by Lucy Langton
The guard looked up to get a better sense of who he was dealing with. “And why is that?” he asked smugly.
“Because I have it on express orders from General Reginald Highbrow that I should see Lady Sophia this very day.”
“From the general?” the guard asked.
“Yes, that’s what I just said.”
“I’ll need a letter from him.”
“You will not be needing a letter from him.” Philip’s response was cold and certain. The guard paused, seemingly not knowing what to do.
“Sit over there,” the guard said, pointing towards an old wooden bench.
“Thank you, I’ll stand,” Philip replied.
The guard exited to sort things out. Philip had the mind to walk straight down the hall and find Sophia himself. He would search every floor of the great tower if he had to. However, Philip was prevented by two soldiers standing sentinel.
During the interval of waiting, Philip felt a mixture of longing and fury pass through him. Longing for Sophia and fury at his brother. He would pay a call to Timothy once he was done with Sophia and tell him in no uncertain terms that when court reconvened the following day, Timothy would be confessing to the truth.
Finally, the guard returned, a sheepish look upon his face.
“You may pass,” the guard said, motioning to one of the soldiers to lead the way.
“I thank you,” Philip replied.
Philip was led up a narrow, twisting staircase to what he thought was the fifth floor of the tower. He would remember that, in case he’d need to scale the walls. Passing along each stall, Philip could see that most of the denizens of that floor were women. Finally, at the very end of the hall, the cage was opened and Philip beheld Sophia standing on the other side.
Her eyes went wide with wonder, and just as soon as the gate was locked behind them, Philip pulled her into his arms and held her tight. She rested her head upon his chest and finally, for the first time in days, Philip was at peace.
“How did you –?”
“Don’t speak,” Philip replied, wishing to enjoy the silence for a moment longer. There was peace in that silence, and promise.
Finally, Philip brought his finger below Sophia’s chin, tilting her head back. He brought his mouth to hers and indulged in a hungry kiss. There was no time to be gentle. Love and longing were consuming him, and he could not hold back. He picked Sophia up, taking her in his arms, and walked over to the small cot that resided in the corner. Philip gently placed Sophia upon it, and then laid himself down behind her, clinging to her, feeling her cold body next to his. He tried to take all the heat from his body and infuse it into hers, and Sophia gave in to his entreaties.
They held each other for some time, no words needing to be spoken. They kissed once more and then again, grasping each other’s faces and necks. Philip brought his hand down to Sophia’s waist and held it tightly, wishing to have her right then and there. But as was the case in the study, the timing was not right, and the location could not be worse. He’d have to thwart his desire yet again.
“What are we to do?” Sophia finally asked.
“You will be free from this, I promise you,” Philip replied, feeling up from her waist to her chest and delighting in every curve.
“How can you be certain?”
“I will make my brother confess. He is guilty, after all. You will be free.”
“I desperately wish to be.”
“We’ll start a new life after this. You’ll never have to see my brother again.”
“Philip, I wish for you to be my husband. I’ve not been able to admit to it before but . . . I wish that I was your wife.”
Philip could not respond with words but, rather, kissed Sophia yet again, this time tenderly.
Amidst that terrifying house of death, Philip had never felt such joy in all his life.
Chapter 20
“Hey!” the guard cried, waking Philip from his sleep. He was still lying there with Sophia in his arms. Groggily, Philip sat up and adjusted his waistcoat. “You must leave.”
Kissing Sophia on the cheek, Philip got up from the bed and made his way to the door of her cell.
“I will see you tomorrow. All shall be well,” Philip reassured her.
“I do hope so,” Sophia replied, slowly getting up from the bed.
Philip was escorted down the hall and back down the winding staircase.
“I demand to see the Duke of Clumber,” he told the guard.
“I suppose you demand to see the prince regent, as well,” the guard replied haughtily.
“If I wanted to I could,” Philip replied.
The guard rolled his eyes and led Philip to the third floor where Lord Timothy was being kept. From what Philip could tell, the third floor was much more ramshackle than the fifth, if that was even possible. He was led towards the end of the hall and to a chamber that was shrouded in darkness. Looking inside, he located his brother seated on the cot.
