“Durant?” the gentleman called out. He was using brute strength on the other man. “I mean Hastings. Is that you?”
A chill snaked up Sebastian’s spine. He hadn’t been called by his birth name in ages. “Yes?” Sebastian stepped closer. There was something familiar about the man. He looked like… “Robert? Lieutenant Robert Jenkins?”
“Yes.” Robert Jenkins, Admiral Carl Jenkins’s missing son, stepped into the light and shoved the man in front of him toward the servants who had surrounded them. “Tie him up. He’s responsible for the fire.”
Colton’s temper flared to life hotter than the fire now burning itself out. He wanted answers, and he wanted them now. Pushing through Sebastian and Robert Jenkins, Colton ignored their protests and locked gazes with the arsonist sitting on the ground against the wall of Wentworth Park. “What did the guy who hired you look like?”
“’E ’twas a gentleman. Dark ’air, dressed nice. Paid me a hundred pounds. Does this mean I can go? I told ye who hired me,” the scraggly man declared.
“Hell no,” Sebastian half-shouted. “Your sorry arse is going to jail.” To his assistant butler, he said, “Go get the constable.”
Robert Jenkins stuck his hands in his pockets. “Tell them what he said.” He kicked the man’s foot.
“Ow,” the arsonist complained. “’E said ’e was yer younger brother and ’e was tired of yer father throwing ye up in ’is face.”
“Bullshit!” Colton saw red. He grabbed the man by the throat. “You lie. Tarren would never—”
Two arms wrapped around Colton from behind, dragging him off the man. Colton struggled. No one accused his little brother of something like that and got away with it.
“Colton, calm down,” Sebastian whispered in his ear.
Colton rounded on his husband. Colton was tired, he hurt, he and his horses had been nearly killed and this arsehead was accusing his family of wrongdoing. “Don’t tell me to—”
“He was talking to me.”
“—to calm down.”
“It wasn’t Tarren who sent him. It was Plume.”
“What?” Colton shouted. Plume? That didn’t make any sense.
Sebastian grabbed Colton’s uninjured hand. “Come on. We need to talk.” He looked over Colton’s head. “Robert, don’t go anywhere. I’ve a ton of questions for you.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“You’ll take care of this?”
Robert nodded.
Sebastian pulled Colton into the house and toward the study.
“Don’t you find all this a bit odd?” Colton jerked his hand out of Sebastian’s. He was in no mood to be placated.
“Damn it, Colton. I’m trying to tell you something. I tried to tell you this earlier.” Sebastian grabbed his hand again, pulled him into the study and shut the door. “Viscount Leith is my father.”
Colton froze. He couldn’t have been more surprised if someone had told him he was adopted. But Sebastian had a mother, didn’t he? Why didn’t the viscount and viscount-consort recognize Sebastian as their son? “I don’t understand.”
Sebastian slouched against the door and ran his hands down his face. “My mother was his mistress.”
A lump formed in Colton’s throat. His anger evaporated, and he backed up until his legs hit the chair in front of the fireplace. He sank down into the seat and stared at his consort. Well, that explains his birthmark. His father was born using Regelence’s procreation technology and passed the mark on to Sebastian even though he was conceived naturally.
Sebastian moved to the sideboard and poured himself a drink. He tossed it back and continued without turning around. “She’d worked for his parents, the Earl and Earl-Consort of Vale, since she was fifteen. When Leith moved out of his family home, he took her with him to Dogwood House. Everything was great then. She shared a room with him and acted as lady of the house. I stayed in the nursery with my governess, but I got to go outside and play when my studies were done. It was wonderful. Nothing like life at Plume House had been.
“Then Leith’s parents threatened to cut off his funds if he didn’t marry. They picked his husband and everything. I was only six, but I can remember him complaining about it. When he married, my mother and I were moved into our own house on Hamilton Street. Not much changed. We continued to live the life we were accustomed to. Mom still had pretty dresses, I still had a governess and plenty of toys. My fath—Leith stayed with us more often than not, only returning to Dogwood House to get things he needed. We were happy.
