Cinders and Ashes (24 page)

“
Do you want to go to the funeral?” Isobel patted her hand
comfortingly.

Amelia
shook her head. “He has already been buried. His brother wrote to
inform me of Sir Hubert’s death three weeks ago, but unfortunately
sent the letter to Glendowie. With Sir Hubert being away, Lord
Bestwick was handed the note. He forwarded it on to me. Sir Hubert
died a few days after arriving in Devon,” Amelia replied softly.
“What do I do now?” she whispered, suddenly wanting the reassuring
warmth of Sebastian’s comforting embrace.

“
You need to remain here, and wait for Sebastian to return.
Ballantyne still poses a threat. We cannot forget that fact,”
Isobel replied, buttering some toast and pushing it into Amelia’s
hand. “Until then, you need to try to come to terms with the latest
news, and not worry about anything. Once Ballantyne has been dealt
with, you can decide what you want to do.”

Although
she didn’t say as much, Isobel knew that Sebastian would definitely
have an opinion in that regard. She was fairly certain that his
determination to visit Eastleigh had more to do with informing the
man of his intention of marrying his daughter, than discovering
Eastleigh’s connections to Hawksworth.

With a
shaky smile of thanks, Amelia took the toast from Isobel and sipped
her tea.

Sebastian felt tension creep through him when the small
procession of horses turned onto the sweeping driveway of Tingdale
House later that day. The sight of the large stone edifice lying in
resplendent tranquillity in the evening sunlight looked even more
inviting with the knowledge that Amelia was waiting
inside.

“
Don’t worry, it will be fine,” Dominic murmured as he rode
alongside.

“
She threatened to leave if I returned with him.”

“
He insisted on coming with us,” Dominic reasoned. “He offered
us assistance in identifying Hawksworth from the death mask. He can
hardly do that from Kent, now can he? Propriety demands we
accommodate him while he is here.”

Behind
them, Edward and Peter rode alongside the Earl of Eastleigh, who
had insisted on accompanying them back to Tingdale on horseback.
His eagerness to reacquaint himself with his daughter was tangible
in the man’s enthusiasm and ready acquiescence to anything they
suggested.

Despite
his concern at Amelia’s possible reaction, Sebastian still felt
certain sympathy for the Earl. On the afternoon of their arrival at
Eastleigh House, Sebastian and Dominic had introduced themselves
before recounting events to date. They wasted no time in putting
forward their suspicions that the man on the Penny Dreadful may be
Hawksworth. Eastleigh was astonished, but in turn confirmed that
the drawing did indeed look like Hawksworth. The only way to be
certain was to take a look at the death mask.

Knowing
the dangers involved, Sebastian had cautiously revealed the
possibility that his attacker may be Ballantyne. He had recounted
his brutal kidnap and beatings, before reluctantly revealing that
he had in fact been saved by Amelia.

After a
few moments of stunned silence, the older man had practically
crumpled before them, slumping into the chair behind him with a
heavy thump.

Sebastian and Dominic had both lurched forward to offer
assistance, taken aback by the tears of relief and joy in the man’s
eyes.

Immediately, Eastleigh had peppered them with seemingly
endless questions about his daughter’s wellbeing, her safety, her
whereabouts, before being overcome with emotion. It was evident,
even to strangers such as Sebastian and Dominic, that the man had
been desolate over losing her. There was nothing suspicious about
him. He was simply a parent who was riddled with regrets, and
self-recrimination, over circumstances that had changed everyone’s
lives. Eastleigh’s anger towards his sisters had been palpable, as
he assured both men that his sisters had been cast out for their
callous treatment of his daughter.

Hugely
reassured, Sebastian had wasted no time informing the man that he
intended to take Amelia to wife. The older man had been shaking
with joy, when he said he would be delighted to accept Sebastian as
a son-in-law, and would give assistance in bringing Ballantyne to
justice.

