm bath, something she had never relished. Her limbs were limp and even her eyelids felt heavy as though made of brocade that had been saturated in the rain. The sensation was a familiar part of her illness, and she well knew the pull to simply sink back into oblivion; it would certainly be easier than forcing her eyes open and attempting to move her body.

She resisted the sweet temptation to give in and go back to sleep. She remembered that she had been accosted in her room before the darkness had taken her the last time, and she urgently needed to know what had happened while she had been unconscious. The effort just to open her eyes brought a low groan from her lips, but she persisted until her lids parted and light flooded her vision.

Blinking was a task she had to concentrate on, but it was rewarded with a clear view of the room around her. Her groan must have been audible in the quiet room, for she had barely blinked twice when Anne leaned into her sight.

"Oh, it is so good to see you awake again, my lady!" she exclaimed softly. "I was worried that it might be days before you were sensible again, what with all of the chaos of last night!"

Angie sighed in relief. Sometimes, it was a day or two after a major shock before she was able to stay awake or think clearly. That it was not the case this time surely had something to do with her curiosity about recent events. She decided to test out her power of intelligent speech next.

"Who was she?" The words were soft, barely a whisper, but the smile on Anne's face told her they had been heard, another small miracle.

"I am so glad you can speak, mistress. We all had quite a scare last night, and I know you were already poorly after that letter." The expression of disgust on her face indicated her personal opinion on that missive, and Angie felt that something was not right with the mentioned letter, but her thoughts would not gather to it.

Anne continued, "The woman we found in your room has refused to speak her name. She only will laugh and beg and scream all sorts of threats, most of which make no sense. You did well to keep her talking as you did." Anne patted her hand. "The constable was briefed on all that she said once her plot was foiled, and he promised to investigate the matter with all due haste."

A detail from the odd exchange surfaced in her mind, and Angie grasped it like a drowning man would grab onto the gunwales of a lifeboat. "Has anyone discovered anything about this estate that she says Derrick was transported to?"

Anne shook her head slowly, her eyes full of sadness and sympathy. "Without her name, it is impossible to identify her father and locate his holdings. The constable said that he would send out men to all of the properties that are not currently occupied to check for evidence of a break in, but if the man was home, or the kidnappers had a key..."

As Anne's voice trailed off, Angie forced her mind to not complete the sentence. Of course, a general search would not turn up anything definitive, unless the kidnappers left evidence of their comings and goings, and given the clever design of what she understood of the plot, she doubted that there would be any evidence to find. No, it would be up to them to help find Derrick, and Angie had an idea of where to start.

Her first idea was to send her brothers to find information from the deceased Duke of Chesterfield's friends about any particularly enraged gambling partners and their current whereabouts; this turned out to not be as effective as she had hoped, as it turned out that the Duke had fewer friends than he had relatives. At least they discovered this fact quickly, only wasting a half a day's time running around and asking questions. That left her with one other idea for uncovering the identity of the mystery woman, an idea quickly nixed by her older brother.

"No! Absolutely not! There is a good reason why we plan any outing you go on, and meeting with this woman would be a horrible idea under any circumstances!" Robert's voice was louder than usual when he addressed her, but they had already been discussing her idea of visiting the mad woman in prison and gotten nowhere. All three siblings were stubborn when it came to getting their way, inherited from their mother, and times like this brought it to the forefront.

"I know all of the reasons, brother, and I do not usually argue with you. However, this is different! Derrick could be in real danger and need our help. He is my husband now, and as such, he is your family, as well as mine. Does he not deserve the attention of his family in his hour of need?" Angie replied to his volume with some of her own, being careful to conserve her energy by conveying force only with her voice. She had recovered enough to sit upright in bed and knew she could not afford to exhaust herself in an argument.

Theo snickered. When his siblings glared at him, he held up his hands as though to fend them off from physically striking him. "Calm yourselves, you two. Ang, you know you are married in name only, and the man abandoned you with a letter detailing his intentions for a future without you. Even if you believe half of that mad woman's ravings, it is possible that he really did leave you, and the woman witnessed his escape and fabricated this entire story in her madness."

