“What is your hurry, Micah?” Harry asked with an amused grin.
“Yes, Micah what is your rush?” Owen asked in mock innocence.
“You know very well what it is, Harry.” Micah regarded Owen, “As do you.”
Owen grinned. “Forgive me my teasing, my soon to be brother. I should be praising you. Not many men I know could have shared such close quarters with a lovely woman as long as you did and her virtue remain intact. Though lucky for you, you did, for I would have killed you otherwise,” Owen arched a bow at him.
“Her virtue may not remain intact much longer if the wedding is not soon. I am only human after all!” Micah said pointedly.
“Then send your letter to the Vicar, by all means.” Owen waved his hand in the air. He hid an amused smile behind his hand.
The others grinned, yet dared not say anything, for Owen was Libby’s brother, and Micah soon to be her husband.
“I need to get back to translating the scrolls. Owen said he and Libby can help, they both know Greek. And I have three scrolls. Has Rowena finished transcribing the Secretum Domini?”
“I fear she has not. We have been very busy this month so far,” Harry answered.
“Busy?” Wyldhurst grinned mischievously. “And pray, what were you doing, Harry?”
“Micah will understand, very soon.” Harry winked at Micah.
“Micah already understands, Harry. He’s just waiting so he can get busy.” Wyldhurst laughed.
“Stop! No more!” Owen held up his hands, “This is my little sister we are talking about here, and I cannot imagine my little sister doing any of that. I just can’t.” He shook his head.
Those who had sisters and daughters agreed with nods of their heads.
Wyldhurst just grinned. He was clearly amused.
Harry changed the subject, “Charlie, I assume your father remains in Town. Have you sent your sisters and mother somewhere safe? They are not far from Roseland Abbey where Libby was taken.”
“I sent them to my sister, Sunday’s, home in Kent. She and Hammond are happy to have them. They will help with little Marcus and Leo.”
“Why Libby?” Micah asked. “Why did they take Libby? Owen was not present in Glastonbury when the treasures were found. And who is doing this? Davitt is not a gentleman of means. I don’t think he could afford to pay for this huge unending force of manpower either. He’s certainly not physically able to travel all of England to orchestrate all these attacks. It would take a great deal of planning. From everything Jack and I learned on our Northern journey he was on death’s door until two weeks ago. There are twenty Brown Coats in Cornwall. Ten followed us yesterday. Lyon was set up and followed. They kidnapped Miss Hart. And why Miss Hart? Why Libby? They are not just after the Avalon Society members. The most frightening thing is they appear to know our weaknesses, as with Lyon. Possibly even this Nathan Hart.”
“Either Davitt was under orders from someone else in London while in Glastonbury, or he is in a partnership. With whom we don’t know. This Mr. Crow? Most probable, because we still have Brown Coats in London, at Templecombe, Salisbury, Andover and in Cornwall.” Harry stood and walked among the library tables and clusters of chairs where the Avalon society members lounged. His voice echoed in the large room. “There is no way that Percy Davitt, being so gravely wounded, could be controlling something of this magnitude. That there’s someone more important and high ranking involved, I’m sure of. We need to know is it Mr. Crow or someone even higher?”
They all agreed.
Micah spoke, “We must determine who and why. Newt, send a letter to Cleve. He must question Miss Sophia Hart about her father, and other family members. Is there someone who wants or inherited her father’s estate? We need a thorough explanation of her circumstances as well as her father’s. It would be helpful to know what type of scholar her father was. Why are they after Lyon? Was it merely to get information and he seemed an easy target or is it more personal? Lyon was wounded in Glastonbury. He also shot Percy Davitt, in the thigh. I put a knife in his shoulder. You got him in the shoulder, right, Wyldhurst?”
“Yes. I shot him in the shoulder. Newt got him in the arm first, before any of us. If you remember, I aimed for his heart, but Harry and Lady Glaston were in my way.” Lucien Saintmaur, Lord Wyldhurst frowned and pulled at his chin as he thought. “My Maman will be fine in Bath. She is lately irritating and quite shrewish. I doubt anyone would take her. If they did they would bring her right back, I can assure you. My sisters are all married now. My brother is in London. But, I left Glastonbury last month in an amorous mood, and realizing that I too need to marry soon,” Luc paused to grimace, “I decided to begin courting a lovely young heiress instead of taking a new mistress. I will send a letter to Maman and Miss India Edens, and her Papa.”
