Part of my plan that I had not divulged to my dear brother and loyal friend was that I needed to bait Mistress Ildasan. She needed to be uncertain about what I was planning.
The best way to keep her off-balance was to toy with her emotions.
And so, over the next week, as my bruises faded and my body recovered, I took every possible opportunity to speak with Mistress Ildasan.
The first time we met, the evening of the picnic, she looked equal parts confused and concerned at my presence. When I made sure to smile at her and wave, she betrayed a moment of pure fear that showed me I was on the right track.
The next day, we passed each other out shopping. I held a door open for her and gave her a kind compliment on her lovely gown.
At a ball that evening, I made my way to her side and spent a few minutes chatting with her about the usual gossip and little nothings that filled society evenings. When I left, I smiled and squeezed her hand as though I considered her a dear friend.
With every kind interaction, I could sense her mounting frustration. She knew that I was aware of what she had done. She knew I was playing some kind of game. She just could not determine the end goal of my actions. Just as I had hoped, it was getting to her, bothering her.
The next phase of my plan was to begin to drop Harford's name in conversation. Though I had not seen him again at close quarters since he left me at my family's gate, I hoped he would not mind my utilizing him for this. He came to the park every night and sat on his bench. I still watched him and wondered what was going through his mind. Now, though, I was tortured with a clear memory of his beautiful, dark eyes and his muscular body.
"You know, I never did thank you for your help the other day," I told Mistress Ildasan as we sat in a corner at a small tea party.
"My help?" she asked, shooting me a guarded look.
"Certainly. I had been hoping to meet Harford in person for ages, as I told you. You could not have orchestrated a more perfect meeting if you had planned it. You did not plan it with him beforehand, did you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, did you not know? Harford is the one who helped me home after I took my tumble down the ridge. What a kind gentleman he is! And so handsome, too!"
"Of course I did not know! As if I would arrange a meeting between Harford and another woman," she muttered angrily. "And he did not even mention a word to me when we-" She seemed to remember then that she had an unwelcome audience. "Well, I am glad it worked out so well for you," she bit out in a bitter tone.
"I am sure you are," I answered with a knowing smile before standing and casually strolling to another table.
Two days later, I cornered her at a small game party. "How is our dear mutual friend?" I whispered. "Have you heard from Harford?"
Her only answer was a glare.
"Oh, that is too bad. I saw him just last night and he seemed to be doing quite well."
"Last night?" she asked, clearly aggravated.
"Of course. It was just by chance, you know. He was looking as handsome as ever," I added with a sigh.
Before she could reply, I moved on to talk to another friend, leaving her trembling in anger. I knew I was getting her into the perfect state to move to the next step in my plan.
I had resumed my daily walks along the ridge a week after my "accident" as Mother called it, always in a whisper. She had protested, but I had assured her that I would be much more cautious.
In my next stolen conversation with Mistress Ildasan, I managed to mention that the view from the ridge was particularly lovely with the leaves of the trees beginning to put on their harvest season colors.
"You still take walks along the ridge?" she asked skeptically.
"Certainly. Why should I not? It is, after all, one of my favorite pastimes."
She merely shook her head as I drifted away.
With that, the trap was set. I knew I would soon see her again on my daily walk, and it took only two days for my prediction to come true.
Having warned Anassia and Remdon that she would act again soon, they had been watching from behind one of the few large trees growing along the top of the ridge every day with whichever local guard Remdon could bribe to accompany him.
So as she finally approached, a scowl marring her beautiful face, I felt no shiver of fear.
"Ah, my dear Mistress Ildasan. Here to finish what you started? I am afraid you will find it more difficult to intimidate me over the edge this time." I spoke lightly, like I was sharing an inside joke with her.
"You are the most annoying, infuriating, stupid girl I have ever had the misfortune to meet," she sneered. "And you will not get away so easily this time."
I scoffed. "If it comes to a match of physical prowess, I believe we are fairly evenly matched. I am much stronger than I look, you know."
She shook her head and stalked closer. I stood two or three strides from the edge this time and kept it to my side instead of behind me.
"I should have finished you off the first time," she growled, stopping only when she was as close as she could stand without actually touching me. "But I have learned my lesson. Hopefully you have learned yours." She lowered her voice and leaned in, whispering, "I always win," as I felt a small prick in my wrist.