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Nobody questioned the existence of storms.
Liking them or not, they had been among us since the beginning of time. Though, there were people who disliked them deeply. Like sailors or Kate Sharma.
Well, she was now Kate Bridgerton and she liked to think that with the change of name, all bad parts of her were left in the past, including her fear of storms.
Around midnight, when a thunder broke above the Bridgerton residence in London, yanking Kate away from her sleep, she realized how wrong she had been.
She opened her eyes, trying to adjust them to the darkness, but a flash of lightning lit the room making her shut them again. For a second she only heard her pounding heart, but then she heard something else.
Snoring.
Anthony.
She smiled to herself, remembering she wasn't alone.
Kate rolled towards him and snuggled up to him. He didn't wake up, but his arm reflexively wrapped around her. Resting her head on his shoulder, she relaxed, but not enough to fall asleep. In fact it was the last thing she wanted to do. And if there was anybody to blame it was Anthony.
Before marrying him she used to think sleeping through a storm was a success. She would wake up in the morning, see the wet grass and think I didn't even notice, I wasn't scared at all. But of course nothing could get past her, her subconscious, aware of the storms, was drowning her in nightmares. Which she could not remember, so when he had told her, she first thought he was messing with her. But then flashes of being scared, terrified crossed her mind, of Anthony holding and comforting her. And she knew he was telling the truth.
She had been embarrassed, but not as much as she expected to be. He did not mock her, instead he suggested going to Mary to talk about it. He had been right, when Marry told them the story of Kate's mother's death, it all made sense. It was almost funny how a part of her could not remember at all, while the other part would never forget it.
Later that day, Kate had told Anthony she would be fine the next time it stormed. And she had believed it.
That had been almost two weeks ago. It had rained a couple of times since, but nothing more. She knew a storm would come eventually, but she wasn't expecting one tonight. It had been so sunny just hours ago.
Nevertheless, she was fine, completely unbothered. Really, she wasn't going to have a panic attack, of that she was sure, but if she fell asleep she would lose control. It wouldn't be the end of the world if she had another nightmare, but she hated being proved wrong. So she slowly slipped away from her husband and rose to her feet. She slid into her slippers and moved to light a candle. She glanced at Anthony who was still asleep and adjusted the covers over him, briefly caressing his cheek.
Her next intention was to continue her book, it would keep her awake, but she sadly realized it wasn't in the room. She searched her mind for the last place she had seen it. Yes, the drawing room, she was telling Eloise about it when Anthony came looking for her and she could not dismiss him, not when his eyes burned with desire. So, her book remained forgotten there.
The real question was, was she going to retrieve it? She glanced at the window and listened closely. It was not raining yet, perhaps it wouldn't rain at all. The drawing room wasn't far and she was not a scared child.
Kate made up her mind, so she spared Anthony a last look, slid through the door and disappeared away.
...
Kate was far from being the only Bridgerton awake. But she was too focused on her own thoughts to notice the pale light coming from under a door she passed by.
Behind the said door, Gregory laid in bed awake with Newton at his side.
Gregory flinched, not when a thunder shook the sky, but when he heard steps. It was all in his mind, he kept telling himself. But this time it wasn't.
Newton jumped off the bed, went in front of the door then barked.
"Don't be crazy!" whispered Gregory, "It's not a good time to wander off."
The dog didn't move.
Gregory pondered his thoughts. If there was indeed something going on, tonight was his last chance to find out.
It all started a week ago. He was enjoying his first year at Eton when he had been told there was a carriage waiting for him: his family had summoned him to attend a wedding, a cousin's wedding, which he barely knew, but he didn't complain. He didn't mind spending a week home and weddings were fun.
But his week hadn't been quite great.
From the moment he arrived he felt something was amiss. And he had been proved right when he overheard whispering in the library.
Benedict: "There will be no more talking of this! We can't have Gregory finding out."
Eloise: "Or Hyacinth, she believes he died of illness."
Colin: "Good God, we don't even know if it was suicide or murder."
So the first thing Gregory had done was tell Hyacinth. She had told him James Clark, one of their footmen had died merely days ago and everybody was acting weird.
They started their investigation and Hyacinth managed to gather plenty of information, but their elder siblings still wouldn't give any details away.
What made them hang on the subject was Daphne refusing to spend the night there, from what he overheard from her conversation with Colin, she believed their home to be haunted.
In spite of the strange things that kept happening at night and those horrid books about spirits Hyacinth had tossed at him, Gregory didn't believe in ghosts.
