Realm 05 - A Touch of Mercy

by Regina Jeffers

  Chapter 18

  Surprisingly, they had spent a comfortable night in the marquis’s lodge. Lucifer had enjoyed ‘Miss Purefoy’s’ company. They had played cards before the hearth and had spoken of home.

  During the evening, he had sought answers to his questions. When he had first uncovered the lady’s name to be Mercy Nelson, Lucifer had not made the connection to Gabriel Crowden’s estranged wife. The two women did not favor each other in looks, and “Nelson” was a common surname. He had executed a private investigation and had uncovered the lady’s roots. With the discovery, Lucifer had thought to drive Miss Nelson from Lexington Arms, but when he had observed the difference in Aidan Kimbolt, Lucifer had decided he must find a means to bring the viscount and Miss Nelson together, rather than to drive them apart. He suspected he had been more than a bit successful in his manipulations. When the lady had appeared suddenly in the kitchen garden, the girl held the look of a woman well bedded.

  “Do you wish to tell me what is in the note you left for me?” Lucifer said casually as he played a card.

  Miss Nelson studied her hand. “I expressed my deepest gratitude for your kindness.” She blushed deeply.

  “Is that the extent of the note?” Lucifer asked curiously.

  The lady placed her cards aside. “No. There is more…” She paused as if deciding whether to speak of what she had written. “I want you to know I spoke of a discovery I made in the last week. One which could affect His Lordship’s happiness, and so I did not include the information in Lord Lexford’s farewell. I shall leave it to you to decide if the viscount is to be apprised of my finding.”

  “I understand the need for discretion,” he said earnestly. “You have piqued my interest.”

  Miss Nelson sighed deeply. “Last Friday, when I went for my walk, I stumbled upon an opening behind the waterfall.”

  Lucifer screwed up his face in concern. “What kind of opening? A cave?”

  “At first, I thought it a cave,” Miss Nelson admitted. “But there was a lantern and flint close to the opening, and a narrow passage between the rocks, wide enough for a person to squeeze through. There is also a steep slope, which appears to lead to the outcropping.” She hesitated, and Hill wondered if she would speak the full truth. Finally, she continued, “I lit the lantern in hopes of exploring what turned out to be a tunnel, but I encountered a man within the depths.”

  Lucifer said incredulously, “Did he hurt you?”

  Miss Nelson shook her head in denial. “Your calling my name frightened the stranger away.” Lucifer watched her expression. The lady, obviously, meant to disclose only what she thought important to the viscount. He belatedly wondered if her brother had recruited the girl to spy on the Realm. From what Lucifer knew, Baron Nelson held ties to the infamous Lord Spectre, who had kidnapped Godown’s aunts and Lady Godown, as well as a close association to Jamot and the opium ring.

  “What else can you tell me of the man and the cave? Did you recognize the intruder?”

  She hesitated again, which spoke volumes. “The man said he had used the tunnel previously to enter Lord Lexford’s house.” Lucifer knew immediately the culprit had been Jamot. What he did not know was the connection between Miss Nelson and the Baloch. “I did not have the opportunity to explore the tunnel. I had hoped you would seek out an answer for I strongly believe many of the ‘ghosts’ who plague His Lordship’s house enter and exit through the opening.”

  “The woman who appears as Lady Susan?” Lucifer pondered aloud. “No wonder the apparition easily disappears each time we give chase.”

  Miss Nelson leaned forward as if to share a secret. “What I could not understand is why Lord Lexford is not familiar with the tunnel.”

  Lucifer had not considered that particular fact. “Could it be part of his memory loss?”

  She shook her head in the negative. “The memory loss covers the past two years. Would not the viscount have knowledge of the tunnel from his youth?”

  “I do not know,” Lucifer said cautiously, “but I mean to discover the way of it.”

  After their guarded talk, Lucifer had spent a restless night. He wondered what devious forces had overtaken the viscount’s household and how this new information related to Lady Cassandra’s journal.