“When she died of influenza when I was ten, Leith moved me into Dogwood House with him. I didn’t see him for days. After a week, I was put to work in the stables for a few days and then finally I was thrown out onto the streets. I lived on the streets for years, picking pockets to survive. As luck would have it, one day I picked Admiral Jenkins’s pocket—he was a captain then—and he caught me. I still don’t know why he did it, but he took me home, fed me and offered to buy me a commission in the Regelence Navy. The rest of it you know.” Sebastian turned around and met Colton’s gaze. Sebastian’s shoulders were held high, but his face… His eyelids drooped. His face was pale.
It tore at Colton’s heart. He stood, wanting to go to his consort, but Sebastian held up a hand.
“If you want out, I understand. I should’ve told you all of this before I married you. I’m sorry.” He inhaled and let it out. “Giles was disgusted after I told him. He kicked me out of his bed and out of his life. A week later he died of a heart attack.”
No wonder Sebastian had not wanted to tell Colton. He started forward again.
Sebastian turned his back. “File for an annulment.”
“What?” Colton froze, his anger rising.
“I said file for an annulment. I won’t contest it.”
“Of all the—”
There was a crash from the foyer and a shout. It sounded like Robert.
“Sebastian!” Yes, definitely Robert.
“Colton,” a familiar voice called out.
Colton frowned. “Cony?”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Sebastian stepped into the foyer and froze. King-Consort Raleigh sat in the middle of Robert’s back, and Deverell stood over them with a fragger trained at Robert’s head.
Steven, Rexley, Aiden, Tarren, Winstol and Ashbourne were just inside the front door with three armed guards at their back.
Robert turned his head and met Sebastian’s gaze. “Help?”
Great. This was all Sebastian needed. A perfect end to a perfectly horrid day. “Your Highness, this is Robert Jenkins.”
“We know who he is. We chased him tonight,” Nate growled. “What I want to know is why he’s following our king.”
What? Sebastian looked at Robert. “What’re they talking about?”
Robert grunted. “I can explain.”
“Everyone come into the study and let’s get this straightened out. I’m in no mood for more drama.” The raspy voice barely sounded like Colton.
Sebastian winced. Colton needed to be in bed, healing.
“Good galaxy.” Steven’s face blanched. “Berkley said everything was fine. Colton is obviously not fine.”
Raleigh sucked in a sharp breath. The struggle to remain where he was or go to Colton played across his face, but he stayed put.
Nate finally lowered his fragger and stuck it in his shoulder holster. The royal guards who’d accompanied them still held their rifles trained on Robert though.
Colton held up his hand. “I’m okay.”
“You look terrible.” Steven hurried around Raleigh and Nate.
Colton hugged him. “I’m okay. Robert caught the man who set the barn on fire.”
Patting Colton’s back, Steven nodded and reluctantly released Colton. Steven glanced down at Robert Jenkins and up at Sebastian.
Sebastian nodded. “I trust him.” Turning to the guards, he said, “You’re dismissed. Go back to your duties. I’ll escort everyone home.”
Everyone fell in line behind them as they squeezed through the study door, then fanned out and began talking amongst themselves.
Steven led Colton to the loveseat and pushed him into it. “Were you in the stables?”
“I went in after Apollo and Apollonia, but we all got out okay.”
Once again Sebastian winced. He should’ve tackled Colton before he ever got out of their bedroom, and Sebastian would have if he’d had any idea what Colton was going to do.
Raleigh, who’d just stopped next to them, sucked in a breath.
Sebastian didn’t need anyone to tell him he’d failed in his duties as a husband. He was responsible for this whole debacle. The best thing he could do was to let Colton go. Galaxy, Sebastian’s chest hurt.
He slid into the seat next to Colton but didn’t look at him. Sebastian didn’t want to. He knew Colton would stand beside him, but it wasn’t fair to expect it.
“All right then. What in the world is going on?” Raleigh moved to sit on Sebastian’s desk and addressed the room in general.
