Free Her Lord's Table by Alysha Ellis

Chapter One
     
     
     
    The man taunted her. His tongue stroked slowly over the slick surface of his lips, his pupils darkening as he savored the taste. Susan couldn’t stop herself. She moaned.
    Desperate hunger gnawed at her insides. The sight of the rotund older gentleman in the corner, gorging himself on his luncheon of cheese and bread, almost made her weep. Even the pungent aroma of the raw onion he crunched between his yellowing teeth smelled good.
    Everyone in the swaying coach turned to look at her. Heat mounted in her face. To set the seal on her humiliation, her stomach gave a loud, inelegant growl.
    She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt full. With three sisters and her widowed mother at home, their supply of money gone, they had to eke out what little food they had. They never had enough.
    Now there would be even less. The coach fare to London had taken the last of their available cash. Mama and the girls had stores of enough vegetables and oats to last another week or two, but Susan had brought nothing with her, assuring them she wouldn’t feel hungry on the long, stuffy coach ride. The man sitting opposite her, devouring his packed lunch, had proven it to be a lie.
    Once she got to London and found her brother, she’d be able to eat as much as she wanted. As soon as Charles understood their plight, Mama and the girls would be able to buy the food they needed. He surely wouldn’t begrudge spending a little of his sizable fortune to support his stepmother and half-sisters. They weren’t asking for fripperies like smart dresses or horses or carriages, just enough money to ensure they didn’t starve.
    The extra expenditure shouldn’t be too irksome. As Papa’s only son, Charles had inherited all the estates entailed to the male line, including the income that went with them. Not long after their father’s death, on Charles’ twenty-fifth birthday, he’d also gained control of fifty thousand pounds from the estate of his late mother. Her half-brother was a wealthy man.
    Papa had been certain he’d provided well for his second wife and their three daughters. The estate’s unentailed capital, itself a considerable sum, had been invested for their ongoing support. They should have had no need for any further assistance from anyone.
    Since Charles had no obligation to share his fortune with them, he’d told his stepmother and half-sisters they were welcome to continue living in the drafty old country house, then packed his bags. Without any parting words of affection or promises of future visits, he’d headed back to London.
    No one had suffered any pangs of regret when Charles left. His lack of familial devotion hadn’t been surprising. He had never shown much interest in anything other than hunting, drinking and socializing with his friends. Susan’s mother had been sorry to see him go, but not concerned. They could get on very well without him.
    But only six months later, the lawyer administering their inheritance had disappeared, taking all their funds with him. When the man hadn’t returned or been apprehended, Susan’s mother had written to Charles, asking him for help.
    He hadn’t replied to that letter or to the three following. Now, after weeks and weeks of waiting, Susan had set out for London to find him, so she could apprise him of the situation in person.
    She’d been on the road for five hungry hours with three more to go. Never had one hundred and eighty minutes seemed such an interminable time. Only the anticipation of her reception waiting at Charles’ home kept her from moaning again.
    Once she got there, she’d be welcome. The townhouse had once been the family’s London residence. Susan knew the staff. Charles could be at home, or out for the evening, or even out of town for a few days, she would still find a meal and a bed.
    She closed her eyes, trying to ignore the hunger pangs, pretending to doze. When the coach stopped for a change of horses, she stayed inside.