Richard left and motioned towards Caroline. Adam turned to look at his wife and Nicholas, who were still standing and talking together.
He sighed. He must do what he didn’t want to do, even though Magnolia would hate him for it.
* * *
Magnolia Richmond Avery, the Countess of Strickland
Magnolia laughed. “But it is not so! I have no idea. I have only been married for a few weeks and I have not changed, have I?”
Nicholas thought for a while. “I shall have to figure that out myself,” he said, walking around Magnolia before finally facing her. He shook his head. “You are still as stunning as ever. Your husband is indeed lucky to have you. I hope he knows that.”
Magnolia chuckled. “Oh, trust me. He does.”
“So, what about the investigation you were telling me before? You said you were attacked in your room. It was fire, correct?”
Magnolia was surprised. “Oh! I told you that? I had no idea I told you that.”
“Of course, you did – before the letters you used to write to me stopped coming.”
She sighed. “Yes. I am sorry, I have been preoccupied. Being a married woman is a whole lot of different things.”
“Lord Longsheer . . .”
Both Magnolia and the gentleman turned to see Adam coming towards them.
“How have you been, my lord?” Adam asked, putting an arm around Magnolia.
“Been well, thank you, my lord. And congratulations on your marriage,” the man said to Adam.
“Thank you,” he replied. “Though you could not make it to the wedding.”
“Well, I was not invited,” Nicholas replied. “If I was, I would have graced the occasion.”
“Oh! That must have been an oversight. My apologies, my lord.”
Magnolia watched from one man to the other. She couldn’t understand whether Adam was being too nice or if he was trying to make Nicholas uncomfortable. Just then she caught sight of her mother-in-law, signaling to her to come over.
“Oh . . . I hate to interrupt, but I shall be back shortly.”
* * *
Adam Avery, the Earl of Strickland
Both men watched as Magnolia left. “I have a feeling you do not like me, my lord,” Nicholas said, after she was gone.
Adam pretended to be surprised. “Why would you say such a thing?”
Nicholas smiled. “I would like to be clear on something, my lord. Your wife and I are good friends. She used to talk to me, until she stopped all of a sudden. Then I realized she had had been staying with you and married you soon after. You put an end to our conversation, did not you?”
Adam shrugged. “If you are asking me if I stopped my wife from fraternizing with someone I barely trust, then yes, I did.”
“And I take it that the lost invitation was not an oversight. You stopped her from inviting me, did you not?”
“I do not remember that. Not that it matters anymore. Why are you bringing this up, anyway?”
Nicholas shrugged. “I love it when someone who does not trust me is aware that I know. You do not have to trust me, my lord; your wife does. I am not your enemy. If she trusts me and you do not, that is not my problem. Somehow, she invited me here.”
“You are here because I made it so. If I did not want you to be here, there is no way she would have invited you.” Adam could feel the anger as his hatred for the man swelled up in his chest.
“Is that so?” Nicholas walked closer. “You and I both know that once Magnolia sets her mind on something, there is no going back. I would bet you are finding it difficult to tame her, are you not?”
“Oh! So sorry, I am back. What did I miss?” Magnolia asked as she joined them again.
“Nothing much,” replied Nicholas, taking a step back. “Just bidding you both a beautiful night. Thank you for inviting me, Lady Strickland.” With that, he kissed Magnolia on the hand and took his leave.
“What just happened?” she demanded of her husband. “What did you tell him while I was gone, Adam?”
Adam gave no response, for he turned and angrily left Magnolia. Something Nicholas said had made him furious and he hated it even more because the man was right.
Chapter 23
Magnolia Richmond Avery, the Countess of Strickland
“Are you not going to tell me about your discussion with Lord Longsheer, Adam?” Magnolia asked, as calmly as she could. She had followed her husband to another room in the house and it was just the two of them.
“Why do you care so much about this man, Magnolia?” he retorted angrily
“I care because he is my friend and I invited him here!” she snapped.
Adam took a deep breath. “I never wanted him here in the first place. I do not like that man! And you having to ask me all these questions is just – ” He shut his eyes and walked out of the room.
After a while Magnolia left the room and walked to Caroline, who was still busy talking with Richard.
“My lady,” Richard said on seeing her, with a slight bow.
“Lord Midhurst,” she said with a languid interest. “Would you mind if I talk to my friend for a while? I promise she will return to you very soon.”
“Of course,” replied Richard, and he gave her a slight bow before taking his leave.
“What happened?” asked Caroline, studying her face.
“Let us just go to the room, please.”