Sebastian had decided not to spare the man anything. Although
reluctant to ruin the man’s jubilation, in all conscience he
couldn’t allow Eastleigh to be ignorant of Amelia’s threat to leave
if Sebastian returned with her father.

After a
few moments of thoughtful contemplation, Eastleigh had assured them
that she needed to hear the absolute truth of events. He wouldn’t
be put off meeting his daughter, or be kept out of her life in the
future, no matter how difficult things got.

If
Sebastian was entirely honest, he didn’t have the heart to deny the
man.

As they
drew to a halt in front of the main door, Sebastian jumped down and
threw open the front door with a thump. Despite his concern over
her reaction, he was eager to see her.

“
Sebastian!” Amelia gasped, catching sight of him when he
entered the study. Casually tossing her sewing onto the floor, she
jumped to her feet with a smile of delight on her face.

“
Hello, darling,” Sebastian replied, as he strode across the
floor. The delight on her beautiful face was a joy to behold.
Despite the presence of his sister-in-law, Sebastian swept Amelia
into his arms. “God, I’ve missed you,” he murmured softly into her
neck, inhaling the delicious scent of apple blossom that was
quintessentially Amelia.

She
rapidly blinked tears away as she pulled back in his arms with a
smile of relief. His response was everything she longed for, as his
lips captured hers for several long moments.

“
Ahem.” Amelia jerked in surprise at the interruption.
Immediately her cheeks heated as she became aware of the others,
now standing just inside the room.

“
Hello, Amelia.”

Amelia
shivered as the hauntingly familiar voice of her father spoke from
the doorway. Everything within her froze. She turned her head
slowly, and stared at the grey haired man standing across the
room.

A sense
of betrayal swept through her so strongly that she swayed on her
feet. She tried to pull away from Sebastian, but he wouldn’t
relinquish his hold. Instead, he pulled her tighter against his
masculine length, tension thrumming through every fibre of his
being as he watched her reaction with dread.

“
Listen to me, Amelia,” Sebastian ordered, blatantly ignoring
the betrayal that filled her eyes. “You need to listen to his side
of events.”

“
You told him,” Amelia choked out. “Despite everything I said
to you.”

She
pushed hard against Sebastian’s chest, breaking free. “You told
him.”

She
shouldn’t be surprised really. If she was honest, a small part of
her knew that he wouldn’t keep her secret.

“
Wait, Amelia. Please, you must listen to me,” Eastleigh
pleaded, moving towards them.

His
daughter had changed a lot in the last five years. Her hair had
matured to a rich sable colour. Her beautiful face had a porcelain
glow that immediately made one want to stroke her cheek to see if
she was real. Her feminine curves spoke of an elegant grace that
was simply stunning. He was so proud of her, it made his heart
ache. She was such a beautiful young woman; it was easy to see why
Sebastian adored her.

“
All I ask is that you give me a few minutes of your time. If
you still hate me afterwards, I cannot say I really blame you
considering everything you went through.” Barely restrained emotion
made his voice shake.

Amelia
had never seen such a look of abject fear on her father’s face, and
it made her pause. The mental image of his aloof stance, his back
turned towards her as he cast her aside rose unbidden in her mind.
It was in stark contrast to the humble man who now stood before
her. The man now standing a few feet away was her father from her
childhood memories, but no longer her father.

A wave
of confusion swept through her and she frowned, trying to make
sense of the tumult of emotions that churned inside her.
Quintessentially he was the same, although older. His hair was
liberally peppered with silver, and there were fine lines around
his eyes and mouth that hadn’t been there before. Although he was a
tall, proud man, there was a slight stoop to his shoulders now that
highlighted his age.

Sebastian tried to take her arm, but she was still stinging
with the sense of betrayal that despite everything, he had once
again gone against her wishes. She jerked her arm away and glared
at him, resuming her seat on the chaise in wounded
silence.

“
Your father insisted on coming with us,” Sebastian informed
her harshly. “Of course I told the man you were here. You are his
daughter. You need to know the truth from his side of events. He
deserves to learn what actually happened to you when you left the
security of Eastleigh.”

