A Sense of Fate (Perceptions Book 7)

by Wendy Soliman

  ‘Needless to say,’ Archie added with the suggestion of a smile, ‘she left him in no doubt whatsoever that they were not. Next thing you know, Conrad’s knocking at my door, warning me off her.’

  ‘The devil he did!’ Alvin cried. ‘What a nerve.’

  ‘Told me not to stand whilst Pawson threw him out. Then reminded me with a pointedly suggestive smile that I probably couldn’t.’

  ‘You displaced him in Magda Simpson’s affections—against my advice if I recall,’ Luke said. ‘I knew she was a bad ’un too, but you were blinded by her beauty and your own lust.’

  ‘We were young and reckless. Luke. We had a duty to be lustful.’

  Archie’s protest was greeted with guffaws of laughter.

  ‘Anyway, I paid a heavy price for it,’ Archie added, his expression sobering.

  ‘Quite.’ Luke paused. ‘You don’t think Conrad had anything to do with your fall, do you?’

  ‘He hinted at the fact. Not sure if it was bravado or if there was an element of truth in it. I wouldn’t put it past him. Simpson was a gentleman and I have often wondered why he didn’t behave like one and call me out rather than trying to undermine me by devious methods. But I have no difficulty in imagining Conrad alerting Simpson to my interest in his wife and then sabotaging my escape route.’ Archie took a swallow of his drink and shifted his position. ‘Either way, that’s all in the past. I’m more concerned with Latimer’s involvement with Conrad.’

  He went on to explain about Melanie’s brutal treatment at her father’s hands and his subsequent visit to Flora when he realised where Melanie must have run to.

  ‘My God, the poor child,’ Paul said, shaking his head. ‘But still, the resilience of youth is working in her favour. She seems to be recovering remarkably quickly and has given Flora a purpose.’

  ‘Quite.’ Archie inclined his head. ‘There’s more.’

  ‘Good lord!’ Luke stood and walked to the window, his back to his friends. ‘Does she believe her father’s explanation for his friendship with Conrad?’

  ‘Not a word of it, no more do I,’ Archie replied with asperity. ‘She claims that her father is no intellectual and we all know that the same can be said for Conrad. Which is why I went up to London and met with Conrad’s brother.’

  ‘The member of parliament?’ Paul asked. ‘He’s attempting to do some good, from what I read.’

  ‘He is, and responded very candidly when I asked him about Elroy.’

  Luke in particular looked astounded by Archie’s revelations. ‘Dear God!’ he said, running his hands through his hair. ‘No wonder Latimer wants his daughters back if he thinks there’s even an outside possibility that they are aware of his behaviour. What are you going to do about it, Archie? What does Flora want to do?’

  ‘She doesn’t know yet. I only got back from London yesterday and I haven’t had an opportunity to tell her. Pawson thinks I shouldn’t, at least not until we’re sure of our facts. She doesn’t like her father much, but she does still hold an element of respect for him because…well, he’s her father.’

  ‘Even unfounded rumours would destroy Latimer’s career and the entire family’s reputation,’ Alvin said. ‘I think you’re right to keep it from her until you know more.’

  ‘How can we help?’ Luke asked.

  ‘Conrad has a position in a small private bank in Salisbury. We need to catch him and his cohorts in the act, so to speak, just so that there can be no doubt.’

  ‘Give me the name of the bank,’ Luke replied without hesitation. ‘I will have people ask discreet questions about his habits and let you know where he goes and what I find out.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Archie replied, inclining his head.

  A tap at the door preceded Flora and her sister entering the room.

  ‘Sorry to interrupt, gentlemen. No, don’t get up.’ Flora stayed them with a hand gesture. ‘We have had a quite delightful time discussing silks and lace and endless alterations, but we have no further suggestions to offer. Melanie is keen to walk around the lake, if there is time before we leave.’ She looked to Archie for clarification.

  ‘Plenty of time, but it’s freezing out there,’ Archie pointed out.

  ‘We don’t mind a little cold. Anyway, we wondered if Rom would like to join us.’

