“No, I do not believe for a moment that it was in any way simple,” Fredrick agreed dryly. “I should think keeping a legitimate marriage a secret for eight and twenty years a very difficult task. How did you accomplish such a feat?”
With an abrupt motion, the older man paced across the room, halting at the window that overlooked the dark garden.
“I never intended to keep it a secret. It was Adeline who desired secrecy.”
Fredrick gave a disbelieving laugh. “Ah . . . of course she did.”
“It is true enough.” Lord Graystone gave a restless lift of his shoulder, his expression revealing he was lost in the past. “She possessed a remarkably soft heart and even after my mother tossed her from this estate and insisted that I be cut off without a quid, she feared the announcement of our wedding would put the old tartar in the grave.”
“Why would my grandmother be so opposed to the marriage? My mother might not have been of the highest social standing, but she was obviously respectable enough.”
“I thought at the time she was simply being her usual arrogant self. After all, she had managed to convince herself that being the wife of a baron was quite equal to possessing royal blood. She ruled over this neighborhood like a queen for over forty years, long after my father was cold in his grave,” he said slowly. “It was not until later that I realized she was desperate for her sons to wed for wealth. She understood just how close to ruin we were treading.”
Fredrick frowned. In truth it was rather easy to believe his mother might wish to avoid dealing with Lady Graystone. The old dragon would have terrified a young girl who was unaccustomed to dealing with temperamental aristocrats.
“So you never told any of your family of the wedding?”
“No, I revealed the truth only to my old groom who had been forced to remain at Oak Manor when I traveled to Winchester. I was closer to him than either my mother or brother.”
Fredrick sucked in a sharp breath, recalling Mrs. Shaw’s confession that the entire staff at Oak Manor had been hired from Winchester when his father came into the title.
“Ah, so that was why you pensioned off the old staff,” he accused in chiding tones. “You feared that your groom had shared the news with the other servants and one of them might whisper the truth in the ear of your new bride.”
Lord Graystone shifted beneath the accusation, his gaze never wavering from the window. “It was Wilhelmina’s desire to pension off the staff. She thought it would be less . . . awkward for all if she were to choose her own servants rather than training those who were loyal to the previous mistress.”
Fredrick didn’t doubt his words. The current Lady Graystone was the sort of woman who would always be conscious of her lack of noble birth and be swift to take offense to any hint she was being treated with anything less than utter deference. Still, Fredrick did not accept for a moment that his father would have allowed the loyal staff to be dismissed without his own selfish reason.
“And you did nothing to halt her?” he demanded.
A hint of color touched the pallor of his skin. “No, I did nothing to halt her. As you say, I did not wish ancient gossip to create difficulties.”
“Why?” Fredrick moved toward the older man, determined to have the answers that had been denied him for far too long. “You cannot convince me that this elaborate deception has been to spare Grandmother’s pride.”
“No, it . . .” Lord Graystone slowly turned and regarded Fredrick with grim determination. “Sit down, Fredrick, and I will attempt to explain what occurred.”
With a shrug Fredrick grabbed a bottle of brandy from the nearby side-table. “I think I shall have need of this,” he muttered before he lowered himself into a leather wing chair and met his father’s gaze with a taunting smile. “Very well, Father, explain to me why you stole my birthright.”
The older man recoiled, his hands clenching and unclenching at his side as he struggled to find the words to adequately justify his cruel betrayal.
“As you have already discovered, Adeline came to Oak Manor as a companion. My mother was bedridden and her health was considered precarious. Adeline’s experience with various medicines was invaluable.” The blue eyes became misty as Lord Graystone recalled happier days. “She was here only a few weeks when I knew beyond a doubt that we were meant to be together.”
Fredrick’s fingers tightened on the brandy bottle. He knew something of having a special, utterly perfect woman tumble into his life without warning.
“And did she feel the same?”
