Author: Wendy Soliman
Category: Historical
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‘How on earth…’ His gaze drifted in Ezra’s direction and his expression darkened. ‘Do not believe everything you hear.’
‘Send your letter up and I will read it. That is the only promise I am willing to make. Good night.’
She turned on her heel and headed for the stairs, conscious of Ezra standing to one side, watching her go. She desperately wanted to look his way in search of reassurance but knew he would see the conflicting emotions she was too disturbed to conceal writ large across her countenance. She absolutely could not afford to lean on him, she reminded herself, especially not after she had so brazenly taken his hand.
Salford’s claims on her affections were hers to resolve alone.
It took every ounce of Ezra’s self-control not to follow Clio up the stairs. It was still early, the party would go on for hours yet and he wondered why she had felt the need to retire so soon. He sensed that her withdrawal was not temporary and that she required solitude in order to…to what? She had looked disconcerted following the trampling that her toes had endured during the quadrille, which was an event in itself. Silas never danced, as evidenced by his inability to recall the steps, and yet he had invited Clio to stand up immediately after Ezra himself had taken to the floor with her, which was concerning.
He was up to something.
Clio had then been accosted by Salford and he had no idea what had passed between them, although from a distance they appeared to be having a disagreement. Ezra had tried to edge closer but Salford had taken her to the opposite side of the room and Ezra’s progress across it had been hampered every step of the way by females keen to engage his attention. Good manners required him to bestow just a little of it upon each of them.
By the time Ezra reached Clio’s side of the room she was already heading for the stairs, looking angry and discomposed. Ezra knew with absolute certainty that the party would lose its appeal for him if she was no longer a part of it, and the urge to chase after her, to take her in his arms and dispel the hurt that he’d seen swirling in the depths of her eyes was compelling.
Ye gods, was he in a very different kind of danger than the one he had anticipated when accepting this invitation? Admiration for the chit’s lively individuality was one thing, but he had not consciously thought beyond that point. She was a child, twelve years his junior, who knew absolutely nothing of the adult world.
‘Damn!’ he muttered, excusing himself from the females surrounding him and walking away. He had lost his taste for dancing too.
Assuming that Godfrey must have returned from the village by now, he took the stairs two at a time and retired to his room. A tug of the bell rope brought Godfrey to him surprisingly quickly.
‘What news?’ he asked, throwing off his coat, then his neckcloth.
‘Seems Lady Walder stayed at the Oak a week ago for two nights, but not under her own name. She travelled with a maid and registered as a Mrs Francis. She was recognised when she came through the village again to join us here. Of course, her true identity is now known and it’s an endless cause for speculation. The locals think it their right to know why she came as someone else the first time around.’
‘Most likely a tryst,’ Ezra remarked, throwing himself onto the window seat. ‘Either that or she wanted to be close to Lady Fletcher for some reason. But why? They are acquaintances. She could simply have called.’
‘You haven’t asked who else was seen in the area at about the same time,’ Godfrey said, looking uncharacteristically sombre.
‘I have not but it’s clear you want to tell me. Out with it, man!’
‘A gent answering Lord Brennan’s description, is who,’ Godfrey replied.
‘What the devil…’ Ezra ran a hand through his hair, totally perplexed. ‘Those two are in it together? Why? And if they are, why did they need to meet to discuss their plans in a tavern? Brennan still has a place he calls home in Surrey, even if it is mortgaged to the hilt and he’s in danger of losing it. Why risk showing their hand for no obvious reason?’
‘Well, that’s the question.’
‘She has done her very best to sweet talk her way into my good graces this evening.’ Ezra paced the length of the room as he thought the matter through, watched by an adoring Merlin who flapped his tail every time Ezra came in reach of his position stretched out in front of the empty fireplace. ‘That is not the behaviour of an assassin.’
‘It is if the assassin in question wants to gain your trust.’
