Risking it All for a Lady's Heart: A Historical Regency Romance Book

by Aria Norton

  I am still on my way to Mr Down to accept a proposal that should have never been.

  What had possessed the man to present such a proposal to her? Would a job offer not have been a better option? He has no woman to clean for him, he could have hired me as his maid. Perhaps I can talk him out of the proposal, and have him accept me as his employee. I shall promise him that I shall work harder than anyone else has worked for him, and I do not need to be his wife to do so.

  Why did I not think about this before?

  But did he not say that he did not require a maid, but a wife? No, he is mistaken. He is my father's friend, he will understand what I am saying. He did say that he was presenting his proposal as a way to help me, it only stands to reason that he will see that by hiring me as his maid, he will help me far more than he would if I were his wife. Freddi felt better about her situation, enough to stop her crying and fan her face to cool down.

  “The last thing I need is for Mr Down to realise that I have been crying. He will immediately know that something is amiss and ask for an explanation.”

  She could not tell him that the man she loved was leaving her, as that might make the older man feel some type of way.

  Ten minutes later, Freddi left the woods feeling hopeful about her meeting with Mr Down. The walk to the cobbler's shop was a short one, but one look at the closed door and windows told her that he was clearly not at home. She did not know whether to feel disappointed or relieved, but there was nothing that she could do about the man's absence.

  I can only come back another time, perhaps he is running errands.

  Shrugging her shoulders, she moved away from his door, only to be called back again.

  “Miss Dunn! Were ye wanting Mr Down?”

  Freddi looked at the man, her mind recognising him immediately. Michael Beyers, a long-time assistant and apprentice to Mr Down, stood at the door, his grin showing his missing teeth. Wait a minute, was he not the one I saw at the park? How had she not recognised him then?

  “Good day, Mr Beyers. How do you do?”

  “Well. Have ye come to see Mr Down?”

  “Yes, but he does not seem to be in.”

  “Ye need not worry, Miss Dunn. Please, come inside, I will call him.”

  As the man led her inside, she could not help but ask him about London.

  "Mr Beyers, correct me if I am wrong, but did I not see you in London? You were at the park, but you managed to disappear rather quickly, and I could not see you again. Were you there for business?"

  The man seemed surprised at her question. “Did ye see me, Miss?”

  “Yes, but only briefly. Did Mr Down send you on a business trip?”

  He slowly nodded. “Ye be right, he did send me fer business. I be walking through the park to get some fresh air, maybe I didna see ye. Forgive me.”

  “Goodness! There is no reason to apologise, Mr Beyers, I only wondered at it.”

  The man looked positively uncomfortable with her questions. She watched his eyes, seeing something unreadable in them.

  "Come, Miss, let me take ye inside to wait for Mr Down." Beyers led her to the front room, getting a chair out for her. "Please, wait here."

  Freddi noticed how his entire body language had changed, as though he were on guard about something. Surely it is not because of my question? She thought to ask him if he were feeling under the weather, but he walked away so quickly that she decided it useless. I can ask him when he returns. Freddi looked about the shop, and it finally sunk in.

  I am in his shop, and we will be discussing my future.

  Her nerves got the best of her, and she found the need to walk to calm her jitters. Nothing will go wrong, Mr Down is an understanding man. Then why did she feel anxious? Freddi sensed as though things were not as they seemed, but she could not put her finger on the source. Up and down she paced, her instincts sending warning signals that she could not discern.

  What could her mind not see? She paused her pacing, taking a look around the room she found herself in. Was this an office? It had to be, as she could see paperwork and books scattered across the desk. I do not want Mr Down to think that I am intruding into his personal space, it is best that I leave. However, something in an opened ledger caught her eye, a familiar name.

  Lord Blackmore?

  Freddi stepped closer, seeing many cancelled transactions between Mr Down and the Marquis. But they have not done business in many years; what could this be about? Warning signals were fired again, but Freddi ignored them. She needed to know what exactly was going on that had Mr Down looking over ledgers that were many years old.

  But these books do not seem that old. What is the date on them?

  A frisson of alarm ran through her when she saw that the dates were not as far back as she had supposed them to be. Since when had Lord Blackmore begun dealing with the cobbler again? What is going on here? Paperwork that sat scattered on his desk drew her eyes, focusing on a name.

  Richard Andrew Down, RAD.