Then why, you may ask, was he was standing so tensed on the edge of the bed, having a staring contest with Newton? He didn't have an answer, nor did he win against the dog.
He sighed softly. "Alright, buddy,"
Reluctantly, he stood up. "Can't have you solving the mystery all by yourself, besides someone has to prove Hyacinth wrong." he took the candlestick and wrapped his fingers around the doorknob whispering at last "You better don't leave my side."
...
Newton left Gregory's side, but that was only the beginning of the chain of events that took place next.
It started with Newton who broke into a sprint the second he left the room, it continued with Kate who was ready to leave the drawing room with her book, but at the sound of steps, she reflexively blew off the candle. It kept going with Gregory who started running after Newton, which caused the candle's flame to perish, leaving him frozen in the dark in front of the drawing room.
And it ended with the nature who merely wanted to help, so in a split second the room was lit by lighting.
The fracture of second was enough for Gregory to only see a dark silhouette and no rational part of him could stop him from screaming out loud.
And he did not scream alone, in fact, it was very harmonized with Kate's scream, who barely registered his presence, the lightning itself being enough for her distress.
The harmony ended with a bark from Newton.
"Newton?" Kate asked astonished and grateful to feel her dog at her side.
Recognizing her voice, but still in shock, Gregory spoke meekly, "K-Kate, is that you?"
Kate's head snapped up in the direction of the familiar voice. "Yes...Gregory?"
"Yeah, that would be me."
During the next strained seconds, Kate moved to the table, picking up a match box. She lit her candle and tried to smile welcoming at her youngest brother-in-law who was still petrified outside the room. "Do come inside, please."
Gregory visibly relaxed when the darkness was replaced by pale light, so he entered and slumped on the sofa, his heartbeat finally getting back to normal.
Kate felt the need to sit down too, so she sat on the other side of the sofa.
They were both embarrassed and still a bit disoriented, but when Newton sat in front of them looking more content than ever, they shared a look and couldn't help but smile, it was an amusing situation, to say the least.
"May I ask what are you doing here?" questioned Kate.
There were a thousand different ways Gregory could have answered, but he was tired, her smile was warm and he needed answers more than anything.
"I wanted to know the truth. Please, tell me what is actually going on." His voice was meant to be confident, but it came out weak.
Kate frowned. "What about?"
"The footman's death, James Clark." he supplied, wondering how it wasn't obvious.
She looked at him puzzled. "What happened, how did he die?"
"You're asking me?" Gregory couldn't believe she was playing dumb, she was his last hope of finding information, despite the age difference, she hadn't known him since his birth, so she had no reason to treat him like a child. "Look, I don't need all the gory details and I certainly won't break if you share them, I just want the truth."
"I'm sorry, but I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. I've heard nothing of him since he had been fired about ten days ago."
"Fired? That's impossible. That's when he died." Disbelief was written all over his face, after spending so much time trying to fit the pieces together... Suddenly he remembered something else. "What about the mirror, the one you broke?"
That question took Kate aback and she blushed recalling the moment she and Anthony had accidentally broken it. There was no way that information reached Gregory's ears. "What about it?"
"You saw his spirit, right? That's why the other mirrors in the house are covered."
Kate snorted. "Well, it's the first time I hear of it, whence are you getting all these?"
An amused reaction was the last thing Gregory expected. "Hyacinth told me...and I heard Colin..." He stopped because in that moment, hearing himself say it, he knew. He simply knew he had been the biggest fool in the world.
He sank deeper into the sofa, leaning his head on the backrest as his gaze moved to the ceiling.
"You must think I'm so stupid." he mumbled.
"No." She smiled reassuringly. "I think you're very brave. Had I heard whatever you have, I wouldn't have left the room to explore at night."
Gregory slowly turned to her and smiled gratefully, then questioned, "What were you doing here, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Oh, I was just looking for my book." her answer would have been enough for him, he was Eloise's brother after all, but she went on, "because I didn't want to sleep. I find storms to be frightening and they cause me to have nightmares."
Gregory was surprised by her honesty, but appreciated it. "I am not a big fan either, but I suppose you're very brave too, coming here by yourself when I'm sure, had you asked, Anthony would have brought you the whole library."
She chuckled, "Perhaps, but I didn't want to admit my fear."
"I get that, but don't worry, my lips are sealed."
"As are mine."
A soft bark came from Newton who wanted to make sure he was not left out. They exchanged looks and smiles and it that moment it was obvious they became friends.
...
The cause of Gregory's previous distress was not an evil spirit, although, she was trying to pass for one.
