The Mysterious Merriana

by Carolynn Carey

  Antonia breathed a sigh of relief. She, too, could now refresh herself and rest while waiting for Justin to return. As soon as he had disappeared from view, she rode up to the inn’s stables and deposited her mare, instructing the staff there to give her a good rubdown and some clean water and fresh hay. The large stableman she had addressed listened to her explicit orders with good humor. “Yes, sir, little man,” he responded with a grin. “Your momma know where you are?”

  Antonia straightened herself to her full five feet, one inch, and affected a haughty look while lowering her voice until her throat hurt. “My mother is no concern of yours, my good man. Just care for my horse as I’ve instructed you.”

  “Yes, sir, little man,” the obviously unimpressed worker replied with another grin and a deep bow.

  Antonia turned on her heel and swaggered toward the inn. She entered the front door so cautiously that no one was aware of her entrance. She peered first to her left, where the taproom was located, but it was deserted at this midafternoon hour. Then she looked down the hall toward a door opening to the right. A young serving maid was just entering that room with a tray, and the odor of strong tea assailed Antonia’s nostrils. She crept a few feet closer to that door and was able to hear Merriana’s voice softly thanking the servant. Antonia smiled. Now that she knew where Merriana was, she could safely see about getting something to eat herself.

  She had just turned to slip back down the corridor toward the entrance when the front door was thrust open by a large man dressed in the latest of fashions. Something about his appearance attracted Antonia’s attention, but she was not at all sure what it was. Perhaps it was the way his round head seemed to sit directly on his square shoulders so that even his modestly high collar points seemed to tickle his ears. Or perhaps it was the texture of his hair, which more nearly resembled the down on a baby chicken than a real head of hair. But more likely, it was the coldness of his small blue eyes that skittered about the hall as though searching for something or someone specific.

  Antonia flattened herself into the shadows and held her breath. The malevolent eyes passed over her. “Landlord,” the man bellowed. “Where are you, fellow?”

  The landlord appeared in haste. His frown suggested that he was none too pleased to have been summoned in such a manner, and he looked even less pleased when he surveyed the gentleman who had bellowed for him. Antonia guessed that the landlord shared her own doubts about the man’s character. “We’ve no private parlor available,” the landlord stated with just a hint of a sneer underlying the politeness of his tone. “No, nor bedchambers either. The Blue Devil down the street might be able to accommodate you.”

  “I wish neither, you…” The large man paused, then seemingly decided that a different tack was needed, for he suddenly smiled, revealing small, slightly tapered teeth that reminded Antonia of a fox. His tone softened as he smiled. “I regret having been so impatient, my good man, but you have in this inn a young lady who is my daughter, a beloved child whom I’ve not seen in years. I can’t wait to clutch her to my bosom again, and I fear my impatience is spilling over into my dealings with others. I hope you will forgive the natural impetuosity of a parent who longs for his only child, and tell me at once where I can find her. I feel you will have no trouble in identifying her, for she is a veritable vision of beauty, even allowing for the prejudices of a father. She has blonde hair like rays of the sun and the bluest eyes any man has even been honored to see. She—”

  “Say no more, sir,” the landlord interrupted, obviously taken in by the gentleman’s assumed manners as Antonia was not. “She’s in the private parlor yonder, having tea I believe. Shall I announce you?”

  “No,” the large man smiled as he stepped forward to slip several coins into the landlord’s outstretched hand. “I don’t want to spoil the surprise. I shall announce myself. Now, if you’ll excuse me? This is such a happy moment for me, such a joyous time for us both. A man of your sensibilities will understand my desire for privacy.”

  “But certainly, sir,” the landlord said, already backing toward the area from which he had appeared. “If you should need anything, you have only to call.”

  “Thank you. I shall not forget your kindness.”

