Regency 01 - The Schoolmistress and the Spy

by Julia Byrne

  Luke jerked his hand away. He felt as if he’d just been hit on the jaw himself. “How do you know that?” he demanded.

  “Tibby recognized you. She saw you once when you were a boy.”

  “Good God! So that’s why she peered at me intently on the day of the parade.” For some reason, he suddenly felt ridiculously light-hearted. He grinned. “So much for Gibbs’s assertion that no one in Lymingford would recognize me.”

  “You’re the son of an earl?” Charlotte bit out, her lips compressed.

  “Grandson,” he corrected, and looked down at Emily. “Don’t hold it against me.” He didn’t give her a chance to answer, but turned a chilling stare on Charlotte. “Well?”

  “I suppose you want an explanation,” Charlotte said angrily. “It’s simple enough. Like Emily here, I have no time for Polite Society.”

  “That’s your reason for blackmailing people?”

  Charlotte glared at him. “You know nothing of what I’ve been through at the hands of the so-called aristocracy.”

  “Charlotte,” Emily faltered. “If something terrible happened to you, why didn’t you tell me? I know it was difficult to keep in touch after Papa took me away from school, but when you left also, to take up a position as a private governess, your letters stopped entirely.”

  “Yes.” Charlotte’s face was tight with bitterness. “That was because my employer took me to France with his family after the Peace of Amiens.”

  “An all too brief interruption in hostilities,” Luke murmured. “But most of Society dashed to Paris regardless.”

  Charlotte nodded. “And because of their self-indulgence I was left in terrible danger. When the Peace collapsed, my employers abandoned me to escape back to England. I’d been given two days’ leave of absence and they didn’t even try to find me, never gave me a moment’s thought. When I returned to the house where we’d been staying, one of the neighbors told me the borders had been closed that morning. I was trapped.”

  “A frightening situation,” Luke acknowledged. “What did you do?”

  “I only had a few francs in my reticule, not enough to get back to England, or to bribe an official even if I’d managed to reach a port. I went to a cheap hotel, passed myself off as a Frenchwoman and told them my English employers had fled without paying my wages. It was nothing less than the truth.”

  Emily reached a hand across the desk. “Oh, Charlotte, I’m so sorry.”

  “I had to beg for a room,” Charlotte said furiously. “Do you know what that is like? I was forced to work in the kitchen, scrubbing filthy floors to pay for a room and to save enough money so I could advertise for work as a teacher.”

  “Yes,” Emily said quietly, withdrawing her hand. “I do know what it’s like to beg the landlord to wait a few days for the rent. I do know what it’s like to scrub floors when there isn’t enough money to buy food. At least you had your profession to fall back on, Charlotte, and no one dependent on you.”

  Charlotte waved that aside. “I said I’d been employed by a noble family,” she continued. “The new élite jumped at the chance of employing a private governess for their children. They could hardly check my references, most of the aristocracy had fled.”

  “No wonder you speak like a Frenchwoman,” Luke said. “How long did you stay in France?”

  “Years,” Charlotte said curtly. “Emily will tell you that we met again when she was living in Paris after Napoleon was deposed.”

  “Tibby and I were walking in a park near the Seine,” Emily explained. “Charlotte was there, too.”

  “A happy reunion,” Luke said sardonically.

  “I thought so,” Emily murmured. “I asked Charlotte if she would like to come and live with us. I’d had the idea for the school by then and knew she was an excellent teacher.”

  “Your father wasn’t happy about it,” Charlotte told her. “For some reason, he didn’t like me, but that was all right since I felt nothing but contempt for him. Just another useless member of the upper classes. You probably won’t believe this, Emily, but I felt sorry for you, tied to a gamester who was permanently drunk and didn’t give a fig for your welfare. That was until I uncovered your little account book. I realized what you were doing, of course. I remembered your father demanding money from you that morning. You gave him fifty pounds, although the night before he’d been boasting about a big win. And there it was, an entry in your ledger for two hundred pounds on that very date.”

