“The letter is from a contact of mine. He reports that he heard rumors around Crewe of a young man who was found unconscious near the property of the Duke of Oxshire.”
Harry stood, arms crossed, and shook his head.
Liam shrugged and read the letter again. “It says that the young man was treated by a physician. It is rumored that the young man has no memory and is being allowed to remain at the Duke’s estate for the time being.”
“Ridiculous. Lysander would never put himself anywhere near the Oxshire estate. Let alone allow himself to be caught up in a situation where he might lose his memory.”
“How do you know this?” Liam shot back. “You know that Lysander had planned to make peace with the Duke of Oxshire.”
Harry glanced at his mother who waved a dismissive hand.
“Do not fret, Harry. I knew all about your brother’s endeavors. In time, he would have realized there is no peace to be made with the Camdens. I was not worried about this. You know your brother is naïve when it comes to them. Not like you and me.”
The sudden approval of Harry seemed to please the young man for Liam saw a smile spread across his face. He stood up a little taller, shoulders back.
“Indeed. It was a foolish errand and I do not see him having gone anywhere near their estate.”
“However,” the Duchess spoke up, index finger raised. “If he did, I do not cherish the thought of him being kept as…whatever the young man is being kept as.”
“A servant, my contact tells me,” Liam said.
His aunt pressed her lips together.
“I agree with Harry, Liam. Despite Lysander’s lofty dreams of reconciliation with these terrible people, I doubt he would have gone anywhere near their estate. He would have waited for a chance meeting or arranged for an accidental meeting in London.”
Harry’s smile widened and he gave Liam a look so condescending, Liam wanted to vault across the room to plant a facer on his cousin.
However, to his delight, his aunt was not yet done.
“I must say I would feel much relieved, however, if we followed this lead. After all, we cannot be sure. And there have been no other leads at all thus far.”
Liam found himself smirking at Harry who was about to protest.
“Harry, why don’t you travel to Cheshire and investigate, while Liam remains here.”
Harry’s eyes grew so wide, Liam was sure there would pop right out of his gaunt face.
“Me? Travel to Cheshire? And what? Do you expect me to speak to the Duke of Oxshire You cannot be serious.”
The Duchess mouth twitched, and she waved her head from side to side, considering the comment. Then she turned to Liam.
“Again, Harry is correct. On second thought, the Duke might not give a Keswick, a proper Keswick, any valuable information, even if the unknown young man is Lysander. In fact, I am certain he would not. Liam, why don’t you go and investigate instead? The Duke may be more inclined to speak to you. In any case, you can conceal your identity much better than Harry. He does have Francis’ features after all, while you do not.”
Harry stepped from one foot to the other and pressed his lips together. He did not appear fond of this plan either, but kept his mouth shut.
Liam, meanwhile, did his best to ignore his aunt’s comment regarding him not being a proper Keswick. He knew well not to take her harsh words seriously, since she was not a well woman. The last two weeks he’d spent with her proved as much. Instead he simply nodded.
“Very well. I shall ride out in the morning. However, as Cheshire is on my way home, I will proceed there. I will send word of my findings. If it is not Lysander who is residing at the Oxshire estate, you will have no choice but to announce his disappearance.”
He stared at his aunt who appeared to want to contradict his assessment but then thought better of it. With a heavy sigh, she fell back, all but melting into the cushions of her chaise.
“You are right, Liam. Lysander’s absence will be noticed. We cannot continue our campaign to hide it. We will have to make it known that His Grace, the young Duke of Emberborough, has disappeared.” She paused and turned her gaze to Harry. Her eyes were icy, and her jaw clenched. “I suppose we will have to set in motion a chain of events that will make you Duke, Harry.”
Liam squinted as he tried to make out his cousin’s facial expression. For a moment, there appeared to be pain there. Pain at the obvious disapproving tone of his mother. But then, there was satisfaction. Yes. Indeed. A small smile played around his cousin’s lips and suddenly, Liam felt a dreadful thought come into his mind.
He’d always felt pity for his hapless cousin. Pity and anger at his arrogance which so mirrored that of their grandfather, Francis. However, now there was a new emotion. One he disliked even more than the others. Suspicion.
Chapter 28
Seraphina let George help her off the back the carriage and she stormed into the Castle, as fast as her injured ankle allowed.
“Sera!” Cynthia was making her way down the steps when Seraphina struggled to go upstairs. “Where were you? We missed you at breakfast. Mama is out of her mind with rage. And Papa is worried you’ve run away. Faith!” She took in the state of Seraphina’s dress. “What happened to you? What is wrong with your foot?”
She shook her head. The rage had built inside of her the entire way back to the Castle and she was more convinced than ever that her parents were behind the archer who’d hunted them down.
