by Lucy Monroe
She had reacted with terror to Jared’s anger, allowing her past fears and experiences to make her beg for his mercy.
But her husband was dead and he’d been dead for four years. What excuse did she have for continuing to live under the shadow his cruelty had cast? She shook from the enormity of the thoughts whirling through her head.
She did not have to be afraid. She had survived marriage to a monster; she could cope with meeting his daughter.
She knelt on the conservatory floor again, this time to pray for the strength and courage to act on her newfound thoughts.
***
She was still kneeling when Thomas came to tell her that she had a caller, the current Duke of Clairborne.
Calantha wondered why her brother-in-law had seen fit to call while she hurried upstairs to change her clothes and repair her appearance.
The current duke and duchess did not deign to call on her since she refused to live in the dower house at Clairborne Park. They demanded her attendance at two important functions a year, the family Christmas celebration and the lavish ball they hosted in Town during the Season.
It was during these times that she was grateful for the location of her home. She was not forced to spend the night at either Clairborne Park or the family townhouse in London. Although it meant a great deal of travel in one day, it could be done.
When Clairborne had told her he intended to purchase a small estate for her parents in the country, she had believed he meant to buy something near their country estate, but he had found a house half-way between there and London.
He had said that would make it easier for her parents to visit often when they were living at either Clairborne Park or Town for the Season. It had worked out the opposite, of course. The house was far enough away from both the country estate and London to make travel for her elderly parents difficult and Clairborne had made it subtly clear that they weren’t welcome for overnight stays. He had always had a reason why she could not go visit them as well, but now the location of the property worked in her favor on the occasions she was forced to socialize with the Clairbornes.
The rest of the year, the current duke and duchess left her alone. She wasn’t sure Henry liked it that way. She’d had the impression that he would like her to visit Clairborne Park more often, but his wife was a jealous woman. The current duchess was not jealous of Henry’s numerous, but discreet, peccadilloes.
No, she was jealous of her position in society and guarded it with great zeal. She did not like having the former mistress of her home underfoot and made that clear in a well-bred sort of way that her husband could not find fault with. And Calantha could not find it in herself to blame the other woman either.
She had learned after her marriage that everyone had expected Deveril to marry Ellen and it had only been his fixation with tying himself to an angel that had stopped him. The eldest daughter of a duke herself, Ellen had been bred to her position. It would have been quite the come down to marry the second son when she had had grown up with expectations of becoming the next Duchess of Clairborne.
Justice had been served in Deveril's death when not only had his depraved nature finally caused him to pay the ultimate price for his sin, but the woman who had expected to become duchess had finally realized her ambition.
Quickly changing into a sky-blue afternoon gown with tiny puff sleeves and a scoop necked bodice, Calantha went downstairs to join her brother-in-law in the parlor. He stood upon her entrance, his bow perfectly executed to her curtsy.
With the same attractive blonde looks as his brother, the sight of him gave Calantha chills. She tried to stifle the reaction, feeling it unfair to judge the present duke by the actions of his predecessor. After all, his wife showed absolutely no indication that she suffered from the same treatment that Calantha had been subjected to.
In fact, the current duchess managed her husband admirably and Calantha had wondered more than once if the other woman had a source of strength missing in her own character.
"Good afternoon, your grace. I did not expect you."
"Good afternoon, my dear. I trust my visit is not an unpleasant surprise." The way he said the words made Calantha wonder again at the reason for the unexpected call.
"Not at all. Won’t you sit down?" She sat in the same chair she had used when taking tea with Jared on the previous day and watched as the duke sank onto the sofa opposite.
She could not help comparing the perfectly correct gentleman now occupying her study with the roughly aggressive Jared. The duke would not dream of taking on the responsibility for another man’s by-blow, any more than he would have kissed Calantha on their first day of meeting. Feeling a prick in her heart at the thoughts, Calantha ruthlessly crushed them.
She could not afford to think of Jared or his revelations. Not now. It took all her wits to deal with the Clairbornes. One technique she had learned early on with her husband was silence, so after ordering tea, she patiently waited for the duke to come to the reason for his visit.
He waited until the tea things had been deposited on the table between them and the servant had left before opening the subject. "I’m sorry to say this isn’t strictly a social call."
"Is something the matter at Clairborne Park?"
"No. I have come because I am worried about you."
Calantha took a small, fortifying, sip of tea. "Worried about me, your grace?"
His pale gray eyes filled with the semblance of concern. "Yes. I could not credit the gossip when I first heard it, but have come out of my sense of personal obligation to my brother’s widow to see if there is some justification for the scandalous stories being spread in the district."
She drew herself up and regarded him with every bit of duchess-like reserve at her disposal. "Scandal, Henry?"
She deliberately used his first name as a reminder that she was not his social inferior. No longer merely the daughter of an aging vicar, she had paid a high price for her position as duchess and she would not allow him to intimidate her with veiled accusations.