Hyacinth stood happily in front of the mirror, but she could not see her reflection. Not because of the darkness, since Colin was near her with a candlestick, but because of her choice of clothing. Over her nightgown, Hyacinth was covered from head to toe in a white bedsheet.
Grinning, she made a small pirouette, trying not to stumble on the long sheet.
"How do I look?"
"Ghastly, Greg won't know what hit him, but it won't last more than a second." answered Colin.
She rolled her eyes, although he couldn't see it. "I've told you already, that's all we need."
"Come on, you've worked so hard to create this story and hoodwink everyone to join and this is how you want to end it."
"It's his last night here, what do you suggest we do, wait until May?"
"I wouldn't be surprised if you found and convinced a real ghost to join us until then."
Hyacinth smiled delighted, "Actually, there was this ritual in one of the books-"
"On second thought, it's best we take advantage of this lovely weather."
"Yes, we must proceed tonight, even though he doesn't admit it, Gregory is distressed and there is no need for his torment to continue at Eton."
Colin chuckled at her explanation. As if she wasn't the whole reason for his suffering. Glad he was on the same side as her, Colin guided his sister out of the room.
Like a page boy carrying the bride's train, Colin walked behind Hyacinth holding the end of the bedsheet.
As they were slowly crossing the long corridors, Hyacinth couldn't believe how well her plan had worked out. It started out of pure boredom as she was listening to the servants' gossips. Hearing what a horrible lad that James Clark was and discovering a book full of ghost stories in Lady Danbury's library was all she needed for the idea to strike her when Gregory arrived. She quickly organized everything. Getting her siblings to join had been easy, they all shared her love for a prank, but she had to bribe some servants and work hard to create a creepy atmosphere and various sounds at night.
Now that she thought about it, tonight had been the least planned. She had been so focused on every detail that she forgot to make a grand end. And just hours earlier, looking at a mirror she had covered with the very bedsheet, a new idea came to her.
The plan was simple: they were to enter his room quietly, she would stand next to the window, Colin would get under the bed, they would make some noise to wake him and enjoy his reaction. Of course, it wouldn't take long for him to realize it was her, but at least Colin was going to grab his legs when Greg stood up, a new scare for him and an opportunity for her to run away before he came after her to revenge his dignity.
Eventually they reached Gregory's room. The door was ajar. Colin pushed it slowly then cursed. "He's not here."
"Are you sure?" she whispered.
"Yes, I don't have my eyes covered, the room is empty."
"Where might he be?"
"Maybe he went for some food."
Hyacinth sighed. She spoke too soon about her success. "We could wait until he comes back."
So they waited. For two minutes.
"Maybe we shall look for him." said Colin.
"Excellent idea." agreed Hyacinth.
...
There were more Bridgertons awake and not all in the house. One, for instance, blew the last smoke of her last cigarette and considered going inside, but instead, the only movement her feet made was to push herself in the swing.
Meanwhile, another one jumped off a carriage and hurried through the gates, but didn't take the short way inside. Instead, aware of the habits of the previous Bridgerton, he stopped by the swings and shook his head when she turned around startled.
"Hell is breaking loose on the sky. Can't you spare a night and sleep like a normal human being?" spoke Benedict.
"Perhaps hell is breaking loose all over the world, it's just not as visible, no lightnings, no thunders, only silent screams in vain." replied Eloise looking at the sky.
"Ugh." groaned Benedict, plopping on the other swing, "Are we having another late-night-talk about the flaws of society?"
"What I was having was a peaceful moment, enjoying the quiet before storm," she turned to point a finger at him "-until you rudely disturbed it."
A thunder cracked above them.
"That's the literal storm, sister, you ought to check the definition of the word quiet."
Eloise shoved his swing. He shoved her back. By the time they stopped spinning, they were both smiling.
"Got a cigarette?" asked Benedict.
"Just ran out of them."
His lips formed in a pout. "Poor thing, you're out of pin money too?"
"Not if you want to help out your favorite sister." she smiled innocently.
"I believe Hyacinth handles herself just fine."
"Very well, Colin won't let me down."
"Touché."
A breathtaking wind brought silence amid them, but it didn't take long for Eloise to speak again, "I was wondering-"
"You always are."
"Why did you come home so early tonight?" she went on.
"It's not early." his hand went in his pocket in search of a watch, but his fingers wrapped around his flask, so he accepted his defeat and took a sip.
"It is for you. You generally come near the morning."
Benedict scoffed, "Still, you deny spying on me."
"I'm not, I just know many things." She moved her swing closer to his and reached a hand to take his flask. He first held it out of her reach, then let her take it, in hope of ending the conversation.
