Sara Bennett (7 page)

Someone cleared her throat.

Vivianna took a breath, and then another. Every part of her protested, but she pulled away and stood, dazed, looking about her. It was as if she were waking from a dream.

“Miss!”

Lil was standing, shocked, in the doorway. Vivianna realized then how dangerously close she had come once more to allowing Oliver to have his way with her. She could feel the blood in her face, and the beginnings of panic, but she held herself in check. Her voice, when she spoke, was as close to normal as she could manage under the circumstances.

“Lil, Lord Montegomery is just leaving. Can you show him to the door?”

“Yes, miss.” Lil sounded flat and cold.

“My hat and cane.” Oliver was watching her, his eyes full of the wry humor that was pulling at his lips. As if it were all a jest to him. But was it? Was she just another conquest? The idea should have appalled her, but it did not—instead Oliver intrigued her. When he had kissed her so thoroughly, there had been a moment when she could have pulled away and slapped his face, but she hadn’t. Instead she’d kissed him back, because she was curious and because it was what she wanted to do.

“Goodbye, my lord,” she said, and stayed exactly where she was.

Vivianna straightened her shoulders and waited for Lil’s return like a soldier who has been found wanting and is about to face a commanding officer. The comparison made her smile.

“I’m glad you’re amused, miss,” Lil said, and Vivianna could see the anger jumping under her skin, making her eyes water. “I’m glad you think it’s funny. That man…I warned you, I did. He’s after you,
miss. He had his hands all over you and I—I could see it in his face. He’s after you, and he’ll not stop. Not until he has what he wants.”

Vivianna let her finish. “Lil, I know you are concerned for me, but really, I can look after myself.”

Lil shook her head back and forth several times. “Oh, miss, you know nothing about men like that. He’ll hurt you, he’ll destroy you. He can make it so that no decent person in England will be in the same room as you! Do you want your name ruined?”

“I don’t see why—”

“Course you do, you just don’t want to admit it. You think you won’t care, but you will. Oh, you will. Miss, please, stay away from him.”

Vivianna walked past her to the door. “I will take care, Lil, I promise, but I will not stay away from Lord Montegomery. He is the key to saving the shelter, and I will not be frightened off just because he kissed me…once or twice.”

Lil groaned.

“Actually”—and Vivianna turned and met her stare defiantly—“I enjoyed it.”

And she marched back upstairs, leaving a muttering Lil to follow.

M
iss Greta and Miss Susan Beatty were like a pair of cage birds, fluffy and petite, with bright eyes and gentle voices—but they had characters of pure steel. When Vivianna had first met them in York, she had been aware of an unconscious urge to smile at their seemingly sweet naïveté—what could two middle-aged, middle-class spinsters know of the world, after all?

She soon realized she had foolishly underestimated them.

The Beattys weren’t birds, they were terriers. Determined and pugnacious little women who, once they had decided upon a course of action, followed it through to the very end.

The idea for a home for abandoned children had long been their goal, as it had been Vivianna’s. If Vivianna had supplied the passion for the project, then the Beatty sisters had supplied the sheer grit and determination to secure a building where the children could be housed.

Greta and Susan Beatty really were an indomitable pair, and Vivianna had never thought to see them defeated by anything or anyone.

Until now.

Seated across from them in their small and shabby parlor—“I hope you don’t mind, Miss Greentree, but it’s easier to heat than the drawing room”—she wondered if she was witness to the unthinkable.

“We believed the lease would be perfectly secure.” Miss Susan clasped and unclasped her hands. “Lord Montegomery’s man of business explained that the one year was all he could offer us—that the estate had belonged to Lord Montegomery’s brother and there was a delay with the transfer of the property. He assured us that Candlewood was not part of the entail and that after one year the lease could be extended, or we could buy it. We were told that Lord Montegomery wanted nothing more to do with it, and that he certainly had no intention of ever living here. Everything was settled…we thought. And then, as the end of our lease drew near and we went to make arrangements to extend it, we learned…” She shook her head, unable to continue.

Miss Greta took up the story. “How could we know he would change his mind? A gentleman should abide by his word, should he not, Miss Greentree?”

“Perhaps he is not a gentleman,” Vivianna replied.

“But such an old, distinguished family!” Miss Susan exclaimed. “I believe they are very proud, too. Several times the reigning monarch has offered the Montegomery of the day a peerage, only to be turned down. Their family motto states: ‘It is enough to be a Montegomery.’ They finally accepted the title of baron from King George, the lowest grade of peerage, but nothing more.”

Miss Greta was frowning at her. Miss Susan returned to the point.

