A Debt From the Past (14 page)

‘We are on a shopping trip.’ She smiled sweetly – or at least she hoped she did, for she could not abide this man. ‘May I introduce Lady Trenchard?’

He bowed again. ‘I don’t believe I have had the pleasure of meeting you before?’

‘No, my estates are in Scotland, and I don’t often venture into this part of the country, but my niece is to have her season at last, and I have come to make the arrangements.’

This declaration jolted Beth. Why was she telling him a lie?

‘Ah, I see the reason for the shopping. When will you be returning to Hampshire?’

‘Tomorrow,’ Lady Trenchard said, before Beth could utter a word.

‘This is most fortuitous,’ Sir Peter declared. ‘I too am travelling on the morrow. Would you do me the honour of joining me in my carriage?’

‘We have already arranged to go by train,’ Beth declared, not wanting to spend such a long journey with him.

‘But as you have been on a shopping expedition, you must have a great deal of luggage. I have ample room for any purchases.’ He smiled encouragingly.

‘Then that would save us having our purchases delivered to Hampshire. We would be happy to accept your kind invitation.’ Lady Trenchard looked pleased. ‘We are residing at the Sharland house.’

‘Then I shall send a carriage for you at nine o’clock tomorrow morning.’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘I trust that is not too early for you?’

‘Indeed not; we shall be ready.’ Alice watched him ride away, and her expression changed from polite gratitude to one of distaste. ‘So, that is Sir Peter Gresham.’

‘Why did you tell him I was your niece?’ Beth asked.

‘Oh, it just came out, and it was the easiest way to explain my presence here.’ She sat back with a satisfied sigh. ‘We shall have a more comfortable journey home, anyway.’

‘How much longer do we have to wait for him to finish luncheon?’ Beth paced up and down outside the inn.

‘But it has been a pleasant journey,’ Helen hastened to assure her.

‘And a long one!’

Alice came out of the hostelry and joined them.

‘We have languished here for more than two hours.’ Beth was at the end of her patience. ‘And that is far too long.’

‘I agree, my dear. I have given instructions for the carriage to be made ready, and I have told Sir Peter that we are ready to resume our journey,’ she informed them. ‘We shall allow him another thirty minutes and that is all.’

No more than ten minutes passed before the gentleman appeared, rather unsteady on his feet. The ladies were helped into the coach, and they were on their way at last.

There was still an hour’s journey ahead of them when there was a commotion and the carriage shuddered to a halt. The door was wrenched open and they were looking at a pistol.

‘Out!’ the highwayman ordered in a gruff voice.

They were all herded together, and another man rode from out of the trees, also brandishing a pistol.

Beth was mesmerized by the pistols, but not because of fear. Slowly, she lifted her eyes to the robber who had half of his face covered with a scarf and a black hat pulled down on his forehead. She turned her head to look at the other man and saw the same thing, but these eyes were sparkling with devilment, and he even had the nerve to wink at her. Beth stifled an angry sound. How dare they do this, and with her father’s pistols!

Helen was clutching her arm but appeared unafraid; she had obviously recognized them as well. And so had Alice, who was clearly angry.

The shock had sobered Sir Peter up, but he looked terrified. ‘We are not carrying anything of value. The ladies have been shopping in town and that is all we carry.’

The taller of the highwaymen gave him a contemptuous glance and then proceeded to make a thorough search of the carriage, tossing all the parcels on to the road. When nothing was found, he turned his attention to the ladies and ordered them to hand over their jewels.

Beth watched carefully to see exactly what they did. The highwayman she knew to be James Sharland took nothing from the driver or Sir Peter, although his gold pocket watch was clearly visible, but he demanded every piece of jewellery they were wearing. Helen removed a small pendant from around her neck. It was the only possession she had managed to save after her father’s suicide, and it meant the world to her. James clasped her hands as he took it from her and then stepped back.

He pocketed the jewels and, with a nod to his companion, they rode away.

While they waited for the carriage to be reloaded, Helen opened her hand slightly to show Beth she still had the pendant. That was the first kind gesture she had seen from James Sharland since his arrival in her life, and it made her realize even more what a complex character he was. But she was pleased for her friend who had a hint of tears in her eyes, because it would have hurt her terribly to be parted from that treasured possession, even for a short time.