“I haven’t the time to explain, Cynthia. I must speak to Father. And Mother,” she grimaced as she spoke.
“Papa is in his study. Mama is—” she did not have opportunity to finish for at that moment, their mother appeared at the top of the stairs, alongside her sister Mary, whose face was stained with tears.
“Seraphina!” Her voice was shrill and her eyes wide as she glowered at her from above. “Where have you been?” She shook her head. “It does not matter. This is it. The last straw. You will be moving to Bristol with your aunt, and there is no more debate about it.”
Seraphina wanted to stomp her foot but reminded herself of her injured ankle and thought better of it.
“I will do no such thing. I would rather live in the stables than move there and you will not send me away.”
“Seraphina,” her father’s voice now boomed as his heavy steps came toward them. She swallowed as she watched him approach.
“You will go to my study, at once. Both of you.” He glared from Seraphina to her mother, who scoffed and threw her head back as she stalked away toward the office. “I will not have this disgraceful behavior in this house.”
He stood back as Seraphina struggled with the steps. For a moment, her father’s face softened.
“What has happened? Are you injured?”
He took a step toward her, but she shook her head.
“Your archer almost got us. That is what happened.”
He frowned. “My…”
“Or Mother’s. In any case. You did not succeed for we are both alive, yet.”
He shook his head and stepped back, allowing her to pass him.
“Cynthia, please have the physician summoned for your Sister.”
“Yes, Papa,” She heard her sister say as she made her way to her father’s study.
Her mother stood in the study near the window, arms crossed. She glared at Seraphina as she made her way into the room. Her father followed shortly thereafter.
“How dare you speak to me in—” her mother fired off at her only to be interrupted by her husband.
“I will have no more of this screaming and carrying on. You have brought enough shame upon this family with your display yesterday. I will have no more. I will not have the Camden family name be sullied any further.”
“I cannot believe you would accuse me of—” Lady Oxshire said, clutching the necklace she was wearing in outrage.
“I am tired of it all. And I will have no more. Now, Seraphina. Where were you this morning? Your sist
er has at last confessed she provided an egress to you out of her room. Alas, she refused to give further information.”
Her mother scoffed once more and shook her head. “She has corrupted Mary. I am telling you, Augustus, we must move her to the seaside if we have any chance of saving her reputation. Perhaps in Bristol some eligible lords will not have heard of her behavior.”
Seraphina blinked at her mother but said nothing. Her blood boiled. Instead she turned to her father.
“I am not going to Bristol. You will have to shoot me with an arrow first. Not that you have not already tried.” She whipped her head around and fired her gaze at her mother.
“What are you saying, Seraphina?” the Duke sounded utterly confused.
“You, or you,” she looked from one to the other. “You sent an archer after Oliver and I. Chased us through the woods. It is how I was injured. He missed, fortunately. But we had to seek shelter in the old tree house as to avoid being hit by arrows.”
Her father stood, his mouth agape while her mother’s face turned red.
“I knew it. I knew you had gone to see that stable boy once more.”
“That is your concern? That I was with Oliver? Not that I was nearly killed?”
Her father stepped forward, positioning himself between Seraphina and her mother, as a sort of buffer.
“Are you unhurt, aside from your foot?” He placed his hands on her cheeks in a gesture so tender it chased much of her anger out of her heart in an instant. The worry in his eyes spoke volumes. No. It would not have been him. Of course not. He was not capable of such an act.
I let my anger misdirect me. I never should have doubted his love for me. Mother, however…
She glanced over her father’s shoulder at her mother who was shivering with rage.
“Seraphina,” her father moved his face to block out the view of her mother. “Answer me, please. Are you unhurt? And Oliver?”
“I am unhurt, aside from my ankle. As is Oliver. But if not for the tree house, we might both be dead. I cannot believe your archer did not know to stop firing when he saw me, Mother.” She spoke into her mother’s direction.
“I sent no archer after you or the stable boy. Do you really see me capable of such an action? What a monster you must think I am.”
The hurt in her voice was genuine. At least it sounded genuine. Her mother had never been a great actress, but Seraphina was not sure what to believe anymore.
“I think you would do whatever was needed to keep me from being around Oliver. Including scaring him away with an archer.”
“I would do no such thing!” she exclaimed and turned her gaze toward her husband. “I cannot believe our daughter thinks me capable of such a thing. Augustus!”
He sighed and shook his head, pacing the room.
“Seraphina, your mother may be harsh at times, and cold. Colder than I deem necessary,” he silenced his wife with a quick glance. “But she would not be sending an archer to scare, let alone injure, anybody. And in your presence? Endangering you? Never. In fact, she has advocated your move to Bristol quite passionate this morning. If she had planned to have young Oliver scared away, she would certainly have already done so.”