“We wrote to Lord Montegomery to ask if he would reconsider our lease, but his reply was brusque to say the least. He suggested an alternative place, a former lodging house in Bethnal Green. But how can we accept such an offer? Candlewood is everything we promised we would give our orphans; if we moved them to Bethnal Green it would feel like a betrayal. Of our principles and the children!”

The more practical Miss Greta added, “We planned to repair the roof and the drains, and to expand into the rooms that are presently unoccupied. So much potential, Miss Greentree! We had such hopes!”

“Candlewood is perfect and now it is to be demolished and smaller houses built in its place.” Miss Susan blinked back tears. “He stands to make a lot of money, evidently, and that is all that matters to him. But what about our orphans, Miss Greentree?”

“We have written several times, imploring him to change his mind, but the only reply we had was to tell us we have nine weeks to evacuate Candlewood. It is almost as if, for him, we have ceased to exist.”

“Oh, he knows you exist,” Vivianna assured them with a smug little smile. “At least, he does now. And don’t worry, my friends, I will do everything in my power to see that he changes his mind.”

The two sisters leaned forward, their bright eyes fastened upon her. “You are very good, Miss Greentree,” Miss Greta said, while Miss Susan nodded wildly. “To come all this way to help us. The orphans do appreciate it.
We
appreciate it.”

Vivianna responded in what she hoped was a confident manner, but inside her head her thoughts were chaotic. Earlier, when she had arrived at Candlewood,
the Beattys had lined the orphans up before her in the hall, and the children had given her three cheers.

The sisters knew all the children’s names and so did Vivianna—she had been kept informed by their many letters. The children were not strangers to her; she felt as if she recognized and loved them all. Perhaps that sense of familiarity was what made the difference in these matters. Perhaps if Oliver were to meet them, if he were to see them, even a man with a heart as hard and uncaring as his would be swayed…

“Miss Greentree?” Miss Greta was watching her expectantly over the fruitcake, and Vivianna realized she had missed part of the conversation.

“More tea?” Miss Susan was holding the teapot aloft in one hand and the milk jug in the other.

“Thank you.”

“I was telling you a little about the history of Candlewood,” Miss Greta said. “It may help you, when you tackle Lord Montegomery, to know the family story.”

“What is the family story?”

Miss Greta settled herself to explain. “Candlewood was built by Lord Montegomery’s grandfather. A folly, in hindsight. It was supposed to be a monument to the family, but instead it ruined him. He squandered most of his wealth on it, and even then he did not have enough to finish it. The Montegomery family has a house in London, as well as an estate in Derbyshire, so they have no use for Candlewood. They have always considered it inconvenient and uncomfortable. However, Anthony Montegomery, the elder brother, was very fond of Candlewood and often stayed here, especially overnight when he was on his way to Derbyshire. The house and grounds were left to him by his grandfather, but unfortunately there was
never enough money for the upkeep, it was literally crumbling away. And now Anthony is dead, too, and the house belongs to Oliver Montegomery.”

Had Oliver mentioned a brother? Vivianna did not think so. “I did not realize Lord Montegomery had a brother.”

Miss Susan gave a sad smile. “Yes, and his is a strange and unfortunate story. He spoke briefly of his brother when he was last here.”

“Oliver…that is, Lord Montegomery was here?” Vivianna raised her eyebrows in surprise. “I did not realize you had met him in person. I thought you conducted the matter of the lease through his man of business and by correspondence.”

“At the time we first leased Candlewood we had not met him, no, but since then he has been here twice, or is it three times?”

“But why so many? I do not understand.”

“Neither do we.” The two sisters exchanged glances. “When he visited he would spend a great deal of time walking about the house, just looking, and once he brought a man with him who took measurements and hammered on the walls.”

“How odd.”

“It was, rather. We have also had Lord Lawson here once, shortly after we moved in, but that was to welcome us. In Anthony’s stead, was what he said.”

The two sisters watched her expectantly.

“Lord Lawson?”

Miss Susan was eager to enlighten her. “He is a member of Sir Robert Peel’s Tory party, and some say he will be the next prime minister. He may have been so now if Lord Melbourne had not inveigled his way back into government because the queen is so fond of him.”

