She struggled to do something with her hair and grew frustrated. It would not do to be seen in public with her hair down. Even with a hat on it would be obvious. It was almost as uncomfortable a thought as being seen in her corset and drawers.
Angel was in the nursery with the boys.
“I cannot do my hair with one arm. Angel, would you be able to do something with this mane?”
Angel nodded. “You look a picture, Mrs. Wilson. I am certain I can do something.”
Valeria sat down in front of the mirror with the boys playing nearby as Angel worked magic on Valeria’s golden tresses. Soon they were up and off her neck in a tidy bun.
Valeria did not recognize the woman staring back at her in the mirror. The cut to her cheek was healing well. She appeared rested, and the hat, along with the cut of the gown, flattered her square jaw line. The dress was far nicer than anything she had ever owned in her previous life. Matching shoes were also in the closet and fit. She managed to be ready by the time she was informed that Lord Harrow awaited her.
Valeria arrived in the foyer.
Lord Harrow’s gaze held admiration. He had a slight smile and his gray eyes appeared almost green as she approached. He stepped forward and held out his hand to help her down the last stair. “You look lovely in lavender, Mrs. Wilson.”
“Thank you, Lord Harrow,” Valeria spied Lady Westcombe peeking out from a room nearby, so she raised her voice a little louder. “My usual wardrobe seems to have been stolen and replaced with half-mourning.”
Theo’s lips turned up at the corners.
She liked how they were of similar height. She could not help but smile in return. Lord Harrow was probably the first man she ever felt safe and comfortable with. His demeanor toward her did funny things to her heart and alarm bells went off in her brain. She could not afford a dalliance, no matter how charming the temptation might be. A life amongst the beau monde was not for such as her.
~*~
Theo couldn’t help but look at the lovely woman by his side in the barouche as his groom drove them through the park. She held such mystery to him and he was not sure how to broach it. How had she recovered after the conflict with Michael and Katrina the other day? How did she come to have a rhombus tattooed on her shoulder? No, he could not ask about that no matter how curious he was. Too personal. She would realize that he and his friends discussed her. Guilt plagued him. He sensed that the woman beside him was still cloaked in sadness that went beyond mourning a deceased spouse. “How is Mittens doing?” A poor conversational gambit, but it was at least innocuous.
Mrs. Wilson’s somber expression dissolve into a soft smile. “He is doing well. The boys delight in playing with him and he has only climbed the draperies in the nursery once. Dartanian sleeps with him next to his head on his pillow.”
“You are a wonderful mother.” Theo admired her for her care of her son. He remembered his own mother treating him with affection when he watched Mrs. Wilson with the dark-haired boy. His heart warmed at the sight. She was exactly the kind of woman he wanted as the mother of his own children.
Children? His heart was set on marriage and now he was already anticipating children. He grinned at the thought of what that entailed.
She glanced at him with eyes narrowed and her head tilted to one side. “What was that grin for?”
Theo startled, and his face heated under her scrutiny. “We all have secrets we like to keep.”
The mention of secrets erected an immediate barrier between them. She stiffened her spine and moved ever so slightly away from him. He experienced the loss of her heat.
The conversation on the rest of the ride was sparse and stilted.
Theo escorted her inside the Westcombe townhouse when they returned. “I am sorry if I said anything to offend you. I admire you, Mrs. Wilson.” Theo held his hat in his hand nervously moving the brim through his fingers so that the hat appeared to be spinning in a circle.
“It is awkward being in public with you. I’m only a governess.”
“You are much more than a governess.”
“You are gracious, Lord Harrow.”
“Theo or Theodore.”
She took a step back—eyes wide.
“It would please me to hear my name on your lips.”
“It would not be proper, my lord.” She turned to go but paused and looked back at him. “Thank you for the outing.”
Theo watched as she took the stairs in a stately manner. Measured steps and her back straight, even with the sling holding her right arm. He admired the view. Everything about this woman he found intriguing and praiseworthy. But how could he make her see she was far more than a governess to him?