  At the sound of his name on his beloved Flora’s lips, the slumbering dog was on his feet in seconds, his entire back end wagging in anticipation.

  ‘It seems he would,’ Luke said, smiling at her. He was slow to look away again and followed her with his gaze until she and her sister left the room with the dog at their heels, closing the door behind them.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Flora kept herself busy over the next few days, taking every second when she was alone to continue reading her grandmother’s diaries, hoping that she was allowing her imagination to get the better of her and that she had interpreted certain cryptic passages incorrectly. Each meeting she had with her father since defying his wishes and leaving his control had increased her confusion about his determination to return her to the fold. Was she now inventing reasons to explain that determination?

  Being unable to have a private word with Archie during their visit to Beranger Court had been a further frustration. She desperately wanted to know what he had found out from Conrad’s brother, but when she’d managed to get him briefly alone he had been uncharacteristically dismissive, claiming nothing definitive had been discussed. She didn’t believe him. He was keeping something from her…something important. She’d fully intended to press him on the point, but Paul had interrupted them and the moment had been lost.

  She had assumed that he would come in for tea when he returned them to Fox Hollow, but he’d made an excuse and ordered his coachman to drive on as soon as the ladies had alighted from his conveyance. She hadn’t seen him since, and that concerned her.

  And the fact that she was concerned, concerned her all the more.

  She ought not to lean on him. Flora was determined to retain her independence and prove to herself and the world that she was capable of standing on her own feet. Relying on Archie would be a very easy habit to adopt. She justified her need for him by reminding herself that Conrad had called upon Archie, taunting and insulting him, thereby making it as much his fight as it was hers. He had a legitimate reason to involve himself before Conrad could follow up on his grudge, providing Flora with a convenient excuse to enjoy his company.

  She sat beside the fire on the second afternoon after the visit to Beranger Court, unable once again to concentrate upon the diary in her lap. Polly and Melanie had taken Alice into the village, and Flora had an hour to herself. But her mind constantly wandered and she barely absorbed a word she read.

  ‘Oh, it’s you,’ she said aloud, when the familiar rush of wind past her ear alerted her to Remus’s presence. ‘What do you want all of…’ Her words stalled when she was gripped by a percipient fear. ‘Melanie!’ She grasped the arms of her chair as a strong image of her sister, confused and terrified, filtered through her subconscious. Remus was duty bound to warn her of danger, but insisted that he was not permitted to help her in any other way. Flora had never understood why and didn’t have the time to dwell upon her spirit guide’s idiosyncrasies at that precise moment. Instead she leapt from her chair, ran to fetch her coat and called to Will, who came running from the garden in response to her urgent tone.

  ‘What is it?’ Beatrice joined her from the kitchen, ever-present rolling pin smacking against her opposite palm.

  ‘I’m not sure.’ This would sound ludicrous, she knew, but Melanie’s welfare was more important than her own credibility. ‘I think something’s happened to my sister. Don’t ask me how I know. It’s just a feeling, and I could be wrong. Come into the village with me, Will. We need to find her and put my mind at rest.’

  ‘God love you, miss,’ Beatrice said, chuckling. ‘You do take your responsibilities seriously. Go with her, Will, just to be on the safe side.’

>   Flora was thankful when her sense of urgency communicated itself to Will and they were quickly striding in the direction of the village. She was grateful for Will’s silence and lack of curiosity. Will generally only spoke when he had something worth saying, but was solid and dependable in a crisis.

  ‘They were going to buy toffees as a treat for Alice. It shouldn’t have taken them this long,’ Flora said, her anxiety increasing with every step they took.

  ‘Here they come…’ Will’s words trailed off when only an anxious seeming Polly with little Alice in her arms approached them.

  ‘Where’s Melanie?’ Flora demanded.

  ‘Oh miss, I don’t know,’ Polly sobbed. ‘She was there one minute, I turned my back for a second when something caught Alice’s fancy and she was gone when I looked up.’

  ‘Where were you when you lost her?’

