by Robyn Carr
“What do you mean, by association?” Vieve asked.
Tyson was the one to explain. “Many of the disasters that befell your father over the years resulted in death. In the warehouse fire a body was found, though I doubt the man was killed intentionally. And the ship that was lost, if it was sunk on purpose, saw all aboard killed. Your father’s records even show that years ago a barn full of sheep’s wool burned, cause unknown, and four men died fighting that fire.”
“What I mean, cherie,” Doré went on, “is that there are two criminals at work. A man who does not mourn the death of someone who happens to be in his way of making a fortune, and a man who will point a pistol and pull the trigger. There is a different set of mind, and while both types could be contained within Charles Latimer himself, it is also possible that two people are at work against us.”
As if nature herself would assist, a crippling blizzard followed Christmas, covering the city with a snowstorm that drove every citizen inside. Tyson and Vieve met the wet cold of January with renewed strength.
Closeness intensified in the Gervais household. The weather not only kept them in, but in frequent discussion. On the other hand, in the Latimer household, the last remnants of family ties were falling apart. On the seventh day of January, while Charles was closed in his study with two hired men, Robert said good-bye to his mother. Elizabeth stood close to the door as Robert threw a few belongings into a bag. “After all there is for you to manage, you will go like this?” she asked.
“You knew I would,” he said shortly.
“But, Robert, where will you go? Why do you not wait to take this fortune that your father has built?”
He turned and looked with exasperation at his mother. “I have signed on a merchant vessel, and I won’t stay because Father has time for nothing but this driving bitterness. If he dies, send word and I will come back. And yes, I will do better with it.” He laughed shortly, and his lips curved in an ugly sneer. “Don’t you see that twenty more years will be lost to his quest against Lord Ridgley? If Uncle Boris dies before Father has what he wants, Father will only carry on, working against Paul, but he will never cease. You know what he has done. How can you stand beside him for more?”
“I won’t,” she lied.
“You will,” he shouted back. “He has stolen and killed to get what he wants. To go along with it is the same as doing it.”
“Robert, do not be so hard on me. I understand what your father wants...and in the end, you will benefit as well.”
“He told you that, didn’t he?” Robert laughed. “Well, I am not interested in the benefits achieved through thievery and murder.”
“There is no evidence that your father committed such crimes. You must not say that.”
“No evidence? There were hands who died in a fire at Chappington when I was a child. There were bones found in the warehouse ash; someone was using that place as shelter when it burned. There were shiphands on the merchantman that Lord Ridgley lost, and though we don’t know their fate, none ever returned. It is said to have been lost in a mysterious storm that no other vessel reported. All those people are dead, Mother.”
“What makes you think that your father would do such things? It is ill fortune for Boris... nothing more.”
“It is a dire consequence that each time Father contrives a plan to undermine Uncle Boris, some dreadful event seems to occur. Father has never hidden his desires; we have all heard him. Just days after his rage over the healthy profit Lord Ridgley was bound to make on sheep’s wool, his barn burned. When Father feared that Uncle Boris would save his estate through profitable shipping, his largest merchantman sunk. Then the warehouses, owned for only two years and beginning a thriving business...” He turned away in disgust. “Do what you will. I am leaving.”
“Robert...”
“You may leave him and come with me if you like.”
“I cannot,” she said weakly. “Where would I go?”
“You could go to Lord Ridgley and throw yourself on his mercy.”
She shook her head sadly. “I must see to your sisters.”
He laughed, a short, irritated sound. “And you think giving Faye to Shelby is seeing to her? Has Father finally poisoned you as well?”
“Faye is with child,” Elizabeth said softly.
Robert whirled about and stared in shock at his mother.
“She thinks I do not know; she thinks no one knows. I suspect she has not been able to tell even Andrew, but it is he. I know what my foolish daughter has done.”
Robert turned back to the bag he packed. He gave a sharp pull on the drawstring and hefted the thing over his shoulder. He faced his mother with tears in his eyes. “I would stay if I could help any of you. But I will leave rather than go down with you.” He shook his head. “Why,” he whispered. “Why did you ever marry him?”
Elizabeth’s hand gently touched her firstborn’s cheek. “I carried you, my love. My choices were fewer than even yours.”
“Oh, Mother,” he sighed, embracing her.
“Go,” she said with conviction. “It is better that you go. When you return, this will surely be past. I have begged you to stay for myself, but I see you are right. I will salvage what I can so there will be something for you to return for. I love you, my dearest son. I love you.”
Elizabeth was aware that no one would notice her mourning after her son, her favorite child, left her. Charles did not miss her presence at the dinner table, and Faye, with her own problems, did not look for her mother. Beth, who was too young to take deep interest in those conflicts that might absorb her parents, stayed with her governess by day and her maid at night. When Robert had been gone for a week, Elizabeth braved her husband’s study. She was not surprised to find that the newest addition to their household, a pretty young maid named Mary, was delivering him tea.
“Have you noticed anything different about our household, Charles?” Elizabeth asked brittlely.
“Say what’s on your mind and be done with it,” he ordered impatiently.