~*~
Valeria enjoyed the antics of Dartanian and his kitten as Andrew napped. She loved her son and chafed at the imposed wait for them to depart to distant shores. For the moment, she figured they were safe enough hidden away in the Westcombe townhouse.
She fingered another lavender dress that she’d donned that morning. She loved the design and her heart ached at being so dependent on the goodwill of Lady Westcombe. Beth, as her husband so affectionately called her.
She was wary around Lord Phillip Westcombe. His gaze searched hers as if expecting her to spout horns at some point. The Westcombes encouraged her to take her meals with the family in the evenings and she found the experience trying. She was not a part of that world anymore. Not that she ever really was. Lord Harrow was a frequent visitor and having him gaze across the table each evening was unsettling. If life were different—if she were not hunted—he would be the kind of man to set her heart aflutter. Not that her heart didn’t already respond. Her pulse rate would increase, her palms would sweat, and she felt like a gauche ingenue in his presence.
As sincere as his attentions were, however, there was only one position a man at his level of peerage would offer a widow of unknown origins. As tempting as an affaire de coeur would be, she did not believe she could be heartless enough to walk away when the time came.
She shook her head as the kitten chased after some yarn. Dartanian giggled. She needed to protect her son and that was her first priority. She could not risk any kind of entanglement that would interfere with her goal. As much as finding another position and staying in England tempted her, the dangers were too great.
Angel interrupted her reverie. “Mrs. Westcombe has requested that you join her in the blue drawing room.”
Valeria nodded. “Andrew is asleep.”
Angel took a seat.
Valeria went to place a kiss on the top of her son’s head. “I will return later, Dartanian.”
“Oui, Maman.” The little boy glanced up momentarily but quickly returned to entertaining his kitten.
Valeria entered the blue drawing room to find Beth sitting with Mrs. Katrina Tidley.
“Would you be so kind as to close the door behind you, Mrs. Wilson?” Beth asked.
Valeria did so and sat in a chair adjacent to both women. “You requested my presence, my lady?”
“Beth.”
“Beth,” Valeria repeated.
“And you may call me Katrina,” Mrs. Tidley stated.
“You are kind to me. My name is Valeria.”
“That sounds exotic. Valeria. You possess a French accent. Is that where you are originally from?” Katrina asked as she handed Valeria a cup of tea.
Valeria accepted the cup and stared down at it. Why this question? “My family was from France,” she offered. It was true but she did not want to give away too much information. To do so could be deadly.
“Do you still have family there?” Beth asked.
Valeria frowned. “No. They are all gone now. I alone remain.”
“I am sorry. I, too, have no immediate family remaining beyond my cousin Lord Remington.” Katrina sniffed. “It is a hole in my heart that few understand.”
Valeria nodded. It had been so long ago and so much had happened in the years since her parents were murdered. She shive
red at the memory and willfully set it aside. “You wanted to see me for something?” She glanced at Beth.
“We did. Valeria, when I assisted the doctor last week, I noticed a distinct mark on your right shoulder blade.”
Valeria’s mouth dropped open and quickly covered it with her left hand, managing to keep the teacup stable on her knee with the fingers peeking out of the sling.
“Please do not be alarmed. This is a private conversation. Katrina and I have had interactions with a personage who refers to himself as the Black Diamond. Both Katrina and I have suffered and bear a branding similar to yours. While yours was tattooed, mine was cut out of my skin leaving a rhombus shaped indentation—a scar.”
“Mine was received at the end of a branding iron,” Katrina experienced an involuntary shiver as she set her teacup aside. “Valeria, we are concerned because the Black Diamond has been elusive and dangerous. He is the biological father of my husband, who appears identical to your husband.”
“What do you want from me?” Valeria set the teacup back on the tray. Her hand shook and perspiration trickled down her back.
