by Abby Ayles
“We must not wait too long, however,” Emma said.
“Why is that?” Marcus asked, giving her a wary look.
“If we wait too long, it may well be too late for you to marry Rosaline,” she said, biting her lip to hide her smile.
Marcus glared at Emma, and Francis looked genuinely confused and surprised.
“Rosaline? Marry you?” Francis asked.
Emma could not help but laugh. Marcus, however, was not so easily amused.
“What, exactly, makes that so hard to believe?” Marcus asked, his jaw tense.
“That is not the part that is surprising,” Francis said, still too stunned to reciprocate Marcus’s once more rising temper. “But she knows that her uncle is set on her marrying me. I cannot believe that she would wish to defy him.”
Marcus relaxed immediately and even spared Francis a smirk.
“You and I agree on something, at last,” he said. Emma heard the slightest hint of real humor in his voice, and she laughed again.
“It was Rosaline’s idea to put the two of us together,” she said.
Francis rolled his eyes.
“Of course, it was,” he said, his own voice not without humor. “I should not have expected anything less from her.”
Emma put her hand to her chest and feigned a wounded expression.
“Are you disappointed that her plan worked, then?” she asked.
Francis looked at her, truly alarmed, until he saw the smile on her face. Then, he sighed.
“With a personality like yours, there will certainly never be a dull moment,” he said dryly. Emma giggled.
Marcus cleared his throat.
“If the two of you are quite finished,” he said bitterly. “I do agree that we should get started sooner, rather than later.”
“Does this mean that you wish to marry Rosaline, as well?” Francis asked.
Marcus glared at him but did not answer the question.
“You should wait to marry until Lucius has been dealt with, at the very least,” he said.
Francis grew serious quickly. He extended his hand to Marcus. Marcus looked at him as though he were mad.
“I agree to your terms,” Francis said, ensuring to meet Marcus’s gaze sincerely and honestly. “I will wait until all this is settled to marry Emma.”
Marcus stared at Francis’s hand for a moment, then begrudgingly took it.
“Very well,” Marcus said. He shook Francis’s hand only briefly, but Francis seemed satisfied.
Emma herself felt quite pleased. Her brother was well, and she would get to marry Francis. She did not mind waiting, especially if it meant that they would all see Lucius Rowley brought to justice, as well.
Chapter 36
Francis left Emma’s house more than prepared to begin helping Marcus and Emma nail the poisonous snake called Lucius Rowley.
Because of him and his twisted plots, he had almost lost Emma forever, and he intended to do everything in his power to see that man get exactly what he deserved.
Fortunately for Francis, he knew exactly where to start.
As soon as he returned to Blackburn Manor, he called for Margaret. She came rushing into the entryway, looking like a frightened child.
“M-milord?” she stuttered.
“Come,” he said, gesturing for her to follow him into the drawing room.
She did so with a certain reluctance, and Francis began to feel guilty. Now that he knew the truth, he did not wish to frighten her.
Once they were both inside the drawing room, he gestured for her to sit and poured her a glass of wine. He held out the glass to her with a warm, kind smile.
“Here,” Francis said. “I wish to apologize to you for being such a beast about the things I found in your room.”
Margaret looked at him, clearly wanting to believe that Francis was sincere, but just as apparently still afraid. Francis held the glass a bit closer to her and nodded his head.
“It is alright,” Francis said. “I do not wish to chastise you further, nor am I seeking to let you go.”
Margaret looked from the glass to his face, and back again. At last, she took the glass with a trembling hand.
“Thank you, milord,” she said, taking a long sip.
Francis sat across from her, with his hands folded in his lap. He waited patiently for the nanny to lower her glass from her lips. Once she did, he leaned forward, keeping his genuine smile.
“I want you to understand that I only wish to bring the person behind all these terrible crimes to justice,” he said softly.
Margaret nodded slowly.
“I swear, milord, I never wanted to take those things,” she said.
“I know, Margaret,” Francis assured. “And I believe you wholeheartedly. But I need your help to ensure that he never does this to someone like you, or to anyone, ever again.
“If you help me do this, I will secure your position here, as well as a raise in your pay.”
Francis winced. He did not mean to sound as though he was bribing Margaret. But as with Emma, he felt terrible for the things he had said to Margaret, and he did not want his nanny to live in fear of him.
Francis’s offer worked. Margaret’s face lit up, and she happily started telling Francis everything she knew.
