A Change of Fortune

by Jen Turano

  “What are you going to do? Go after my fortune?” Eliza let a bitter laugh escape. “Oh yes, I forgot, you’ve already done that.” She lowered her voice. “Heed me well, Sally. You’re the one who will not get away with what you’ve done. I will not rest until I see you in jail.”

  “I’d like to see you try to bring me down,” Sally snarled. “You have no proof.”

  “Maybe not,” Eliza said with a shrug, “but know this, Sally. God works in very mysterious ways, and I’ve recently come to the conclusion He will set matters straight in the end, you mark my words.”

  Sally stared at Eliza, her chest heaving and her breath ragged. She spun around and raced through the crowd.

  Hamilton grabbed hold of Eliza’s hand as she made to follow.

  “Let her go, Eliza.”

  “She’s going to tell Mr. Hayes.”

  “If Mr. Hayes is also Lord Southmoor, he’s not here,” Mrs. Watson said, speaking up. “He received a message as we got out of the theater and left straightaway to return home. We brought Lady Southmoor, or whatever her name is, in our carriage.”

  Zayne suddenly let out a loud groan, causing Eliza to swing her attention to him, unable to help but notice the distinct trace of panic flashing in his eyes. “What is it?” she asked.

  “We forgot about Theodore. He’s breaking into their house.”

  17

  Hamilton felt Eliza’s hand tremble in his as they made their rather harried good-byes to Mrs. Murdock, who appeared completely delighted by what had transpired. She was currently whispering somewhat loudly to his mother that, given the scandal that had just occurred in her house, her ball would most assuredly be talked about for months. He hid a grin and pulled Eliza through the throng of guests and out into the night, where they stood for a moment, waiting for their carriage.

  “I must say, this has been an interesting evening,” Mr. Watson stated as he strode up to join them, Agatha on his arm. He frowned at his daughter. “You have a lot of explaining to do once we get home.”

  “The explaining will have to wait, Father,” Agatha said. “I’m going with Eliza.”

  Hamilton watched as Mr. Watson narrowed his eyes. “You most certainly are not.”

  “But . . .” Agatha sputtered.

  “Roger,” Mrs. Watson interrupted, “you can’t refuse her this. Whether you approve or not, Agatha is somehow involved in the matter, and it would hardly be fair to exclude her from learning the outcome. Why, even I admit it’s incredibly exciting, very cloak and dagger.”

  Mr. Watson blinked and turned to Hamilton. “I will allow you to explain to my daughter why it would hardly be safe for her to accompany you on what appears to be another madcap adventure.”

  “I don’t recall issuing Agatha an invitation to join me,” Hamilton said, earning a glare from Agatha in the process.

  “Of course Agatha and Eliza won’t be joining Hamilton and Zayne,” Gloria said, taking a place next to Mr. Watson. “They’ll be returning home with me where we’ll await word from my sons regarding Mr. Wilder.”

  “I’m going with them,” Eliza declared.

  Hamilton had known this was coming. “It wouldn’t be safe.”

  “It wouldn’t be safe for Sally,” Eliza corrected. “Did you see how intricately dressed her hair was this evening? She must have spent a good deal of my money to create such an effect, and I do believe it’s my right to disassemble it, considering I paid for the style.”

  “That’s why you’re going directly back to the house. The last thing we need is for you to end up in jail again, and I’m quite certain disassembling another lady’s hair falls under the category of assault.” He ignored her immediate sputters as he peered down the road, releasing a breath of relief when he spotted his carriage. He turned to Mr. Watson. “Since Zayne and I need to attend to something immediately—and I do apologize I can’t explain what that something is to you at the moment, as it is rather urgent—would you be so kind as to extend my mother and Eliza a ride home?”

  “Think no more on the matter, Mr. Beckett,” Mr. Watson said. “I would consider it an honor as well as a means of discovering what I actually have been participating in this evening. I almost felt as if I’d taken to the stage.”

  Hamilton grinned as he took a step toward his carriage, but before he had an opportunity to climb in, a man suddenly rushed up the drive, waving frantically at him.

  “Mr. Beckett, sir, wait.”