  “You looked through my things?” The sympathy she’d been feeling for Charlotte dwindled somewhat.

  “I looked around when you and Miss Tibberton were out shopping one afternoon,” Charlotte confirmed. “I was curious. There you were, trapped in a situation not of your making as I had been, but you seemed content, even happy. It was infuriating. There had to be a reason for it. I searched your father’s room first, thinking you were going to come into a comfortable legacy when he died. His Will certainly left everything to you but there was no mention of any money. Then I found the papers sewn into the lining of an old coat at the back of his closet.”

  “Hidden by George Proudfoot while he waited for instructions from Whitehall, and then forgotten,” Luke concluded.

  “It was too good an opportunity to miss. During my years as a governess in France, I’d picked up a lot of rumors, but few names were mentioned. The information in the file gave me names and much more. It was a gold mine.” She sat back, calmer now. “And it didn’t have to stop when Bonaparte escaped and some of the aristocracy fled back to England. I decided to accept your offer to return with you, Emily, and teach at your school. I wasn’t going to stay here forever, of course.”

  “Oh, Charlotte.”

  “Don’t ‘oh, Charlotte’, me,” Charlotte snapped. “It was bad enough that I was forced to become a teacher at the age of eighteen because my father lost all his money in bad investments. But then to work as a menial, to teach those low-class brats— I was better born than any of them, but I was just the governess. Despised, ignored, invisible!”

  “She can’t explain, Emily,” Luke said. “It appears she hates both the high-and low-born, and hatred doesn’t reason.”

  “Do you hate me, too, Charlotte? Is that why you hid this folder in my desk last night?”

  “You must have known Emily would be implicated if it was found,” Luke added in a voice of ice.

  Charlotte glared at him. “That was your fault, Lucas. I had to retrieve the file from the attic because you were about to start clearing out the furniture. Emily’s little school had provided excellent cover until then, but if, as I’d begun to suspect, you were more than what you seemed, it was time to leave. Last night I came into this room to write a note for Emily since she’s the type to start an annoying search if I just disappeared. I was about to leave when I saw you come out of her room. I slipped back in here, but I wasn’t sure you hadn’t seen me. I shoved the folder among Emily’s files, locked the desk, and took the key in case you came in and caught me with the papers. I knew Emily wouldn’t be working on a Sunday. I used the excuse of a headache to leave church halfway through the service, so I could return early and retrieve the file. If it was found beforehand, Emily was a convenient scapegoat.”

  “For that alone, you deserve what’s coming to you.”

  Emily touched his arm briefly. “What will happen to her, Lucas?”

  Charlotte smiled with smug satisfaction. “Not a great deal, I should think,” she said before he could answer. “I presume you were hired by one or more of my targets, Lucas. They are hardly likely to prosecute. Imagine the scandal if their crimes and vices came out during my trial. However, if you let me go, I shall simply disappear with the money coming to me. I won’t be able to continue blackmailing people, of course, because I’m sure you’re going to destroy those papers.”

  Luke listened to Charlotte with an impassive countenance. When she fell silent he returned her smile in a way that made her shift slightly in her chair.

  �
��Your last assumption is the only correct one, Charlotte,” he said silkily. “I was employed by Whitehall, where one of your victims has a convenient contact. However, my contact won’t give a damn about what comes out during your trial. You probably won’t hang. A lengthy sojourn in the colonies is a more likely sentence. I’m not sure if they send female convicts to the Hulks while they await transportation. You’d better hope not, because I doubt you’d survive a week.”

  “Lucas…” Emily whispered.

  He took her hand in his and pressed it warningly. “Of course, there is the possibility that Gibbs may opt for discretion. In that case, Charlotte, he will have you hunted down and killed without a moment’s qualm, simply because you’ve read those files and your knowledge is dangerous. You will be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life, which, believe me, will be brief.”