“She loved me, although she was more sensitive to the differences in our social positions than I. She understood the difficulties we would be forced to confront from the very beginning.”
“With good reason,” Fredrick was swift to point out. “She was the one who suffered from your relationship.”
His father frowned with a flare of annoyance. “That is not entirely fair, Fredrick. It is true that my mother dismissed Adeline when she discovered our relationship, but I stood by her side. When she was forced to leave the estate I went with her, even though it cost me my home, my family, and what little allowance I possessed.” His chin tilted as if daring Fredrick to challenge his devotion to his beloved Adeline. “I would have done anything to be at her side.”
There was an unmistakable earnestness in his father’s countenance, but Fredrick was not overly impressed. If Lord Graystone had truly loved his wife he would have honored her memory, not allowed others to believe she had given birth to an illegitimate brat.
“That is when you went to the boarding house in Winchester?” he demanded.
“Yes, I had some notion that I could find a teaching position at the college.” The older man gave a wave of his slender hands. “It was not as if I was trained to pursue a career, and I had to have some means of supporting my family. While I was pleading for a position with the headmaster I encountered Dunnington and he suggested that I rent rooms at Mrs. Greaves’ boarding house.”
Once again the mention of Dunnington brought a pain to Fredrick’s heart. Dammit, the tutor had been more a father than this man standing before him. How could he . . .
With an effort, Fredrick forced himself to concentrate upon his father’s unfolding story.
“And he also attended your wedding?”
“Yes. Adeline demanded that we have a quiet ceremony at the local church. Only Dunnington and Mrs. Greaves attended.” A small, profoundly sad smile curved his lips. “Still, it was the happiest day of my life. I had the woman I loved and a child soon to be born. If only . . .”
“If only what?”
The nobleman gave a shake of his head. “You will never believe me, but I wish that those days had never come to an end. We were happy in those cramped rooms with nothing to concern ourselves other than making ends meet.”
Fredrick battled back the instinctive flare of sympathy. By God, Lord Graystone deserved many things, but pity was not among them.
“Oh, I am certain it was all quite romantic,” he drawled.
The blue eyes flashed. “It was.”
“So what happened?”
His father struggled against his natural instinct to retreat behind his aloof composure. For nearly three decades he had refused to answer the questions that must have been upon the lips of many. Now it was clearly a painful process to speak the truth he had hidden for so long.
“First my mother died and I was forced to return to Oak Manor for the funeral.” He gave a faint grimace. “No matter what the rift was between us, she was my mother and I owed her my respect.”
“You did not bring your wife?”
The delicate features abruptly tightened with an ancient grief. “By the gods, I wish I had,” he rasped, his hand reaching out to clutch at a nearby shelf, as if his knees were no longer to be trusted. “While I was gone, Adeline fell down the stairs and was grievously injured. She regained consciousness only long enough to give birth to you. She died a few hours later.”
Fredrick took a long swig of the brandy, feeling oddly discomfited by the undisguised agony in his father’s eyes. Whatever had happened all those years ago, Fredrick was being forced to accept that his father truly cared for his mother.
“I . . . I am sorry. It must have been a very difficult time for you,” he grudgingly conceded.
“For weeks I was numb.” Lord Graystone grimaced. “I could not accept that my beloved Adeline had been stolen from me. It was simply inconceivable. And then I received word that my brother had been shot in a hunting accident.” He met Fredrick’s gaze squarely. “Within a matter of a month I had lost my mother, my wife, and my brother. Even worse, I was thrust into the position of Lord Graystone and burdened with the debacle my brother had made of the estate.”
“And what of me?” he demanded.
“I left you in the care of Mrs. Griffin while I returned to Oak Manor.”
Fredrick slowly stood, thrusting aside his brief feelings of pity.
“And while you were there you simply forgot that you were married and had a son?”
“Of course not.” His father thrust an unsteady hand through his silver hair. “I . . . it was . . .”
“What?”