  Antonia had taken the opportunity afforded by the time spent between the two men in conversation to slip farther toward the back of the corridor, where a large cupboard stood against the wall beyond the door leading to Merriana’s private parlor. She eased into the space beyond it just as the large man who claimed to be Merriana’s father turned and walked toward her. She didn’t dare move from her hiding place until she heard the door close behind him. Then she rushed forward and pressed her ear against the door panel. Her years of experience in eavesdropping, combined with her exceptional hearing, served her well now.

  “Sir,” Merriana said quite clearly, “I fear you have inadvertently entered the wrong room. This parlor is already taken, as you will observe.”

  “Ah, my dear child,” the man said smoothly. “You do not know me. But, then, how could you. You were just a babe when we parted. Still, I had hoped, against all reason of course—”

  Merriana interrupted him. “Who are you?” she asked, her tone sharp.

  “Prepare yourself for a surprise, my child. I have come for you at last. You see, I am your father.”

  The total silence in the room told Antonia much about Merriana’s reaction. She had no doubt about her own reactions. She did not for a moment believe that this man was Merriana’s father. But the man was speaking again.

  “You are surprised, my child, and perhaps shocked a bit. That’s understandable. I would expect you to be surprised. After all, it was I who placed you in the position of believing the Comte de Mérchan was your father. I did it for the best, believing that you would one day have a fine home with the Duke of Daughrity. I don’t ask you to forgive me for doing what I thought was right for you at the time, but I ask you to take into consideration that I’ve looked out for your welfare for all of these years. I thought, when you escaped from France, that the day had finally come when you would step into the shoes I had arranged for you. But then the real daughter of the comte turned up, and I realized that the plan would never work. In a way it was a relief, my dearest child, for I could at last approach you as only I have a right to—as your father. I could at last tell you the truth and take you away with me.”

  “Y-y-you,” Merriana stammered. “You are saying that you are my father?”

  “Now, now, child,” the man responded in a jovial voice. “I realize it will take you a while to get used to the idea, but you will find me a doting parent. We are returning to France, where my home is, and you will love it there. I have such wonderful things planned for you. We will—”

  “Wait a minute,” Merriana cried, and Antonia winced at the pain in her voice. “You tell me you’re my father, but how can I believe you? I have always been told that my father was the Comte de Mérchan, and I remember my mother. We lived in a large room in the comte’s home before I went to Paris to live with—”

  “My dear child,” the man interrupted, an edge of impatience in his tone. “Think! Do you look like the de Mérchans? Do you have their coloring? No, you do not, and the reason you do not is because you are not a member of the de Mérchan family. You were born the same day as the comte’s real daughter and I bribed the nurse to switch babies. I wanted only the best for you, you see. Now, come. I have paid for our passage on a fishing boat to France, and the captain is waiting for us even as we speak. We must make haste or he may leave us. Hurry. I will explain all on the trip across the channel.”

  “No,” Merriana exclaimed, to Antonia’s delight. “I’m going nowhere with you. Wait, if you wish, until my friend returns, and we’ll hear your story. If it’s true, we must make the news known to the Duke of Daughrity so he’ll be in no doubt as to the identity of his real niece.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” the man said gruffly. “If you disappear, the duke will h
ave no trouble realizing that my, that is, that the real daughter of the comte has appeared. Now come.”

  “No,” Merriana repeated. “I don’t know you and I don’t trust you. If you were really my father, you would not wish to rush me.”

  The man’s tone became what Antonia could only describe to herself as wheedling. “My dear child, I have explained about the waiting boat. If we miss this one, I don’t know how I will raise the passage again.”

  “I will not go with you,” Merriana said firmly. “Not now. Not later. If what you say is true, I must remain in England and talk to the duke myself.”

  ”You leave me no choice,” the man said, his wheedling tone gone. “If you will not come willingly, I will take you anyway.”