  Emily’s hand trembled in his, but she remained silent.

  Charlotte’s smile had long since vanished.

  Luke let his words sink in before continuing. “However, there is another alternative that I’m willing to consider. Only because I know Emily would be devastated by the first two, despite your betrayal of her.”

  “What is it?” Charlotte asked sullenly.

  “You take whatever money you have and leave on the first ship sailing for America. After you write out a confession in case you’re ever tempted to return.”

  “Charlotte, please take what Lucas is offering. You’re only thirty-four. You can start a new life in America.”

  “It seems I have no choice,” Charlotte said. “Very well, I accept your alternative. I’ll leave as soon as I’ve fetched my things.”

  “Not quite,” Luke corrected. “I presume your bags are still packed?”

  Charlotte nodded.

  “Then you and I will go to the wharf to enquire about ships. There won’t be anything leaving from Lymingford, but someone will know if there’s a vessel anchored at any of the larger ports and bound for America in the next few days. You will not be out of my sight, Charlotte, until I see you on board that ship and watch it sail. After that, the rest of your life will be what you make of it.”

  Charlotte rose without a word and walked over to the door. Luke followed her.

  *

  Ten minutes later, Emily limped out to the front door.

  Lucas had a carriage waiting in the street. The driver had loaded Charlotte’s portmanteau onto the roof and was back on his seat, waiting for the order to start.

  Charlotte came down the stairs, crossed the hall, and walked past Emily without a glance.

  “Good-bye, Charlotte,” Emily called softly. “I’m sorry you chose the path you did, but I will always remember the young teacher who was kind to a lonely child.”

  Charlotte flushed. Her lips parted as if she would speak, then she turned and climbed into the carriage.

  Lucas watched her from the doorway. “Will you be all right?” he asked Emily, glancing down at her.

  “Yes. Do what you have to. Tibby and the girls will be back soon. I don’t want them to know about this. At least, Tibby will have to be told, but I shall tell the girls that Charlotte has left to take up a position in America and you are escorting her to the ship.”

  He nodded. “With luck, there’ll be a vessel sailing within the next couple of days. No captain will risk a delay in case our troop ships are given precedence.” He studied her for a moment. “Emily, will you burn those papers for me?”

  Surprise widened her eyes. “Wouldn’t Mr. Gibbs prefer you to do it?”

  “Probably, but I know I can trust you to carry out the task your father was set.”

  “Oh.” She blinked as tears stung her eyes. She felt as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. In that moment, she knew she’d never completely thrown off the feeling of guilt at taking her father’s money without his knowledge, even though, at times, it had been necessary. Yes, he had been irresponsible, neglectful, and often unpleasant, but he had still been her father. Now she could repay him by carrying out the crucial task he had forgotten. Lucas had given her that gift, together with his trust.

  “Thank you,” she whispered. “I’ll burn them as soon as you’ve gone.”

  “Good.” He hesitated, as if he wanted to say more, but knew there wasn’t time.

  “It’s all right, Lucas,” she said softly. “I understand why you acted as you did. I just wish you had told me before…”

  “Emily.” He took her hands and drew her away from the doorway. He looked into her eyes, his grip tightening as if he could imprint his words on her in some way. “Sweetheart, what happened between us has nothing to do with the reason I was sent here. God, I’ve barely been able to keep my hands off you all week. I couldn’t have stopped making love to you yesterday if I’d been told Charlotte was about to walk out of the house taking those papers with her.”

  She looked up, desperate to believe him, but afraid to take that step when he was about to leave. What if he didn’t return? Why would he now his task was done? Perhaps he did want her that much, but once he was gone, once it was over, would desire alone bring him back?

  The questions buffeted her, keeping her silent. Her heart was already aching unbearably. False belief would tear it to shreds.