‘Highwaymen!’ Peter Gresham was ranting. ‘You never have those rascals around now! Was this some prank?’

Alice had finished overseeing the loading of the carriage and came over to Beth, whispering in her ear, ‘When I get my hands on those men, I swear I shall do violence!’

There had been no sign of the men for the rest of that day, and as Beth was about to enter the breakfast room the next morning, she heard Alice’s raised voice.

‘You promised me that Alex would be here just to set up the pig farm – and you involve him in that madcap scheme! What do you think you were doing, playing at highwaymen like you did as children?’

A deep voice said something Beth couldn’t hear.

‘I’m sure you wouldn’t have done it if you had known we were on the coach, but I am not interested in your excuses, James. I am disappointed in you. And what in heaven’s name were you doing? What can you possibly gain by harassing the man in this way? You don’t even know if he is the culprit. Edward couldn’t prove it in nearly thirty years, so what hope have you? And I’m disappointed with you, Daniel. You are supposed to be keeping them out of trouble! Where on earth were you?’

There was another murmured answer.

Beth knew she shouldn’t be listening to someone else’s conversation, but she was consumed with curiosity after yesterday’s hold-up. It was clear to her now that his lordship was after Sir Peter Gresham for some wrongdoing in the past, but what could it be? Was it something that could send James Sharland to prison, or even worse? But no, that couldn’t be right because he was carrying out instructions left by his father, so it must concern the Sharland family. She chewed her lip, trying to sort out the confusing jumble in her mind. But if that was the case, then why had he moved in here and involved them in the dark secrets of his family?

Beth moved closer to the door, quite forgetting that she had been brought up a lady.

Then his lordship raised his voice. ‘Dan is sure he is the one we’re looking for, and I will find the proof we need, for all our sakes.’

‘James –’ the tone was softer now, almost pleading – ‘you and Alex have me, and everything I own is yours. As soon as your father found out what had happened, he made sure everything was put to rights legally. Is that not enough?’

‘Alice, we owe you a great debt of gratitude and I don’t like to hurt you, but I must do this. I made a promise.’

Alice was obviously crying by now. ‘I could not love you and Alex more if you were my own blood, but if you persist in this, you will be unmasked, and I shall lose you to the gallows. You will also ruin Alex ... Edward had no right to place this burden upon you!’

When Helen joined her at the door, Beth put a finger to her lips and then led her out of the house.

‘We shall have to forgo breakfast this morning,’ she told her companion.

Helen nodded. ‘Lady Trenchard sounded angry.’

‘Yes, but I believe fear was the cause of her fury. They are harbouring some dark secret, and Alice is quite desperate for their safety.’

‘What do you think it is all about, Beth?’

Beth sighed. ‘I wish I knew, but the more I learn, the more I am fearful for the Langton estate and our future. My mind is in a whirl with speculation, but whatever his lordship is involved in, we cannot hope to remain untarnished by his activities.’

‘He is treating you ill,’ Helen declared.

‘I agree, but if he is not paying heed to Alice, then I fear we shall be of little consequence to him.’

Beth cantered up to the estate manager, stopped and dismounted.

‘Welcome home, Miss Langton.’

‘Thank you, Greenway. How are things with the estate?’

‘Everything is running smoothly. His lordship has made small changes – and all for the better, as far as I can see.’

‘Really?’ She was taken aback by the tone of respect in his voice.

‘Yes, Miss Langton.’ He hesitated for a moment, looking a little uneasy. ‘I think we might have misjudged him.’

‘In what way?’

‘Well, he clearly knows how to run a large estate and appears genuinely concerned that it should show a profit. And Mr Beaufort, although young, is quite an expert on pigs, and farming in general.’

Beth silently cursed the two weeks she had been away. His lordship had clearly used this time to gain the respect of Greenway. ‘That may well be so, but I want you to remain vigilant. I am still uncertain of his motives; it may well suit his purpose to appear the dedicated guardian for a while.’

‘Of course, Miss Langton. You can rely on me.’

She nodded, knowing that she had planted a seed of doubt again. She would have to be satisfied with that for the moment. ‘Have the pigs arrived?’