“Mr. Rowley has been doing this all over the ton,” she said, her face saddening. “I have had many friends lose their jobs and reputations, all because of him.”
Francis thought about his friend Charles and made a mental note to write to him and explain everything he had learned. Perhaps Charles would be willing to offer some information or evidence, if Francis could convince him of the truth.
“Do you think that any of them would be willing to speak against Rowley?” Francis asked.
Margaret thought for a moment.
“I believe that many of them would,” she said. “Many of them have already lost so much, they would likely only stand to gain something by helping the constables get Mr. Rowley.”
Francis cringed, thinking of how many lives Lucius Rowley had likely ruined. He thought of how many good people like Emma and Margaret had suffered and been punished because of him, and he desperately wished he could help.
Perhaps, though, he could.
“If any of them will help us, let them know that I will give each of them a modest reward, and I will personally write a glowing letter of recommendation for them to any employer they choose,” he said.
Margaret’s face lit up again, and her eyes filled with tears.
“Oh, milord,” she said. “That is most generous of you.”
Francis smiled.
“Not at all, Margaret,” he said. “Good people deserve to be treated well. That is all I am doing.”
“I am sure that my friends will be most grateful, indeed,” Margaret said.
Francis thought another moment.
“If you need a day or two to go into town and meet with them about this, please let me know. I will give you as much time as you need off, and you will still receive your pay for that time, at your new raised wages. It is only right, especially since you are helping me after I was such a brute to you.”
Margaret smiled warmly.
“Milord, I do not blame you,” she said. “You made it right by giving me this chance to explain, and by apologizing. You needn’t do anything more.”
“But I wish to, Margaret,” Francis said. “It is only fair.”
“Thank you, milord,” Margaret said. “Should I begin making arrangements to go speak with my friends now?”
“Yes, by all means,” Francis said. “Just let me know when you plan to leave and be sure to tell me what you learn.”
Margret nodded and exited the room. Francis went straight to his study to write his letter to Charles. He prayed that he could get his old friend to see reason.
***
Francis, Emma, and Marcus spent the next few weeks speaking to everyone willing to open up about Lucius Rowley and recovering items that
he had ordered others to steal.
It was a painstaking process, and all three of them found that there were a great many more people than they thought who were too scared of Rowley, despite how much they had already lost, and despite Francis’s offer to compensate and vouch for them, to speak publicly against him.
They found many of the stolen items, although they did not find nearly all of them.
With that evidence, and with the ten people who agreed to speak against Rowley, Francis thought they would have enough to convince the constables to investigate him.
He prayed that the investigation turned up something substantial, though. He hated to think about what Rowley would do to everyone standing against him if he was not arrested.
He hated more still to think of the snake fleeing the city and evading justice, just to victimize more people elsewhere.
Once Emma and Marcus had spoken to everyone they could find who was willing to help them, Francis received a letter from Emma.
In her letter, she asked Francis to join her and Marcus for lunch the following day, so they could discuss their respective information, as well as the next phase of their plan. Francis wrote a hasty reply and made the preparations for the trip.
The next day, he arrived at Emma’s home. Marcus greeted him at the door, nodding curtly but saying little. Francis followed him into the dining room, where the modest meal was just being served. He took his place at the table, and Marcus his, and they all stared at each other.
Emma was the first to speak.
“When do you think that we will be ready to take our evidence to the constables?” she asked.
Francis hid a smile. He so loved her blunt, direct nature. He loved her more still for wanting justice to be done, not just on her behalf, but for others who had been hurt even worse than she had.
Francis, of course, wanted to see that justice was done as quickly as possible. He would be glad to see Lucius Rowley behind bars, and gladder still to be able to marry Emma.
However, he knew that the final decision would rest on Marcus, and he did not wish to cross him any further. So, for the moment, he remained silent.
Marcus looked back and forth from Emma to Francis before speaking.
“Do both of you feel that we have enough evidence for the constables?” Marcus asked. His gaze settled on Francis, his expression not quite readable. Francis remained silent, thinking carefully about his answer.
“I believe that we do,” Emma said. “I do not see how they could ignore ten people or all of the stolen items we have recovered.”
Francis nodded slowly. Marcus continued studying him.
“And what say you, Lord Ashfield?” he asked.
Francis took a deep breath.