Angie's countenance and resolve sagged visibly as Theo turned to his brother. "And you, Robert, are still trying to protect our sister from herself by reminding her of her limitations, which I am sure she is already aware of, as she lives with them every day, their burden heavier in the last few weeks than in over a year. Give her credit for the idea, which is a great way to see for ourselves if there is any truth to that woman's words, and help us find a solution to Angie's weakness that will allow her to contribute to finding her friend."

Robert ducked his head, a hint of shame crossing his features for a moment. There was silence, but it was broken again by Theo. He smiled and said, "Now then, let us plan a strategy carefully. What will our story be?"

— — —

In less time than she imagined, Angie was ensconced between her brothers in their carriage, heading for the prison where her attacker was being held. They made her promise to let them do the talking, and they planned to stay on either side of her to provide support. Their story was that they were cousins of the accused who wanted to offer their comfort and support.

Once at the prison, Angie was overwhelmed by the sounds and smells. Clearly her attacker was not the only mad one here. There were shrieks and moans, and the sound of metal hitting metal, and muffling all of this noise was the smell, a strong mix of sweat and excrement and rotten food that threatened to make her faint with disgust. As it was, she lost her balance when she leaned over by the carriage to vomit. Robert and Theo caught her arms just in time to prevent her from falling into her own stomach contents, both looking more than a little ill themselves.

The sensory intensity only increased once they were inside and ushered to the end of a dank, windowless hallway. Angie reminded herself that Derrick was depending on her to help him, and that he might even now be enduring worse than this. Taking shallow breaths, she turned to face the barred door as the guard left them.

The scene before her pricked her with pity. The light of the lantern hanging behind her filtered into the cell, allowing her to see a huddled figure on an old straw mattress against the back wall. There were no other furnishings besides a chamber pot, and the stone floor was dark with moisture from a source she did not want to contemplate. The room was barely wide enough for the straw mattress, itself too short for the figure to stretch out full length.

Robert reached forward and shook the door, creating a noise that would have echoed in a quieter place, but barely rose above the general cacophony in this place. The figure on the mattress did not even flinch.

Theo hollered out, "Wake up you blasted wench! We need to speak with you!" His bellow was so loud Angie felt as though she may have been knocked over by its force, had she not been held securely between her brothers. Her swaying was matched with a squeeze on each elbow as the figure on the mattress stirred and rose.

Her once golden hair hung in tangled dull gray hanks, and her dark dress was dirty and torn, leaving one shoulder exposed, the pale skin appearing to almost glow in the dim light. At first her expression was merely bemused, as though she had been asleep and awoken suddenly. Without warning, her features were transformed into a snarl, and she launched herself forward, her motion arrested by the contact of her body with the bars of the door.

"Why are you here? Did you come to torture me? To tell me of your wedded bliss? He is mine, even if he has shared your bed! He will always be mine, and you will never truly have his heart!" The woman's voice began as a scream but lowered to an arrogant controlled tone with the final phrase, as she took a step back from the door and raised her chin.

Robert tensed, about to come to Angie's defense, but she knew she did not need his help, for once. She shifted her elbow to dig into his side for a moment, and used the distraction to address her adversary.

"I did not come here to torture you, and as you already know, there is no wedded bliss. I had wondered at Derrick's reluctance to come to my bed, and now I understand it. Tell me, what is the name of the woman who has so ruined my husband to me?" Angie dipped her head slightly as if defeated. She felt her brothers' surprise at this speech, but thankfully they remained silent.

"I know he must have mentioned me often, as he has never been quiet about his affections for me, but as we have never met, I can excuse your ignorance this once. My name is Marian Winchester, and I need to get out of here to be with my love." Her face shifted from arrogance to innocent pleading with the speed of a carriage door being slammed shut, and Angie felt a trickle of fear, despite the strong door between them.

Still, Derrick's fate hung on her courage, and so she pressed, "I cannot release you myself, but perhaps your love could. Only, he ran from me days ago, and I do not know where to find him. Did he come to you at your family home here in the city?" She held her breath, hoping the trap worked.

