*****
Madelene tried her best to avoid Hugh’s guests. His aunt was far too inquisitive, and his sister’s eyes followed her around the room. It was best that she keep to herself and stay in the stables. Madelene had expected them to be gone within a week, but the pair did not seem in the slightest hurry to leave. However, with Hugh occupied, Madelene had been able to slip out at night to visit the poor. This time around, she had taken greater precaution with her disguise. She dressed as a man, wore a hat, and covered her face with soot. As far as she was concerned, she resembled a chimney sweep that had been through a hard day’s work. Madelene also kept her eye on Facet, taking note of his movements. The man came and went as he pleased, answering to no one but the Earl. There were times when his gaze would rest upon her, and a smile would grow across his pockmarked face. It was times like those when she was most convinced of his bandit identity. Madelene heard footsteps approach her, and she quickly looked up. What was Julia doing coming to the stables? Maybe she wishes to ride a horse. Madelene waited for her to come closer before speaking.
“Good day, Miss Julia. Would you like me to saddle up a horse for you? I believe that Moondust will be the perfect horse for you.”
“No, that will not be necessary ... Maddy.”
Madelene sucked in a deep breath. Where had Julia heard that name from? It was only James who called her by that name. Surely the boy had not told his young aunt her name?
“I fear that you are mistaken, Miss Julia. My name is George.”
Julia came closer to her and reached out for one golden lock of hair.
“Such pretty hair, it’s a shame that you had to cut it for this disguise.”
Madelene’s heart hammered in her chest. She took a step back from the woman and stared wildly around her. Escape was the only thing on her mind. She nearly jumped a foot in the air when she felt her hands being taken into a softer pair.
“Do not fret, Maddy. I will not reveal your disguise. I should hope to do it myself one day, you know. I am finding this world of men a rather tedious world to live in. Perhaps if I was to wear men’s clothing, I should fare better.”
Could Madelene trust her? She didn’t know, but something in the woman’s voice made her pause. She sounded sad and almost envious of Madelene.
“How do you know about my disguise?”
“Now, do not be angry, but James told me. He didn’t mean to; I believe that he grew excited and let it slip. He is so terribly afraid that you will no longer like him since he broke his promise to you. But if you must know, I had my suspicions from the moment I saw you.”
Madelene did not like the fact that Julia had been able to see through her disguise. If she was able to do this, who is to say that someone else will not do the same thing? This was a great worry for her. Maria was right; they needed to leave Scarborough House as soon as they possibly could.
“Will you tell your brother?”
Julia laughed. “Do you think that I tell my brother everything? I do not answer to him, Maddy. Although I daresay that he probably has his own suspicions. Did you know that he served as a spy when he was in the War? He is frightfully good at figuring things out.”
Sweat beaded along Madelene’s upper lips. What if what Julia said was right? Could the Earl suspect that she was not all she claimed to be? How was she to look him in the eye and not wonder if he indeed saw a woman or believed her to be a young man?
“What do you want for your silence, Julia?”
Julia stared at her, eyes wide. “Whatever can you mean, Maddy? Do you think that I wish to blackmail you? Far be it from me to do such a thing! I thought perhaps we could be friends. James has said so much about you, and he is such a dear boy. I do not know why Hugh has insisted on hiding his son away from us. The little boy is just like him!”
The Earl’s sister believed James to be his son? Has the Earl not thought to correct her?
“James is not Hugh’s son, but his nephew.”
Fine lines appeared between her eyebrows, her wide grey eyes confused.
“I do not understand. My late brother, Edward, has only one son, and he is with his mother, my brother’s widow. I certainly do not have a child; that means that the child can only be Hugh’s son.”
Madelene shook her head. “No, James is not the Earl’s son, of that I am sure.”
Julia walked away to sit on a short stool near Diablo’s pen. She placed her chin in her hands, her face twisted with shock.
“Perhaps the rumours were true, and Edward had an illegitimate son. Mama and Papa refused to believe those rumours, believing them to have been started by Hugh himself. But James looks more like Hugh than Edward. But that can be explained away by the fact that they were siblings. Oh heavens, poor Hugh! He must have taken the little boy in knowing that James would be rejected by his own family! He did it knowing what they believed of him.”