  “I have to go.” He leaned down and kissed her gently, but when he lifted his head, his lion’s eyes glittered with a purpose that was not gentle at all, but held the fierce, implacable will she had seen in him that first day. “But I’ll be back. Once I put Charlotte on that ship, I’ll have to report to Gibbs, but I will come back. As soon as possible.”

  He kissed her again, quick and hard. Then turned and walked out to the carriage.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Over the next three days Emily threw herself into the business of her school. The girls’ questions about Charlotte needed to be answered. Accounts had to be paid. Meals had to be planned with Mrs. Starling. There were extra teaching duties for both herself and Tibby. Those tasks kept her busy by day, but when night fell there was too much time to think, and her thoughts were not happy ones.

  By the third night, unable to sleep, she put on her dressinggown and went down to her study to compose an advertisement for another teacher—only to find herself weeping over Charlotte’s betrayal.

  That was only natural, she told herself, once she’d mopped up her tears.

  But then her thoughts turned to Lucas.

  She could no longer ignore the fact that she missed him terribly. She missed the way he watched her with that intense, piercing gaze of his, as if he wanted to know everything about her. She missed his protective presence, his touch, the way they talked together. It did no good whatsoever to remind herself that he’d talked to her and watched her closely because of the task he’d been set, or that she’d managed to live quite happily without his presence or his touch for twenty-two years. His absence left a constant yearning ache in her heart that showed no signs of abating.

  She tried to believe he would return, but doubts assailed her. He had made no commitment to her so why would he come back? To be sure she’d destroyed the papers? To satisfy his desire for her? Well, she’d been prepared to have an affair with him, she could hardly complain now because she’d fallen in love with him and wanted more. If an affair was all Lucas offered she would cherish every moment and hold the memories close to her heart for the rest of her life. Never mind that her heart would be in pieces when the affair ended, she would worry about that when it happened.

  If an affair took place at all.

  Emily sat back in her chair and gloomily contemplated the fact that Lucas hadn’t taken advantage of her the day she’d injured her knee. Whatever his reasons, he had stopped short of making love to her fully. That was the action of an honorable man. And men of honor commonly conducted affairs with married women or discreet widows, or with actresses and opera dancers. An honorable man would not conduct an affair with a respectable, unmarried lady. So where did that leave her?

 
; It left her with the lowering suspicion that Lucas wouldn’t return, because the only other alternative to an affair was marriage, and he hadn’t even hinted at such a future.

  It was ironic, Emily thought, that only a few short days ago her fear of having nothing of her own, of being financially dependant on a man, had made her shy away from the idea of marrying anyone. But if Lucas made a commitment to her, she knew he would keep it for the rest of his life.

  But then, would he be content with hearth and home? Or would he go off and risk his life on some new adventure whenever Mr. Gibbs required his services? And what would his family think if he married the daughter of an actress? Regardless of the respectability of her grandparents, most of Society regarded actresses as being one step away from professional courtesans. And even if any familial obstacles could be overcome, what would happen to her school?

  Emily sighed and put down her pen. It was no use wallowing in wistful imaginings and unanswerable questions. Nor was she going to compose a suitable advertisement for a teacher tonight. She might as well go back to bed and—

  The sound of firm footsteps coming swiftly down the hall brought her out of her chair, her heart pounding. She fixed her gaze on the study door, breath suspended, wavering between hope and trepidation.

  Both emotions flared wildly when Lucas pushed the door open and strode into the room like a vision from one of her girlhood fantasies. No longer a scruffy man-of-all-work, but the officer he’d been, the power and authority she had sensed in him from that first day now visible in the set of his mouth, the relentless purpose in his eyes. He hadn’t taken the time to remove his greatcoat and the open garment swirled around his boots, bringing with it the scent of wind and rain off the sea.

  Emily took a step away from her desk, but he was already there, sweeping her into his arms and holding her against his heart before she could move. Her hands gripped his coat as he bent his head and pressed his mouth to the curls at her temple.