  Antonia heard the scrape of a chair on the floor and realized that Merriana must have stood to move away from the man. She would have to help. But what could she do? She could not fight with such a large man, and she feared the innkeeper would be of no help. She had just determined that she must enter that room and do what she could to help Merriana when she heard the inn door opening. She glanced in some annoyance at this interruption of her thought processes and then yelped with delight.

  “Justin,” she screamed as she dashed to him and flung her arms around his waist.

  “What the devil?” He staggered under the unexpected assault and then cursed softly as he recognized his assailant. “Antonia! Young lady, you’ve gone too far this time. I intend—”

  “Later, Justin,” Antonia said. “Merriana is in trouble. There’s a strange man with her who’s claiming to be her father, but I feel sure he’s not, and he’s trying to force her to go to France with him. You’ve got to keep that man from taking her away.”

  Justin changed before Antonia’s eyes from avenging brother to an experienced agent. “Where?” he said quickly, and when Antonia pointed to the door down the hall, he was there in three long strides. He flung it open and stopped short on the threshold. “Merriana,” he exclaimed as Antonia bumped into his rear.

  Merriana sat in the room alone. The expression on her face was one of shock, and Justin went to her at once, kneeling before her. “Merriana?” he said softly. “Are you all right?”

  To Antonia’s surprise, Merriana promptly burst into tears and Justin was equally as prompt to wrap her in his arms and begin to comfort her. Antonia could tell that Justin was whispering calming words into Merriana’s ears and then, when she had quieted a bit, he began to ask her questions. After only a couple of minutes, he left Merriana to stride to the open window and stare outside for long seconds before closing the window and coming back to take Merriana in his arms once more. Merriana clung to him tightly, while Justin gently but firmly held her against his chest.

  They were still in that position when Tom burst into the room. His eyes flew from Merriana sobbing onto Justin’s coat to Antonia, who had stepped back into a corner. “What have you done to Merriana and Justin?” he yelled at Antonia at the top of his lungs. Antonia drew herself up in righteous indignation while Justin and Merriana drew apart.

  “Tom,” Justin exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

  “Chasing after that pesky stepsister of yours,” Tom replied. “And if you aren’t going to scold her pretty thoroughly, I am. Especially if she’s ruined all your plans and upset Merriana.”

  Merriana quickly took Justin’s proffered handkerchief and wiped away her tears as she looked around in some confusion. “Antonia! I didn’t even realize you were here, child. And Tom, too? Justin, why is everyone following us?”

  “An excellent question, my dear,” Justin replied grimly as he looked to the doorway in which Merriana’s brother now stood. “Charles,” he said, then blew his breath out in a sigh. “I know that Antonia followed me and that Tom followed Antonia, but why on earth are you here?”

  Charles grinned as he limped into the room. “I learned something I needed to share with you,” he explained. “I hoped to catch you before you left. Seems like half the county has caught you, although I don’t know why they’re chasing you.”

  Justin grimaced. “I could tell you, but it’s too confusing. However, I must inform you that Merriana was accosted by a man claiming to be her father.”

  Tom frowned deeply, while Charles’s eyes widened. Antonia hoped she was seeing a chance to redeem herself. “He was an evil man,” she exclaimed, drawing all eyes to her. “And he was going to make Merriana go with him to France, but we stopped him, didn’t we Justin?”

  “How do you know this, Antonia?” Merriana asked, her brow wrinkled.

  “You still have a bit to learn about my little sister, I see,” Justin said. “I’m quickly learning not to be surprised by anything she does or says. But, there’s much for the four of us—excuse me, Antonia—the five of us, to discuss, and I suggest we first order some dinner and then sit down and tell our stories in some sort of order.”

  “Excellent idea, Justin,” Charles said. “I’ve ridden hard and eaten little today.”

  “I’m hungry, too,” Tom chimed in.

  “But shouldn’t someone be out chasing that man?” Antonia asked. “Where did he go, Merriana?”

  “Out the window,” Merriana replied with a shudder. “And it’s far too late to chase him. I think they had horses waiting nearby. I heard them gallop away.”

