by Cari Hislop
“I feel ill.”
“That’s not what he said.”
Emily whirled around and shouted, “He’s come for his sons! Let’s hope they haven’t drunk the missing bottle. Leave Mary here with the servants! We have to find Alyce. We don’t have time to watch Mary be ill on the drive.”
Marshall flushed again as the tall beautiful Lord Adderbury paled. “What b-b-bottle?” His two present sons denied any knowledge causing black eyes to fill with fear. “What is g-g-going on? Who’s Alyce?”
“What did he say?”
Emily glared at her brother, “Who cares? Where did Mary hear the screams? Did they sound like a man or woman?”
“How should I know? I can’t hear anything and if your sister had listened to me she’d…”
“We don’t have time for a lecture. Where was the scream?”
Marshall touched his pale wife. “Merry?”
“I feel ill.”
“You can be ill after we find Alyce. You know I can’t leave you…the screams? Were they male or female?”
“Female…I think…” Marshall couldn’t hear Buckingham explain the situation to Lord Adderbury, but the master of the house waved his arm and two servants led the giant horse away and the housekeeper stepped forward with frightened eyes clearly terrified to return to the kitchens to fetch refreshment for the traveller. The master moved his mouth and waved his arm again and the housekeeper curtseyed as a band of frightened servants disappeared back inside together.
Marshall growled in irritation, “What is going on? Merry?”
“Lord Adderbury has agreed to protect me while you search…”
“What are you talking about?”
“I can’t go on.”
Marshall flinched as he looked up to find Lord Adderbury’s black obsidian eyes inches away. “I’ll t-t-take her inside. She’ll b-be safe with us.”
The two Smirke brothers looked miserable as they hovered behind their father. “Papa, together, Charles and I will be perfectly safe from Morley. You have to let us help find Robert.”
“You’ll stay with me.” Lord Adderbury’s mild words had a steely undertone which left no room for negotiation.
Marshall’s arm momentarily tightened around Mary’s waist before reluctantly removing it. “With luck Morley’s dead, but if he isn’t, don’t let him or his mad mother near my wife…I beg you.”
Black unreadable eyes glanced from Marshall to Mary and back to Marshall. “Very well.”
“Merry mine…” Marshall touched her face as she turned red eyes up at him. “…don’t think we’re done!” He backed away holding her eye. He opened up his mouth to admit his heart to the world when her eyes turned to the tall wife shopping Lord at her side. Marshall felt his stomach drop as he watched the beautiful Lord Adderbury easily pick up Mary up in his arms and carry her inside. Turning away, the lake was a shimmering blur as he ran after Buckingham who’d already organised the servants into groups to search different parts of the estate. His worst nightmare had become reality; his Perfect Woman was in the arms of a beautiful Smirke.
Pausing near the top, Marshall’s eyes were pulled by a morbid fascination towards the half hidden red Chinese folly. Had the two dead servants really died making love? He felt a surge of irrational jealousy. He wanted to make love to his wife under the stars, but she was probably going to fall in love with a Smirke and leave him with a broken heart and empty arms. He’d deal with his broken heart later, after finding Alyce. Wiping his eyes, he followed the line from the folly down the hillside. A young man was risking his neck by forging his own trail down the hill. The young Smirke was heading for the lake. Suddenly Marshall saw it; a patch of pinkish foliage. “Buckingham! She’s there, on the shore…beneath the folly!” The words boomed down the hill pushing the other searchers to run faster. Marshall’s insides twisted into a knot as he galloped down the hill after them. Alyce was a spoiled hussy, but he’d promised his father he’d take care of her. The thought of finding his sister dead struck him like a hammer. With his head pounding and his eyes watering he hurried to find heartbreak or relief.
Chapter 26
Mary felt too ill to care that she was in the arms of a stranger who stank strongly of sweat and horse. The beautiful face shadowed by his black hat pulled tightly down over black curls looked etched with fatigue and worry; he’d come to rescue his sons. She could hear the two following their father into the house exchanging curses on their youngest brother. Robert must have been the one meant to share Alyce’s picnic basket. Had that devil Morley planned to kill them? The servant must have stolen one of the bottles. So were all four bottles poisoned? The thought made her stomach ache. The strange old lady had said Marshall was safe from Morley; did that mean he was dead? Mary hoped so, but there was still the awful wait to learn if Alyce and the boy were alive.
She pushed the awful thoughts away and stared at the man carrying her. He didn’t once look at her; she could have been an injured animal or a Yule log. He stopped briefly and asked his sons to lead him to the main reception room. She stared at the handsome features and sighed with relief that she was married to Marshall. Lord Adderbury had an overpowering aura of authority that made her feel deeply uncomfortable. Marshall was at heart an easy going person. He might be immovable if he thought it for the best, like not wanting his sisters to wear red because the colour was traditionally associated with loose women, but he had no underlying tendency to dominate or control.