With a frustrated growl, Lord Graystone paced across the carpet, his movements sharp and uneven as he struggled with the flood of emotions.
“You must understand that the estate was on the brink of ruin,” he rasped. “My brother had managed to squander his inheritance and strip the estate of everything that might hold value. There was no principal, no assets, and no capital to attempt to retrieve the fallow fields. Even the manor house was beginning to tumble into shambles.” His hand lifted to wave around the library that was now the envy of the neighborhood. “I had to find some means of staving off disaster.”
Fredrick narrowed his gaze. “You have offered a great number of excuses, Father, and far fewer explanations.”
His father hunched his shoulders, his steps slowing as he regarded Fredrick with a resigned expression.
“I just wish you to comprehend my situation. I had family and servants and tenants all depending upon me. I could not fail them, no matter what the cost to myself.” His lips twisted. “Even if it meant selling my soul to the devil.”
“What devil?”
There was a brief pause before Lord Graystone heaved a sigh. “My father-in-law, Jacob Burke.”
“The gentleman who handed you a fortune?” Fredrick gave a humorless laugh. “We should all have such devils.”
Ignoring Fredrick’s mocking response, Lord Graystone resumed his pacing.
“He came to Oak Manor,” the older man said. “He had heard the rumors of my desperate straits.” A hint of bitterness glittered in his pale eyes. “Not surprising. It seemed at the time that everyone knew that the current Baron could not so much as pay his butcher bill.”
“What did he want?”
“He wished to offer me his only daughter and her considerable dowry in holy matrimony.”
“How considerable a dowry?”
Coming to a halt behind one of the wing chairs, Lord Graystone clutched the high back.
“One hundred thousand pounds.”
Fredrick gave a choked cough. He had always suspected that his father had been handsomely rewarded for taking Lady Graystone as his bride, but not even he had imagined just how handsome the reward had been.
No wonder he was willing to hand over a miserly twenty thousand pounds to keep Dunnington’s lips sealed.
“God almighty.”
“Yes,” his father softly agreed with his shock. “Like you, he was a self-made man, although his fortune came from his vast shipping empire. And to be frank, he did not have the benefit of being educated. His manners were . . . less than what one might desire. In truth, he was loud and coarse and inclined to be an embarrassment.”
Fredrick gave a lift of his brows. “No doubt one hundred thousand pounds allowed you to overlook his lack of manners?”
“I will not lie to you, Fredrick, his offer seemed to be the answer to all my troubles.” His glance strayed toward the shelves that were now filled with endless rows of leather-bound books. “With such resources I could sow the fields, I could repair the tenants’ cottages, I could halt the encroaching ruin upon Oak Manor. There was only one difficulty.”
“And what difficulty was that?”
“When Jacob came to me he assumed that he was bargaining his fortune for a grandson who would someday possess the title he coveted. He did not realize that I already had a son.” The pale eyes held Fredrick’s gaze. “A son who was now the legitimate heir to the title.”
“Ah.” A ridiculous pain flared through Fredrick as he imagined that moment when his father made the irrevocable decision to trade his only child for the funds he needed. Had he hesitated for even a moment? Had he considered what it would mean to Fredrick’s future or had he been too blinded by the vast wealth to even give thought to the baby he had created with the woman he loved? “What an inconvenient bother I must have been,” he taunted, his voice thick with disappointment. “One hundred thousand pounds yours for the taking if only you could be rid of me. I suppose I should be relieved that you merely bartered off my inheritance rather than smothering me in my cradle.”
His father gave a lift of his hands, his countenance becoming an odd shade of grey as he licked his lips.
“What would you have me do, Fredrick?” he pleaded in a harsh voice. “Watch as my tenants starved? Huddle with my aging servants in the cellars as Oak Manor rotted to a hollow shell?”
Fredrick smiled with a cold amusement. His father was not the first to travel the path to hell that had been paved with good intentions.