‘They are due any time now. All is in readiness and the cottage is finished.’

‘In that case, I had better have a look at it before the beasts arrive.’

It was an invigorating ride, and she grinned at Helen as they galloped along. It did not seem as if any great harm had been done in her absence. She was relieved.

‘How wonderful to be back,’ she called. ‘I did so hate London.’

Helen smiled in agreement.

When they arrived at the field, the transformation was astounding; Beth hardly recognized it. ‘My goodness, what a change!’

‘And look at the fine cottage, Beth.’

They both dismounted and walked over to it.

‘Indeed, a splendid building.’ Beth tried the door, but it was locked, so she turned her attention to the field.

‘What are those huts for?’ Helen asked.

‘I am not sure, but they might be for the animals to breed in, I suppose. I am afraid I am not familiar with the methods of pig farming, but I am pleased to see that they have constructed a secure fence all round to stop the beasts from roaming the estate.’

She left Helen peering through one of the cottage windows, trying to glimpse the inside, and walked into the field. As she approached the copse of trees by the stream, there was a rustling sound followed by a grunt. Beth watched in horror as an enormous pig appeared and glared at her with a belligerent gleam in its eyes.

With a screech of panic, she lifted her skirts and ran, but she had not gone far when she collided with something solid and had the breath knocked out of her.

‘Easy, Elizabeth.’ Strong arms wrapped around her. ‘You are not in any danger.’

It wasn’t the slightest good anyone telling her that, so she fought until she was able to get him between her and the pig. He was shaking with laughter as she clung to his broad back for safety.

‘You may find this amusing, but that beast was about to attack me.’

‘I doubt he would have,’ said another voice. ‘He arrived in the early hours of this morning and is just a mite fractious after his journey. He is wondering where his sows are.’

Beth peered round his lordship’s shoulder and saw Alex herding the beast into one of the pens, helped by Charlie Becks, young Tom’s friend. ‘Greenway said the pigs hadn’t arrived yet.’

‘He wasn’t around when Alex unloaded the animal. Oh, and we have employed young Charlie to help. He’s a bright boy, and Alex wants to train him in all aspects of pig farming. We hope you approve?’

‘Oh, yes, an excellent idea.’ Beth could see the pleasure on the youngster’s face. He was laughing as Alex talked to him, and it looked as if it was going to be a perfect arrangement.

‘There you are,’ Alex told her, still grinning broadly as he came over to them. ‘You can leave the field in safety now.’

‘Oh, good. Can I run?’

The brothers nodded and roared with laughter as she rushed out and shut the gate behind her.

She gave them a curious look as they strolled out of the field and joined her. ‘You both seem in remarkable spirits after your escapade yesterday.’

‘We do apologize if we frightened you,’ Alex said.

‘Oh, you didn’t frighten me. I recognized the pistols at once and knew who the villains were.’ She glared at James. ‘I trust we are to be given our jewels back, or have you disposed of them already?’

‘They are with Alice,’ he informed her. ‘It would have looked suspicious if we hadn’t taken them. And I must thank you for not revealing our identities.’

‘I only refrained from doing that because Lady Trenchard was with us. She was clearly beside herself with anger, and I did not wish to distress her further.’

James grimaced. ‘I received the full force of her disapproval this morning.’

‘And rightly deserved!’ Beth exclaimed. ‘Just what on earth do you think you are doing?’

‘We are just trying to make Gresham feel besieged. And you gave
us
a fright,’ Alex told her, grinning in amusement. ‘We didn’t expect you to be travelling with Gresham, and when we saw Alice there, I knew we were going to be in trouble.’

‘You will be in a great deal more trouble if anyone finds out it was you. Sir Peter Gresham is an unpleasant man and he will already be trying to discover who the highwaymen are.’

‘We are well aware of how powerful Gresham is.’ His lordship spoke with bitterness; his earlier good humour had completely disappeared.

Beth looked from one man to the other. So it
was
something to do with the Gresham family, and that is why his lordship had avoided meeting him when he had called. Did they know each other? She was gleaning small pieces of information, but it was only making her more desperate to find out the true story. ‘I perceive that you are playing a dangerous game, Lord Sharland.’