Lord Adderbury was doubtless a good man, his happy sons affirmed it, but the man would need a woman with a steel backbone or he’d kindly walk all over her. She couldn’t help wondering if that’s what happened to his first wife. It seemed almost unbelievable that the man had fallen in love with one of his servants and married her. The poor girl must have been in awe of him; it couldn’t have been a happy marriage. It didn’t surprise her he was having difficulty finding a wife; if he’d tried to hire her as a wife she’d have run away terrified. He needed a wife who’d ignore that choking authority and do as she pleased; she’d drive him mad and he’d adore it. Mary sighed with relief as he gently put her down on a sofa and directed his authority towards his present children. “What exactly is g-g-going on? Where is Robert?” The man didn’t need to whip his children; his soft words cracked their ears without even raising his voice.
Mary sat up with curiosity and watched Charles bravely meet his father’s eyes. “Cecil insisted we all stay together after yesterday, but Robert said he had a call of nature. We all waited outside the door, but he slipped out the window. He must have climbed down the drain pipe.”
“Where did he g-go?”
“We don’t know. All morning he kept saying he needed time alone, didn’t he Cosmo?” Mary’s eyes widened as she realised the boys were covering their brother’s sins.
“The little crackfart…”
“There’s a Lady p-present.”
“Forgive me Lady Mary…the selfish wretch moaned and complained all morning because Cecil agreed to let me search the Anglo Saxon church for graffiti. You’d think we didn’t have to hunt for snails and smelly dead things for hours yesterday! It was only faire that I got to do something. Cecil wouldn’t let us visit the castle on the island in the lake for fear we’d drown. Now that you’re here Papa can I…”
“No! After we eat we’re leaving.”
“But Papa, I want to see the castle on the lake.”
“You may see it at your leisure after you turn twenty-one.”
Mary’s heart melted at the crushed look on the young man’s face. “I don’t remember seeing any graffiti in the castle.”
Lord Adderbury turned to look at her as Cosmo gratefully flung himself on the sofa next to Mary. “The best graffiti is usually hidden or in hard to reach places. I make rubbings for my collection. I love looking at old names and dates and wondering who they were and what they were doing there. It’s like seeing traces of an unreadable story…I suppose it sounds silly.”
“It sounds perfectly reas
onable. I could ask Marshall to row me over to the lake before we leave. If we find any we can make rubbings and send them to you.”
His black eyes widened with appreciation. “Would you?”
“Cosmo!” His eyes glanced towards his father. “Lady Raynham is ill. Do you want her risking life and limb to please you?”
“She offered!”
Mary felt a need to protect the young man from his father’s irritation. “I was only tired before Marshall flung me over his shoulder. I couldn’t run any faster and he’d just carried me up from the lake in his arms. We fell in. We were changing when they came to tell us about the poisoned servants in the folly…which is why my hair is wet…and undone.” With those frightening black eyes staring at her she felt an odd impulse to confess everything. How did his children withhold information?
“I c-can’t imagine your husband would wish to hunt g-graffiti for my son.”
“I think he’d take any excuse to row me on the lake…it’s so peaceful and private.” Mary’s face flushed bright red. She hadn’t meant to be that revealing.
Cosmo Smirke’s black eyes lit up, “Lord Raynham would row her to hell if she asked him. He’s heels over head in love with his hired wife! He found her by placing an ad in the paper…”
“Cosmo, the lady cannot possibly wish such information b-bandied about; especially in her hearing.”
“But it’s the truth! Besides she doesn’t mind, do you Lady Mary?”
“No.” Mary felt like she was rebelling against the order of the Universe as she met the father’s disproving eyes. “Your son means no disrespect.”
“Perhaps not, but he knows b-better! How many times have I t-told you, that truth does not always deserve or require a public exhibition?”
“At least a thousand…” Cosmo Smirke sighed in despair, “…but truth always slips off the tongue before one can think to stop it. I’ll never find a wife unless she only has one leg and its resting on a dusty shelf!”
“Cosmo Xavier! That is not an appropriate thought to share in genteel company.”
“Well what thoughts am I allowed to share in genteel company Papa? One can’t discuss the weather for hours on end!”
“Yes one can.”
At nineteen, Cosmo was starting to doubt his father’s omnipotence. “Papa, if all you ever talk about with the ladies is the weather it’s no surprise you haven’t found a wife yet. They probably all think you’re a bore! How did your search go this time? Did that friend of Aunt Agnes turn out to be a frightful hairy Amazon?” Choking back laughter, Mary’s eyes slid upwards toward the beautiful Lord against her will. He was staring at the ceiling with a pale horrified expression that clearly revealed a wish to disappear.