* * *
Adam Avery, the Earl of Strickland
Adam watched as Magnolia climbed the stairs with her friend Caroline. He stood in a corner, drinking alone, and could not be sure it he’d been a complete ass or if he had actually done the right thing.
But whether it was the right or the wrong thing, he still felt like a fool. Wilde was right. He couldn’t tame Magnolia, no matter how hard he tried.
“Why do I feel like something has gone terribly wrong?” Richard said, from behind him.
“Perhaps because it has. I knew this whole party was a terrible idea. She should not have held it in the first place.”
Richard sighed. “What did you do this time?”
“Exactly what you asked me to do, Richard. I made him realize that I do not like him – let alone trust him.”
Richard placed a hand on his forehead and sighed. “Why would you do that? You could have pretended to be his friend and from there, get to know more about him – not make him think you are threatened by his friendship with Magnolia.”
“Well, I think that ship has sailed,” he replied. “Magnolia is angry with me and I am angry with that bastard. I just have a feeling he has an evil soul!”
“You have to sort things out with Magnolia. You are not making her happy lately. You two have been having too many fights for a couple so lately married.”
“I know,” Adam sighed.
* * *
Magnolia Richmond Avery, the Countess of Strickland
“You two really must talk and sort things out,” Caroline said, after hearing about what had happened.
Magnolia lay on the bed, feeling exhausted from her anger towards Adam. “I am just getting really tired of all these constant fights, Caroline. He is making me feel inadequate. Like I am not the type of woman he wants. The last time, I told him I was beginning to regret the marriage. I didn’t really mean it, then; but now, I am feeling the same way all over again.”
“You should not be saying that, Magnolia. It will hurt him deeply.”
She sighed and wondered how long she would take this.
“Adam has this strange feeling about Lord Longsheer. And even if he does not trust Longsheer, he could at least trust me. I do not understand why he just makes things so difficult.”
“You are both a couple. You are both adults. And together you can sort this out. Just try to make each other happy.”
Magnolia nodded. “Thanks, Caroline. But you should go back to the party. I have a feeling Richard is missing your presence.”
Caroline blushed. “He does seem like
a nice man, Magnolia. I think he likes me as well.”
“Of course he does! Now, go, before another lady occupies his time.”
Caroline stood up. “Are you certain you will be all right on your own?”
Magnolia frowned. “Of course. Now, stop worrying about me. I am not a child. Go on!”
Her friend giggled and left, while Magnolia went back to her thoughts.
* * *
The next morning, Magnolia opened her eyes but frowned on seeing that she was still in her party gown and Adam was not in bed with her. Then she remembered that they had not sorted things out the night before.
Where had he slept, anyway?
She rubbed her sleepy eyes and was just sitting up when the door suddenly burst open. Adam stared at her with a letter in his hands and a strange look on his face . . . strange enough for her to know that the letter contained bad news.
“What happened?” she asked, keeping her voice calm even though her heart was racing.
“The manor was ransacked. I think the murderer knows about the existence of a journal and he was looking for it!”
“Oh, my goodness! What about Aunt Dorothy?”
“Mrs. Clarke informed us that they found her unconscious, but a physician is tending to her. We must leave immediately.”
* * *
Minutes later, Magnolia was back in her old house and sitting beside her aunt as she lay in her bed sleeping peacefully. A physician was in the room, along with Mrs. Clarke. Adam was downstairs talking with Martins.
“I hope she is going to be all right,” Magnolia said to Mr. Newton, the physician.
“Of course. Her blood pressure has stabilized. She only had a shock,” the man replied.
“Thank goodness,” remarked Magnolia, looking at her aunt and stroking her shoulder. “I would hate if anything happened to her. She is the only family I have left.” Then she faced Mrs. Clarke. “How did it happen, exactly?”
“Well, this morning I went in to clean the study and found everything all scattered . . . the shelves toppled over, pieces of files littering the floor, the window curtains shredded. I found Miss Richmond on the floor, unconscious. I think she was hit and then she fainted.”
“She will recover,” Mr. Newton assured them. “She just needs a little rest.”
The door opened and Adam stepped in. “Magnolia, will you come for a minute?”
She nodded and stepped out. They both stood in the corridor, saying nothing and just looking at each other, and as they did Magnolia found that all the anger she had built up during the previous night melted away. She was just happy that Adam was here with her.
“I am so sorry about last night,” Adam began. “And about your aunt – ” He stopped when Magnolia leaned in closer and embraced him, and he responded by putting his arms around her and kissing her on the cheeks and forehead.
“I hate it so much when we fight,” she murmured.
“I hate it, too. But we love each other, and we should always remember that.”
She nodded.