  He was anxious to return to Lexford’s side before more mischief occurred. In Warwick, Miss Nelson had remained with him while he sold the wool at a market. It was late in the afternoon when Lucifer purchased a ticket for the mail coach, the only transportation available to Bedford, where she could make connections to London.

  “Promise me you will not venture into London’s East Side. Also, promise you will find housing at one of the three places I listed for you last evening, and you will seek employment first from one of the fine houses I have included.” Lucifer had purposely sent Miss Nelson to homes of relatives of the Realm. “Use my name as a reference.” He handed her another small piece of paper. “If you are in need of assistance, you know my direction. Send word, and I will come immediately.” Miss Nelson frowned her disapproval, and he had understood immediately. “In case you do not wish Lord Lexford to know of your whereabouts, I have included the directions for my Hannah. She will contact me in confidence.” Lucifer would not tell the girl Hannah knew only a few letters. Lady Worthing had agreed to teach Hannah more as time went on. Meanwhile, Her Ladyship read his letters to Hannah and transferred Hannah’s response to paper. Lucifer would speak to Lord Worthing and apprise him of the possibility of Miss Nelson contacting Hannah.

  “I promise,” she said softly.

  Lucifer pressed part of the profits from the sale of the wool into her gloved hand. “Save it for emergencies,” he insisted.

  Miss Nelson protest, “I cannot. It is too much.”

  “Lord Lexford would have my head on a platter if I gave you less. You will need it while you search for employment.”

  The lady threw her arms about his neck and planted a kiss on Lucifer’s cheek. “You are absolutely incredible. God blessed me when our paths crossed.”

  *

  “You met the gentleman the day you awaited your mistress at the inn?” Aidan attempted to keep his voice calm, but the maid’s naïveté drove him to distraction. He had asked her the same questions several times in hopes Millie would contradict herself. Yet, the maid had not varied from her tale. That fact bothered Aidan more than the girl’s involvement with a man who was obviously a fast-talking rake.

  Millie admitted to sneaking out to meet the young lord she called “Lord Spectre.” The man’s name provided no new information. He and Swenton were both well aware the original “Lord Spectre” had been Benjamin Talbot, a man who blamed Gabriel Crowden for the lost of his title. Talbot was currently incarcerated in Old Bailey, awaiting execution for attacking members of the aristocracy. Yet, if the man who had invaded Aidan’s house earlier used the same name, it meant the intruder was involved with Baron Nelson, which proved Mary Purefoy was truly Miss Nelson, the baron’s younger sister. The thought was a knife to Aidan’s heart.

  “As I told ye before, I didn’t admit Lord Spectre. I might’ve been out to meet him on other nights, but I would never let a stranger into yer house, my Lord,” the maid said anxiously. “Ye must believe me. Lord Spectre was mighty upset when I told him Miss Purefoy had left. He gave me a note for the mistress, and then she leaves.”

  Swenton asked, “Do you know the contents of the note?”

  “No, Sir,” she answered quickly. “Lord Spectre sent Miss Purefoy a note when she be in the mercantile, but ye be takin’ my mistress home early.”

  Aidan now understood why Miss Nelson had gone so pale while she waited for his return from the solicitor’s office. “And you wear your mistress’s dress because…” He clenched his fingers into a fist rather than to shake the full truth from the girl.

  The maid blushed thoroughly. “Miss Purefoy leave all them fine clothes behind, and I be thinkin’ they be wasted away hangin’ in her wardrobe. The mistress be
so kind, I thought she not mind if’n I wear somethin’ nice to meet with Lord Spectre.” The girl’s tale made Aidan cringe. The young maid had obviously been intimate with this unknown lord, and Aidan would have no choice but to send her away to await news of whether the girl was with child. Later, he would decide if he would permit Millie’s return to his household.

  “You will remain in the kitchen with Mrs. Osborne or in your quarters. I will decide your fate on the morrow.” Aidan rang for Mr. Payne. He would give the butler instructions for what remained of the night.

  After the servants had exited, Aidan addressed Swenton, “Do you have any insights?”

  “Likely no more than do you.” The baron sipped his brandy. “I would say you must determine whether these are separate incidents or whether they are somehow connected.”