  “What is Matthews doing here?” Gloria asked.

  “Matthews?” Mrs. Watson repeated.

  “He’s our messenger, and I fear something dire must have occurred if he felt the need to track us down here,” Gloria explained.

  “Thank goodness I found you,” Matthews said as he came to a panting halt beside Hamilton and thrust a folded piece of paper into his hands. “An urgent message was delivered to the house, and the boy who delivered it claimed it to be of utmost importance and that it must be dealt with at once.”

  Hamilton shook open the note and scanned it before raising his head. “Theodore’s landed in jail.”

  “It couldn’t have happened to a nicer man,” Agatha remarked.

  “Agatha, what a thing to say,” Mrs. Watson proclaimed. “Why, from what I’ve seen and heard of Mr. Theodore Wilder, well . . . oh, look, it’s our carriage,” she said as she sent a wary look to Mr. Watson and then practically rushed to the carriage that had pulled up behind Hamilton’s. She disappeared into the depths without even allowing the driver to assist her inside.

  Hamilton could hear Mrs. Watson’s mutters coming out of the open window and he distinctly heard “ogling” and “couldn’t help myself” until the voice stopped and silence settled over everyone.

  “Cora, I’m shocked” was all Mr. Watson appeared capable of getting out before he moved to his carriage and simply stood by the door, seemingly unable to decide how he should proceed.

  Hamilton watched as Agatha shook her head, released a snort, and moved to join her father. “I would not be too concerned, Father, if I were you. Mr. Wilder is indeed a most handsome gentleman, but all ladies learn soon enough that his personality leaves much to be desired.”

  Hamilton winced when Mr. Watson’s eyes suddenly narrowed.

  “I was unaware you were acquainted with a Mr. Wilder,” he said.

  “I met him in Central Park,” Agatha admitted.

  “You had a rendezvous with the man?” Mr. Watson bellowed.

  “Please, I would not ‘rendezvous’ with Mr. Wilder if someone paid me,” Agatha scoffed. “I only met him because he was looking for Mr. Beckett, and as I had accompanied Zayne to Central Park, well, Mr. Wilder tracked us down.”

  “You had a rendezvous with Mr. Zayne Beckett?”

  “Daddy, you’re becoming overly upset for absolutely no good reason. I did not have a rendezvous yesterday with Mr. Beckett. I went to Central Park to impart some interesting news to Eliza.” Agatha’s mouth suddenly snapped shut.

  “You were supposed to be at the orphanage yesterday,” Mr. Watson said.

  “I was at the orphanage. I stopped in Central Park after I left the orphanage and after I made a brief stop at church.”

  “You were not given permission to go anywhere except the orphanage, not even church. You certainly didn’t have permission to associate with our former governess.”

  “Eliza wasn’t really our governess, Daddy.”

  “I afforded her a salary, which made her our governess, and you haven’t called me ‘Daddy’ in years. Are you, by chance, attempting to soften me up?” Mr. Watson asked.

  Hamilton was fairly certain that was exactly what Agatha was trying to do, but the loud clearing of a throat pulled his attention back to the situation at hand.

  “Do forgive me for interrupting this riveting conversation, but it is past time Hamilton and I were on our way,” Zayne said. “I hardly believe Theodore will appreciate wallowing in jail for any length of time.”

  “Quite right,” Mr. Watson e
xclaimed. “It would be a true shame if poor, handsome Mr. Wilder was left rotting in jail.” He held open the carriage door and gestured to Agatha, Eliza, and Gloria. “Come along, ladies. Mr. and Mr. Beckett need to get on with their business, and you, Agatha, have some more explaining to do.”

  Before Agatha could get a single protest out of her mouth, Hamilton’s attention was distracted by Zayne, who’d taken Theodore’s note from him and, for some reason, was frowning. Zayne lifted his head.

  “Did you read all of this?” he asked.

  “I skimmed it,” Hamilton admitted.

  “He wants us to bring Eliza,” Zayne said.

  Hamilton took the note from Zayne and read it again. “What possible reason could he have for requesting Eliza’s presence?”