Beth exchanged glances with Katrina before answering. “We want the name of the Black Diamond. He needs to be captured and held accountable for his crimes.”
The world went black.
She awoke to two anxious faces waving fans at her and the burn of smelling salts making her eyes water. They helped her to her feet and she settled back in her chair. She became aware of two more people present in the room—Lord Westcombe and Sir Tidley.
“Is this an inquisition?” she whispered.
“No. Far from it. We understand your fear, Valeria. We only want to help you and keep any other potential victims safe from his machinations. He is in league with Napoleon. If we could capture him it may save lives,” Katrina said.
“Who would be given this information?” She was only buying time, time she no longer had if she were discovered.
“Whitehall, Lord Remington and his wife, and Lord Harrow.”
Her eyes grew large at the mention of Theodore’s name. Even though she had not allowed herself to call him that to his face, it was how she thought of him. Her heart sank at the thought that her secret would become public knowledge. “I do not know that I can tell you. My son…”
“You may be in more danger if you do not tell us. We will provide protection for you and your son until we are certain we are all safe.”
“May I think about this?”
The men glanced at each other. Michael finally spoke. “We only wish you the best, Mrs. Wilson. But I suspect that is not your real name and that you are more terrified of discovery than you let on. You know too much, and you are aware of what the Black Diamond is capable of. It would be to your benefit to tell us about it now, so we can act, rather than wait until the Black Diamond finds you or Dartanian and forces the issue.”
Phillip’s expression was stern and his gaze intense. “You may think about it, but please do not take too much more time. People die every day we do not have him in custody.”
Valeria looked from one face to another. Could she trust them? She really didn’t know. “May I be excused?”
Beth nodded.
The men parted before her as she walked between them to the door and sought the sanctuary of her room. Once there and the door locked, she collapsed onto her pillow and released the tears she’d held back for years.
~*~
Theo sat across from Michael as his friend shared what had happened at the Westcombes’s townhouse that afternoon.
“The Black Diamond has terrorized Mrs. Wilson?”
“That is not her real name, Theo.”
Theo bristled at the insinuation that the woman he adored would be deceiving them. “Why would she lie about her name?”
“Same reason I did when I worked for Whitehall and traveled around France. To preserve my life.”
“Surely she realizes we would never harm her.”
“She cannot know that. Theo, you have yet to meet my father.” Michael snorted. “I’ve not viewed him without a mask and domino. He remains an enigma to me. I would recognize his voice but little else.”
“So, she keeps a secret and is loath to share. Why pressure her, Michael?” Theo sipped his brandy and set the snifter down gently.
“Think about it, Theo. She believed I was her husband. Her deceased husband. Her son appears as if he could be mine. From what I understand from my mother, I bear much of my father’s physical appearance.”
Theo shrugged. “What are you insinuating, Michael? You already told Katrina that you had never known Mrs. Wilson in the past and Dartanian is not your child.”
“Are you so dense? I’m suspecting that Dartanian is the rightful grandson of my father…I hope that means I had a half-brother. She insists she buried her husband. But if this is all true, that means Dartanian is my nephew and the heir to whatever estate the Black Diamond overseas. If she has him in hiding she must fear for his safety.”
“She’s a wise woman if she ran from the Black Diamond.”
Michael’s face bore no sense of his trademark humor. “Smart, but not safe. Theo, if all of this conjecture turns out to be true, Valeria is in grave danger, as is her son.”
“Wait. If Dartanian is not your nephew, what would he be?”
“He would be my half-brother.”
Theo jumped up and grabbed Michael’s cravat. “You are saying that your father…”
“I’m saying I would not put it past him. He made it clear he would take Katrina, and if Fidget had not interfered…” Michael shivered.
Theo released him and sat down. His heart sank. All he wanted was a woman to love. Once again they had been thrown into political intrigue and deadly threats. He leaned back and closed his eyes. “What do we do, Michael? How can we keep her safe?” He opened his eyes and turned his head toward his friend.