“Your son is gone. He has left us. He wants no part of this family.”
“What is this?”
“Robert is gone. He signed onto a merchant vessel as an apprentice mate and means to get experience on the sea. He will not return.”
“He turns his back on his inheritance? On the money I have worked for?” Charles said, stunned by this. “Why?”
“He knows, as I do, that none of what you want is for your family, but all pointed toward your brother’s ruin. And you, Charles, are the only one who cares.”
“The ungrateful whelp,” Charles growled. “He’ll be back.”
“Just say you will give up this madness. Forget Boris and the title to the Chappington seat.”
He looked at her as if he would look through her. “My son has left me. He is too childish. When he returns, he will be my heir to more than merchant concerns.”
Elizabeth’s head tilted back, her eyes rolling as if in a swoon, her fists so tightly clenched that her nails dug into her hands. He would not cease until he had won.
Her chin slowly fell forward, and her eyes opened and shone with a blazing light that her husband did not notice, for he still shuffled papers around his desk.
She took a deep breath to prepare herself for more trauma. “If you have not yet sealed an agreement with Andrew Shelby, you had best do so. Faye carries his child. This cannot wait.”
She refused to wait for any reply, but fled from his study, letting the stunned silence from within answer her. Charles was completely unaware of what happened in his own house with his own family, but he knew every step taken by Captain Gervais and Lord Ridgley.
As the month of January moved slowly to its end, the level of the warehouse slowly heightened. Work was tedious, for the winter months made construction difficult. But ships from America in the spring would bring cargo, and there could be no delay, even though the cost of hiring workers was higher than in summer months.
The
first week of February came softly to the land in warmer temperatures, allowing more freedom of travel and an increase in the building, and commerce in the city was strong again. As Vieve stepped into her bedroom in midafternoon, she found her husband preening before the mirror, inspecting his reflection. She smiled to herself and leaned against the door. He turned her way and raised a brow in question.
“No, my love,” she said. “I am not going to tell you how handsome you look.”
“Come, wench. I perceive this as my last visit with Lenore. Today I will tell her that if she cannot provide the money, I will leave London without her. Do I look good enough for the part?”
She opened her arms to him. “Kiss me in a way that will assure me I need feel no jealousy toward her.”
A short time later he was climbing the stairs to Lenore’s second-floor apartments. Thinking this business with her nearly over, his mind was drawn sharply to his life before all this had begun. He had thought his existence in Virginia to have been so plentiful, so full. But that was before Vieve, who had been the missing link. A long and happy marriage with her was all he wished for now. He was sorry that his mother had never known her, sorry that she had died worrying that he would foolishly wed someone like Lenore.
A maid allowed him to come in, and he sat in Lenore’s sitting room for a long time while Lenore primped to receive him. She swept into the room with her usual confidence and aplomb. “Tyson, darling, I wasn’t expecting you.”
“I hope I don’t put you at some disadvantage,” he apologized. “I thought I had better come and tell you that I can wait no longer. Lord Ridgley is pressuring me for more money and actively looking for weaknesses in my character. I have been followed. Should he find out I killed an Englishman, his influence here could put me away...or see me hang. If you cannot bring an investor to me soon, I shall have to leave England. Alone.”
She smiled shrewdly. “Why, Tyson, that sounds so desperate.”
“Oh, it is that, my dear,” he said with a smile of his own. “I can assure you, I am willing to sign over my warehouse shares for a mere portion of my original investment, but if you sell me out too cheaply, I shall be hard put once home. I’m afraid I committed a very large portion of my wealth.”
“What about us?” she asked coyly.
Tyson stepped toward her and put his arm around her waist, drawing her close. “If you can help me retrieve some money, the voyage home will be more pleasant than your trip over.”
“Oh, you tease. You know that isn’t enough.”
“What is it you want? Remember, you are dealing with a desperate man.”
“Marriage,” she replied easily.
He chuckled. “That might be a little difficult for me, as I am already married.”
“You can get an annulment, can’t you?”
“I could try,” he suggested. “But can’t we talk about that later...after you’ve...”
“No, we cannot,” she said, wiggling out of his embrace. “I have suffered your change of mood before, Tyson, and I have no intention of helping you only to have you throw me over once we are home.”
He lifted both brows in surprise. “Lenore, you amaze me. You offer help without my asking, then you hold out for a higher price. Just when I thought we finally understood each other, I have this terrible feeling that you want my blood.”
She turned her back on him in frustration. “You know what I wish to hear from you. You played on my affection for a good many years, but when it finally met your mood to marry, you looked hard for another.”
“So did you find another, Lenore.”
She whirled back to face him. “And you killed him,” she said, tears sparkling in her eyes. “Oh, Tyson, all I have ever wanted is your love. Why don’t you see that?”
“I suppose it is because you have such a strange way of showing it. If you were concerned about having my love, why didn’t you stop Everly from goading me into that duel?”
“Because,” she said, sniffing back her tears, “I didn’t think you would hurt him, and I thought once you fought for me you would claim me.”