But after taking a sip Eloise resumed to nagging her brother. "You still haven't answered my question."
"I was no longer in the mood to socialize, so I chose to go home. Does that please you or should I write a resume of the evening?"
"You're so boring." she grumbled tossing the flask back at him as he responded with a mocking face.
Going from a sibling to another, the flask was quickly emptied.
"Eloise..." Benedict leaned on the swing rope, "since you're not as boring, tell me, what are you spending the money on, besides cigarettes of course? I know Anthony is rather generous..."
Her face became dreamy and for a second, Benedict believed she might answer truthfully, but she didn't.
"Forgive me, Ben, but I must keep my mysteries."
He nodded. She was more at ease and he might get something if he kept nagging, but he chose to respect her privacy. So they remained in serenity, letting the nature talk.
The nature noticed their attention, so it responded. A drop of rain fell on Eloise's forehead while one fell on Benedict's hand. They shared a look, but neither stood up. Another thunder was the nature's last warning for them to go inside.
Not even a minute later, they were paying for their hesitation. Rain had mercilessly taken over the place, giving the two Bridgertons no choice but to run for their lives.
...
Even in his sleep, Anthony thought of his wife. He longed to feel her closer. Unconsciously, he rolled on the bed towards her. But she wasn't there. His eyes snapped open. And then he heard it.
A loud thunder, one to welcome the rain. He loved thunderstorms. They were like a brutal symphony he could listen to for hours. But that was the last thing he would do now. His hand moved over the bed to make sure Kate wasn't indeed sleeping next to him.
"Kate?" he asked hoarsely.
No response. He quickly stood up and lit a candle, his eyes roaming over the room.
Anthony didn't waste any time and ventured in search of her. He was worried she had left before the storm started and got too scared to come back. He couldn't stand the possibility of Kate being somewhere alone and terrified, so he would search every corner of the house if he had to.
A glimpse of light came from one of the corridors, so he made his way there. Maybe it was going to be easier than he thought. No, he soon realized it was not.
He flinched back letting out a low shriek as a white silhouette emerged from around the corner while a thunder rumbled.
His fear was quickly replaced by annoyance, realizing the phantom was nothing more than one of his siblings in a bedsheet, behind whom, Colin was cheerfully walking.
"Fancy seeing you here, brother." greeted Colin as the voice, Anthony recognized, was Hyacinth's asked. "Who's there?" she raised her hands to pull off the bedsheet, but Colin stopped her, "It's our dear Anthony and trust me you don't want to see his face."
"Oh." mumbled Hyacinth letting her hands back down.
"What the devil are the two of you doing?"
"Just practicing for Hyacinth's first ball. Covering her entirely, we only need a muzzle and she should find a husband immediately." Colin barely got to finish before he let out a shriek of pain as she smacked him hard in the chest. While wrestling with her, he managed to say, "Add tying her to the list."
The thought of Hyacinth's debut made Anthony shudder more than any ghost, so he pushed it away, having enough trouble for tonight. He was about to take his leave when a door opened on Hyacinth's left.
...
There was yet another Bridgerton awake, but as unlikely as it may sound, this one wished to sleep. The storm didn't bother Francesca, nor did she have any troubling thoughts to keep her up. No, her problems were only caused by her siblings. First, she had been woken by Gregory's scream which she ignored, having no doubt Hyacinth was to blame, but then, when she was so close to falling asleep, that state of mind like a fragile line between reality and the world of dreams, voices right outside her bedroom banished her sleep away.
In a snit, she rose from the bed and opened the door. She took a step out as her sleepy eyes glazed unimpressed from Colin to who she assumed was Hyacinth. What caught her attention was her eldest brother's presence a couple of feet from them.
"There is no way Anthony is involved in your prank." she said to her sister.
Anthony's glare was enough to tell he had nothing to do with Hyacinth's shenanigans.
He pointed a finger at her, "Go back to bed." then two fingers at the others and added with a rather increased voice "All of you."
Colin titled his head, "Do you hear?"
Anthony's ears perked up. Low voices and soft laughter. For the second time that night, a glint of hope crossed him and died just as fast, recognizing the voices.
...
Unaware of the chaos awaiting around the corner, with dampened hair and clothes, Benedict and Eloise were walking, or more precisely, staggering arm in arm, still amused by how they stumbled and fell right before entering the house.
The second they came into view was the only silent one, as they were all looking at each other with curiosity and confusion.
"Are we missing a party?" asked Eloise.
"If anything, the party is missing you." answered Colin, grabbing the bedsheet from Hyacinth and tossing it at his wet siblings.