Julia was rambling more so than actually speaking to her, but hearing her words gave Madelene some insight into their family dynamics. It seemed that the Earl was estranged from his family, which would explain why he never spoke of them. Madelene was alarmed when she saw tears streaming down Julia’s face.
“Miss Julia? Are you alright?”
Julia waved her hand at her, covering her mouth with the same hand. Madelene kept a handkerchief in her pocket, and luckily, it was a clean one today. She handed it to the sobbing woman, at a loss at what else to do. Julia took it and gave a watery smile.
“Thank you, Maddy. You must think me a fool for crying. But this is all so sad! My brother has been wronged – I should not have believed my parents. Although I did not truly believe them – Hugh has never been the violent type. Edward yes, but never Hugh. My brother was more mischievous than anything else; it was Edward who could be cruel, but Mama and Papa always doted on him.”
Madelene looked for comforting words to say, but she found that she was out of her depth. Madelene had never had lasting female friendships; thus she was not certain about the direction of action to take to help this crying woman. It was not as though she was a child to be taken into her lap and rocked to sleep. Perhaps a pat on the shoulder should suffice? Madelene moved forward and bent slightly at the waist to reach the teary woman. To Madelene’s dismay, Julia leaned against her legs and wrapped her arms around her. Madelene awkwardly patted her head but stopped when an image of patting a dog surfaced in her mind.
“Uh, Miss Julia?”
“Uh-huh?”
“I need to work, and you, uh ...”
Julia pushed herself away from Madelene’s legs, her cheeks going pink.
“Oh, I’m sorry! I just feel so comfortable with you, Maddy. Do say we can be friends? I do not have many friends. Oh, I could have plenty, but the other women are terribly dull. Hugh tells us that you are one of the most intelligent people he has yet to meet. That is high praise coming from my brother.”
Madelene warmed to Julia’s words. The Earl believed her to be intelligent? She started to smile but caught herself in the nick of time. She cleared her throat.
“Yes, well, he is an intelligent man himself. If it is any consolation, Miss Julia, your brother has not allowed his past to affect his kindness. He helped my parents and me after we were attacked by bandits.”
Julia nodded. “Yes, I know. He told us everything, in great detail as well. I am so glad that he no longer has his amnesia – how terrible it must have been to be hit on the head! I am so glad that you helped him recover, Maddy. He said that you were the key to his recovery. My brother holds you in great esteem. I am happy to know that you are here with him.”
Hugh no longer has amnesia? The news rocked her to her core, but she had no further time to think about it as Julia surprised her again by standing up and hugging her. Madelene stood there stiffly, only patting Julia’s back when the woman squeezed her.
“I have a feeling that we will become great friends! James was right; you are a wonderful person. I can leave Scarborough House knowing that my bro
ther is in good hands.”
Julia released her, wiping away the last few tears that fell.
“I do hope that I have not overwhelmed you too much, Maddy. Mama always says that I must learn to control myself, but when you are happy, why would you wish to control yourself? There are just too many rules, and I find myself breaking at least a hundred every day.”
Madelene laughed. “I know how that feels. I had an aunt who scolded me whenever a chance presented itself. Unfortunately, all of her scolding resulted in nothing, as you can see.”
She indicated her clothes, earning an appreciative laugh from Julia.
“Oh, I like you, Maddy. I must get back to the house – Aunt Felicity has decided that it is time to leave. I would have stayed longer, but she is my chaperone. I do hope to see you again.”
Julia gave her one last hug before leaving Madelene to mull over her words. She was not sure if she would ever see Julia again, but there was something else bothering her. Hugh no longer had amnesia, and he had neglected to tell her that. Madelene knew that it was by no mistake that he had left that important detail out of their evening conversations. What was the Earl up to?
Hugh’s conscience had been bothering him for quite a while. Now that his sister and aunt had left, he had time to think things through. Julia had put things into perspective for him, and it was time to come clean. He waited for Maddy to come to him, slightly anxious for the interaction to occur. He had purposefully chosen the library, knowing that it was her favourite room in the house.
“Hopefully, this room will make her more open to hearing what I have to say to her.”
Hugh had moved seats several times already, not knowing what to do with himself as he waited for Maddy. When the knock came, he shot out of his chair and hurried towards the door, yanking it open to reveal a woman who was not too happy to see him.
“George! Please come in; I have been waiting for you.”