  Aidan slouched in his chair. “I have no idea where to begin.”

  “Perhaps a few hours of sleep will bring clarity.”

  Aidan murmured, “I doubt I will ever sleep again.” Immediately he thought of the sound sleep he had experienced following his intimacies with Miss Purefoy. Miss Purefoy, he thought caustically. I suppose I must begin to think upon her as Miss Nelson. Aidan stood heavily. “As I have much to accomplish tomorrow, I will bid you good night.”

  Swenton followed Aidan to his feet. “It is a great responsibility, but one you were born to bear.”

  Aidan shook off his friend’s response. “I am the second son, the one meant for the military. The viscountcy was designed for Andrew.”

  Swenton placed his hand on Aidan’s shoulder. “I know little of Andrew Kimbolt, but this title–this estate–has your name on it. Andrew would be found wanting.”

  *

  Aidan had made another tour of the house before he retired. He checked every room, every door, and every window. The west wing held the faint smell of smoke, but he would set the staff to cleaning and polishing tomorrow. He climbed the stairs to the nursery to check on Aaron. His nephew slept soundly in his crib. Aidan bent to stroke the child’s cheek. He had held hopes of marrying soon and filling the nursery with noisy children, who would be playmates for Aaron. “It will be just us two,” Aidan whispered as he pressed a curl behind the child’s ear. “We will run a bachelor household.”

  Leaving the boy to his slumber, Aidan first checked Miss Chadwick’s room before stopping before Miss Nelson’s door. He closed his eyes to conjure up her image. What he would not give for the door to open and the lady to greet him with her mesmerizing smile!

  Aidan’s fingers trailed gently along the wood. Although she had betrayed him, he could not shake the empty feeling in his chest. As if something important was missing. Why had he not sent her away the first time he had laid eyes upon her? The question tore at him. Because she filled your world with her spirit. Aidan’s throat constricted. His heart squeezed tight. Had the lady been so unhappy with him? Could she not have trusted him with her secrets? With her heart?

  On impulse, Aidan entered the room. Someone had cleaned and polished the furniture, but Miss Purefoy’s scent still filled the space. Aidan closed his eyes and inhaled her essence. Bile rose in his throat and the bitter taste of acid filled his mouth. It was all he could do not to groan his disappointment at losing her. With the assistance of the hall sconces, he could make out the gowns he had purchased for her draped across the back of a straight backed chair and the brush she had chosen upon a visit to Mr. Chadwick’s shop upon her dressing table. Feeling suddenly very empty, Aidan sat upon the lady’s bed. “Why?” he asked the stillness. “Why share yourself with me and then leave?”

  Dejected, Aidan leaned backward across the counterpane. He draped his forearm across his eyes. His legs hung down over the bed’s edge. Aidan was not certain he wished to sleep in his chambers. The room held too many memories of Miss Purefoy’s joy in redecorating his quarters and of her body wrapped about him in ecstasy. Aidan caught the edge of the counterpane and rolled over in the bed to lie diagonally, drawing his knees up under him. His eyes closed to bring her image forward. Within minutes, he dreamed of the woman who had once occupied the room.

  *

  “Good morning, my Lords.” Lucifer Hill bowed to Aidan and Swenton. “I understand we experienced another fire last evening.”

  Aidan glanced up from his breakfast. He had awakened early, still wrapped in Miss Purefoy’s bed linens. He had groggily made his way to his dressing room and purposely avoided looking upon his chambers. He meant to leave his memories of the woman behind. He reasoned he had managed to do so with Susan, a woman he had loved throughout his youth. Therefore, Mary Purefoy would be easy to obliterate from his reminiscences. After all, the woman had been a part of his life for a mere ten weeks. “Come join us.” Aidan gestured to an empty chair. “I have excused the staff for services.”

  Hill filled a plate from the items on the table. “Did you two not think of Sunday service?” he sat casually.

  Swenton explained, “Lexford and I thought while no one was listening to our every word, we would use the time to discuss last evening’s events.”

  “I know some of the details from what the grooms have shared, but would one of you care to apprise me of the missing information?”