  Mr Down had another name? Oh, yes, Papa used to refer to him as Andrew at times. Why did that ring a bell? Freddi's blood ran cold when she realised just what she was looking at. She used her finger to cover the R initial, leaving the AD.

  Oh, no, oh, no. This cannot be!

  AD is Andrew Down! Freddi slapped her head, angry that the connection had never occurred before.

  How foolish can I be? AD is Mr Down, and he is the one who owed my father money!

  How had it taken her so long to figure this out? Because I never would have expected it to be him. If he had owed her father so much money and refused to pay it, could that be the motive behind their deaths? Could Mr Down have killed her parents?

  No, no, I cannot accuse a man of murder when I do not have any evidence.

  But what if the evidence was in this office? Freddi glanced at the door. How much time did she have before Mr Beyers returned with Mr Down? I do not think that I have much time. Freddi began to quickly search for anything that would bring to light the strange case of her parents' deaths.

  She looked everywhere, starting with the ledgers, papers, and bookshelves, and finally ending with the drawers. It looked as though she would find nothing, but when she went to open the second to last drawer, she found it locked.

  I am not a betting woman, but I would bet my last penny that this drawer holds the evidence I am looking for." How was she to open it? A stone sat by the door of the office, likely to keep it open when there were strong winds. Freddi wasted no time in grabbing the stone and using it to break the lock. It fell away easily, giving her access to the drawer's contents. Rummaging through it, her hand closed over something cold and smooth. Freddi pulled it out, immediately recognising it as poison.

  “He did,” she whispered brokenly. “He killed them.”

  She fell to the floor, clutching the vial in her hands. It all made sense to her now. Richard Down was the man behind everything. He was the one who had poisoned and killed her parents, and the one currently sending death threats to Lord Blackmore - she was sure of it.

  And no one suspected a thing! How could we have all been so blind?

  She needed to tell this to Nash, he needed to know this before he left for France. She got to her feet, intending to take everything with her, but common sense stopped her. How would she gather all of this evidence to show him? Anyone would be able to see her walking out with books and papers in her hand.

  No, she would have to leave the bigger things, but the vial of poison was small enough to conceal in her clothing. It will have to be enough for Nash to believe me. Determined to have her parents’ murderer and Lord Blackmore's perpetrator brought to justice, she turned to the door, pocketing the vial. Freddi came to a standstill when a dark figure appeared at the door.

  “Who is there?”

  “Who else can it be, little Freddi?”

  Freddi hands went to her throat; she had never felt such fear in her life. She was face-to-face with a murderer, and there was no way
out. Remain calm, Freddi, do not show him that you are afraid. Freddi lowered her hands, forcing a smile on her lips.

  “Mr- Mr Down, I did not see you there.”

  “What are you doing in my office, Frederica?”

  “Oh, uh, I walked into it by mistake, that is all. I was just about to come and see if you had arrived yet, and here you are.”

  The man's eyes narrowed. “Do you take me for a fool?”

  Freddi felt as though she could faint right on the spot, but she gathered her courage and stood firm.

  “Of course not! Why would you say such a thing?”

  He tutted. “You and I both know what you were doing here, Frederica, and it saddens me to have to do this to you. I really did like you, and I was looking forward to you becoming my wife.”

  Oh, no, oh, no, oh, no. What do I do now? The man was blocking her only exit out of the room. There was a window, but there was no way that she was going to be able to escape through there. He would catch me before I even touched it. Think, Freddi, think.

  “What, uh, what do you mean? What do you think I was doing here, Mr Down? I told you that I ended up here by mistake. I was pacing up and down waiting for you as I was excited to tell you the good news. You see, I have come to accept your proposal.”

  A slow smile curled his lips. “Indeed? But I am afraid that the proposal is no longer on the table, my dear. You see, I have too much at stake to have you roaming around Alfriston with the knowledge you have.”

  Freddi knew that there was no longer any use in denying what she had discovered. This man killed my parents, and he might kill me. The least I can do is find out why.

  “What are your reasons for what you have done, Mr Down? How could you have killed your friends, my parents?”

  The man scratched the side of his face, his fingernails longer than usual. How is it that I never noticed the coldness in his eyes? I always believed him to be a good man, a tad odd, but good. We have all been fooled by him. My poor parents never saw it coming.

  "I suppose that I can tell you the truth, seeing as you will not live long enough to tell anyone else."