He stepped toward her again. “That leaves me fleeing his death and begging for your help. Well, Lenore? Where is your great love?”
“I will help you,” she said. “I am bound to help you no matter how cruelly you abuse me. I will get the money you need so that we can both flee from here. But I will need a little time.”
“How much time?”
“I don’t know. He...the man who is interested...is away.”
“What is his name?” Tyson pressed.
“He asked that I keep that to myself until after the contracts are signed and the money exchanged.”
“Well, I warn you, I don’t have much time.”
“You’ll have to wait until I can reach him,” she snapped. “I will do what I can. And then do we leave together?”
He touched her cheek. “Without even bothering to pack our clothes, my dear,” he said slyly.
Her green eyes sparkled. “If you lie to me, Tyson, I don’t know what I’ll do.”
“That is dangerous talk, Lenore,” he warned. “Send word when you have secured the money for me.”
“You will have to... the man wants you to sign before...”
“No,” he said sternly. “To give over my shares before I see money would be foolish. We will send the contracts to him by messenger.”
“What if I can’t convince him to do that?”
Tyson laughed. “You? Come now, my dear, you pride yourself in convincing men. You will think of something. I will await your message.”
“I am to send word to your house?” she asked.
“Certainly. Once you have the money in your hands, I will book passage. On the day we depart, you may bring it to me, and I will take you to the wharves myself.”
Her tongue moistened her lips, and her eyes twinkled. “I shall enjoy the expression on your darling wife’s face when you bid her adieu.”
“You are entertained in very strange ways, Lenore. Don’t you worry about her broken heart? She is so young.”
“I don’t care about her at all. I only want you...and you want me. What else matters?”
“One would almost think you wish Madam Gervais harm.”
She laughed in genuine amusement. “I assure you, I couldn’t be bothered. But if she dares follow us to Virginia, I shall claw out her eyes. You may warn her...never mind, I will do so myself.”
“Then...I await word that you have the money. And don’t be long. The baron is getting impatient for more wealth.”
“I will hurry, Tyson.”
She smiled happily and embraced him, lifting her chin for a deep kiss. “There is time enough for that, my dear,” he said. “I should be going.”
One week later, Lenore’s message arrived. Tyson sent Doré to dockside to book passage on the next merchantman that could take passengers. A frigate bound for France was due to leave in two days, which seemed good enough. He sent word to Lenore to be at his home by early morning, with the money and contracts, on the day the ship was to sail.
Vieve had barely slept, but was up before dawn, dressed for their visitor. She met Doré in the foyer, and he smiled and ran a gentle finger under her eyes. “Do not be afraid, ma belle. Mademoiselle will bear her vicious claws for only a moment before she flees.”
Tyson came down the stairs. He was still fastening his cuff links, his shirt open, and his coat draped over his arm. “Are we ready? In the sitting room, then.”
The minutes dragged as the sun slowly rose. The sound of a coach clattering up the street interrupted the early morning silence. Tyson rose and looked at Doré and Vieve. “This will be over shortly.”
The sitting room doors were closed, and Tyson stood alone in the foyer. He opened the front door upon Lenore’s first light rapping. She smiled her greeting instantly, excitement shining in her green eyes. She wore rich traveling clothes, no doubt hastily sewn by some abused clothier. In her hand was a ro
lled parchment.
“You have the money?” he asked.
“In a chest in the coach. It was difficult for the man to put his hands on so much, Tyson, and he was reluctant to let me have it. I had to purchase a voucher for passage for two to America leaving in a fortnight. It was the only way to convince the man that we will be here long enough for him to retrieve his contracts if you are of a mind to cheat him.”
“I knew you would be successful. Bring the chest inside.”
“Whatever for? Can’t we leave at once?”
“I’m going to count the money first.”
“I’ve counted....” Her voice trailed off as she noticed the hard set of his eyes. She shook the rolled parchment. “Very well.” She left the house abruptly, and Tyson watched her from the open door. The driver of her hired coach was needed to bring the leather chest. Tyson took it from the driver and went into the sitting room, Lenore close behind.
Lenore stopped in astonishment when she spied Doré and Vieve. Doré stood and bowed in her presence. “Ah, mademoiselle, did I not tell you that we could help Tyson?”
Lenore laughed uncomfortably, looking at Tyson’s back as he opened the chest and picked through the money.
“Tyson, how brazen. A farewell party?”
Tyson slowly turned, taking two steps toward her, and pulled the rolled paper from her hand. Her eyes were wide with confusion, but she did not resist. He unrolled the parchment and looked at it, a smile growing on his lips. “Charles Latimer, of course.” His eyes rose to Lenore’s face. “Please have a seat, my dear. This shouldn’t take long.”
“Tyson, really, I’d rather we be—”
“Sit down, Lenore. Now.”
She clamped her mouth shut and whirled angrily to the only available settee, looking suspiciously at Vieve and Doré over her shoulder.
“The farewell party is only for you, my dear. Since Charles was generous to pay your passage to London and provide your income while you were here, I doubt he will be terribly upset that you have helped yourself to this little pot of money for your trip out of England.”