  Aidan spent the next quarter hour summarizing what had occurred and what the maid had disclosed.

  “Do we have an identity for the Englishman?” Lucifer asked between bites of ham.

  Aidan shook his head in the negative. “I have sent a quick report to Pennington. Hopefully, he will set men to the investigation.”

  “According to the maid, the gentleman sent the absent Miss Nelson two notes, but we can find no trace of the messages. Likely, the lady burned the evidence,” Swenton shared.

  “So you know Miss Purefoy’s true identity?” Hill said cautiously.

  Aidan bit back his retort. He regarded his friend with open displeasure. “Then I did not err in my belief you have known the lady’s secret from the beginning.” Despite his best efforts, his tone spoke of his seething anger.

  Hill placed his knife beside his plate. As he had always done, his friend looked Aidan in the eyes. “Aye. I knew her name.”

  Aidan threw his serviette across his plate and pushed his chair from the table, placing distance between him and a man he had thought to trust. “Why?” he said irritably. “Why would you assist the lady in perpetrating a deception against me? Did she seduce you into doing her bidding?” The idea of Miss Nelson having shared any intimacies with Hill made Aidan see red. He wanted to punch someone, preferably Hill.

  Lucifer said quietly, “You know Miss Nelson had no eyes for the likes of me, and as to the lady practicing a deceit, it was my lie, not Miss Nelson’s. The woman wanted to beg for a position as a maid or a governess. It was I who elevated her to a familial relation.”

  Aidan rose to pace the area before the serving tables. He glared at Hill. Physical pain clawed at his heart. “You still have not explained why you chose to act against me.”

  “I did not consider the tale to be in your detriment. I acted only to protect the lady. If she had remained on the road, sooner, rather than later, some unprincipled man would have made a whore of her. She had no other resources.”

  Aidan cursed under his breath. He knew what Hill proposed was the truth, but he did not appreciate being the target of his friend’s deception. “I would have protected the woman from whatever had driven her to the road.”

  “Aye. I hold no doubt of your benevolence, my Lord, but you are assuming Miss Nelson would have placed herself under your protection. I can assure you the lady would have adamantly refused. I spent a good half hour in a steady rain convincing Miss Nelson that you would provide her gainful employment.”

  Swenton offered, “When the marquis came to York before Christmas, Godown spoke of the conditions under which his lady and her sister lived. Geoffrey Nelson has gambled away his family’s fortune. Godown has purchased Nelson’s markers. He owns the estate and has placed the baron on a strict allowan
ce. It is my understanding Nelson struck Lady Godown when she refused to follow his orders. The baron regularly entertained those who would ill use both sisters. They abused the man’s household until the majority of the females fled. The only thing which protected the younger sister from the baron’s cohorts was Nelson planned to marry her off to a wealthy baronet.”

  Aidan looked to Hill. He grimaced in a rueful manner. “Were you aware of these charges?”

  “No, Sir. I discovered the lady’s name when I read it on several letters she had hidden in her baggage. I simply saw a woman in trouble. I did not make the connection until I did a bit of snooping on my own.”

  In resignation, Aidan sat heavily in his chair. He released a heavy sigh. “If Miss Nelson required protection, why did she run away?” He wanted to say “from me.” Why did she run away from me? But he swallowed the phrase.

  “I know the excuses the lady gave,” Hill said honestly.

  Aidan scowled. A hint of exasperation colored his words. “Did Miss Pure…Miss Nelson explain her motives to you before she departed? Did you see the lady? Had you prior knowledge of her plan?” He certainly did not like the idea of Miss Nelson confiding in Hill and ignoring him.

  Nervously, Hill cleared his throat. “I suppose I owe you another confession. I offered Miss Nelson transportation to Warwickshire.”

  Aidan said disbelievingly, “You assisted Miss Nelson in her escape? How could you act so foolishly?” Hill flinched at Aidan’s angry tone, and an immediate twange of guilt arrived.

  Swenton smiled easily. He softened Aidan’s words by saying, “The viscount means he is experiencing difficulty understanding your motives.” Aidan curtly nodded his agreement.