Anthony rubbed a hand on his forehead, the only thing he was missing was his wife. "Has any of you seen Kate?"
He sighed as his question was met with negative answers which were better than their following words.
"She finally left you?" asked Benedict reaching a hand to touch Anthony's cheek, who swatted at it.
"Lasted longer than we bet." snickered Colin.
"Maybe, she's somewhere enjoying the storm." said Francesca.
"No, she doesn't like storms." stated Eloise, twisting away from Benedict who was ruffling her head with the bedsheet.
"She could be in the library." joined Hyacinth.
"We ought to check the kitchen." suggested Colin.
Anthony took a deep breath, "The lot of you ought to go to bed at once!"
"Do you not wish to tuck us in too?" smirked Benedict.
Anthony ignored him, turning around and walking away to resume to his search, but he stopped shorty noticing his siblings were still behind him. "Stop following me."
"We're merely looking for Gregory." replied Hyacinth.
Tired of arguing, Anthony let them trail along. He planned to check the library, but changed his mind, noticing a light coming from the drawing room.
The door was ajar. He pushed it open and didn't need to inspect the room to find her. His wife was on the sofa next to Gregory, with Newton between them. They were chatting, but their words died off when he stepped inside.
He rushed to Kate who stood up surprised. "Are you alright?" he asked taking her hands in his.
She nodded, watching the door, as one by one, the Bridgertons filled the room, while Anthony kept talking. "-You disappeared in the dead of the night! During a storm even!"
Her head snapped back at him, "And you thought I needed to be rescued, called in the cavalry?"
He scoffed, "They are hardly a cavalry and not my doing I assure you. It looks like nobody is where they should be." Anthony glared at Gregory, "Including you, what are you doing here?"
Gregory jumped to his feet and pointed at Hyacinth, "It's all her fault!"
Hyacinth took a most innocent expression, "Whatever are you talking about? I was so worried about you."
"We-" interrupted Colin, "-were worried. You shouldn't leave your room at night knowing what's roaming these halls."
"Great performance." Gregory said dryly, clapping his hands, "You should indeed worry, but only about the time I return in May."
Sensing the fight that was about to come, Anthony directed Kate to the other side of the room. "Is my sister to blame for your presence here, as well?"
"No." She shook her head, remembering why she came there in the first place, Kate retrieved her book from the table, holding it out. "I forgot this here. I didn't think you'd wake up till I came back."
"And why would you need it in the middle of the night?"
Instead of answering, she shrugged and reached a hand to adjust or better said play with his ruffled hair. But the question was answered by a strong thunder that made Kate flinch, so Anthony wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer. "Could you not sleep, you should have woken me. I would've joined you." he moved to whisper the next part into her ear, "-Or I could've provided you with much better distractions."
Their lips were close to coming together, but a loud thump coming from a chair knocked over by the youngest siblings interrupted their moment.
"Perhaps we should go somewhere more private." suggested Anthony.
"For once, I must agree." replied Kate.
But they didn't get the chance to leave the room as the butler stepped inside, obviously woken by their uproar.
"Jeffrey!" beamed Colin, "Just the man I wanted to see. Could you fix us a tray of cookies?"
"And some hot drinks!" came Benedict's voice, who was sprawled on a sofa.
"I do fancy a glass of hot milk." admitted Kate.
Everyone seemed to agree, so half an hour later, all laying on sofas or armchairs, seated around the small table, the Bridgertons were enjoying a night meal and they couldn't be any louder.
They shared amusing tales from their childhood or school years and argued whenever one remembered something differently.
Outside, the storm persisted but it wasn't as menacing. The thunder paled compared to the sound of laughter. It would still make Kate tense or flinch occasionally, but with her head resting on Anthony's shoulder and his arm wrapped protectively around her, she couldn't feel safer.
Either too awake to go to bed, too sleepy to move or simply enjoying themselves too much, after they all finished their drinks, nobody stirred.
Instead, one by one they fell asleep, Colin was the first and Francesca the last.
Along with them, the storm ceased. The nature seized the opportunity to enjoy a peaceful moment too.
...
At sunrise, there was only one Bridgerton awake in the house. Full of energy and unaware of the previous night's bedlam, Violet was heading to the drawing room.
She passed by the butler and flashed a smile. "Is anybody up yet?"
"Everyone is in the drawing room."
"Everyone?" she repeated disbelievingly.
"Yes, Ma'am."
Even livelier than she was a minute ago, Violet headed to the drawing room and burst through the doors.
"Who would like to go for a promenade?"