“Your Maman is not a shrew. She’s a darling!” Micah laughed heartily.
Wyldhurst shrugged indifferently. “Perhaps she’ll be a darling to me once again when I marry. Presently she nags and complains all her days. If you were married, Lucien, if you produced an heir, Lucien, if I had a grandson, Lucien. Mon Dieu! It is enough to make a man go insane. I remember now why I stay in London for such long periods of time.”
“What of your aunt, Owen?” Micah asked.
“I sent her to her brother’s house in Plymouth.”
“Newt? Jack?” Harry queried, “What of your families?”
“My sisters are with father in Dorset. I sent him a letter this morning to keep a close eye on them and to be wary of strangers,” Jack supplied. “My younger brothers are there as well.”
Harry nodded. “Newt?”
“My Mother and Aunt and cousins are in Derbyshire for the summer. I will send them a letter.”
“Good. Does anyone happen to have a current membership roster for the Avalon Society? We need to study our new members and even the older ones. There may be a member involved in all of this as well.” Harry asked, “Micah, surely you have a roster here?”
“I do. I have our most recent list given out at our meeting in London in March. It’s in the study. I’ll go retrieve it. I will also write my letter to Reverend Davies while I’m there. Excuse me for a few minutes.”
After Micah wrote his letter to the vicar and sent it by one of the young lads working in his household, he came across Rowena on his way back to the library. “Where is Libby?” he asked her.
“She is in the parlour. I just came to find Harry. You’re still in the library?”
“Yes, I’ll get him for you.”
“No, Micah. It can wait. Micah, are you happy with your situation?” Rowena asked him softly. She laid her hand on his arm and looked at him in concern.
“I am very happy, Rowena. I think Libby and I suit very well. I believe we are perfect for one another. We care for one another already.”
Rowena flashed him a genuine smile. She sighed. “I am so relieved, Micah. I knew because of the circumstances you would do the honorable thing and offer for her. She is very happy you are getting married as well…”
“And you wanted to make certain I returned the sentiment.”
Rowena said, “Micah, you are my dear friend. Mostly I wanted to make certain you were happy. And now that I know you are, I feel better for Libby too.”
Micah smiled in delight. “So Libby is truly happy!”
“Very much so. And it appears you are as well. Get back to your meeting. Just tell Harry to find me when he is finished.”
“I will. And Rowena?”
“Yes, Micah?”
“Thank you for making certain I am happy. I appreciate that.” Micah winked at his dear friend.
Rowena smiled broadly. Her smile quickly turned to a frown. “Harry would call it interfering, I fear.”
“He won’t hear anything from me,” the corners of Micah’s mouth turned up. He winked at her.
Rowena beamed at him and turned to hurry back to the parlour to rejoin Libby.
“Rowena, did you know Micah�
��s first wife?”
“No, I did not. I only recently met Micah. I shall ask Harry about her. I think he did meet her.”
“Please, don’t bother. I’m merely being curious. He does not speak of her often at all,” Libby sighed.
“No, he does not. But, it is quite clear to me that he adores you, Libby.” Rowena smiled.
“I hope so. He is so kind. Sometimes I fear he marries me only because he sees it as his duty. But he did tell me he recently decided it was time to remarry. He told me he wants to marry me very much. He confessed that he was attracted to me and planned to come to Devon in the next few weeks to see if I was attracted to him.” Libby decided to put her nerves behind her. She was growing fonder of Micah with each passing day. Since they arrived at Horethorne Hall there was less private time to spend together. She realized they were in danger and the men consulted often. It was impossible for her and Micah to talk privately in company. There were their nights together, yet she found herself missing those few magical days when it was just the two of them.
“If Micah tells you something, Libby, it is the truth. I know him well enough to know that.” Rowena patted Libby’s arm.