‘No, we overheard her telling Salford that she was determined to win my affections. There was no mention of ulterior motives, which there would have been if they were in a partnership and meeting to compare progress. But if they are partners in crime, why is she meeting him for a romantic liaison if she is involved with Brennan, my mother’s lover?’ Ezra scratched his head. ‘This is getting damnably complicated.’
‘We?’ Godfrey flexed a brow in the impertinent manner that was second nature to him. Godfrey was no respecter of Ezra’s elevated status, which was one of the reasons why he endured in his employ. That and the fact that he had proved his unswerving loyalty time without number.
‘Miss Benton and I.’
‘Ah, of course.’ Godfrey grinned.
‘We know why Brennan wants me out the way and I suppose Lady Walder could be hedging her bets. If I take her up on her not-so-subtle invitation I get to live. If not…’
‘That’s no kind of choice. Besides, if she’s thrown in her lot with the devil, she won’t be able to back out. Whoever’s killing your family off is too clever, and has laid his plans too well to permit accomplices a change of heart.’
‘He will have evidence to use against her if she tried to renege.’ Ezra shook his head. ‘But surely that would implicate him too. No,’ he added, not giving Godfrey a chance to respond. ‘As you just pointed out, Brennan is too damned cunning to implicate himself.’
‘Precisely.’
Ezra tugged at Merlin’s ear when the dog got up and shook himself. ‘Let’s see if we can make any sense out of this farrago.’ He tapped his forefinger against his lips, attempting to arrange his thoughts into methodical order. ‘Salford wants Miss Benton for her fortune and assumed he wouldn’t meet with any opposition.’
‘How hard can it be for a man of his experience and popularity to win the heart of a foolish seventeen-year-old?’
Ezra chuckled. ‘That was his first mistake. He underestimated Miss Benton’s intelligence and overestimated his own charms. Anyway, he would have been confident of success, and once he’d got his hands on her inheritance, she would have served her purpose and be surplus to requirements. I saw him with Lady Walder and he’s completely smitten.’
‘He needs the funds to keep the lady in style.’
Ezra gave a grim nod. ‘That is my assumption.’
‘But now we think that she is in cahoots with Brennan.’ Godfrey fell onto the nearest chair and scratched his head. ‘You’re right, guv’nor, it is complex. You think Brennan is cold enough to marry your mother before you’re…well, cold in your grave and then carry on with Lady Walder?’
‘Nothing that scoundrel does would surprise me,’ Ezra replied scowling. ‘My mother took herself off in her curricle this evening after dinner with just her coachman driving her, as a matter of fact. She could only have gone to keep an assignation with Brennan. As far as I am aware, she only has one lover, and she could meet any other acquaintances in this district during daylight hours in the prescribed fashion. There would be no need for clandestine outings.’
‘Which means Brennan must be in the district somewhere. He probably came down to take temporary lodgings, which is why Lady Walder met him at the Oak.’
‘Possibly.’
‘Barnes is loyal to a fault. It’s no good quizzing him on her grace’s movements and demanding to know where he drove her. He’ll take her secrets to the grave.’
‘There’s more than one way to curtail an ambitious cur. Brennan lives permanently in Surrey but we
now assume that he has taken lodgings close by, ready to console my mother when I meet my maker.’
‘I can make enquiries. Find out if any houses in the locality have recently been let.’
‘Do that, and see if Gibson is back. He followed the duchess’s carriage on horseback. He will know where she went.’
‘I’ll do that now and bring some hot water up when I return.’
In shirtsleeves, Ezra sat in his window embrasure, looking out at gardens cast into flickering pools of light by the flambeaux illuminating the terrace beneath him. His mind was occupied with thoughts of Clio. Salford had said something to distress her, he could tell that much simply by the stony set to her features and the obvious effort she was making to control her emotions as she swept past him, barely sparing him a glance as she headed for the stairs.
‘What did he do that frightened you, my love?’ he asked aloud.