"Please be so kind as to explain yourself."
She could see that her aggressive tactics surprised him as much as they surprised herself, but she would not spend another interview on the defensive. She simply could not do it.
"I have it on good authority that you asked a gentleman to dance."
He made it sound as if she had propositioned a footman in the middle of the ballroom floor. "I availed myself of a partner when an obvious misunderstanding had taken place and the gentleman and myself found we were without escorts for the current dance."
"That gentleman is called Lord Beast by society and ladies who desire to keep their standing amidst the ton stay clear of him. He’s as uncouth and rough as his name implies."
The way Henry sneered the word gentleman and insulted Jared sent a wave of pure fury through her. She had thought after her discussion with Jared that all emotion in her was dead, but since her tears in the conservatory, she knew that was not the case.
Now, she knew a pure, cleansing anger. "He’s a viscount and accepted at all levels of society. If some ladies are overset by his manners, they are of course entitled to avoid him. I however find him unobjectionable."
He’d scared her out of her wits that morning, but even now she was coming to realize that it had been past fear come back to haunt her rather than an honest reaction to Jared.
The duke actually pulled out his quizzing glass and peered at her through it. She knew he meant to make her feel like a bug on a pin, but instead she wanted to laugh. The man looked ridiculous.
"It is not only his manners that one might find unacceptable."
"What do you mean?" she asked with freezing accents.
"There is talk...that he has a daughter. A natural child he chooses to raise in his home."
Hannah was the very last thing Calantha wished to discuss with Deveril's brother. "Yes."
"You knew?"
"Yes, but I fail to see what that has to do wi
th you, or I for that matter."
Henry's brows beetled. "I’m shocked at your attitude, my dear. Clearly your judgment is in question. I fear I am now inclined to believe the other rumors I’ve heard have some veracity to them."
"What rumors would those be?" She had learned early on never to offer information to a Clairborne.
"I have heard that not only did you dance with this person, but you were also seen several times conversing in his company."
"Who I converse with is my own affair."
"As my brother's widow, you are still a member of my family. My concern is entirely justified. Perhaps allowing you to live alone in this hovel of a house has been a mistake. You have forgotten the exalted status of your family by marriage and your responsibility to uphold the Clairborne title. A move to the dower house at the Park may be in order."
As threats went, it should have been effective. Calantha detested Clairborne Park and all the ugly memories that it resided within its vaunted walls.
However, the current duchess would not tolerate such a move without a great deal of fight. And although Henry controlled the money left Calantha in Clairborne’s will, he did not control her person. She would live without the aid of servants, eating from her own garden, before she would return to Clairborne Park.
"I’m sorry you consider the house your brother saw fit to buy my parents a mere hovel, Henry."
His eyes narrowed, but he apologized. "My tongue got away with me. My brother was more than generous when he bought this property and gifted it to your family. I would think that loyalty to his memory would prevent you from desecrating his name with unacceptable behavior."
The last thing she felt toward her dead husband’s name was loyalty. After all, he had been the one to rape an innocent young girl. There was no honor in his name. "I consider desecration reserved to things that are holy, Henry. As exalted as the Clairborne name may be amidst the ton, it is not sacred."
Where had this defiance come from? She did not know herself, but it felt very good indeed.
"I do not find your flippancy the least amusing," he said in his most pompous tones. "You do not seem to realize the delicacy of your situation, my dear."
If he called her a dear just once more, she was going to dump hot tea in his lap.
The thought stunned her, but it was so entertaining, she spent several seconds contemplating such an action before saying, "What exactly are you trying to say, Henry?"
"You will cease association with Viscount Ravenswood at once or you will see a significant decrease in the monies available for the running of your household."
He had no right to threaten her in this manner. None at all. The marriage settlements were supposed to have protected her in the event of her husband’s death, but he’d placed his brother as trustee of her funds and no court in the land would grant her favor against a duke.
Instead of railing at him, Calantha silently considered the man seated across from her. She could bow to his dictates easily enough, she supposed. She now knew that Jared would not ever welcome her friendship or her company, but there was still the matter of Hannah.
"I cannot make such a promise, Henry. There are other circumstances which must be considered."
He glared at her, his outrage at her refusal evident. "What other things? You don’t mean to tell me the beast has asked for your hand? You cannot consider such a thing."
She almost laughed aloud, but it would have been a hollow sound tinged with bitterness. Henry had everything backward. He thought Jared not good enough for Calantha, but she knew the opposite was true. "Do not concern yourself. The viscount is not interested in marriage, at least not to me."
A look of horror crossed Henry’s face. "Do not tell me you have started an affair. Demme. If I had known you needed that sort of attention, I could have arranged a discreet visit here and there."
She was so appalled by her brother-in-laws casual suggestion of immoral behavior that she did not respond at once. Finally, she said in her most chilling tones, "I am not having an affair with him."
"Then what other circumstances are you nattering about?"