  “They?” Charles queried, but Justin waved him to silence. “Time enough for stories when we have our dinner. Tom, would you see if you can find the innkeeper?”

  Twenty minutes later, they were seated around a table with some of the innkeeper’s tastiest dishes in front of them. Antonia, who was too excited to stay quiet, had filled them in on her part of the story. Thus, the only part left for Merriana to tell was what had happened after Antonia had run to intercept Justin.

  “He was much stronger than he looked,” she explained, “and although I was fighting him, he managed quite easily to drag me toward the window. He had one hand over my mouth so I couldn’t call for help and with the other was twisting my arm behind my back to force me in the direction he wanted me to go. Then, suddenly, the window was opened from the outside and another man spoke. I couldn’t see his face because I was facing in the opposite direction and couldn’t turn my head. His voice, however, sounded youthful, as well as angry. ‘Leave be, sir,’ the second man said. ‘Murdering Merriana won’t achieve your goals.’”

  “Were those his exact words, Merriana?” Charles asked.

  “Exact,” Merriana stated with certainty. “I shall never forget them as long as I live. Then I think the younger man must have grabbed onto the one holding me, for I was jerked backward with some force and then released so suddenly that I fell onto the floor. By the time I could get up and run back to the window, both men had disappeared. A few seconds later, I heard two horses galloping away. I was weak, but managed to get back into a chair, and that’s when Justin came rushing in.”

  Justin had been watching Charles during Merriana’s story, and the frown on his face had deepened considerably. “You know who that man was, don’t you, Charles?”

  Charles didn’t deny it. “I have a good idea,” he said. “But that’s another story. First, I must tell you why I tried to catch Justin and Merriana before they could get away to France.” He turned to Merriana and smiled. “You will be delighted to know, my dear, that Jacques turned up at the front door this morning.”

  “Jacques is in London?” Merriana’s eyes widened. “How could that be? And why?”

  “A message came to him from the de Mérchan estate, from one of the loyal servants who had cared for our mother before her death. It seems that the former estate manager had died unexpectedly, and among his belongings were some items that had belonged to our mother, including a diary. Why he had them no one knows, but his daughter took them into her home to keep them safe, hoping that someday they could be placed in our hands.

  “Such news, of course, couldn’t be kept secret, and one morning the daughter was found murdered, and ou
r mother’s belongings had disappeared. Nothing else was missing. Fortunately, Jacques had kept in touch with a few old friends from the estate, people he could trust with his life—and yours. They sent word to him as quickly as possible and he, in turn, felt that he must pass this information along to you. He managed to get out of France in much the same way you did and, fortunately, was able to find our uncle’s house in London. He recognized me, having kept an eye on me throughout my years in France without my being aware of it, and when he discovered that you were on your way back to France, he begged me to stop you. He will be most relieved to learn that I succeeded.”

  “I must go to him as soon as possible,” Merriana exclaimed, her face lit with a smile of delight. “Dear Jacques. He must be feeling very insecure in a strange country.”

  Charles laughed. “You needn’t worry about Jacques. At this moment, he is being treated as an honored guest, if Uncle Sylvester’s cook hasn’t run him off, of course. He was expressing a desire to teach her how to make a few French dishes when I left. I would have stayed for the fight but felt the necessity for haste if I was to catch up to you.”

  Justin didn’t smile along with the others. “So, Charles,” he began, a grim tone in his voice. “We know now how the impostor was able to obtain the items she used to prove her connection to Merriana’s mother. An innocent woman was murdered for them. Who is the murderer—the man who tried to abduct Merriana tonight?”

  “I believe so,” Charles replied, equally serious now.

  “And who might he be?”

  “If I’m correct, the man is my and Merriana’s uncle, the Duke of Daughrity’s younger brother.”

  Merriana clutched Charles’s arm. “Younger brother?” she exclaimed. “I wasn’t aware that our uncle had a younger brother.”