“You are correct. I also know this, Rowena.” Libby smiled brightly realizing Micah did care for her. Having heard how much Micah loved his first wife, Libby still wondered if Micah could ever love her.
Just past luncheon Micah received his response from the vicar. He was ensconced in the library with his fellows. He smiled after reading the Vicar’s reply and rose. “I must find Libby, and respond at once to the Reverend Davies. He will be here tomorrow at noon to perform the wedding ceremony if it suits us. Is this agreeable to you, Owen?”
“Of course, go,” Owen waved him away with a grin, “find my sister.”
Libby and Rowena were still in the parlour. They were working on transcribing the Secretum Domini.
“Libby, come walk with me for a moment, I wish to speak to you.”
Libby smiled as she rose. She hurried to join him. Once in the hallway, Micah took her hand and entwined his long fingers with hers. “The Vicar can perform the wedding ceremony tomorrow at noon. Is this suitable for you?”
Libby looked up to see his very pleased smile. She beamed. “Yes, of course!” Libby lifted up on her toes to place a quick kiss to his lips, her palms rested against his hard, muscled chest as she did.
Micah’s arms wound around her, he pulled her closer against him and deepened the kiss. When he pulled away, he said, “It is settled. Tomorrow it will be, sweetheart. I must go and send a confirmation to the vicar. Then I’ll tell the gentlemen. Shall we tell Rowena our news together?”
“Yes, of course!” Libby beamed. She and Micah would be married tomorrow!
“We’ve good news, Rowena. Libby and I shall be married tomorrow at noon!” Micah smiled happily as he entered the drawing room, his lady on his arm.
“Oh, that’s wonderful!” Rowena rose and embraced them both. “Oh my, Libby, we’ve got a lot of work to do before tomorrow. Come, let’s go to the kitchen and see Cook. We must find Mrs. Clarke and Simmonds! You must have a cake, and we must have a breakfast or luncheon. We will go out to the gardens and cut flowers-“
Micah interrupted Rowena, “You cannot go to the gardens, either one of you! Both Libby and Miss Hart were abducted from their gardens. I’ll send someone out to cut some flowers, or I’ll go myself.”
“No, don’t you go getting yourself shot again, Micah!” Rowena warned him.
He shook his head, “I will not.” He smiled. He paused to kiss Libby’s temple. “I’ll make certain you’ve flowers for the church, don’t you worry.”
“Thank you, Micah.” Reluctantly, Libby allowed Rowena to pull her from the parlour. She turned to see Micah grinning after her.
Micah followed them out and headed toward his study. Finally! Libby would be his wife tomorrow!
Micah wore a broad grin when he returned to the library. One look at his comrade’s serious expressions stopped him in his tracks. “What is it?”
“We found something of interest on the membership roster. We acquired a new member last August by the name of Nathan Hart,” Harry informed him.
“Nathan Hart, the deceased father of Miss Sophia Hart currently in residence at Alloway House?” Micah shook his head. It couldn’t be a coincidence.
“The same. Newt has gone to give Simmonds his letter to instruct Lachlan to question Miss Hart about her father’s association to the Avalon Society, and find out about her family. There is the chance she may know something that can help us.”
“From what Newt told us earlier, Nathan Hart’s drinking and gambling came on quite suddenly before his death. I suspect someone purposely led him astray, as happened to Lyon, and further fed his addictions to get information.” Micah frowned.
“It does seem highly possible at this point.” Harry sighed, “But Mr. Nathan Hart was a lower ranking member. He did not know any of our secrets.”
“True. But he was a member. And he would have possessed a member’s list. I believe Newt said he died six months ago. If someone studied that list for six months, they would have an opportunity to target certain members.” Micah began to pace. “Again, I have to ask why did they take Libby? Owen is a high ranking member, one of our top eleven, but he was not present at Glastonbury. And once they killed Nathan Hart, why take his daughter for Lyon six months later?”
“It appears they are seeking people with weaknesses, or something similar. But why Libby? Why Miss Sophia Hart?” Owen spoke up.
“Perhaps because there were only Owen, Libby, and their aunt at Roseland? With Miss Hart, if you’ll remember, it was only she and her grandmother,” Charlie offered.
“Roseland Abbey is quite isolated on the Hartland peninsula. Where is Miss Hart’s home?” Micah asked.
Newt spoke up as he re-entered the library, “Dorset, near Lyme. From Miss Hart’s description to me her home is also isolated. But she was in London when she was taken. Her father’s home there was in a decent but less-fashionable part of Town in a quieter and older area. They had very few servants.”
“Newt, did Miss Hart mention what her father’s scholarly pursuits were? His interests?” Micah asked.
“His obsession is how Miss Hart described it to me. Mr. Hart was interested in what happened to the treasures accumulated by William Paulet during the dissolution of the Abbeys. Paulet kept many of the treasures in Basingstoke at Basing House. Some were never heard of or seen again after Oliver Cromwell sacked Basing House in 1645. There was something in particular Mr. Hart was searching for. Miss Hart told me it was a piece known as the Holy Rood and was made of black flint. Her father called it the Black Cross. It was believed to contain a piece of Christ’s Cross. It was found and taken from a hill near Montacute centuries before the dissolution and sent to Waltham Abbey. It was believed to predict the defeat of Harold, and in later years many miracles occurred in the presence of the cross at Waltham Abbey. It disappeared at the dissolution.”
“Interesting. Treasures from the dissolution, another Holy treasure.” Harry rubbed his chin. “Can you have Cleve ask Miss Hart for any details of how detailed her father’s research was and if she might still have it? I think we’ve possibly found a connection. If it proves to be one, this may help us better understand who exactly these Brown Coats are, and why they want our treasures.”
It was unanimously decided by the Avalon society members not to tell the ladies, until after the wedding ceremony, that Brown Coats were now in Templecombe. More importantly, they were seen upon the grounds of Horethorne Hall. If the ladies noticed that Matthias Halfknight, Lord Sinclair or Newton Lambrick, Lord Alloway remained outside the small medieval chapel during the short ceremony, they said nothing.
The small chapel was decorated with white roses and an assortment of other white and pale-colored flowers available in Horethorne Halls May garden along with generous bunches of fern fronds.
Libby and Micah stood together
before the altar. Wearing her new airy, silvery-blue gown, she was a vision of loveliness. Her bouquet contained white roses, airy and delicate Bishop’s lace, and white lilacs. Tiny cream-colored rosebuds were tucked into her topknot. Micah wore a blue coat of superfine with buff trousers. As he did on Harry’s wedding day, Micah wore a cream rosebud with his own special white feather on his lapel. The couple smiled adoringly at one another while exchanging their vows. After the Vicar announced them man and wife, they kissed, signed the register along with their witnesses and were hastily escorted by their friends out of the church and into the waiting phaeton. Lord and Lady Wincanton led the procession back to Horethorne Hall.
Owen felt certain his little sister would be very happy in her marriage. If danger did not loom over their heads, he might be more at ease. He kept his mount close to the phaeton, and made certain he and his horse protected his sister from any Brown Coat marksmen. The knowledge that Micah and Harry’s younger sister, Lady Caroline, were both wounded immediately after Harry and Rowena’s wedding remained fresh in his mind.
As it was, their party arrived safely to the Hall without incident.
Micah hardly strayed from Libby’s side. Most often their hands were entwined or her hand rested on his arm as they conversed with the happy members of their party in the richly paneled Great Hall.
The room was an Elizabethan showpiece, truly the only formal room in Horethorne Hall, with an intricately carved and ornate paneled gallery entrance with twin arched doorways. The ceiling was supported by massive beams and decorated with carved wooden tracery. Two rows of tall mullioned windows, took up one entire wall of the Great Hall. The massive fireplace was original. The white marble frontispiece was tall, reaching almost to the ceiling and showcased four large knights in armour. All four of the marble knights held a shield; one was emblazoned with the Wychcombe family crest, another with the Wychcombe coat of arms, the third held the crest of the Viscount Wincanton, and the last shield showcased the crest of the Earl of Chilcompton.
Lords of Honor Page 12