by Rebecca King
“Because he knew he was leaving, and maybe wanted Elspeth out of the house?” Oliver shrugged when Aaron looked shocked. “I am just working through the possible reasons.”
“Why? Why would he want Elspeth out of the house? If he died in a carriage accident like it is claimed, he wouldn’t have plotted for something like this surely to God,” Aaron breathed.
“Maybe it is all staged,” Oliver offered.
Aaron shook his head. “Thomas wouldn’t put her through this.”
“Have you been back home since you left London?” Oliver asked suddenly.
“No. Why?”
“Maybe Thomas sent you a note or something from London that you have yet to see?” Oliver said. “It might be an idea to go home and go through your paperwork, just to see if he sent you anything before he died.”
“I can get the housekeeper to send me everything,” Aaron replied.
Oliver was already shaking his head. “You are not hearing me, friend. I think you need to go home to check the paperwork yourself.”
“Why?” Aaron asked with a frown.
“Because you are too bloody involved here right now. You need to go and clear your head. Check your house, your papers, and make sure Thomas hasn’t left you something – anything – and then you can come back, having taken a break. When you see her again, you will know for definite if absence has made the heart grow fonder, or if you have made a mistake you would both do better to forget.”
Aaron studied his friend, but before he could speak, Oliver sighed.
“We all saw you kissing her.”
Aaron bit out a curse.
“It goes no further, but you know how difficult it can be if you mix your personal life with your professional one. Just take a few days to yourself to stop and think about what you are doing. She is grieving, Aaron. Don’t allow her to turn to you for comfort because when that grief is lifted she might turn against you.”
Aaron stared into the fire. He knew Oliver was right because he had thought the same thing several times. However, he hated the thought of having to leave her behind, if only for a short while.
Out in the hallway, Elspeth crept slowly back toward the kitchen. She knew neither man had known she was there, and gladly so. When she was sure she couldn’t be heard, she expelled a huge breath and made her way into the conservatory on shaking knees. She slumped into a chair and stared blankly out of the door while she willed her mind to settle.
She was still reeling from the kiss she had shared with Aaron only this afternoon. It had felt so right, but also incredibly wrong. The timing was awful, but it had truly opened a different world to her that she wanted to explore, with Aaron. It was humiliating that someone had seen them, and that Aaron’s friends now knew how brazen she had been. More importantly, it was shocking that she didn’t feel quite as horrified by it as she knew she should.
Maybe I am destined to be a scarlet woman? Elspeth mused wryly.
Given what she had learned about her brother since his death, she wasn’t at all certain now that she should grieve for him. Thomas had, after all, left her in such dire circumstance she faced the workhouse if she couldn’t find a way to pay off the outstanding bills. She would certainly have to sell the house, if it did turn out to be hers. Where would that leave her? Elspeth had absolutely no idea.
Elspeth was also aware that while Aaron had left his job in London, he would be expected to go back to it at some point. The more she contemplated Aaron leaving her life for good, the more Elspeth realised she didn’t want him to leave her behind. She wanted to remain with him, but because of him, not what he could do for her. How did she tell him that, though, without humiliating herself?
She wanted to be a part of their ‘investigation’ into what Thomas had done in the days leading up to his death. She wanted to help them find the missing money and discover what Thomas had spent it on. More importantly, she wanted to spend some more time with Aaron, so she could make certain of the feelings he made her feel. They were so strong and had come out of nowhere that she was a little flummoxed by them. Still, she couldn’t deny their existence. But was it really love? Could she love? Elspeth wasn’t sure. Deep inside, she suspected it was but was so confused by her situation even she was doubting her strong affection for Aaron.
Wearily, Elspeth closed her eyes and willed her thoughts to settle because she was starting to get a headache. Her life was so confusing she wasn’t at all sure what she should think of anything. The more problems life threw at her, the more she desperately wished she could return to the past, to the life she had become accustomed to and had arrogantly assumed would be hers forever. She now knew how uncertain life could be; how fragile, and hated feeling so vulnerable.
While she didn’t want to, Oliver’s words rang in her head. Even she questioned if she wanted Aaron in her life for financial security and a home she knew she might not be able to provide herself.
“But I have the house to sell even if Thomas’s money has gone,” she murmured aloud. “This house is going to earn me a fortune. I can purchase somewhere smaller with the proceeds from the sale and pay off the debts. There would still be enough to live off for the foreseeable future, so long as I am careful.”
The more she contemplated it, the more certain she was that she could accomplish something with her life for herself after all. She didn’t have to rely on anybody, even Aaron, not if the house was hers as Jasper had said. That made her connection, the growing closeness, with Aaron move in a completely different direction. One which took her toward a proper relationship with a highly eligible, extremely attractive man, who was steady and strong. Someone her brother had held in high regard and would certainly approve of.
“Aaron,” she whispered.
When she sensed she was no longer alone, Elspeth opened her eyes. Those eyes widened in alarm when she saw a dark figure, cloaked completely in black, standing on the other side of the rain-soaked glass. A scream left her before Elspeth even realised she had opened her mouth.
Immediately, the figure spun around and raced off across the garden.