Nate and Aiden stood by the fireplace. Rexley and Trouble sat in the chairs opposite the loveseat. Tarren and Ashbourne dragged seats from the side of the room and joined Rexley and Trouble. Steven leaned on the desk next to his consort. Everyone was staring at Robert, who stood inside the door.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness.” Robert cleared his throat. “I didn’t mean to worry you. I just needed to know if I could trust you. With the admiral joining your family I wasn’t sure I could.” He glanced at Nate, and a blush crept across Robert’s cheekbones. “No offense, Hawk. My father counted you as a friend, but you’re also a big part of the IN.”
Nate nodded. He’d put the fragger away, but the butt of it was visible since his evening jacket was unbuttoned. “I understand.” He waved his hand in a circular motion. “Continue.”
Swallowing so hard his throat bobbed, Robert turned his attention to Steven and Raleigh once again. “I knew I could trust Lieutenant Dur—I mean Wentworth.” He focused on Sebastian. “Apologies. Old habit.”
Sebastian dipped his head.
Colton slid his hand into Sebastian’s. It was warm and solid. Sebastian squeezed gently. Did he want to give this up? No. But he’d give Colton the choice. Sebastian owed him that much.
“Then why didn’t you go to Sebastian first instead of spying on Steven?” Raleigh asked.
“I didn’t realize who he was. I knew him as Lieutenant Sebastian Durant. I’ve been off planet for the last ten years on one mission after another. My father never mentioned that the lieutenant married. I would’ve never imagined him working as head of castle security.”
“So what made you go to him?” Nate asked.
“After you all chased me tonight, I ran into an old acquaintance of the lieu—er, Wentworth’s. We talked and he told me where to find Wentworth. You have to understand, I had to be certain. I’m a wanted man. If the IN finds me, they’ll kill me like they did my parents.”
The entire room gasped and started talking at once.
“Shhh… Quiet.” Raleigh sliced his hand through the air. “Robert, how do you know they killed your family?”
“It’s just a feeling. I got a message from my dad three months ago while I was on a training mission. The note said something about remembering my childhood and how I used to hide under the stairs when we’d play hide and seek. It was an odd note. Because I never hid under the stairs. That was always his hiding place.” Robert shook his head. “He and my mom always wrote to me, but never like this. Their previous letters were about goings-on, what they were doing, my Aunt Mary’s new puppies, my cousin Henry’s gout, asking about my health and that sort of stuff. The reminiscence and inaccurate memories weren’t right. It was strange enough I took an emergency leave and came home. When I got here, the house had been ransacked, and there was no sign of my parents or my Aunt Mary. I located my cousin, and he suggested I look more closely at the house.”
Robert dragged his hands down his face and sighed. There were bags under his eyes. “Then I remembered the note. I thought it might be a clue to their whereabouts, so I started searching. I tried under the stairs and found nothing, but then I realized he didn’t mention my favorite hiding spot in the note, so I went there.” He grinned. “The butler’s pantry. Taped to the top of the dumbwaiter was a letter and this.” He reached into his coat and pulled out a tiny metal box about the size of a human thumbnail. A hard drive.
Again the room erupted into disarray with everyone talking at once.
“Hush,” Steven commanded.
Robert tossed the hard drive to Steven. “The note said if I was reading this, my parents were probably already dead. It was pretty cryptic. He said get this into King Steven’s hands, but be careful who you trust. He made a point to add that I should assume the IN was watching King Steven, and I shouldn’t trust the IN or anyone affiliated with them without finding out where their loyalties lie.” He looked back at Nate. “I took that to mean you, Hawk. I think he wanted me to make sure your loyalty was to your new family rather than the IN.”
“What’s this?” Steven asked.
“Hugo, my parents’ butler. Anything my father knew will be in Hugo’s memory.”
Townsend Castle.
Freshly showered and bandaged, Colton sat on the edge of his bed in only a nightshirt and watched the doctor place a vial in the bio injector. Father and Cony had insisted they stay at the castle tonight. The room was the bigger bedroom in their newly appointed suite. The staff had moved in all of Colton’s old furniture, including the artwork on his walls.