  ‘Just walking along. As I say, Alice distracted me and she just disappeared…I’m that sorry.’ Tears trickled down Polly’s face. ‘I’ve let you down.’

  ‘It’s not your fault, Polly. Take Alice home. Melanie can’t have gone far. We’ll find her.’ Polly sniffed, hesitated and then scampered back towards Fox Hollow.

  ‘Go to the tavern, Will. Tell them what’s happened and ask for help in finding Melanie.’ She swallowed her pride. ‘Ask Trench to send someone to Felsham Hall to tell his lordship. He needs to be made aware. Or better yet, go yourself.’

  ‘I should come with you.’

  ‘No! Do as I ask please, Will. Time is of the essence.’

  Will nodded, still looking uncertain. ‘Very well,’ he said eventually.

  Flora was too anxious to wait for reinforcements and took herself down the side alley that she sensed Melanie had disappeared into. She paused at every doorway but intuitively knew that Melanie hadn’t gone into any of the places she passed. Remus fluttered just within sight, his image hazy, his mental communication weak, but at least his being there implied that she was on the right trail.

  Why wasn’t he being more proactive? Surely he understood the urgency and the fact that she had never needed him more? Never had she felt more impotent or more terrified, more in need of Remus’s guidance. Wasn’t that what he was supposed to provide her with? But this was her fault, and she couldn’t blame Remus. She had let her guard down, sent Melanie out without proper protection. If anything happened to her sister, Flora would carry the guilt with her for the rest of her life.

  And she would make sure that Remus did too.

  She closed her eyes, concentrating hard upon Melanie. Remus had mentioned that the telepathy between the sisters was surprisingly strong. Flora had been able to anticipate Melanie’s thoughts, it was true, but only when Remus was around. Perhaps he was the conduit through which they communicated. Presumably her spirit guide understood the mechanics of their telepathy but had left her to work it out for herself, as usual.

  Remus could be exasperating.

  If Melanie wasn’t too afraid to remember what Flora had told her, which was to concentrate hard upon Remus when she had need of him, then hopefully his flimsy image was the result of remaining close to Melanie and simultaneously trying to guide Flora to her. His ghostly apparition would be stretched to the limit. Her suspicions were confirmed when she reached out to him with her mind, but got nothing back.

  ‘Damn it, where are you, Melanie?’

  Flora felt fear trickle through her entire body, temporarily paralysing her. She had come to depend on Remus more than she realised, but even he couldn’t be in two places at once. All her senses told her that Conrad must be responsible for Melanie’s abduction, a conclusion that was reinforced by her fresh interpretation of her grandmother’s diaries, even if she was unaware what part Conrad played in her father’s machinations.

  There was no time to stop and think now. Every second counted and could mean the difference between saving Melanie or leaving her exposed to Conrad’s passionate desire for revenge—against her, but especially against Archie. If he listened to village gossip he would be aware that Archie had appointed himself Flora’s protector and had doubtless misinterpreted the nature of their friendship.

  She would like to believe that Conrad had taken it upon himself to snatch Melanie with the intention of taking her back to Cathedral Close, but there was something dark about the man’s aura that made her shudder. He was utterly without honour and Melanie was at his complete mercy. Flora had to find her.

  And she was on her own.

  Elroy was surrounded by spineless idiots. If Latimer continued bleating on about the risk and insisting upon changing their arrangements, then Elroy wouldn’t be responsible for his actions. Of course, Elroy reasoned, the man still fooled himself into thinking he was doing God’s work.

  Ha! Elroy laughed aloud. The man was delusional—a sadist who enjoyed absolute control. Well, in fairness, everyone connected with their endeavour was of that persuasion—everyone except Elroy himself, of course. He was in it for financial gain, plain and simple.

  And the enterprise had become very lucrative since Elroy had involved himself in the arrangements. He’d show his brother that he was more than capable of making his own fortune. He didn’t need handouts that came with massive caveats about his behaviour and work ethic. Coutts was an outdated establishment that had refused to move with the times. Anyone with an ounce of intelligence could see that, but Elroy’s suggestions for modernisation had been met with blank stares. Coutts, he had been told starkly, maintained high standards and did not follow the same path as the hoi polloi.