Seraphina shook her head. “Then who?”
Her father shrugged. “I do not know but rest assured, I will not allow any such attack on my property. I will have to summon Mr. Mables, our steward to investigate the matter. Nobody on my estate will be harmed. Nobody.”
Seraphina nodded. “I thank you, Father.”
He sighed. “Now, as for your behavior. You placed yourself in danger and you did so by clearly defying my orders for you to stay away from the young man.”
“She must be sent to my Sister. There is no other solution,” her mother said.
Seraphina forced herself to breathe evenly, for she knew that arguing with her mother would not lead to any good results.
“Please, do not send me away. I cannot help being drawn to who I am drawn to. And we suspect that Oliver is much more than a stable boy. A merchant, perhaps.”
“A merchant!” Her mother’s voice was once again high and full of contempt. “Is that all? Well. If he is a merchant, then of course, go right ahead. We will arrange a wedding at once. Why worry about finding a dutiful, well-respected marquess or earl to wed when you can wed a merchant.”
Her mother’s distaste for those not of noble birth had always bothered Seraphina, and having the scorn directed at the man she’d so recently fallen in love with, hurt her so.
“Father, what if he is indeed a…”
He shook his head. “Seraphina, even if young Oliver turns out to be a wealthy merchant, even if he is a military man, you know that I can never allow such a match. No. Your Mother is right. I will arrange for your move to Bristol. At least for the rest of the summer, and into the autumn.”
This could not be happening. She could not allow herself to be sent away.
“Papa, please,” she pleaded but he shook his head.
“No. I will not speak of this anymore. The young man may remain here for the time being, but you will go to Bristol to stay with your aunt. Your mother is right. It is for the best. Now…if you will excuse me. I must prepare for a meeting.”
She opened her mouth to protest but her father had already turned away. Her mother had turned her back to her, looking out the window.
“The physician is arriving. You may wait for him in your chamber. Cynthia will attend to you,” her mother said without looking at her.
With no other option left, Seraphina bowed her head, curtsied, and hobbled out of the room.
“You watch. I’ll do it. I will run away. I will. I am not going to go to Bristol,” Seraphina was seated on her bed. Her ankle, sprained as expected, was resting on a pillow. Cynthia was seated on a chair beside her, her embroidery project on her lap. She’d already laid out her entire plan to her sister.
Cynthia looked up at her and sighed.
“You know as well as I that this is a foolish plan. Poor Oliver would be exposed to a world where he knows nobody. He cannot prove who he is or what he is capable of. Who will employ someone like that? And what if the archer was indeed after him? You cannot believe it was Mother.”
Seraphina bit the inside of her cheek to keep from lashing out at the wrong person. She had to admit that the thought of the archer coming for Oliver had been one she’d refused to entertain. But now that she was almost convinced her mother was innocent of this particular misdeed. She had no other choice.
“Even if they were, we do not know why. I only know that he is a good, decent man, and I know that I love him. No matter how short a time I have known him. And I will not be separated from him. We will leave. As soon as a I can walk properly. George will assist us with a horse or two.”
Cynthia put her embroidery down on her lap and folded her hands.
“Seraphina. You know I love you and I want what is best for you. I want you to be happy, and if Oliver makes you happy then you have my full support. However, you must let go of this foolish plan. Firstly, you ought not drag George into your tomfoolery any further than you already have. He needs his employment and he needs Father’s trust. Secondly, I believe you are being hasty. Oliver is recovering more and more of his memories. Why not give him a chance to recover fully? Or to be identified?”
“Identified by whom? Who knows if Lord Alderbridge will receive Father’s message in time. And even if so, he may not be willing to assist.”
Cynthia frowned and cocked her head to one side.
“Father did not tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
Cynthia sighed. “This is one of the times that I am ever so glad to not have to manage the politics within this family day after day. Father saw Lord Alderbridge last night at the club. They spoke. Lord Alderbridge already received the message and was going to call on Papa. He is willing to meet Oliver to see if he recognizes him.”
Seraphina sat up straight. “Does Oliver know? Never
mind. I must tell him!” She swung out of bed only to find her sister rising and pushing her back down.
“You will do no such thing. It is not necessary, anyhow. Father will have word sent when Lord Alderbridge is here and have Oliver summoned. In the meantime, please, at least wait until after the visit. Perhaps he will be identified this very evening. And if you are right and he is of a wealthy background, perhaps Mother and Papa can be persuaded to let you wed.”
She pursed her lips and shook her head.
“I should think not. Not unless he turns out to be kin to Prinny himself.”
The Trouble with Saving a Duke: A Historical Regency Romance Novel Page 20