“I believe that we have a substantial amount of evidence,” he said. “And I think that, the sooner we get it presented to the constables, the better our chances of taking Rowley by surprise. We do not want to delay long enough for him to catch wind of what we are planning.”
Marcus’s eyes widened, and it was clear to Francis that Marcus had not considered that possibility.
“You are absolutely right,” Emma said. “We cannot let him get away with this, which he almost certainly will if we do not act quickly enough. We should go to the constables as soon as possible.”
“Yes,” Marcus said. “Can we all be ready with the witnesses and stolen items tomorrow morning?”
Francis and Emma both nodded in agreement.
“Then, it is settled,” Marcus said. “We shall meet at the constabulary building tomorrow morning at 9 a.m.”
The rest of the meal was rather quiet. Francis wondered if they were all thinking the same thing.
What if Lucius Rowley had already caught wind of their plan? What if he fled town before they went to the constables?
***
Francis arrived with Margaret just before nine the next morning. He was not surprised to see that Emma and Marcus had already arrived and that there was a modest crowd of people standing with them.
What did surprise Francis, however, was one very familiar face. When the carriage halted, he jumped out and approached the familiar man.
“Charles,” he said warmly, shaking the man’s hand. “It is good to see you.”
“Forgive me for not answering your letter,” Charles said. “In truth, I thought you were raving mad. In fact, I spoke to my friend, John Witham, the Earl of Mulberry, about how unbelievable it all sounded.”
Francis chuckled.
“Thank you, my friend,” he said dryly.
Charles grinned sheepishly.
“As it turns out, John is very familiar with Lucius Rowley, and he said that the man is not to be trusted. John did some asking around and found out that there are people within his circles who have been through similar things because of Rowley.
“John was unable to join me, but I felt that the least I could do was to come say my piece against Rowley.”
Francis clapped Charles on the arm.
“Thank you,” he repeated, more sincerely. “We appreciate your assistance.”
“Not at all,” Charles said.
Just then, Emma made her way through the crowd and up to Francis. Charles gave Francis an approving smile and then ducked back into the crowd.
“Are you ready?” she asked. Francis thought she looked both excited and nervous.
“I am, indeed,” he said.
“Do you really believe that the constables will arrest him?” Emma asked.
Francis ignored the cold dread in his stomach and smiled at Emma.
“I believe that justice will, indeed, be done,” he said.
With that, Emma, Francis, and Marcus walked into the constabulary. The crowd of witnesses was too large, so everyone else waited outside until the constables were ready to speak to them.
The trio each brought bags with some of the recovered items and offered it as evidence in tandem with their statements. The constables questioned a few of the other witnesses one by one.
Then, one of the officers turned to Marcus, who had made the official complaint and given his statement first.
“We will be in touch,” the officer said. “We will send officers to both his home and his business.”
“When?” Emma asked, worried.
“Right now,” a second officer said. “If your claims are valid, and there is any evidence, we must act quickly. These are very serious crimes, and we wish to resolve the complaint as soon as possible.”
“When will we know something?” Marcus asked, agitated. “If he finds out that we are onto him, he may flee.”
“I assure you that we will not allow that to happen,” the first constable said.
“Shall we all await word at my home?” Francis asked, more directed toward Marcus and Emma than to the constables.
Everyone nodded in agreement, however.
“It will be easier if you are all together when we come to find you,” the constable said. “We will likely need verification statements from you all if we find evidence supporting your claims.”
The trio looked at each other and nodded.
“Very well,” Marcus conceded. After parting greetings to the officers, Francis, Marcus, and Emma headed straight for Blackburn Manor.
Time seemed to drag as the trio waited for word from the constables. Francis had ordered tea, cakes, wine, and brandy for them all, but no one ate or drank a thing.
The air was thick and tense, and Francis did not need to try to guess what Emma and her brother were thinking. He had many of the same concerns, and he prayed fervently that they were not too late.
Shortly after noon, there was a loud knock on the door. Francis bolted from the drawing room and straight to the door. His butler looked at him silently, eyebrows raised, but Francis hardly noticed. Emma and Marcus were right behind him.
On the other side of the door stood a grim-looking constable.
“Would you all be so kind as to come with me?” he asked.
/> The trio shared a worried, nervous look, but complied with the constable. They left at once, following right behind his carriage.
When they reached the constabulary building doors, Emma slipped her hand into Francis’s. He looked down and saw that Marcus was holding her other hand.