“Aaron,” she screamed only to hear the thundering of footsteps cross the kitchen seconds before the back door was yanked open and Aaron and Jasper raced out of the house.
Together, the men chased the cloaked figure, who was still trying to climb over the low stone wall at the end of the garden. Whatever the intruder’s cloak was caught on hindered his escape for a few precious seconds. Unfortunately, the intruder managed to wrench free again, but left a large strip of his cloak behind.
Minutes later, all three of the men had vanished completely.
Elspeth felt sick with fear. She shook from head to toe, and in that moment was so very glad that Aaron and his men had chosen to stay that she almost wept with relief. It was difficult to know what to do. The endless minutes she had to wait for them to return were the longest of her life, especially when she heard what sounded like several large bangs and the muted shouts of the men.
“What in the world is going on out there?” she cried.
“You are not going to go and find out,” Oliver warned.
Elspeth nodded because she had no intention of doing anything of the sort.
“Why don’t you go and help Aaron sort through those papers? He will be back when he has caught the bounder. Give yourself something to do to keep your mind busy, and off the endless pacing. It will help, I assure you.” Oliver offered her an encouraging smile.
Elspeth nodded and hurried into the study. Once there, she sat at the desk and lifted the first of many handfuls of papers and began to read.
Many hours later, Aaron returned.
Elspeth launched out of her seat and raced across the room. She was so overjoyed to see him that she didn’t stop to think about what it meant. She ran straight into his arms and enveloped him in a warm hug.
“What took you so long? Are you all right? You are soaking wet,” she exclaimed, fussing about him like a mother hen.
“What happened?” Elspeth demanded.
“We lost him in the side streets of the town. The man knows this place well and found his way around easier than us. He hid and escaped while we were looking for him. We lost him on the outskirts of town,” Aaron reported.
“Any ideas on who it was?” Oliver asked.
Jasper snorted. “It looked like Rollo Voss, but we didn’t get a good look at his face to be absolutely certain.”
Elspeth looked at him in astonishment. She mentally considered the man who had stood in front of her and judged him to be roughly around the same height as Voss.
“Why would he want to scare me like that? He knows you are here,” Elspeth asked in consternation.
“He might have seen Niall and Callum leave and thought we had left as well,” Aaron suggested. “We went to Voss’s house, but he wasn’t there. When he appeared an hour later, he didn’t have a black cloak, I will admit, but he wore muddy boots.”
“Was he on foot?” Oliver asked, his brows raised.
“Yes,” Aaron replied succinctly.
As he spoke, Aaron’s gaze strayed to Elspeth, who looked stunningly beautiful bathed in the warm glow from the fireplace behind her. The welcome home he had just received had been astonishingly just about as perfect as he could have ever hoped to experience. The relief evident on her face had given him hope – for now at least – that there might be a chance of a future together after all.
“Now why would Voss want to scare her?” Oliver murmured.
“To persuade her that she needs a protector, or make her feel vulnerable so when he calls by again she is fearful and accepts his offer of marriage, or is more likely to take his advice that she would do best to hand the house over to him? Maybe it wasn’t Voss but Miniver back again?” Aaron suggested with a shrug.
“I don’t understand why either man is so determined to get this house,” Elspeth sighed. “I mean, they both have homes of their own. This house, although nice, is not all that appealing. There are many others like it in the village, yet they don’t show any interest in them.”
Aaron and Oliver looked at each other. They both knew she was right, which proved that it was Elspeth who was the lure. But why? Yes, she was beautiful. Yes, she was single, and highly eligible. She was level headed, calm and not apt to female hysterics. Any man would be happy to take her to wife. But there were other women in the village. Why would either man go to criminal lengths to get her to accept their hand in marriage?
“Would Frederick know of the contents of Thomas’s will?” Oliver asked Elspeth.
Elspeth looked at him. “I don’t know if Thomas discussed it with anybody, especially Frederick. I doubt it because they didn’t really like each other very much. Given Frederick had said he wanted this house, their association was tinged with acrimony at the best of times. I don’t think Thomas would discuss his private affairs with the man, especially if it meant letting Frederick know about the debts.”
“We need to pay a visit to Voss, and find out where he has been tonight,” Oliver announced.
Aaron nodded but knew that was a meeting that would happen most probably in the middle of the night when Voss least expected his home to be invaded. Aaron almost relished the meeting. For now, he looked at the confusion on Elspeth’s face with a gentleness that was at odds with his inner frustration.
“I am going to get changed,” he said as he headed toward the stairs.
“I will sort out some food for you both, you must be starving.” With that, Elspeth hurried toward the kitchen.
Once she was gone, Aaron turned to his friends.
“We go tonight. Two o’clock. Meet you all down here.” With his friends nodding their agreement, Aaron raced up the stairs to get changed.
Elspeth shook as she slid large pieces of pie onto the plates before her. She had heard the men’s hushed conversation. It hurt to realise that Aaron felt he had to be secretive around her.
“He doesn’t trust me,” she mouthed. With a heavy sigh, she tried to decide what to do about it.