  He is casual about killing me, as though a person's life does not matter at all. Who is he to play God with other peoples' lives? He needs to be punished, but first, I must escape him.

  “I do not have any friends, Frederica, but I do have pawns. Have you ever played chess before? Yes, I think you have. You father was such an avid player, he would have taught his only child the skill of the game.”

  “What of it?”

  “You know, while he was good at chess played on a board, he was not good at it in real life. I am the true champion when it comes to life-sized chess. I had hoped that you would become my queen, my sweet, but you will have to be a means to an end to preserve my spotless image to the rest of the town.”

  Freddi was sick to her stomach. How could a man be this evil?

  “You disgust me.”

  Mr Down laughed. "Sticks and stones, my dear, sticks and stones. Now, I am afraid that we have to take you away from here."

  “Do not dare to threaten me! I shall scream until someone hears me.”

  “Do as you please, but I must warn you that it will not help you.”

  Freddi felt rooted to the floor as the man advanced. What was she going to do?

  ***

  Nash had had enough of drinking his troubles away. Moreover, he had missed the stagecoach that would have taken him out of Alfriston.

  I have been in a state of drunkenness for longer than is necessary. What I need now is a walk to clear my head.

  The alcohol had done nothing to dull the pain in his heart or the shame he carried. Nash was still able to recall every mistake made, every lost opportunity, and he was tired of it. Now I must spend another night here when I could have been gone ages ago. Pushing away from the table, he nearly stumbled into the table behind him. Fortunately it was still empty, but his clumsy movements attracted some attention. Nash grinned at the curious spectators, raising his palms to them.

  “I am perfectly all right, gentlemen, no harm done here. As you were.”

  Molly appeared out of nowhere, putting his arm across her shoulders.

  “Do ye need me to help ye walk upstairs, Mr Salisbury?”

  "No, no, Molly, dear, I can stand on my own. I just need some fresh air, the night sky looks lovely tonight."

  “If ye be saying so, sir. Are ye certain ye don't need helping to yer room?”

  “Certain as the fact that I love Freddi.”

  “Freddi?” the barmaid asked. “Who is she?”

  “Only the loveliest woman in the world. Shhh, one day I am going to marry her.”

  “Ye be ape drunk, sir, lemme help ye to yer room.”

  “No, no, leave me be, I am going outside.”

  Nash took his arm from the young woman, taking an unsteady walk to the door. He was fine, he just needed some fresh air and a brisk walk to put some clarity into his mind. I am done with drinking. I never want to see a pint of beer again. Nash stretched as he stepped outside, looking down the street. It was quiet, as most people were either settling down to bed or carrying out last-minute tasks for the next day.

  His only task would be to get on the next carriage out of Alfriston and away from his shame. The stagecoach would come again tomorrow, he was sure that he would catch it then. It will come, but my treacherous mind will still remind me of my shame, of that I am sure. Sighing, he rubbed his eyes. They were heavy from the effects of the alcohol, perhaps he should have retired to his room rather than take a walk in the night.

  “No, I need this walk to clear my head of the fog.”

  Pushing himself to continue walking, Nash found that the crisp night air was doing him good. So good that he thought he heard Freddi's voice.

  “That cannot be, I know that she is at home.”

  A few steps later, he came to the cobbler's shop. Why would he have come here? Shaking his head, Nash would have turned away if not for the glimpse of a honey-blonde head catching his attention. He had a second look, peering through the cobbler's windows.

  “Freddi?”

  He was confident that it was her although the windows were quite dirty. What would she be doing at the cobbler's shop at this time of the night? Nash moved closer to the window, and, upon seeing a shadow of a man at the door, he knew that something was definitely wrong. He did not think twice about running around to the front door and kicking it down, coming up against a man with missing teeth.

  “Oi!” the man shouted. “Who ye be?”

  Nash dodged him, using a chair to knock him down before running for the man that stood in front of Freddi. Nash growled, his need to protect the woman he loved overtaking his senses. The man turned in the nick of time to see Nash, his eyes growing large when he saw that he was about to be taken down.

  “Nash!” Freddi screamed.

  That cry alone was enough to make him feel invincible. Nash crashed into the man, knocking him down. He scrambled to his feet, leaving a stunned Richard Down on the floor. What was going on? Why was this man trying to hurt his Freddi?