“Will that make me sleep?”
“It should. Unless you’re like your brother.” The doctor smirked. “In which case, I’ll be leaving as soon as I give it to you.”
Colton chuckled. Tarren was notorious for having idiosyncratic reactions to medicines. Painkillers that put most people to sleep made Tarren bounce off the walls. Since Tarren already tended to be on the hyperactive side the results weren’t conducive to harmony in the household…especially among the older residents. “Can I give it to myself in awhile? I want to check on some things before I go to sleep.”
Doctor Tebaldi raised one bushy red eyebrow. He was a nice man, close to Father and Cony’s age, with bright red hair, side whiskers and a ton of freckles. He’d been their doctor since he was out of medical school. “Okay, but no longer than half an hour. You need your sleep so the nanomites can do their job and heal the burned skin and the rope cut on your hand.”
“I promise.” Colton held up his bandaged hand and tried not to wince. The blasted thing was beginning to hurt now that his adrenaline had worn off.
The door clicked open as the doctor put the injector on the nightstand. Sebastian stepped inside and looked around. He met Colton’s gaze and smiled.
Colton smiled back. They were going to be okay.
Dr. Tebaldi closed his bag, glanced toward the door and back to Colton. “Thirty minutes, Your Highness. No more. I’ll come check on you tomorrow.”
Colton pressed his uninjured hand to his chest. “Thirty minutes, I swear it.” Dropping his hand, he placed it in his lap. “Thank you, Dr. Tebaldi.”
“You’re most welcome.” He bowed, turned toward the door and bowed again to Sebastian. “My lord.”
Sebastian dipped his head. “Thank you for coming, Doctor.”
“No problem at all. Call me if you need me before tomorrow, and make certain he takes the pain meds.”
“I will.” Sebastian closed the door behind the doctor and leaned against it. He let out a deep sigh and gave Colton a soft smile. His hair was wet, and he wore a clean white shirt and black trousers. He yawned.
Colton could identify. He too was exhausted. It had been a long night. They’d gotten the horses put away, Robert had settled in a guestroom and was now officially receiving sanctuary from the Townsends. C
olton had seen a doctor, Apollonia and Apollo had seen the vet, and just ten minutes ago they’d gotten word that the fire was out.
“How’s your arm?” Sebastian asked.
“It hurts a little. What was on the disk?”
“Don’t know. It’s encrypted and no one has access. Your sire and Winstol are both taking a crack at it, but we may have to call Payton to get the information off it.” He pushed away from the door and strode forward to stand in front of Colton. “You should take your pain meds.”
“I will in a few minutes. What about the arsonist?”
“In jail, and the constable is picking up Plume as we speak.”
“Good.” Colton patted the bed. “Come on. You look like you’re about to fall over.”
“Yes, well about that…” Sebastian sat down and gripped Colton’s good hand. “We need to talk.”
Colton kissed him on the lips. “We can talk in bed. Strip.”
Sebastian chuckled. “Let me talk first. You might not want me in your bed after I say what I have to.”
Colton scoffed. “It’s our bed.” He noticed the sober look on his husband’s face. “You’re serious?”
“Yes.”
“I can assure you, whatever it is, I do want you in my bed, so you might as well get undressed and get under the covers with me.” There was nothing Sebastian could say that would make Colton kick him out of bed. Not after tonight. Not after Sebastian had told Colton he loved him. Colton grinned and kissed Sebastian’s hard, pinched mouth. “I love you. Remember?”
“I do. And I love you.”
“Then get in bed.”
Sebastian shook his head. “Not yet.”
Colton sighed, but he knew the look. He’d seen it for years. He wasn’t going to win, so he might as well comply. He waved his good hand. “Very well. Talk.”
Sebastian got up from the bed and stood in front of Colton. “Before our wedding Plume threatened to make my past public. I talked to Leith, but I don’t think he can control Plume. Do you understand what all this means? I’m much worse than a bastard. I’m an abomination. My father is supposed to prefer men to women. Not only am I a freak, but I’m the son of a freak. There may be another scandal.”
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