CHAPTER SEVEN
By two o’clock in the morning, Elspeth was already hidden in the shadows at the side of the garden, so she could see the front and the back door of the property, and the men when they left. She was more determined than ever to follow them to see for herself what they did, and hear what Rollo Voss had to say. She had no idea yet how she was going to get close enough to them to be able to hear what was being said but would deal with that when the situation arose. Right now, she was horrified at what she was doing, but knew that it was the only option she had.
With a shiver, Elspeth tugged the edges of her cloak closer to protect the darkest clothing she could find. It was huge on her because it was Thomas’s, but it was the warmest thing she could find to wear. Even so, she still shivered as she waited for the men to appear.
“Come on, come on, hurry up,” she hissed through chattering teeth. She suspected the fine trembling of her hands was more down to fear rather than cold, but even so, wished the men would leave the house, so this little jaunt could begin.
Elspeth sniffed but then winced at how loud the sound was in the middle of the night. Suddenly, the side door closest to her opened quietly. She instinctively stepped back into the depths of the shadows and watched closely as the men left the property, and instantly melted into the shadows. If she hadn’t seen them leave the house with her own eyes Elspeth would have thought she had just imagined them. The silence remained undisturbed, they were so stealthy. It was frightening to witness them. So much so, Elspeth was left to stare at the darkness with wide eyes, but she couldn’t see them. Her heart hammered wildly with growing fear. The thought of stumbling across one of those dark figures was horrible, not least because she knew they were going to be livid with her for being out of the house so late.
I can’t back out now, she reminded herself. Not if I want to know what is going on.
When she could be sure they had gone, Elspeth quietly made her way toward Rollo Voss’s house. It was difficult to know how to get there without being seen, but she eventually found her way to an old out building at the back of Rollo’s house. She paused and looked around the dark, unlit garden. It was unnerving to find everywhere still and quiet.
I should be glad of it, she thought, but couldn’t find any reassurance in her apparent solitude.
Suddenly, a flicker of a shadow drew her attention. Elspeth stared hard at it for a moment until she was able to identify the shape of a man deep within the woods. He was standing perfectly still – watching the house, waiting for something. Elspeth jerked with alarm and began to tremble when the sudden rustling of leaves beside her warned her she was no longer alone. The shadows shifted and swirled for a moment before another man, Aaron, stepped out into the garden. Within seconds he had raced across the empty space to disappear into the gloom tucked within the darkest corner of the house’s annexe.
Elspeth watched him and memorised what he was doing because she knew it was the only way she was going to get into the house. If only she could cross the garden without anybody outside noticing, Elspeth knew she would be able to follow.
What do I do then? Elspeth worried. What do I do if I am seen?
The bite of the sharp edge of the blade was enough to make her squeak with surprise. Her hand lifted to hold it away from her delicate flesh, but she was unable to move the hard hand that threatened to kill her at any moment.
“Elspeth?”
Before she could reply, the hood of her cloak was yanked off her head.
Elspeth whirled around to face Oliver’s glowering anger. He released a blistering string of epithets that turned the air blue. Elspeth blushed.
“Oh dear,” she whispered. She had only ever heard Thomas swear like that. It was a testament to just how furious the man was with her.
To her amazement, rather than lambast her, Oliver tipped his head back and began to ma
ke owl sounds. They stopped, then started, then stopped, then began again. Suddenly, Aaron appeared at the edge of the house. Oliver made some sort of hand gesture to him, which drew Aaron back across the garden toward them.
“What in the Hell?” Aaron whispered when he saw Elspeth.
“I am not going to be left at home, Aaron,” Elspeth bit out before he could scold her.
“You are going home,” Aaron snorted flatly.
“If you should try it, I will scream and wake up the entire bloody village,” Elspeth snapped. “Do you not consider that the house is my home? I have a vested interest in what Voss says.”
“What the Hell do you think you are doing here?” Aaron demanded, ignoring her.
“I am not going to be left out of this, Aaron. What will you do if he lies to you? All you have is his word. I have a few facts, even about him, that will be enough to make sure he tells you the truth and doesn’t send you on a wild goose chase.” Elspeth watched and waited but knew from the looks on the men’s faces that she was not gaining any ground with them. If she didn’t do something drastic they were going to force her home whether she wanted to go or not.
“He will lie to you,” she added. “He won’t to me.”
“He bullies you,” Aaron snapped.
“Not anymore,” Elspeth retorted.
“What’s changed?” Aaron placed his fists on his hips to stop himself from putting them around her damned tiny neck. He had never been so disgusted with anybody in his life, but it was more with himself than her. He couldn’t believe he had been wrapped up in how safely she was tucked up in bed, and how wonderful it was that she was fine while he went to fight her demons for her, that he hadn’t noticed she was underfoot.
“God, how stupid,” he snorted.
“I am not,” Elspeth snapped in outrage.
“I didn’t mean you,” Aaron snapped.
“Well, I am going in there whether you like it or not. Someone is going to get answers out of him today. I am not going to be left out of this, Aaron. It is my brother in that graveyard. It is my financial welfare at stake here. It is my life he has been meddling with. I demand some answers and am going to get them.”