At once she realized that if she exposed Hannah's existence to Henry, she could be putting the child's happiness at risk. She had not missed the overt censure Henry levied against Jared for having the temerity to publicly raise what the duke believed was Jared's own natural child.
Should she reveal Hannah's true parentage, Henry might very well take it into his head to demand rights to the child if for no other reason than to see her raised as far from the eyes of the ton as possible. Jared was a man of power, yes...but not even he could stand firm against a duke of the realm when it came to a point of law. And she was not conversant enough with English law to know who had more claim to Hannah.
Calantha thought quickly. "I am friends with Lady Ashton and the viscount is her brother."
"As to that...you can fob off her invitations until her uncouth brother returns to his estates."
Having had enough of being dictated to by another overbearing duke, Calantha drew herself up. "I will choose my own friends and when I will associate with them. As far as I am concerned this matter is closed."
She'd never spoken with such temerity before and was shocked at her own boldness, but that was no comparison to Henry's reaction.
His complexion went chalk-white and then red with rage. "How dare you speak to me in such a way?"
"How dare you assume you can dictate my every action? You are not my husband or my father that I should be forced by law to allow you to do so."
"I control your finances."
"And if you make it too difficult for me to maintain my household, I shall spread the word from one end of the beau monde to the other what a pinch-purse you are." The words came out of their own volition, but she immediately appreciated the effectiveness of the threat.
The duke's countenance meant too much to him to allow her to live in total penury, no matter what threats he might make.
"You have the nerve to threaten me?"
She nodded, thought she could not quite make herself repeat the warning.
"My brother dragged you out of the gutter and made something of you," Henry said with appalled outrage. "You will not taint his memory with this wrong headed behavior!"
The slur against her family was too much to bear. "I was the daughter of an honorable and kind man, not a guttersnipe. Your brother, however, was a cruel monster who made my life unendurable. I rue the day I married him and hold his memory in nothing but contempt. It would be impossible for any action on my part to even come close to emulating the legacy of depravity he left behind."
After the words left her mouth, her entire body trembled with their import and fear of the retaliation the duke might choose to take. Had she not already been overwrought from her confrontation with Jared, she would never have spoken thus. Yet, the freedom she experienced at finally expressing her true feelings toward her dead husband was satisfying in a way she could never have imagined it would be.
Henry jumped up and towered over her, his body vibrating with fury, his fist raised in unmistakable menace and his face florid with his choler. "You will regret speaking of Deveril that way. I will teach you keep your mouth shut and to accept the instruction of your betters, you ungrateful wench."
The fist came toward her and Calantha reacted without thought. She dove off her chair toward the tea table. Then she astounded herself once again when rather than run from the room, she took a grip on the heavy tray, laden with a silver tea urn, china and pastries and shoved.
It slid across the polished surface of the table quite easily and rammed into the duke’s legs with sufficient momentum and surprise to knock him off his feet. She kept pushing and the whole tray went crashing down on the fallen nobleman.
He screamed as scalding tea spilled over his legs and china broke all around him.
She rushed toward the door, only to stop short when she heard running footsteps. The servants. She
forced a façade of composure, one she had perfected during her tumultuous marriage and was smoothing her dress with trembling hands when Thomas and her maid came rushing into the room.
"Is anything amiss, your grace?" Thomas asked her, just as if the duke was writhing on the carpet, his mouth spouting obscenities.
"We appear to have had a slight accident, Thomas. Perhaps someone could help the duke find dry clothes before he returns to Clairborne Park. He must be on his way soon or he will miss traveling in the light."
Shaking so badly, it was all she could do not to wobble like a drunken sailor, she left the room. But the victory this time had been hers. She had warned him against cutting her allowance and more importantly, she had not allowed him to hit her. A smile curved her lips, the first genuine one in too long for her to remember.
The war was not over, of that she was certain. The duke would not forget this altercation and her slights against his brother's character. Nor would he ignore her refusal to stop seeing Jared. She must be prepared for him to take devious action. He was after all, Deveril's brother, but she had won this battle and her success felt very good indeed.
She would maintain her independent household, no matter what the duke decided to do. Not only for her own sake, but for the sake of the servants depending on her for their livelihood. If he made good on his threats of cutting her allowance, she could always sell the jewels of which Clairborne had been so proud.
She didn’t have the really good ones, those were entailed along with the estates, but she had the "gifts" Clairborne had bestowed upon her unworthy person throughout the two years of their marriage. He had liked to show her off, just like a well-groomed mare.
One thing was certain, she would not fail those who relied on her again. Come what may, she would continue to pay Thomas and the others their wages.
***
She arrived at Ashton Manor the next morning shortly after eleven. When the butler answered the door, he attempted to usher her into the drawing room, but she stayed him.
"I’m here to see Hannah."
She watched in fascination as Lady Ashton’s servant floundered for a response. He clearly wasn’t certain how to tell a duchess that one did not call on occupants of the nursery.