Jane and the others drove all day in the Fruitful Vine. At first, Porter and Eddy drove, giving Jane and Max a chance to snooze. After a while, they swapped, giving Eddy and the doctor a chance to sleep and talk.
The wind whipped Jane's hair back as they headed along the road from London. She had not taken many coach rides in her life, and certainly nothing as exhilarating as this. There was something both exciting and frightening about it all. At the same time, she could not stop thinking about Cassandra.
What if Dracula hadn't decided to transform her, but killed her instead?
Max glanced at her. 'You're rather quiet, Miss Austen.'
'Just thinking about my sister.'
'You're close to her,' he said. 'Aren't you?'
'She's three years my senior, and yet we are like twins. We've not spent time apart since I was born. We have even suffered through a bout of typhoid together.'
'My goodness. You were fortunate to survive.'
'Luckily, we were given a course of quinine and brandy, and recovered.' She paused. 'Cassandra has supported me in everything I do, including my writing.'
'Tell me more about that.'
Jane usually did not speak to anyone outside the family about her writing, but Max's earnest request was so compelling that she could not refuse him. She told him about everything she had written, including her draft of Elinor and Marianne. When she had finished, he shook his head in genuine amazement.
'I didn't know you were so serious about it,' he said.
'You thought me only capable of sewing and playing the pianoforte?'
He gave a cheeky grin. 'I'm sure you have many hidden talents, Miss Austen. You just need some training.'
Jane would have kicked him except he was driving the coach, and the bottom of his left leg was wooden. Instead, she turned her head away in disgust, and also to hide the smile playing on her lips.
The countryside flew past. Jane had not seen much of England, but now she gained a better understanding of its beauty. Despite the onset of winter, the unfolding countryside remained a vast chequerboard of gardens and fields divided by hedgerows. Here and there, cattle grazed, and there were glimpses of great estates with sweeping driveways.
They passed through small towns and villages, some of which prospered and others that were almost deserted. Ruined buildings scarred the landscape. Jane imagined these dated back to the time of King Alfred.
Occasionally, she turned away from what she saw. Set amongst this bucolic scene were the occasional trees with gibbets hanging from them. The grim metal cages exhibited the decaying bodies of criminals as a warning to others who might seek to break the law.
It's a barbaric practice, Jane thought. I sometimes think we are not civilised at all!
They finally reached a bridge that had been damaged in a recent catastrophic flood. They could not take the Fruitful Vine across. Stopping the vehicle, Doctor Porter and Eddy joined them to take a look.
'Bugger,' Porter swore. 'We'll have to go around.'
'Will that take long?' Jane asked.
'Longer than I'd like.' She eyed Jane. 'We could delay our meeting with Dracula and tackle him tomorrow.'
'No. Cassandra may be dead by then.'
'Then we must hurry.' Porter and Eddy decided to take over the reins. 'Time is against us.'
Eddy followed a road that ran parallel to the river. Finally, reaching another bridge, they crossed the water and passed one of the new factories that had sprung up over the last few years. To Jane, it looked like a mechanical monster squatting in the otherwise virgin landscape. Smoke and steam poured from it. Jane almost choked at the pungent stench of iron.
'Iron,' Max said, following her gaze. 'Britain is building an empire and using industry to do it.'
'But the countryside—'
'It's about money. The middling sorts and lower classes risk being left behind again while the gentry make even more money for themselves.'
'You sound like a revolutionary.'
'Would that be a bad thing?'
Jane's jaw dropped. 'The rabble beheaded King Louis! And countless others! France is in turmoil, and we have been dragged into a war with them. Those people are criminals.'
'Or freedom fighters,' Max said. 'Miss Austen, have you never questioned your station in life?'
'All the time.' Jane was angry and could not hide it. 'I am the daughter of the rector of Steventon. I am neither rich nor poor. The life that lies before me is settled: marriage, children, and an inconsequential death.'
'It sounds like a criminal sentence.'
'Isn't it?' she demanded. 'No one has determined what you may or may not do. I feel like I have been given a ship that can travel anywhere, and yet someone else pilots my course. They determine where I may go—and most ports are closed to me.'
'I know things are worse for you than me,' Max said. There was sincerity in his voice. 'But my ship is similarly constrained. I have some money, but I am not rich. My inventions cost me as much to make as they earn. Many of those ports that are closed to you are also closed to me.'
'It's not the same.'
'Agreed. It's not the same. But do I not also live in a land under the rule of a mad King?'
'He is not mad!' Jane said, adding, 'Well, not currently.' The King had endured a severe bout of derangement years before. 'He is our monarch, and you should speak well of him.'
'Poppycock.'
'Do not speak ill of King George,' Jane said, lowering her voice. 'It is treason.'
'Is treason a bad thing?'
Jane rolled her eyes. 'Now, you do sound like a revolutionary.'
'A little revolution is good for the soul,' Max said. 'Perhaps we all need to be revolutionaries in our own way.'
She stared into his eyes. 'Perhaps.'
The next few hours passed slowly. As they grew closer to Sevenoaks, Jane's thoughts returned again to Cassandra. And then to Max.
The other issue on her mind was Max Filador. He was not entirely the charlatan she had first imagined. There was more to him than that.
Yet nothing could ever happen between them; love was a business, and she would not forget that. Anything between them would only lead to unhappiness.
They turned off the main road and followed another that led to Ransome Park. Eddy momentarily pulled the coach over. They all assembled beside it. The estate lay in the distance and would only take a few minutes to reach.
Porter gazed at the sky. 'We should delay,' she advised. 'The sun will set in under an hour.'
'Then we must be fast,' Jane said.
'I don't advise—'
Jane shook her head. 'No. I will go alone if I must. We have dallied for long enough.'
Doctor Porter sighed. 'Then let's be fast.'
They took to the road again at a good pace, and soon Eddy had them heading along a long, winding drive to the house.
It was evident to Jane that the estate, although large, was falling into ruin. Stopping in front of the house, they eyed the building as they disembarked.
The doctor eyed the fading, amber sun one last time. 'Are you sure you want to do this?' she asked Jane.
'Positive.'
The doctor turned to the looming building. 'Then let's send this devil back to Hell.'