“We need to find out who the Black Diamond is. Theo, I need you to woo her and get this information.”
“You mean seduce her?” Theo sat up straight and frowned.
“Whatever it takes. I thought you were attracted to her?”
“I am. I want her to be the future Lady Harrow.”
Michael sipped his wine with a slight upturn of his lips. “As with the rest of us, Theo, you will need to work hard to win her heart.”
Theo laughed. “You never had to earn Katrina’s heart. She’s loved you forever.”
“But I had broken it and needed to earn her trust and prove that my love was real. I was too thick-skulled to see it for too long. I wasted too much time. Don’t make my mistake.”
Both men picked up their drinks and made a toast: to love—and war.
~*~
Valeria held the note with shaking fingers.
I know where you are. I will have what is mine.
She crumpled it up and threw it into the fireplace. Her father-in-law could send his cohorts, but they would never take her or her son. He wanted both and it nauseated her. She needed to leave. But how? She had not saved up enough, possessed nothing left to sell, and was not healed from her injury. How would she take Dartanian away from here without breaking his heart? She was sure a kitten would be welcome on a ship. But he had also grown so attached to little Andrew. Did she dare confide in Beth and Katrina?
They included her daily in tea time and another woman, Viscountess Remington, joined them.
“Mrs. Wilson, I would like you to meet our dear friend, Lady Josephine Remington. We call her Josie. She is married to Marcus, who is Theo’s, Phillip’s and Michael’s best friend. Marcus will join us for dinner tomorrow night.” Beth made the introductions. “Josie, this is Mrs. Valeria Wilson.”
Josie smiled. “It is a pleasure to meet the woman who seems to have Theo at sixes and sevens. I never thought to see the day when he would lose his heart.”
Katrina giggled. “I think Theo feels left out now that everyone is married.”
“Everyone but Jared, you me
an?” Josie sipped her tea.
“Captain Jared Allendale is Marcus’s younger brother. He serves with Wellesley but has also been at times associated with our men in their adventures,” Elizabeth said.
Katrina nodded. “The Captain’s an attractive man. I’m surprised no woman has brought him to the altar yet.”
Josie winked. “God knows who He has for Jared. We only need to wait for Jared to figure it out.”
The ladies tittered, and Valeria experienced the warmth and camaraderie threatening to encase her in its talons and wear down her defenses.
Elizabeth spoke up in between bites of her cucumber sandwich. “Josie, we shared with Valeria about our run ins with the Black Diamond. Why don’t you share your connection?”
Josie frowned, exhaled, and set her cup and saucer on the table. “During my first season, a man by the name of Sir Bastion sought to make me his bride, by force if necessary. Marcus and Jared worked to uncover his treasonous activities and he was captured, but hung himself before he could be tried. We found out later he was associated with the Black Diamond in doing some illegal trading with France. I alone have never been branded, although I shudder to think that it would have happened if Bastion had succeeded.” Josie shivered and held her arms, rubbing them with her hands as if to warm up.
Elizabeth rose to stir the fire into a warmer blaze.
The room suddenly grew colder to Valeria as well.
Katrina spoke up. “It was surprising to hear of Marcus going to a brothel to discover the information.” She turned to Valeria. “My cousin, Marcus, has a reputation as the Virtuous Viscount. His actions that helped capture Sir Bastion, almost cost him his relationship with Josie.”
Valeria raised an eyebrow.
“It seems so long ago now, but it was only a few years past.” Josie smiled. “But all our men, your Theo included, fought valiantly to save me from a kidnapping by my uncle.” Her face looked sad. “I almost lost Marcus. He was so seriously wounded in that fight. He still walks with a limp and he can tell now when bad weather is coming.” Josie’s eyes teared up. “I am blessed to be able to call him my husband. I could not imagine being married to anyone less worthy.”
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