  He was surprised that his profitable little sideline had been rumbled. It had come as a bitter blow, since he thought he’d covered his tracks well while getting one over on the old duffers. It had been demeaning to get booted out of Coutts, but at least they’d kept his dismissal quiet; worried as ever about their precious reputation. His stuffed shirt of a brother had something to say on the matter, of course, whining on about demeaning the family name and tarnishing his reputation as a politician, but Elroy was immune to criticism in general and his brother’s disapproval in particular.

  The position he now held afforded Elroy the respect he deserved, to say nothing of a far greater degree of freedom than he had enjoyed at Coutts, where every second of every day had to be accounted for. Things happened for a reason, he thought. Having a new situation so close to Latimer allowed him to exert more control over the enterprise. Someone had to hold their nerve and expand their horizons. It also meant that he was closer to his hated nemesis, Archie Felsham, whose dismissive attitude he had never been able to put behind him, not even when he thought the man was dead. It gave Elroy a certain perverse satisfaction to have arranged their latest gathering on Felsham’s doorstep.

  Latimer hadn’t been best pleased about that, and had complained interminably about taking unnecessary risks. It was too late for that now. The meeting of minds had been organised for the following day, and those attending had already paid the increased fee that Latimer thought would be beyond their means. Ha! How little he understood human perversion. These men were addicted and would pay whatever was necessary to feed that addiction at regular intervals in private whilst showing themselves as respectable family gentlemen to the world in general.

  Latimer and Elroy would be rich beyond their wildest expectations if they carried on for a while longer. There was no shortage of the necessary material, which came at a cheap price. Then the Archie Felshams of this world would think twice before looking down at Elroy. Times had changed and new money was no longer considered vulgar. His own brother had been accepted as a member of White’s, no less—that last bastion of male exclusivity and old money—rather proving Elroy’s point. He himself wouldn’t be satisfied until he had amassed enough wealth to make it impossible for the committee to ignore his own application for membership.

  Elroy swaggered through Lyneham, aware that his presence would be reported back to Felsham and would annoy him. He was due to check the arrangements for the following da
y, but there was no rush. He doffed his hat to a pretty young woman pushing a perambulator. She smiled at him and her cheeks turned pink, partially restoring his good humour. He still possessed the ability to charm, even if Flora Latimer’s head had been turned by a cripple who still thought of himself as a rake.

  His mood soured by thoughts of Felsham, Elroy saw a sight that made him stop in his tracks and blink to make sure that he wasn’t hallucinating. There was no mistake. Flora Latimer’s pretty maid was walking down the street with Melanie Latimer, a little girl holding their hands and tottering along between them. It was fate, Elroy decided, darting out of sight beneath a shop’s canopy. An opportunity for Elroy to restore Latimer’s younger daughter to him and make the cleric even more indebted to him. Elroy would prefer to get his hands on the delightfully impertinent Flora Latimer. He would have enjoyed teaching her a few lessons in manners and returning the favour by poaching on Felsham’s territory, much as Felsham had done by stealing Magda Simpson from Elroy.

  But still, beggars could not be choosers, and this would be a lesson of sorts too.

  He watched the small party as they paused at a shop window to admire the goods on display. The street was busy and Elroy quickly rethought his wild intention of abducting the child. These villagers were loyal to Felsham. Melanie wouldn’t go with him willingly, Elroy would be recognised if she kicked up a stink and he didn’t want to chance his arm. The business he had going with Latimer was too sweet to risk exposure but even so, the desire for revenge against Felsham burned through his insides like acid.

  What was life without a few risks? He’d learned to grasp opportunities when they presented themselves and this one was simply too tempting to resist. He’d outsmarted Felsham before and could do it again.

  Yet he hesitated, and was weighing up the possibilities when Melanie dashed across the road, directly towards Elroy, who momentarily thought that he had been seen. At the same time the maid looked the other way and Elroy acted on impulse. He grabbed Melanie’s hand and dragged her into a side alley before she had a chance to realise what was happening.