And Silas. What game was he playing? It would be unwise, he knew, to underestimate a cousin who disguised a devious character and quick brain behind an obsequious demeanour. A man who would have a great deal to lose if Ezra took a wife and decided to dispense with his services. A man who would most definitely have to give up his comfortable lifestyle if Ezra’s mother chose to marry Brennan. He was bound to be aware of the affair, and by putting his own interests first he might well have seen the value in making himself as indispensable to Brennan as he had to Ezra’s mother.
Ezra felt moody and disgruntled as he awaited Godfrey’s return. His man was gone for a long time but when he finally came back it was with the news that his lady mother had also just returned to the estate.
‘She went to a small manor house about five miles away and stayed for an hour, your grace,’ Godfrey told him. ‘Gibson saw Lord Brennan as plain as day when he came out of the house and helped the duchess into her carriage.’
‘Well then, our next most obvious step is to see whether Lady Walder visits him there. Have Gibson watch her like a hawk, Godfrey. If she leaves the estate for any reason, even in the company of the other ladies when they go on excursions, I want her followed. It would be easy enough for her to slip away on some pretext or other to meet Brennan. I need absolute proof that they are in cahoots.’
‘We’re pretty sure that they must be, given that she stayed at the Oak and entertained him there.’
‘Speaking of the local tavern, take yourself down there in the morning and see if you can find out who owns the property that Brennan has presumably leased.’
‘How will that help us?’
‘Absolutely no idea, but knowledge is power.’
‘Right you are.’ Godfrey poured the water he had brought up with him into the ewer, and Ezra splashed his hands and face with it.
‘I won’t need you anymore tonight,’ he said, once he had dried himself off.
‘It’s still early.’
‘One can have too much of a good thing.’
Godfrey chuckled. ‘Nothing to do with the fact that Miss Benton has already retired.’
Ezra’s face emerged from behind his towel as he flexed a brow at Godfrey. ‘And you would know that because…’
‘Because I was having a delightful conversation with her pretty maid when Miss Benton rang her bell and Daisy scampered off to serve her.’
‘I am sure Miss Benton regrets cramping your style. Has Daisy returned to the servants’ hall?’
‘Why?’ Godfrey looked genuinely shocked. ‘You don’t mean to visit the chit, surely?’
‘Idle curiosity,’ Ezra replied laconically.
‘How else do you think I knew for certain that Miss Benton had retired for the night?’ Godfrey asked, grinning. ‘Daisy returned below stairs and told me so. We had resumed our conversation, before you interrupted it, that is. I do wish the gentry would have more consideration.’
Ezra laughed. ‘Go back to your maid and enjoy her smiles. As I said, I shall not need you again tonight.’
‘Don’t suppose you will,’ Godfrey replied, chuckling as he let himself out of the room.
Left alone, the idea of calling upon Clio had taken root in Ezra’s head and he couldn’t seem to shake it off. It would be madness in its purest form, highly irregular, lunacy even, but he needed to talk to her, to assure himself that Salford had not insulted her in a manner that would justify Ezra’s intervention.
He knew that sleep would elude him until he had heard that assurance from her own sweet lips. He groaned when he thought of the lips in question and wondered if he would be able to harness his passions when alone in a bedchamber with the female who rather alarmingly was beginning to occupy an increasing number of his thoughts.
Don’t risk it, the voice of his conscience advised.
Put her interests first, his gentlemanly instincts responded.
She was unconventional, he reasoned, but reckless too, and he didn’t want her to do anything rash that she would later regret. Ezra himself was above rash behaviour, of course—waltzing with a chit barely out of the schoolroom in front of an assembly of society’s elite and holding her far too close notwithstanding. That had been reckless, and he was now paying a heavy price for it as recollections of her curvaceous body beneath his questing hands played havoc with his equilibrium.
Even so, he simply had to see her. Now. Tonight. Immediately.
The situation had become more complex. She had a right to know about Lady Walder’s convoluted involvement and he would never have a better opportunity to speak to her alone without fear of interruption or of being overheard.