  “I suppose we’ll have to ask him once we reach the jail,” Eliza said as she strode over to his carriage. “Best not to linger; Theodore is waiting.”

  “I never said I was agreeable to his request,” Hamilton said.

  “Honestly, Hamilton, it’s not as if he’s still in danger, and there must be a completely logical reason why he wants me at the jail,” Eliza said as her eyes grew round. “What if he learned the whereabouts of my fortune?”

  “What fortune?” Mr. Watson asked.

  “I’ll explain everything to you once we reach my house,” Gloria said as she accepted Mr. Watson’s hand up into the carriage. She turned and smiled. “I do hope you and Mrs. Watson will agree to stay with me until we discover the ending to this drama.”

  “Don’t mind if we do,” Mr. Watson said before he nodded to Agatha. “Well, in you go.”

  Agatha’s expression turned mulish. “I cannot allow Eliza to go off to jail in the company of two unmarried gentlemen. Think of her reputation.”

  “I believe it would be prudent for me to think of yours,” Mr. Watson grouched.

  “Really, dear, Agatha does have a point. I’m not comfortable allowing Lady Eliza to traverse the streets of New York without a chaperone,” Mrs. Watson said, sticking her head out the window and smiling at Agatha before smiling at Zayne and then disappearing once again.

  The entire world had gone mad.

  “But Agatha is younger than Lady Eliza,” Mr. Watson muttered before he released a huff of obvious resignation. “Since it appears I am decidedly outnumbered, Agatha, you may go, but you have to promise me you’ll stay in the carriage once you get to the jail.”

  “Thank you, Daddy, and I promise,” Agatha said before she stepped forward to kiss her father soundly on the cheek and then moved to Eliza’s side. “Shall we get on our way?”

  Hamilton found himself in the unusual position of having to admit defeat. He helped Eliza and then Agatha into the carriage before climbing in himself and taking a seat opposite the two ladies.

  Both ladies, to his annoyance, were sporting very satisfied smiles.

  He’d never had a chance against them.

  He waited until Zayne took a seat next to him before rapping on the carriage ceiling. As they rolled into motion, the words “stay in the carriage” drifted through the window.

  Hamilton caught Agatha’s gaze. “I don’t think your father trusts you very much.”

  “He’ll come around. Tonight’s the first night I’ve seen the man who used to be my father.”

  “Perhaps he’s remembered what’s really important in life,” Zayne said.

  Agatha smiled. “Speaking of important, I must say I was very pleased to hear you mention God when you were yelling at Sally, Eliza. May I hope you’ve mended your bridges with Him?”

  “I don’t know if I would go that far,” Eliza admitted. “It was all rather odd, now that I think on it. For some reason, the words simply popped out of my mouth.”

  Agatha nodded. “God does have a way of coming back into a person’s life without one realizing it, but it’s clear by the expression on your face you’re still not comfortable discussing the matter, so we will turn to another interesting aspect of the evening.” She patted Eliza on the knee. “Tell me, what happened with you and Hamilton before I so rudely interrupted you? I must say neither of you were looking very pleased.”

  Hamilton watched as a glimmer of temper entered Eliza’s eyes before she waved Agatha’s comment away with one little flick of her wrist. “That was of little consequence.”

  Her blithe remark rankled. “I don’t believe extending you an offer of marriage was ‘of little consequence.’”

  “I don’t remember hearing an offer of marriage,” Eliza said.

  “I am fairly certain you did, seeing as how I was there at the time.”

  Eliza lifted her chin, sent him a glare, and then turned to look out the window, not saying another word.

  “Am I the only one confused?” Agatha asked, causing Eliza to shift her attention back to her.

  “Hamilton did not extend me an offer of marriage,” she said with a sniff. “What he did do was infer I would make an excellent mother.”

  “Which you would; Piper and Ben completely adore you. I have yet to understand why you took issue with that particular inference,” Hamilton said.

  “I hardly appreciate the fact that you were considering marrying me to provide Ben and Piper with a mother.”

  Now the pieces of the puzzle were beginning to fit together. Hamilton smiled. “We have obviously suffered a misunderstanding, Eliza. Perhaps you did not hear me when I stated that I hold you in high esteem.”