“So your motives were completely altruistic?” he mocked, his gaze deliberately traveling over the furnishings that were obviously of the finest craftsmanship. “You thought nothing of yourself or the notion that being Lord Graystone with a grand and prosperous estate was far preferable to living in genteel poverty?”
The pale gaze dropped at the accusation. “I certainly told myself my decision was entirely for the benefit of others. I was abandoning the child of my beloved Adeline and marrying a woman I could barely tolerate to salvage the estate. It seemed a rather harsh payment for a destiny I never desired.”
Fredrick widened his eyes. His father thought he had paid a harsh price?
“And what of my destiny?”
“What destiny?” His father made an impatient sound. “Your inheritance would have been nothing more than a ramshackle home and mountain of debt.”
Fredrick’s hands curled as a savage blast of anger shook his body. Good God. Even now his father would not admit his selfishness. At least not without comforting himself with the thought it had been his only choice.
“Oh yes, far better to be a bastard.” He stabbed the older man with a malevolent glare. “My God, you abandoned me to a horrid woman who beat me with her cane when I did not polish the silver to her satisfaction.”
“No, no.” His father rounded the wing chair, his eyes troubled. “I swear that I did not know, Fredrick. When I gave you into the care of Mrs. Griffin she promised to raise you as her own. I sent money each month to see to your care and education. I did not dream that she would prove to be so treacherous.”
Just for a moment Fredrick continued to glare at the man who had betrayed him, and then with a sharp shake of his head he was turning away.
“Do you know, Father, I am not at all surprised that you would abandon me to a stranger and never bother to ensure that I was not being ill-treated. You have proven you are willing to sacrifice me for the greater good. But I find it impossible to imagine Dunnington being nearly so indifferent. He . . .” Fredrick was forced to halt and clear his throat. “I thought he truly cared for me, but he is just as guilty as you in stealing all that should have been mine. My name, my position, my inheritance.”
“No, Fredrick. Blame me, but not Dunnington.” With a jerky motion, Lord Graystone was a
t Fredrick’s side, his hand reaching out to grasp his shoulder. “He left Winchester just days after you were born. He knew nothing of your fate until he was passing through the neighborhood near eight years later.”
“He came here?”
“Yes.” The older man’s fingers unwittingly dug into Fredrick’s muscles. “I assure you that the moment he realized that you were missing from Oak Manor he had every intention of announcing to the world that you were my legitimate son, especially once he traveled to Winchester and discovered the manner you were being treated by Mrs. Griffin.”
Fredrick narrowed his gaze. “What halted him?”
“Simon.” Slowly Lord Graystone released his grip on Fredrick’s shoulder. “He realized that by returning you to your rightful place he would be destroying Simon’s future.”
The brief flare of relief at the knowledge Dunnington had not deliberately abandoned him was swiftly muted by the realization that his father had deliberately used Dunnington’s instinctive desire to protect children against him.
“Of course.” Fredrick made a sound of disgust deep in his throat. “How very wise of you to hide your sins behind a child. Did you dangle little Simon on Dunnington’s knee while you pointed out the evils of revealing the sordid truth?”
A guilty heat touched his father’s pale cheeks. “What does it matter?” he demanded, not willing to admit that he had deliberately used one child to betray another. “We agreed that once Dunnington was settled in London he would send for you and that I would offer him a substantial sum to see to your welfare and education.”
Fredrick gave a slow shake of his head. He could not blame his poor tutor. Dunnington would have been horrified at being put in the position of choosing one child’s future over another. He obviously did the best his conscience would allow for.
Turning on his heel, Fredrick paced toward the fireplace, staring blindly at the dancing flames.
“Did he also force a promise that you would bring me to Oak Manor each year and endure my unwelcome presence?”
He heard his father’s pained hiss at his stark accusation. “No, Fredrick, I was the one to insist that you be returned to me at least a few weeks out of the year.”
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