Page 56 of The Lady No One Noticed

“ESTHER!” Ian shouted, unable to believe his eyes. He knew he was the reason that Esther had fallen down the stairs, and that he was the reason she was hurt. He had vowed to not ruin things but he had done just that.

His shout was loud enough to be heard in the ballroom and guests began streaming out. Ian ran down the stairs and reached Esther’s unconscious form as she lay there on the floor.

“Ian, what happened? What’s wrong?” His mother’s concerned voice reached his ears as she navigated her way through the crowd to reach him. He took Esther in his arms, not in the state to reply.

“Esther, wake up, please wake up,” he whispered to her as he continued rubbing her arms and held her face with both his hands. She did not stir, and Ian’s fear increased with every passing second.

He saw Walder seated beside him on the floor, staring at Esther with the same horrified expression that everyone else was.

“Walder, get the family physician immediately,” Ian told him and Walder rushed off at once.

“Esther? Esther? What happened to her?” Esther’s mother came running out of the ballroom and sank down on the floor beside Ian.

“She lost balance and fell down the stairs,” Ian explained shortly, his voice wrecked with pain. He cupped Esther’s head trying to stop the flow of blood from it. Someone had handed him a white handkerchief that was now wet with Esther’s blood. Ian knew that she was probably unconscious because of a severe head injury.

He had no idea what to do. Ian didn’t wish for this scene to become a spectacle and tried his best to protect Esther from everybody’s view. He knew he would never be able to forgive himself if something happened to her. He would have to live with a mountain of guilt for the rest of his life if Esther didn’t pull through this. The only thing he knew was that he couldn’t live without her. His soul would be shattered if Esther left him. He would be ruined.

“Attention!!” the duke roared. When every eye was on him, he continued. “As you can see, Lady Esther has had an accident and appears to be injured. We require privacy at this time. Please follow the servants to the entrance hall and they will see to your needs as your carriages are readied. Thank you for your understanding.”

The guests nodded in understanding and began heading out. Once most of them had left, Ian picked up Esther in his arms as carefully as he possibly could.

She weighed almost nothing, and as he held her, the only thing he was scared of was causing her any sort of pain. She was so fragile that Ian was afraid of breaking her. He, along with both their families, reached a guest bed chamber, where he placed her on the sheets softly. He knew that he should leave her alone, but he couldn’t move from her side. No one even asked him to, understanding his concern.

Just then, the doors of the bed chamber opened, and their family physician, Mr. Oliver, walked briskly inside the room.

“Thank god you are here. Please do something,” Ian said, finally standing up from beside Esther to give the physician room to work.

“What happened exactly?” Mr. Oliver asked, and everyone turned to look at Ian. He was the only person who had witnessed the scene and actually knew what had happened.

“She was going down the stairs when she lost her balance and fell down. It was a long fall, and I couldn’t do anything to save her,” Ian answered, whispering the last words. He had never felt more useless or disoriented with his existence.

“Let me take a look. I want you all to please step out,” the doctor said, and everyone obeyed.

“She’ll be fine, Ian, don’t worry,” Lady Hathershire whispered to him with tears in her voice. She was the only one that remained inside the room with Esther after all of them walked out. Ian left his heart inside as the door closed behind him. It seemed as if an eternity had passed since the accident, and Esther was still not conscious. This disturbed him greatly.

He wanted to go back inside and hold her hand. He wanted to whisper encouraging words to her, hoping she would hear. He wanted to apologize a million times over, begging for her forgiveness. There was so much that he wanted to do but didn’t know how to. Minutes turned into hours, but neither the physician nor Lady Hathershire exited the room. Ian continued pacing outside, his patience growing thin. Esther was hurt and he was being asked to wait.

Just then, the door finally opened, and Lady Hathershire stepped out alongside Mr. Oliver.

“What happened? How is she? Is she conscious? Can I see her?” Ian bombarded the man with a list of questions.

“Yes, she is fine now. She has suffered a concussion because of the fall, and two of her ribs are broken. There was a gash at the side of her head, but I have bandaged that. She needs rest. I would advise you to not move her from her current location as her body is quite weak at the moment. Moreover, it will take some time for the ribs to heal completely and changing her location might become a cause for their dislocation,” he explained as everyone nodded.

“She will remain exactly where she is,” Ian answered, not allowing anyone else to speak.

“It will take some time for her to regain consciousness, so I want you all to be patient. I will come to check up on her tomorrow morning,” He went on, and Ian nodded.

“Thank, Mr. Oliver. I’ll walk with you,” Ian heard his father say.

“Lady Gilbert, are you certain that keeping Esther here won’t trouble you?” Lord Hathershire asked, and Ian turned to look at him at the absurd question.

“How could you even think that, Lord Hathershire. Esther is to be my daughter. How could I be troubled? We shall listen to Mr. Oliver and not consider moving her at all. She will be perfectly fine here, and I can assure you that I will take very good care of her.” The Duchess assured Esther’s father. Ian nodded in agreement.

“Thank you, Your Grace. I have called for Esther’s lady’s maid, and she will be here day and night beside her,” Lady Hathershire said.

Ian turned and walked inside the bed chamber as his eyes fell on Esther, who was lying there, limp and lifeless. His heart broke all over again when he noticed how frail she looked. He walked to stand beside her and sat down on the bed, gazing at her beautiful face. The last memory he had of her was of her tear-streaked face and devastated expression. Please give her back to me, he whispered to the Gods above, hoping someone would listen to this one tiny prayer in the heavens. He knew he would not leave her side until that prayer was answered.

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT