by Tracy Kay
“Too many,” Nicholas grumbled in aggravation.
“And what will you do when some man decides he wants her as you want Joselyn?” Brandon teased him.
“Kill him,” Nicholas uttered nonchalantly, tossing back his drink.
“Leave the killing to me, Nicholas,” Brandon said seriously. “If the wrong man tries to take Madeline, he will wish he hadn’t.”
Nicholas wasn’t quite sure how Brandon would respond to the man Madeline finally chose. He didn’t understand why she hadn’t chosen a husband and he understood even less that Brandon hadn’t chosen for her. Madeline was twenty-two and some would consider her reaching spinsterhood. Nicholas would make the decision himself if he hadn’t handed over the chore to Brandon years ago. He had given Brandon several suggestions that he considered good matches for Madeline, but Brandon disapproved of them all. At this point, Nicholas didn’t know what Brandon was going to do when a man claimed Madeline for himself, taking the matter out of both their hands. Curiosity getting the better of him, Nicholas asked, “And the right man?”
“I will deliver her to him, myself,” he smirked, pondering the possibility.
After Madeline closed the doors to the study, leaving the men to their discussion, she joined her elbow with Joselyn’s and led her to the garden for some fresh air and privacy. “I told you they would help you. Before you know it, Farrington will be caught, and he will pay for what he did to Zachary.” When Joselyn only nodded her head, Madeline hugged her arm, misunderstanding Joselyn’s worry. “Jos, don’t worry anymore. Brandon and Nicholas can take care of this.”
“I don’t know, Maddy. Your brothers frighten me,” Joselyn admitted with a shiver. She could still feel Nicholas’ hand holding hers and her emotions unsettled her. No one had ever made her feel so comforted and yet nervous at the same time. Brandon’s intense stare seemed to see right through her and it was as if he knew her every secret. He frightened her immensely.
“Frighten you? I don’t understand,” Madeline crinkled her brow, puzzled. Her brothers would never hurt anyone unless they deserved it. In her opinion, her brothers were good and kind, the most wonderful men in the world.
“Lord Kenrik scares me, and Lord Nicholas, he makes me, I don’t know, uneasy. Maybe this is not such a good idea.” Joselyn drew her arm out of Madeline’s and picked at her gown. She was at her wits end. She didn’t know what to do but to take the help the Cathcarts offered, which came with all sorts of problems, or give Farrington what he wanted, whatever that was. Simply, she didn’t know what to do.
“Joselyn, Brandon has that effect on people.” Madeline laughed, trying to put her friend at ease. “When I first met him, I was about twelve. Brandon was very protective, over-bearing, and authoritative. He still is.” She gave another short laugh. “He was nothing at all like Nicholas, who would let me do what I wanted as long as I was good for the governess and worked at my studies. It took me awhile to get accustomed to Brandon, especially when I realized he would make most of the decisions regarding my upbringing, as well as Stephen, Jared and Deirdre’s. Nick was old enough to be mostly on his own, although he did listen to Brandon’s advice and still does. Just the sight of Brandon was frightening then. He is much better now.”
Madeline grinned as she remembered the first time she saw Brandon. He had been twenty years old and had worn his hair long, way past his shoulders, with a gold hoop earring in his ear. He had a scary looking knife he wore at his belt, which now he had stashed away in his boot.
“After Brandon took me with him on one of his voyages, I began to understand him better and lost the last of my fear of him. Now, the only time I am intimidated by him is when I disobey him and he learns about it, then I try to avoid him, but he won’t let me. He always finds me and I usually get punished.” Madeline frowned with consternation. She wasn’t very fond of being punished, but unfortunately, Brandon had an uncanny way of knowing when she was disobeying him.
“He beats you?” Joselyn gasped in shock and misunderstanding. She hated men who thought they could control a woman by beating her, getting her to do what they wanted with pain, all the while convincing her it was for her own good. She made a point of avoiding men such as Brandon Cathcart.
“No, Joselyn.” Brandon’s discipline was firm, but always just. He never yelled at her, but spoke calmly in a tone she now recognized as disappointment. He never punished her without letting her explain first and never punished her more than what the transgression deserved. “He does not beat me. He lectures me, sends me to my room, or takes away some privileges, and on very rare occasions, he has found it necessary to spank me when I deserved it, but he never beats me.”
“Why does he have the right to punish you, Madeline? I thought you only answered to your parents and Nicholas.” Joselyn was thankful that she didn’t have an overbearing brother like Brandon. She had always disliked punishments and the few she had from her brothers were mild at best. Her brother, Zachary, hadn’t cared what she did as long as she kept it quiet, and Jeremy was too young and a bit too wild himself to hold her accountable for her misdeeds.
“I do, but only when Brandon isn’t in England. He is head of this family. It is complicated, I know. When I was a child and I was locked in an attic room . . . I told you this story, haven’t I?”
Joselyn nodded and indicated for her to go on.
Madeline plucked a blossom off a tree and twirled it between her fingers as they walked along the garden path. “When Nicholas found me, he was so outraged at my parents for letting it happen and for not being concerned about my whereabouts, that he told them they no longer had a say in my upbringing and they agreed. Nicholas was only sixteen at the time. A couple years later, Brandon came home and he ended up taking over for Nicholas since he is the older brother. It was hard for Brandon at first. He had been raised by his mother out of the country. It is a long story. Anyway, he didn’t know he had brothers and sisters, especially ones he would end up raising. We all had to adjust to each other. I was awfully shy around him and I tried to avoid him as did Deirdre. My brothers couldn’t get enough of his adventures. They got over their fear of him right away.”
“How did you get over your fear?” Joselyn questioned curiously as she sat down on one of the garden benches near a small fountain.
Madeline smiled and a light sparkled in her green eyes at the precious memory of an event that changed her life. She sat on the bench across from Joselyn and gazed into the fountain. “I was always getting into some kind of trouble, and even though Nicholas forbade me to climb trees, I did it anyway.”
She remembered the many arguments she and Nicholas had over her adventures, swimming in the pond naked in the summer, daring Stephen to follow her out on the ice that covered the same pond in winter, and riding the untrained horses. She remembered climbing tree after tree like the squirrels, sometimes for fun, other times to defy her brother. When Brandon learned of her adventures, he had arguments with Nicholas and herself over them, but he was an outsider. She and Nicholas both ignored him, never dreaming Brandon would take matters into his own hands, frustrated and appalled at the lack of discipline over Madeline and her siblings.
“A couple of months after Brandon came home, I fell out of a tree and I got hurt. I had a large wound on my leg and had hit my head, and it was Brandon who helped me. There was a lot of blood and I couldn’t feel anything when Brandon picked me up. It was so odd because I remember all of it so clearly. Brandon told me most people passed out with those types of injuries, but I didn’t. My mother sent for a doctor, but when he arrived, Brandon refused to allow him to touch me. My mother insisted and made him step aside. When the physician started to cut my arm with a dirty knife to let blood, Brandon took out his own knife, and proclaimed if he cut me again, Brandon would cut him.” Madeline paused, smiling at the memory.
Brandon had appeared fierce that day with his black hair long and loose, swirling around his tall, powerful body to his waist, a diamond earring sparkling in
the sun-lit room, and his green eyes flashing with anger. He had a long-handled, curved knife loosely grasped in his right hand and his body was ready to attack. He was a beautiful sight to behold, and Madeline fell in love with the piratical looking brother who was willing to fight for her life.
“When the physician took out the leeches and a dirty cloth and started to put it on my head, Brandon became furious. He picked the man up and threw him out of the room. Brandon made everyone leave the room except Nicholas. He had Nick hold me down, while he stitched up my leg and bandaged my head. After that day, my fear of him lessened, and Brandon took over my upbringing. He told me that everyone allowed me to do whatever I wanted and he wouldn’t have it.”
Madeline paused for a breath before continuing with her story. “Although Nicholas tried, he was too busy with his schooling and social life, and my parents were too busy with their lives to put restrictions on me, let alone punish me when I did something wrong. Believe me, the first year with Brandon was hard on us both. I guess I was defiant and mad at him because I wasn’t used to someone telling me what to do.” Madeline had fought him fiercely that year and had many screaming matches with him, her screaming and him patiently listening. She always lost. When she tried to physically fight him, his strength won out, and when she tried to reason with him, his reason was sounder, and she was forced to concede.
As time went by, she began to respect and to love him, despite their arguments, and she began to trust and obey him. Now, she rarely argued with him. She still hated being told what to do, and there were those rare times when she disobeyed him to the extent that caused an unwanted, but necessary spanking. The last time Brandon found it necessary had been three years ago.
She, Gretchen Malany, and Corinna Collins, Madeline’s closest friends, were always getting into one scrape or another. On that fateful day a few years ago, they had taken it upon themselves to visit a tavern in an unsavory part of London, unescorted. They knew they should not have gone there, and they should have known they would get caught, which they did by a friend of Brandon’s who took them home to him. There was no need for explanations, but Brandon asked her anyway. She didn’t lie. There was no point to lying when she was caught in the act. He wasn’t angry with her, Gretchen, or Corinna, but distressed and disappointed that they had put themselves in danger by going where they were forbidden to go. Gretchen and Corinna had been sent home, and despite her age, Brandon gave her a spanking that day she wouldn’t soon forget. Although not liking it, Madeline understood his actions and did not resent Brandon for it, but after that day, Madeline hadn’t given Brandon a reason to punish her; however, that didn’t mean it couldn’t happen in the future. She still disobeyed Brandon at times, but rarely in a way that would earn her a punishment. She tried to follow his rules when she could, simply because she hated seeing the disappointment in his eyes.
Bringing Madeline out of her private memories, Joselyn said, “It doesn’t make any sense to have a brother you barely know become your guardian, particularly when your father is in good health and a duke.”
“I know, Joselyn, but my parents didn’t care, and although Nick tried, he could not control me. I was wild, Jos. I was always pulling pranks and doing things I shouldn’t have, and without Brandon’s discipline, who knows what I would have become. If I don’t obey Brandon, I must face the consequences.”
“Will he decide who you marry?” Joselyn inquired curiously.
“Ultimately, yes, but he will listen to my opinion and Nick’s. He gives me some credit for having good judgment, most of the time anyway,” she laughed. “He is a good and fair man, Joselyn. He would never hurt me or anyone, unless they deserved it. He is a good brother and I love him, but I would never want to be his enemy.”
“Why is that?” Joselyn asked, not really caring to know. She was bored with the conversation and she thought it was ludicrous that Madeline was forced to obey such a man.
“He may be a great brother, but when someone crosses him or his family, he is ruthless.” Madeline stuck the flower she had been playing with behind her ear and stood, shaking out her dress.
“Oh,” Joselyn muttered, turning pale and deciding she would definitely avoid the man.
“As for Nick, he is a sweetheart. The best brother anyone could have. Of course, he is a rake, but a good one. He won’t hurt you.” Madeline grinned. “That is unless you decide to become one of his mistresses, then he can be as ruthless as Brandon.” Madeline didn’t like the idea of Joselyn with any of her brothers. She wasn’t good enough for them.
“Goodness no, I don’t want that.” Joselyn stated adamantly as she stood. As if she would become involved with a man she knew she could never control.
“I didn’t think so,” Madeline said smugly as they returned to the house.
CHAPTER THREE
When Brandon and Nicholas entered the foyer of Lord Brumley’s, Aaron Farrington, townhouse, they heard irate, muffled voices coming from the study. As the butler was telling them to wait, the door flew open, and a moment later, an impeccably dressed woman with shoulder length, blond hair and bright blue eyes rushed out of Farrington’s study in a flurry of anger. Seeing the two men, she stopped short and stared for a long moment at Brandon and then briefly at Nicholas. She gave a quick nod of acknowledgment and swept past them out the door. Brandon watched her as she left, puzzled by the woman’s actions.
“I guess we are not the only ones who want a piece of Farrington,” Nicholas replied as the butler showed them into the study.
“To what do I owe this visit, Kenrik?” Farrington was irritated that he had two more unwelcome visitors today. He had work to do, unlike these fools who obviously had nothing better to do than antagonize him. He shuffled his papers, giving the impression of bored indifference. He was a nondescript man in his late forties, with thinning, brown hair, brown eyes, medium height, not fat, not thin; there was nothing distinguishing about the man except for his mouth. He had a perpetual sneer, and with a curl of his upper lip, his sneer turned evil. He had an aura about him that caused a body to shiver, wishing he or she could be anywhere but in his presence.
Farrington ran his household and his businesses with a tight fist. He cared for no one but himself, his pleasures, and his money. He was intelligent, powerful, wealthy, and dangerous. Some respected him, some feared him, some hated him, and those who knew him, avoided him.
“We want you to leave the Parkers alone,” Nicholas stated boldly, getting to the point.
“And who are the Parkers?” Farrington inquired off-handedly, opening up an account book that was next to the pile of papers.
“Joselyn and Jeremy Parker. You killed their brother, Zachary Parker, the Baron of Gyffard, remember,” Nicholas accused, disbelieving that the man was so disinterested.
“Ah, those Parkers,” Farrington peered up at the two younger men standing in his office. “But I am afraid you are mistaken young man, I did not kill Gyffard.” He was not sure what the Cathcarts wanted from him. As far as he knew, Gyffard had been killed in a hunting accident.
“Then who did?” Brandon demanded, sure that Farrington knew, but would not admit it. He realized this would be a useless visit when Nicholas suggested it; however, there might be a possibility that Farrington would let something slip.
“I would not know.” Bored with the ridiculous conversation, Farrington dismissed them by adding a number to the account book sitting on the desk in front of him.
“You are a liar. Lady Joselyn received this note from you.” Nicholas threw the note at him, becoming incensed at Farrington’s indifferent attitude.
Glancing at the note that fell on his desk, Farrington shrugged. “I did not send it.”
“You may not have sent the note and you may not have killed Gyffard yourself, but you are involved somehow, Brumley. I haven’t figured out how yet, but when I do, you will face the consequences,” Brandon threatened. He truly detested Farrington.
“Yes, I am sure I will. Like always . .
. Kenrik,” he said sarcastically with a sneer. He found it ridiculous that the younger man was considered his peer.
“You son of a bitch,” Nicholas bit out furiously and lunged at him, but Brandon caught his arm and pulled him back.
“He is not worth the effort, Nicholas,” Brandon claimed, heading for the door.
“Having marital problems, Kenrik?” Farrington sneered nonchalantly at Brandon’s back.
Brandon deliberately turned around to glare at Farrington and replied between gritted teeth, doing his best not to lose his tight control on his temper. “My . . . marital problems, or lack thereof, are none of your concern.” Brandon spun on his heel and quickly left before he changed his mind not to beat Farrington to a pulp.
“What was that about?” Nicholas questioned Brandon as they left the house, perplexed and indignant by Farrington’s behavior and words.
“Farrington is only trying to provoke me,” Brandon replied, wondering what Farrington was up to now.
“You are not married. How can you have marital problems?” When Brandon didn’t answer, Nicholas stopped before the carriage. “You aren’t married, are you?”
“Let it go, Nicholas,” Brandon demanded, not wanting to discuss the subject.
“But . . .” He started, confused and becoming suspicious.
“I said, let it go,” Brandon ordered firmly and entered the carriage.
Nicholas followed him, puzzled over Brandon’s reaction. The thought of Brandon married was ludicrous. Brandon and their father had fought over this subject for years and Brandon was emphatic that he would not marry. He must have misunderstood what Farrington was implying. Nicholas put aside the mystery for a more important one. He looked at Brandon and asked, “If Farrington didn’t kill Zachary Parker and didn’t send the note, then who did?”
Nicholas’ question startled Brandon out of his own dark thoughts on Farrington. “I don’t know. Farrington could be lying. He is very good at it, but if he isn’t, then we need to learn who is doing this to the Parkers.”