“Now, about this incident,” he started. “I say we should go into the library and find things out for ourselves. Who knows? The intruder might have mistakenly left a clue behind.”
Magnolia nodded. Together, they left for the study.
* * *
Just as Mrs. Clarke had said, the contents of the whole office were scattered throughout the room. There were files lying all over the floor and chairs overturned, and all of the shelves had been thoroughly ransacked.
“Whoever came here was looking for something specific,” said Magnolia.
“Yes. The journal,” Adam said, as they carefully moved around.
“So, they are aware that we have taken the one thing that could lead us to them.” Then Magnolia stopped when she caught sight of something below the window: a tiny object gleaming gold in the light.
“I feel really parched, darling,” she said, turning to him and smiling. “Would you please get the servant to bring each of us a cup of water?”
He looked carefully at her. “I will do that. But you must stay here. And you must be careful.”
She flashed him a smile and he left. As soon as he was gone, Magnolia walked over to the object and picked it up. It was a gold cufflink engraved with the initials J.W.
“Oh, my goodness!” she gasped. “The intruder must have dropped this!”
There was the sound of someone opening the door. Quickly she hid the cufflink in the reticule she held and then Adam entered with a cup of water.
“So, did you find anything?”
“Not at all,” she replied, taking the cup from him and quickly drinking it down.
* * *
Later that night, while Adam went home, Magnolia stayed back in the manor. She had begged to stay with her aunt till the following day and he had agreed.
After Adam was gone, she sent for Caroline and told her of her discovery. They were both in her old room.
“J.W?” Caroline said, as she held the cufflink. “Are you certain you did a wise thing by hiding this from your husband?”
“Oh, please, Caroline, do not try to make me feel guilty for keeping it from him,” said Magnolia, taking the cufflink from her. “You and I both know he will only become more paranoid and concerned. He might even ask me to give up the investigation. I cannot do that!”
Caroline sighed. “And what are you going to do about this?”
“I intend to find who owns it.”
“How?”
“By finding the goldsmith that must have made this. Do you have any goldsmith in mind?”
Caroline nodded. “Yes. I do. And we can go tomorrow morning.”
A knock on the door silenced them both. “Yes?” said Magnolia, very calmly.
The door opened and Mrs. Clarke walked in. “My lady,” she said, with a curtsey. “She is awake.”
Both Caroline and Magnolia hastily got up and rushed down to Aunt Dorothy’s room.
They found her fully awake and lying on the bed. When she saw the duo, she spread her arms out and they both hugged her.
“How are you, Aunt Dorothy? What happened?” asked Magnolia.
“Oh dear! I thought I had died,” cried Aunt Dorothy.
“Did you see the person who attacked you?” asked Caroline.
“No. It was late in the night. I was too tired. I could not come to your party, so I retired early.
“Then I heard noises. They seemed to be coming from the office and so I went to look. By the time I opened the door, the whole place was in disarray.
“I walked inside, holding the lamp. The intruder must have seen me first and hidden behind the door. I heard a movement behind me but before I could see who it was, he hit me with something hard. I think it was a book.
“When I came around, I was lying on the bed. Oh, it feels so good to be alive!”
“We are happy you are alive,” said Magnolia, kissing her on the cheeks.
“Well, did you call the constables?” Aunt Dorothy demanded.
“I did, Miss Richmond,” said Mrs. Clarke. “But nothing was missing.”
“That is a surprise. So, what was the intruder looking for?” asked Aunt Dorothy.
Both Magnolia and Caroline exchanged looks. Then Magnolia embraced her aunt closely. “Whatever they were looking for does not matter. Since they didn’t find it, let us be happy that you are alive.”
* * *
Adam Avery, the Earl of Strickland
“But was she harmed?” said Richard. “Will she recover?”
“Yes. The physician said she will be fine,” Adam replied. He was back at home and his friend had come right away on getting his message.
“This is getting more and more serious. Once Carlos deciphers the code, we will finally know who the culprit is.”
“Yes, Richard,” replied Adam, yawning. “I cannot wait for all this madness to be over.”
“You are tired. I should take my leave so you can have a peaceful sleep. Would
you be free to escort me to the goldsmith’s shop tomorrow? I have a particular necklace I want to brand with my initials.”
Adam threw him a glare and shook his head. “I suppose I am free tomorrow.”
“All right. Goodnight.”
Chapter 24
Magnolia Richmond Avery, the Countess of Strickland
The next morning, Caroline and Magnolia went to Mr. Gulliver’s shop. He was a tall, middle-aged man who bowed slightly to greet them.
A Mysterious Quest 0f A Seductive Lady (Regency Historical Romance) Page 17