He felt
his own chest tighten with sympathy when Amelia raised wounded eyes
to his, but he wouldn’t take the blame for Eastleigh’s
determination to see his daughter again.

“
If I hadn’t told him, Dominic would have. He has been trying
to find you for years. Do you now realise there are two sides to
every story?”

He knew
by the way she held his gaze, that he had sparked her
curiosity.

“
Do you not want to know what happened at home to push him to
send you to Bath in the first place?

Despite
her anger at him, Sebastian moved to squat down before her, taking
her hand in his as he spoke. “For the sake of your future
happiness, give the man a few moments. He has been riding for days
to get here to see you.”

When she
hesitated, he rose to pour a brandy, handing it to her silently
before moving to sit beside her, silently offering support without
pushing her. He watched as Eastleigh took the seat opposite,
determination clearly etched on his face.

The
conversation that followed was emotion-fuelled, as a humbled and
regretful Eastleigh revealed that he had married his wife
Henrietta, because he had been tied into a contract between the
families. A contract that had been set up while he was still in the
nursery.

Marriage
to Henrietta had created an alliance that formed the vast Eastleigh
wealth, but did little to fulfil his emotions. Unfortunately, that
left him tied into a marriage to a woman he didn’t care for; hence
they had only had one daughter.

After
Amelia had been born, they had each gone their own way. Eastleigh
had taken a mistress on the other side of the village that held his
affection, and Amelia’s mother had taken lovers. Many lovers. As
divorce wasn’t an option, they had agreed that they could see
whomever they chose as long as they kept their lovers away from the
house, and Amelia.

All had
gone well, until Eastleigh had returned home from a business trip
early to discover his wife in bed with Ballantyne. He had been
angry that his wife had casually dismissed their agreement and,
unable to continue to live with her any longer, began trying to
persuade her to move into the dower house.

Henrietta had refused to go, hence the arguments. Eastleigh
had suspected his wife was having her lover visit her in her rooms
during the daytime regardless, but had no proof. It was inevitable
that at some point Amelia would discover the truth, or worse, catch
her mother in bed with her lover. It was a possibility he couldn’t
countenance. He couldn’t bear his daughter to learn that her
parents’ marriage was a sham.

Both had
agreed that until they could resolve matters, Amelia needed to go
away. Unfortunately the only place that had appeared practicable
was to her aunts in Bath. He had no idea of the extent of their
greed. Ignorant of the truth, he had offered them a very generous
payment to take good care of his daughter, while he resolved
matters with his wife.

Unfortunately Henrietta died, leaving Eastleigh to deal with
the lover, and the resultant gossip. He had been aware that rumours
were circulating in the village of Lady Eastleigh’s many bedroom
visitors, and had resolved to keep Amelia away from the scandal.
Left with no alternative, he had sent her to Bath
anyway.

It had
taken several months before gossip calmed down enough for him to
consider sending for Amelia. From the letters he had received from
his sisters, Amelia was having a wonderful time going to balls,
soirees and the like, and was thoroughly enjoying the social scene
in Bath.

He
paused and looked at Sebastian when he scoffed at that. “I know the
reality was very different.”

Sebastian stared at the older man. “Did you not want to see
the truth for yourself? Did it never cross your mind that, having
fun or not, your daughter might want to see you?” He couldn’t keep
the disgust out of his voice. “She had just lost her
mother.”

Amelia
glanced across at Sebastian, surprised to see the anger clearly
etched on his handsome face.

“
I know, but as Amelia will attest, our last meeting was full
of anger and pain. I didn’t want to dampen her newfound happiness
by turning up unannounced, bringing unwanted and unhappy memories
with me.” The older man shook his head remorsefully and turned back
towards his daughter. “To my utter shame I decided to remain at
Eastleigh, seemingly secure in the knowledge that you were enjoying
yourself and having a coming out of sorts. If I had of known the
truth-.”