She does know, his conscience pointed out.
Even so…
Before he could talk sense into himself, Ezra uncoiled his tall frame from the window seat, crossed the room and opened the door. The party was still in full swing. He could hear the sound of music, conversation and laughter from the floor below. He could hear the sound of girlish giggles coming from the picture gallery and the deep, coaxing tone of the man who had engaged that female’s attention. He happened to know that Clio’s room was in the opposite direction and so he would not need to interrupt what was clearly a tryst, turning instead away from it.
He paused when he reached her door, wondering if she would have actually retired. The thought of seeing her in her bed stirred up all sorts of inappropriate desires that almost occasioned a change of heart. He did not possess that much self-control. He allowed himself a wry smile, thinking that as far as Clio was concerned, he had no self-control whatsoever. If anyone had told him beforehand that he would come to this party and visit an unmarried chit in her bedchamber through choice he would have laughed in their faces.
Shaking his head at his own folly, Ezra heard voices approaching. Aware that he couldn’t stand about outside a lady’s bedroom door indefinitely, he gave a perfunctory knock and opened the door in question.
‘What is it, Daisy?’
Clio sat on her window seat, much as Ezra had been until a few moments before, presumably mulling over the events of the day. She held a letter in one hand and wore a robe over her night attire. Her hair had been loosely braided and fell in a long rope over one shoulder.
‘It’s me. Can I come in?’
‘Ezra?’ She leapt to her feet. ‘What on earth…?’
‘We need to talk.’ He took her hand and led her back to the window seat. She fell back onto it and he took a place by her side, releasing her hand and ensuring that a respectable amount of space separated them.
‘Why? What about?’ Her eyes were wide and wary. ‘Has something happened that I need to know about?’
‘You appeared distressed when you left the drawing room, and I was worried. What did Salford say to overset you?’
She sent him a disbelieving look. ‘You risked coming to my room at night just to ask me that?’
‘I feel responsible,’ he said, thinking how lame that sounded, hoping she would not assume he had come with alternative intentions in mind.
‘Thank you, but there is absolutely no need for you to f
eel that way and this is…well, inappropriate.’
‘I promise to behave myself.’
The suggestion of a smile touched her lips. ‘How reassuring,’ she said.
‘I have news that you should hear,’ he said, worried that she would send him away; fairly sure that she would not. If she was like the majority of the other females in attendance, out to trap him, then he wouldn’t even have considered taking the risk of visiting her room. His intentions really were noble.
Probably.
‘Tell me,’ she said softly, looking away from him and fiddling with the sash that held her robe closed.
Chapter Thirteen
Clio had been feeling despondent, unsure what to make of the ambiguous contents of the letter that the captain had given her to read. The sight of her father’s familiar handwriting, mentioning her in such dispassionate terms, had given her a jolt, despite the fact that he had never treated her as anything other than a commodity. And now here was Ezra, accosting her in her own chamber. She had been thinking about him in such a concentrated manner, so confident he would be able to explain the peculiarities that it was almost as if the power of those thoughts had brought him to her door.
He took her hand, just as she had taken his so brazenly an hour or two earlier, and led her back to the window seat. She was acutely aware of her state of semi-undress and wondered if she ought to do something about it. But what could she do that wouldn’t make her seem immature? Sending him away was out of the question, even though she knew that she ought to. Every nerve ending in her body sang with anticipation, despite the fact that she didn’t feel in any danger of being compromised.
He was still fully clothed, albeit casually, which made her feel even more disadvantaged. He filled the room with his starkly masculine presence, fuelling the atmosphere with an air of expectancy that created yearnings she didn’t properly understand. This simply wouldn’t do! Clio frantically sought her mind for something mature to say. What did one say when a duke accosted one in a bedchamber as though it was the most natural thing in the world, she wondered? Was there a prescribed reaction? Her imagination failed her and she looked up at Ezra in a state of mute indecision.