“I bet you’re missing Willow Grange,” Philip said to Timothy. The guard opened the gate and Philip gained entrance.
“You haven’t the slightest idea,” Timothy replied.
“I would ask if I can come in, but apparently you have no say in the matter,” Philip said with a smile.
“Wipe that stupid grin off your face,” Timothy said bitingly.
“Very well,” Philip replied, complying. His brother was the one in jail, after all. “I see you have supped,” Philip added, looking at an empty tray with a few crumbs.
“The food is abominable.”
“Once you’re free from here, we’ll celebrate at Surrey Highland.”
Timothy winced at Philip’s remark, leading Philip to believe that his brother was not convinced that he would ever be free from there.
“We must speak in all seriousness now,” Philip went on, leaning against a wall.
“Speak,” Timothy replied.
“You’re guilty, brother. I know it as well as you do.” Timothy scowled at his brother and then looked away. “You must admit to the truth,” Philip went on.
“And why do you propose that I do that?”
“Because Sophia’s life is on the line.”
“My life is one the line.”
“But you’re the one who is guilty, and not she.”
“Are you in love with my wife?” Timothy asked.
“That’s an interesting segue,” Philip replied. “I asked you to admit to your guilt and you hijacked the conversation by bringing up my affections for your wife.”
“So you do have affections?” Timothy asked.
“I have. But that has nothing to do with why I’m here.”
“It has everything to do with why you’re here. Why else would you give a damn about her life?”
“Because she’s an innocent woman and doesn’t deserve the scaffold.”
“Drat it,” Timothy said in frustration, turning his head towards the window. “Do you think I want to die? Do you think I want to send myself to the scaffold?”
“Brother, that’s where you’re headed, so you might as well die like a man and step forward with the truth. There’s a special place in hell for men who allow their corrupt nature to kill those around them.”
“You sound like a radical,” Timothy replied softly.
“There’s nothing radical about my perspective on this situation.”
Silence followed as Philip continued to stare at his brother, who looked out of the window. Philip took a deep breath and sighed. It seemed as though he was getting nowhere with Timothy, and the situation was indeed dire. How could he convince him to confess? The Duke of Clumber seemed like the most stubborn man in all the world, but that came as no shock.
“You do realise that by coming clean you can save your life,” Philip finally said.
“How’s that?”
“The judge may give pardon if you share who your informants are.”
“So that I can live the rest of my life in this bloody towe
r?” Timothy said indignantly.
“They’ll send you back to Willow Grange, forbid you from returning to London. Perhaps not let you leave the country. That would be your punishment. Not so bad if you ask me,” Philip went on, walking towards the window. “Your lover lady can come and visit you in the country.”
“Don’t even mention her,” Timothy replied.
“Was she involved in this?”
“Of course not,” Timothy said with annoyance.
“Then come clean. Maybe she’ll come around.”
“Lady Helena White seems to want nothing more to do with me. And now with this scandal, I’m quite sure she’ll never wish to see me again,” Timothy said, his voice remorseful.
“Can you blame her?” Philip asked. “No lady cares for a man who is full of secrets and lies.”
“Must you be so cruel whilst I’m sitting in the bloody Tower of London? Do you not know when to stop?”
“I’ll stop when you promise to stand before the judge tomorrow and confess to your crimes, while securing Sophia’s innocence.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“You’ll think about it?” Philip said with a laugh.
“Give me some time and space to think. I’m quite tired,” Timothy replied, lying back down on his cot.
“Very well. Take your time,” Philip said, walking towards the door. “But remember, this is your only real chance to redeem yourself. Do it for Father.”
With those last words, Timothy looked towards his brother gravely, allowing the words to sink in.
As Philip went back down the hall, he felt deep within his bones that his brother would do the right thing. Timothy had nothing left, and his only recourse to making it right was to finally show a little dignity and honour.