“Thank you, My Lord.”
Maddy went straight to her usual seat, sitting on the chair with her back straight and stiff. This was not off to a good start. For the first time, he wondered if Julia had told Maddy about his long gone amnesia. She probably did, knowing my sister! This would explain Maddy’s less than happy countenance. And he could not blame her – he would also be upset had someone lied to him.
“How has your day been, George?”
“Good, My Lord.”
Another short answer. This was unlike Maddy.
“Yes, well, my day has been interesting.”
Silence.
“Is there something wrong, George?”
“No, My Lord.”
Oh, this will not do, this will just not do. Just speak Hugh, say what you have to say.
“I have something important to tell you, George.”
That earned her interest. She looked at him, her one brow raised. He found that one eyebrow just the slightest bit intimidating.
“Well, uh, it has to do with my amnesia.”
“Yes?”
“You see, I do not have it anymore.”
Maddy cocked her head to the side. “Is that so, My Lord? I am happy for you.”
She was making it more difficult than he intended it to be, and he was positively squirming in his seat. Why was he so concerned about this woman’s approval?
“I’m afraid that I have not been completely honest with you, George.”
Maddy’s expression was of mild interest. “I am but a servant, My Lord. You do not need to answer to me.”
“Yes, I know, but please give me a chance to explain. You see, I discovered something, and I used my excuse of amnesia to make certain of my discovery.”
Maddy sat up even straighter, her eyes wary. Perhaps she knows what I am about to tell her?
“And what would that be, My Lord?”
“That you are not a man. You are, in fact, a woman.”
Maddy took a sharp intake of breath, and her eyes darted to the door. She is going to run. He needed to calm her down before she did anything rash.
“I mean you no harm, Maddy.”
Her frightened eyes flew to his. “How do you know my name?”
Hugh had the decency to be slightly embarrassed about his snooping some weeks ago.
“I overheard James call you by that name one evening. Please believe me when I say that I mean you no harm, Maddy.”
Her eyes darted to the door again. “I don’t know ...”
“Look, I do not know your reason for wearing this disguise, but I do not hold it against you. You have not been a threat to me, Maddy. In fact, you have been a great help, and I would like to offer you a new position in this house.”
“Why? I – I don’t understand?”
“Will you become James’ governess? I am in desperate need of one, and he has taken to you rather quickly. The pay will be higher; you will move into one of the rooms upstairs – your parents as well if you so wish it. James is happy around you, Maddy.”
And so am I. Maddy looked uncertain, but the frightened look in her eyes had lessened.
“Please, just think about it. I have enjoyed your company immensely, and I hope that we can continue to have our evening discussions. And if you wish to continue to wear men’s clothing, then I am perfectly fine with that. It makes no difference to me whether you wear women’s clothing or men’s clothing.”
You are beautiful either way, more so than Almeria ever was.
“I need time to think about this, My Lord. May I take your leave?”
Hugh’s heart began to sink. What if she decided to leave? Then he would have to let her go. He would never hold a woman against her will.
“Yes, yes. Take as much time as you like.”
Maddy nodded and left her seat, her head bowed as she crossed to the door. Hugh nearly called her back to beg her to stay at Scarborough House, but his pride would not allow him to do so. Time would tell if Maddy decided to go or stay.
Chapter 10
Madelene never truly intended to stay, at least, that was what she kept on telling herself. A month passed, then two, then another one, and before she knew it, eight months had passed. She was leading a double life, and she knew it. Although Madelene had accepted the position as James’ governess, she had also insisted on working in the stables and wearing men’s clothing, although everyone at Scarborough House was now aware of her true identity.
“Well, not my true identity, but the one that I have allowed them to have. I could never tell Hugh that I am Madelene Huntington, runaway niece of Harry Huntington.”
No, he was better off calling her Maddy with the servants, and George should anyone come to pay a visit to the house. Madelene lifted her head from her writing position, in time to see Hugh enter the library. He always seemed to be in stealth mode, skulking around the house as though looking for something.
“Maddy, just the woman I wanted to see. I need you to translate this letter for me. I believe it is in Turkish, and I’m afraid I do not speak it.”
Madelene held out her hand. “Give it here; let me see.”
A Lady for the Forsaken Earl: A Historical Regency Romance Book Page 20