Free The Anatomist's Wife by Anna Lee Huber Page B

more ago, it did
     not mean he was today. Besides, his belief in my innocence was not necessarily tied
     to how honorable a person he was. He could easily decide I’d duped my sister and brother-in-law
     into thinking I wasn’t guilty and set out to save them from me. He wouldn’t be the
     first to set upon such a course.
    “What time is it?” I asked, glancing toward the clock on the mantel.
    “Half past eight.”
    I pushed the tray forward and tentatively sat up all the way. My head still throbbed
     dully, but nothing like it had the night before.
    “Should you be getting up?” Alana asked uncertainly.
    “Why shouldn’t I?” I countered. “Ring Lucy and ask her to bring a headache powder.
     I need to get dressed.” I swung my legs over the side of the bed and paused to make
     sure my skull would not protest if I tried to stand.
    My sister touched my arm to stop me. “There’s no need to dress. I’m certain no one
     would mind if you kept to your rooms for the day and rested.”
    “I told Mr. Gage I would search the gardens with him and Philip. I assume they haven’t
     already done so if Mr. Gage sent you to wake me.” I rose to my feet and felt a slight
     pulse in my head from the change in posture, but otherwise it troubled me no more
     than it had when I was sitting down.
    Alana stood with me. “Mr. Gage didn’t send me to wake you,” she protested.
    I lifted my eyebrows at her. “Why else do you think he sent you to check on me?”
    “Because he was worried about your health.”
    I moved across the room toward my wardrobe. “Maybe. But I have a feeling it was his
     way of expressing impatience to be at it without being so rude as to order you directly
     to wake me.”
    Alana frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. I could tell she wasn’t pleased
     with the idea that Mr. Gage had manipulated her. I turned away to hide my smile and
     began flipping through my gowns, looking for something suitable for both half mourning
     and traipsing through the garden. I had left off wearing mourning garments for my
     husband far earlier than was socially acceptable, but since I lived in the Highlands,
     where no one saw me, I had been able to get away with it. Fortunately, I had kept
     a few gowns made up from my half-mourning period. A sturdy gray walking dress with
     black embroidery on the skirts and collar, and a black belt, seemed appropriate with
     my kid-leather ankle boots. I pulled the gown from the closet and moved to lay it
     across the bed.
    My sister now stood by the bellpull, and I assumed she had followed my instructions
     and rang for Lucy. Her brow was furrowed, and I could tell she was puzzling over something.
     Trusting Alana would speak when she was ready, I poured water from the pitcher into
     the washbasin and began to scrub my face and neck clean, careful not to move my head
     too abruptly.
    I heard my sister instruct Lucy to bring a headache powder when she appeared, and
     then Alana closed the door and moved back toward the bed to help me dress. She finally
     spoke when my back was to her as she loosely laced my corset, knowing how much I hated
     to be restrained too tightly during the day, especially when I was painting.
    “Philip has informed me that I cannot throw Lord and Lady Westlock out of our home,
     despite their actions toward you,” she stated in a voice tight with anger.
    I’d wondered if she knew exactly how I received the bump on my head, and was impressed
     she waited this long to mention it.
    “If I had my way, they would already be banished from the grounds of Gairloch Castle.”
     She tugged too hard on the laces, and I wriggled, letting her know to loosen the last
     loop. “I know I’m supposed to obey my husband in all things, particularly when I’ve
     been give a direct order, but in this I find I cannot.”
    She tied off my corset and turned me to face her, allowing me to see the rage I had
     only guessed at until that moment blazing in her jewel-bright