Marian laughed briefly before saying, "No, silly girl, that would not have been far enough away from you and your meddling family. He insisted on going to my father's country estate, where I spent many hours pining for him over the years of our separation. Now we can be together there, if only I were released from this place. Please help me." A tear inched down her cheek, leaving a mark in the dirt on her face.

Moved despite herself, Angie smiled a little. "I will help you if I can. What route might he have taken to get to this estate? In case I do not find him there, I would like to be able to search the inns and taverns along the way, that I may bring him to you with all haste. I know the pain of being apart from the one who holds your heart, and I would lessen yours, if possible."

Her small smile was echoed by the woman in the cell, and quietly she detailed the exact route that would lead from Angie's family home to the Winchester country estate where Derrick was surely waiting. As she finished, Angie knew Theo must have given some sign that he was happy they had finally obtained the information they had been seeking, for the gentle innocent woman disappeared in a breath, and Marian was again throwing herself at the door, shrieking something that was indecipherable amid all of the other clatter around them.

So sudden was the change that Angie took an unconscious step backwards, forgetting every reason why such movement could be harmful. She lost her balance and tilted backwards, the leg braces hampering her effort to right herself in her panic. Her brothers caught her easily, shifting back from the mad woman who was now so enraged that spittle was flying from her lips and lifting Angie's petite form into the air between them as they swiftly retraced their steps to the entrance of the prison and their carriage.

Only once they were all safely seated in the carriage as it rolled back toward their home did the three relax. Angie waved aside all of Robert and Theo's concerns and insisted they focus on a plan. Theo produced a pencil and paper from his waistcoat and wrote down the directions whispered by Marian in the dark prison hallway. He did not want to forget a single detail.

Once back at home, Robert and Theo quickly settled Angie on her bed for a much needed rest. She tried to protest, but her eyelids were too heavy to stay open any longer than the time it took for Anne to shoo her brothers out of the room and find a suitable blanket to drape over her limp frame. As she drifted to sleep, she thought, Please keep courage, dear Derrick. We will find you soon.

— — —

Assured that Anne would tend to their sister's needs, Robert and Theo retired to their father's study to plan their next actions. Despite the fact that he had been dead for more than three years, it was difficult to claim the room as their own, at least in name. They had already divided the room for mutual use, as the room was large enough for each brother to have his own substantial desk and matching chair, with room for a small sofa between the sets. It was on this sofa that they perched as they spoke in low tones about the immediate future.

"I think we should leave at once, while she is yet resting. By the time she awakens and finds us gone, it will be too late for her to stop us, and she will have no way to follow us, without us to assist her. She would be angry, no doubt, but she would also be safe, and if we should find Derrick in less than perfect health, we can protect her from the shock of the discovery. She cannot stand another shock, so soon after the letter and the attempt on her life." Robert urged his plan on Theo, hoping that for once his brother would see that reason must be followed to protect their sister, even at the cost of her independence.

Theo began to shake his head before Robert had finished what he wanted to say. "The emotional distress of hearing that we have left without her, knowing that we would not be able to return for a full day, at least, could very well send her back to paralysis, and I would not put her through that again, especially without us there to help her through the panic such a state would surely invoke. I will not soon forget the terror in her eyes when she awoke after the attack."

Here Robert bowed his head, shamed that he had so soon forgotten this detail of Angie's recent struggles. Theo rested a hand on his shoulder. "We will let her rest for an hour more while we prepare carriages for our departure. We will need food and drink and cushions, both for her comfort and to minimize the times we will need to stop along the way. It will be an all-day journey under ideal conditions, and we both know traveling with Angie is rarely ideal."

Robert was quiet for a moment longer. Then he raised his head to meet his brother's gaze and smiled. "You have always been the more perceptive of us, Theo. Very well, let it be as you have said. I will see to the carriages while you gather the provisions we will need. See if you can charm the staff into giving you some leftover tarts; they will be a welcome addition to more bland foods." He stood with a wink and strode out of the room, followed a moment later by Theo, who wasted no time stalking down to the kitchen to secure their food.