  Zayne let out a snort. “You’ve obviously forgotten how to handle a woman.”

  “Yes, thank you, Theodore Wilder,” Eliza scoffed as she directed a glare at Zayne. “For your information, I don’t need to be ‘handled.’”

  “So you rejected his suit?” Agatha pressed.

  “There was no ‘suit’ to reject. I told you, he never proposed.”

  “It was a simple mistake,” Hamilton explained. “I was nervous and unable to think clearly.”

  “Be that as it may, I will state one more time: I’m not in the market for a husband.”

  “But you like Hamilton,” Agatha said.

  “I do,” Eliza admitted, “but I have every intention of returning to England, so there is little need to continue this conversation.”

  Silence settled over the carriage as they rolled through the streets of New York.

  “What do you think is taking so long?” Agatha asked.

  Hamilton looked at his pocket watch and shook his head. “I’m not certain, but I never thought we’d have to wait in the carriage for over an hour.”

  “You could go check on things,” Agatha said.

  Hamilton arched a brow. “And leave the two of you alone? Not likely. If it has escaped your notice, we are currently waiting outside a jail, hardly a respectable place to leave two ladies unattended.”

  “I’m armed,” Agatha muttered.

  “Of course you are,” Hamilton muttered right back, “but I’m not leaving.”

  At that moment, the door opened and Zayne jumped in, an almost unrecognizable Theodore right behind him. His hair was matted with blood, one of his eyes was swollen almost shut, and there was not one inch of his face that wasn’t bruised.

  “Mr. Wilder,” Eliza exclaimed, breaking the silence, “what happened to you?”

  “Got taken by surprise,” Theodore admitted as he lowered himself rather gingerly to the seat. “I thought I’d been incredibly careful scouting out the house, but turns out I was wrong. Although the servants were all in their quarters, and the few guards Mr. Hayes had left behind were patrolling the outside perimeter of the house, I neglected to realize there was someone else lurking in the shadows: one Eugene Daniels.”

  “What was he doing there?” Hamilton asked.

  “No idea. I was not able to question the man, as he was rather intent on smashing my skull.”

  “He hit you over the head?” Eliza gasped.

  “He did. I think it might have been a vase, but I’m not certain. The impact knocked me unconscious, and it wasn’
t until I finally came to that I realized who’d attacked me. Eugene was standing a few feet away from me, apparently unaware of the fact that I’d awakened, and he was speaking to two of the guards. I only heard the last part of the conversation, which concerned the guards disposing of me, and, after Eugene ordered my disposal, he left.”

  “Then why are you still among the living?” Agatha asked.

  “Lucky for me, one of the guards was a petty criminal I pay occasionally for information. He recognized me and convinced his partner I would make it worth their while if they assisted me. They carted me out of the house and took me to jail.”

  “Why would they take you to jail?”

  “That part I’m a little fuzzy about, but I think they thought jail was the safest place for me.”

  “That’s telling,” Zayne said.

  “Exactly,” Theodore agreed. “If men of the criminal persuasion think jail is the best option, I have to believe Eugene Daniels is one nasty piece of work.”

  “But why were you arrested and thrown into jail?” Agatha asked with a frown. “I find it hard to believe two criminals would encourage the police to arrest you.”

  “I don’t think their intention was to see me arrested,” Theodore said, “but unfortunately, when they dropped me off at jail, they were recognized as wanted men. All chaos erupted as police swarmed us, and I was thrown into a cell along with the two criminals who’d saved me.”

  “But what happened to them?” Eliza asked. “It hardly seems fair that they should linger in jail while you’re free.”

  “I left bail for them with the night clerk,” Theodore said with a smile, the action causing him to wince. “They wanted to stay the night for safety reasons.”

  “Another telling action,” Zayne muttered.

  “Too right it was,” Theodore said with a nod.

  “What now?” Hamilton asked.

  Theodore released a breath. “I have to go back. I need to see if a ledger I found is still in Mr. Hayes’s desk.”

  “You’re in no fit state to go gallivanting around New York,” Eliza protested.

  “I’m fine, Lady Eliza,” Theodore growled.