Read Oxford Blood (The Cavaliers: Book One) Page 51
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Caroline adored the party. Born into privilege, grand events didn’t faze her in the slightest. As a small child, her parents had regularly brought her down to their drinks parties and paraded her in pretty little dresses for the admiration of all their friends. As a teenager, she’d worked the underage charity ball circuit with aplomb, and at Oxford, she’d had her fair share of interesting nights. Nonetheless, the scale and style of the Cavaliers’ Summer Party blew her away.
All the guests reminded her of something out of a fashion shoot, although she had a cheerfully smug feeling that she looked better than any of them. The bright red dress she’d bought especially for the occasion dramatically showed off her hourglass figure, clinging tightly to the waist then billowing out below. She’d worn the red Jimmy Choos that her parents had given her for her birthday, and persuaded her mother to lend her some of her jewellery, most of which had originally belonged to her great-grandmother and which added a wonderful vintage twist. She wore her long blonde hair wavy and loose, and kept her make-up quite natural, other than a smear of the most vivid red lipstick she could find.
Ben looked adorable in his pristine white tie, inherited from his grandfather. Like all the candidates, he had the thousand-yard stare of a man about to go to war, but she’d done her best to reassure him. The Cavaliers would obviously pick him, and she wanted the selections over so they could get on with being the party’s golden couple.
The flares that lit the clearing enchanted her, though the decorative scaffolding reminded her of Harriet’s warning. She shuddered at the sight of it, but shrugged the feeling off with yet another glass of champagne.
The complete absence of Harriet herself concerned her more. She’d definitely got into a taxi, and yet hours on, she couldn’t see her anywhere. She attempted to text her, but to her irritation, the woods had no signal.
Caroline pushed the vague worries to the back of her mind, grabbed the still apprehensive Ben, and made him dance with her.
Right on cue, the members appeared, looking utterly unruffled. Where had they been hiding? All the new arrivals were quite clearly male. She’d hoped Harriet would be with them. Trying her best to look nonchalant, she wandered over to Tom.
“Do you know where your girl is?” she asked.
Tom’s eyes widened. “Are you trying to tell me that Harriet isn’t here? Did she disappear at some point or never arrive?”
“As far as I know she never turned up,” Caroline answered. The worry she’d been suppressing came to the forefront of her mind. “The odd thing was that a taxi came for her at the same time as one came for me. They must have got lost en route.”
George came over. “Where are you hiding her?” he snapped. “Augustine is going to hit the roof if his darling stepdaughter isn’t here for the festivities. Plus, the word is he’s bringing the lovely Adelaide along.”
“I haven’t seen her since last night,” Tom replied, glaring at his rival.
“If you’re lying I’ll stab you through the heart again,” George said. “Don’t think for one moment that you’ve actually managed to convince me you’ve decided to be a team player.”
“I swear I have no idea. I can’t get a feel for her mind either. How about you? I have to admit you’re the better telepath.”
George shook his head. “Nothing. If you honestly don’t know where she is, we ought to look for her, but we can’t risk delaying the ceremony.”
Tom nodded, his mouth tight. “We’ll just have to hope she gets here soon. I’ll rush back to college once this is over.”
Caroline looked at them both. “Guys, what’s going on? Telepaths? Stabbing people through the heart? Harriet’s family coming to the party?”
George and Tom looked at each other, and then both touched her head at the same time.