Mary couldn’t bear to see the man striped emotionally naked by his children. “Why don’t you two go look down the hill and see if they’ve found her? I’m sure your father is capable of protecting me.” The two young men eyed their father for permission. It was granted with a look and they were running from the room. Mary waited until his sons were out of earshot before getting up and bravely walking over to the tall man staring at the chandelier. “How long have you been in the saddle?”
The frightening black eyes reluctantly met hers. “First light.”
“You must be shattered. You should rest.”
“This place isn’t safe for my children.”
“And if Morley’s dead? You could stay the night and leave in the morning after a bath. It’ll make your journey far more pleasant. My husband isn’t going to hurt your sons.” The black eyes look unconvinced. “You must do what you think best…” Mary forgot her companion as she suddenly felt pulled towards the door. Marshall needed her. Gathering up her skirts she ignored her sore stomach and ran.
“Madam!” She couldn’t hear the tall man hurry after her as the sound of her heart thundered in her ears and tears filled her eyes. Something terrible had happened.
Chapter 27
Out of breath, Marshall’s chest and throat were burning as he stared in disbelief at the horrifying scene. Marshall had seen numerous dead bodies, but Henry’s remains made him shudder. The bloated, pale corpse lay well above the shore line on its back, like a gruesome offering to the God of nature. The body had been desecrated; Morley’s manhood was gone. Only a patch of torn flesh gave evidence to its existence while hungry rooks had scavenged an easy meal leaving empty eye sockets. Marshall’s empty stomach heaved as he looked away to his sister’s pink dress to find more horror.
A few feet away from Morley’s corpse the youngest Smirke was on his knees clutching Alyce to his chest as if his warmth would bring her back to life. The empty wine bottle rolled back and forth in soft lapping waves telling a tale; Alyce had discovered her husband’s body, screamed in horror and drunk the whole bottle. Or had she drunk the bottle in celebration at Henry’s demise and then screamed for help? Only the top half of her person was wet. She’d fallen head first into the shallows unable to retreat. Marshall felt his throat constrict with a silent scream for Mary as it sunk in that Henry had claimed one last victim. He felt numb and nauseous. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see Emily sobbing hysterically into Buckingham’s shoulder. All three young Smirkes looked pale and upset as they ogled the dead woman in disbelief. Marshall could only stand there. Why had he thought his sisters would be safe from a man like the Earl of Morley? How had he believed the man’s lies for so many years? Marshall felt the words, ‘gullible fool’ ricochet in his brain.
Exhausted, his shoulders slumped as he contemplated the unthinkable prospect of burying his sister. Alyce never liked the cold; she’d hate lying in the family crypt. But perhaps she wasn’t dead. He cocked his head as he stared at the unmoving profile. It looked like Alyce, but it wasn’t Alyce. Perhaps it was a stranger wearing a similar dress. If they chaffed her hands and cheeks some colour might return; she might lose that grey pallor. She might tell them that Alyce was in her room sleeping.
The young Smirke clutching her was crying into her hair; Alyce would have enjoyed being wept over by a beautiful young man. Marshall knew it was proper that he take charge of her body. It was his responsibility to carry her back up the hill, but his limbs refused to move. He watched the two eldest Smirke brothers wrap their arms around their youngest brother before the tallest gently tugged the body into his own arms and started towards the steps. Alyce appeared to resist her gallant by playing dead, her arm flopping in rhythm with George Smirke’s gait. The young men were followed by Buckingham carrying Emily in a similar pink, her arm wrapped around Bucky’s neck.
Marshall’s eyes swivelled back towards Henry’s mutilated body. The more he stared at it the less he understood why he’d ever thought of the man as a brother. Even without eyes Henry appeared to be leering. Marshall jumped in shock as someone touched his arm. His head jerked to the left to find Mary and the rest of the Smirke family ogling the dead man in horror. “Merry?” His dry eyes misted with relief. “Don’t look at it…” The sentiment was echoed by Lord Adderbury as he silently commanded Cosmo and Charles to follow their brothers back to the house. Marshall covered his face as a cold breeze blew over the lake overwhelming his nose with the sickly scent of death. Shivering in his shirtsleeves, Marshall felt Mary’s warm hand squeeze his arm assuring him he was still alive. “I told her Morley wasn’t husband material; she just laughed like a hussy.” The words were lifeless. “My father…I promised him I’d take good care of her…”
“Marshall…” Mary’s pinched nose changed her voice to a high nasal pitch. “…she was murdered, just like the rest of Morley’s brothers. You can’t blame yourself…you were next on his list.”
“It’s still my fault. I allowed that…that dead thing to socialise with my sisters! What was I thinking?”
Mary squeezed his arm. “You believed his lies; so did Alyce.”
“I knew he was a heartless rake hell, but I didn’t think he’d hurt one of my sisters. I should have done more. I should have ordered him to st
ay away…”