My Lady Miriam Part 1

“Thank you Sir, you are most kind. Indeed, you are very good, Mr….ah?” The reply came, but not before the gentleman had sufficiently wiped himself of all dust particles. He answered, ignoring her last question.
“The intention was not to rescue you, child. I merely had unfinished business with that man.” He paused to look at her. “You were in the way.” Miriam lifted her eyebrows slightly and tried another approach to appeal to his good nature. “I believe I should have died of fright if it had been but for you!” The tall gentleman looked at her doubtfully through his bored eyes. “I think not.”
“But Sir, I have no horse, she has run away. What am I to do?” Miriam tried one last, desperate attempt.
The man sighed and replied with a careless wave of his hand, “That would be your own fault for not having a groom about you. But I suppose, if you have any good sense left in you, you will find it. Good day to you.” He bowed and turned to his carriage.
Miriam bit her lip, two can play at this game, she thought to herself. She inhaled and exhaled, “Thank you Sir for your help; you are a true gentleman, but please I have one thing to ask of you. Would you be so kind as to grant me the lending of you gun Sir? If I am to find my horse in these woods, I would not wish to be unarmed.” The tall, stately gentleman stopped abruptly and turned, lifting his looking glass to his eye. With a hint of a smile in his eyes, he waved a command to his footman. The footman got his master’s gun and gave it to him with a bow and with this the unknown man took it over to Miriam, placed it in her hands and walked back to his carriage. Before he got into the carriage, he turned to Miriam, “Don’t kill any of my peacocks.”
And with a flash of his navy blue coat he got into his carriage and signaled to the driver to drive on. Miriam stood there with her eyes open wide. “Well I never thought he would actually do it, of all the ill-mannered, selfish, rude, abominable men…and now I’m here with a gun I couldn’t even begin to know how to use and no horse.” She groaned to herself.
When she had experienced some distasteful minutes of searching for her horse, she sat down on a tree-stump. After a few minutes of thinking some more and very insulting things about the gentleman who had left her here alone, she stamped her foot and let out an exceptionally undignified groan of annoyance.
Suddenly she heard a snap of a twig, and the rustling of leaves of behind her. Miriam sat up quickly and spun around hastily at the feel of hot breath down her neck.
“Annabelle?!” Miriam exclaimed as she saw her horse standing before her and a man of mature years holding the reins. She looked warily at him for a few moments, “Who might you be? And what do you do with my horse?” The man bowed slightly and handed the reins to her. “The Duke of Calver sends his compliments and your horse madam.” Miriam frowned. The Duke of Calver? Who is he? She looked the groom over.
Still, if he sent Annabelle with a groom, he must be a worthy man. Miriam smiled graciously at the man and said,
“Yes, quite. Thank you. Please send the—ah—Duke my thanks and convey my gratitude to him.” Miriam was on the verge of mounting her horse when she remembered the gun in her hand; it was a very fine gun, with a silver handle and carved wood. The groom also saw it in her hand and said, moving one step towards her,
“That, I believe is my lord the Duke’s gun, he would have the pleasure of having it back now, as you are quite safe.” Miriam looked from the groom to the gun, then from the gun to the groom.
Oh. This worthy man was the “abominable gentleman” whom had been deemed by Miriam herself as being one of the worst men in history! If he so wanted his gun then he shall have to recover it himself!
“Uh, please inform my lord the Duke of Calver that I find his gun is a very pretty present indeed to bestow upon me, and quite the popular type. Please convey my thanks to him for his very generous deed, and I shall keep the gun in remembrance of him and out of complete appreciation.” She mounted her horse with the help of the confused groom and took hold of the reins. She turned to the poor, bewildered man and smiled as she added,
“Also, would you be so good as to tell your master that he is the most offensive gentleman I have ever met, and his manners leave much to be desired. That his conduct is quite shocking and I find myself in the position to say that he is abominably rude. Thank you. Good day.”
The groom stood with his eyes wide as he watched the young lady ride in the opposite direction to him. She pulled her hood over her head as the winds picked up and the skies darkened, and she placed the gun into the hold on her saddle. The groom shook his head and walked back from whence he came.

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