***
Standing in front of the judge, Timothy felt an uncomfortable need to sneeze, but he held it in. It had been a habit since childhood to sneeze when he was truly and deeply nervous, and that was what Timothy was feeling on that day. He was nervous because there was the horrible possibility that he was actually going to tell the truth.
“Let us now reconvene,” the judge said with a crash of his gavel.
Timothy had already been directed to the podium, shackles still around his wrists. Looking out towards the many faces that stared back at him, he could see Philip up in the galley and Sophia seated in the same place she had been previously. To his great and utter shock, Lady Helena was sitting at the back.
What the devil was she doing there?
He spotted her instantly because of her golden hair and green dress. Finally, Timothy sneezed.
“Bless you,” the judge said, and then dipped right into questioning. “Have you thought things over since our last hearing?”
“I have, Your Grace.”
“And what say you?”
“On many levels, I am innocent,” Timothy began to explain. “I’m innocent because, deep down, I believe that I’m a patriot. I have devoted myself to God and country in this life, and I plan to devote myself to the Clumber dukedom.”
“And so, before this court, you still proclaim yourself to be innocent?”
“In most regards.”
“What does that mean, ‘in most regards’?”
“When it comes to selling secrets to the Americans, of that I’m entirely guilty.”
The crowd went wild after the admission, and some bystanders jumped to their feet in indignation. This time Timothy raised his hands to hush the crowd.
“Please, allow me to continue,” he said and, once again, there was silence. “I made the mistake of selling intelligence to the Americans in order to procure funds for the ailing dukedom. A great deal of debt has been built up over the years, and this is due to no fault other than my own. It pains me to admit to this, but the fact of the matter is that there is an innocent party now deeply involved,” Timothy said, turning towards Sophia. “When I married Sophia Barberry, there was no knowledge on her part of what my private business dealings might be, and I kept it a secret from her during the entirety of our short union.”
“Was your father involved in this conspiracy?” the judge asked.
“My father knew nothing of these matters, nor did he know about the Clumbers’ considerable debt.”
“Were any other individuals under the Clumber seal aware of this cruel business?”
Timothy looked up to his brother. “There was no one else, no,” he replied.
“Do you realise the great damage, sir, that you have done to your country?”
“I am aware of that.”
“And are you aware of the consequences of such actions?”
“I am aware of that as well.”
“As far as I’m concerned,” the judge went on, “you are a plague to our nation and the regent’s good name.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Your wife, who is not even from this country, is a better patriot than you yourself are.”
“I can vouch for that,” Timothy went on. “I would be privy to share this information with her if I did not sense from day one that Sophia Barberry quickly accepted her new role as a British duchess, no longer an American heiress. Because I sensed this deep and new loyalty in her, I knew that concealing the truth was of the utmost importance.”
“I thank you for exonerating your wife’s good name,” the judge said, turning towards Sophia. “M’Lady, you will be set free this very instant.”
There was a cheer in the audience and Timothy watched as Sophia shed tears of joy, Arabella embracing her. Timothy then turned his attention towards the back of the room, where Lady Helena sat with a look of shock and disappointment on her face.
There was no having her now, Timothy was sure of it. There was even a very good chance that the prince regent would have his head on a pike.
“Order, once again!” the judge cried out. “A separate court case shall be established in order to decide what your fate might be. Your treasonous crimes have been answered by death in the past, but considering your honesty this morning, there’s a chance that the court might choose to be more lenient. In the meantime, you are to remain in the Tower of London until the assembly has made their decision. You shall receive no visitors. I want you to take this time of solitude to truly consider your ghastly crimes and what it is that you have done to the country that has nurtured you since you were a lad. I hope that in thinking of all this, it will give you a heavy heart.”
“I’m certain that it will,” Timothy replied penitently.
“We are adjourned,” the judge announced, and commotion ensued as the crowd rose to their feet, Timothy was pulled away by a guard, and Sophia quickly ran up to him before he disappeared forever.
“I cannot thank you enough,” Sophia said to him, following as the guard pulled him along.