The Beatty sisters did not appear to be impressed with Lord Melbourne, and Vivianna did not blame them. The prime minister was deeply conservative and seemed not to believe in reform of any kind. He had lost office in 1839 to Sir Robert Peel, but due to Queen Victoria’s refusal to dismiss her current ladies-in-waiting and allow Sir Robert to install new ladies of his own party’s persuasion—as was the custom—and Sir Robert’s subsequent stubborn stance on the matter, Lord Melbourne had been asked to return as prime minister. But it was, Vivianna felt sure, only a matter of time before Lord Melbourne was once more ousted—he was very unpopular with all but the queen, and now that she was enraptured by her new husband, Prince Albert, he had lost even her wholehearted support.

“Why would Lord Lawson welcome you in Anthony’s stead?” Vivianna asked, puzzled.

“Lord Lawson was Anthony’s very good friend.”

“Lord Lawson has written to us since his visit,” Miss Susan added. “He sent a note in response to our news that Candlewood was to be demolished, saying he would do all in his power to prevent it, but that as the property now belonged to Lord Montegomery, it may be a difficult matter.”

“Still, it cannot harm us to have a champion of his standing,” her sister added. “Lord Lawson is very well thought of. A great man.”

Vivianna agreed it would do them no harm to have a possible future PM on their side. “But I still don’t see why Lord Montegomery would visit Candlewood when he has said he wants nothing more than to see it turned to dust. It is odd.”

“Very odd.”

Vivianna sipped her tea. “It may be helpful,” she
said carefully, “if I knew the strange and unfortunate circumstances of Anthony’s death.”

“It is mostly gossip,” Miss Susan replied with a grimace, “but if it will help…”

“Anthony had been to a dinner at his club in the city,” Miss Greta took up the story. “Afterwards, he walked to Candlewood—he often did that, he said it cleared his head. He was planning to sleep here overnight before traveling on to his home in Derbyshire in the morning. His brother was to collect him by coach and they would travel together. You see, Miss Greentree, at that time there were no permanent staff at Candlewood—only those who came once a week to do some cleaning.”

“So Anthony Montegomery was here on his own?”

“Yes, all on his own. When his brother arrived in the morning, he found him lying in the hall, quite dead. He had been shot in the head. It was put about that someone had broken into the house, a thief perhaps, and finding Anthony here alone, had shot him to escape. The odd thing is, the pistol that did the deed was Anthony’s own, and it was found beside his body. Gossip would have it that he took his own life, but the full facts of the matter have never come out because no one ever came forward, and of course the family rejected suicide. Oliver took his brother’s death very hard. I have heard he was quite changed by it.”

The story
was
a tragic one, Vivianna thought. To lose one’s brother in such circumstances made her heart ache for him. But did Oliver’s loss excuse his selfishness in removing the orphans from their home? No, it did not.

“After Anthony’s death, Oliver inherited the Montegomery estate, the house in London, and Candlewood.” Miss Greta’s eyes flashed. “You know the rest.”

“Why do the gossips believe Anthony killed himself? Was he an unhappy man?”

Miss Susan leaned closer. “There
was
a reason he may have killed himself, Miss Greentree. Evidently he was about to become engaged to a girl, a girl he loved very much, but the night he died he had come upon his brother and the girl…embracing. I suppose, if he thought his heart was broken and all his happiness destroyed, he might contemplate suicide.”

“I see that he might,” Vivianna murmured. Anger seared through her, turning any lingering pity to steam. “How terrible. And why am I not surprised?”

“The Montegomeries were once a great family,” Miss Greta added fuel to the fire. “They had wealth and position. But now they are on the wane. If Anthony had lived, perhaps they may have risen again. Everyone says he had promise, and with a friend like Lord Lawson…But his brother…” She shook her head. “He is handsome and charming, I grant you, at least superficially so, but I believe he spends all his time in the pursuit of his own pleasure.”

“And he is so lacking in any sort of honor and proper feeling that he stole his brother’s fiancée. And his brother discovered it!” Miss Susan declared.

There was a silence while Vivianna picked over the ruin they had made of Oliver’s character. Could this unsavory fellow really be Oliver, with his dark lock of hair falling over his brow, his intense eyes, and his charming smile? No doubt Oliver had also fascinated his brother’s lady-love—Vivianna did not hesitate to put the entire blame on him. What chance did the lady have against such odds? He was her Uncle Toby all over again; a wicked and hard-hearted rascal who would stop at nothing to indulge his own appetite.

This morning he had kissed her as if he could not
help himself. If Lil had not interrupted, how far would matters have gone? She hadn’t felt under threat when he kissed her and held her—just strangely excited and curious—but she admitted now that she was an innocent when it came to men like Oliver Montegomery. He could not have become such a famous rake if he were not very good at what he did.

“Is there hope, do you think, Miss Greentree?”

Vivianna began to pull on her gloves with brisk, determined tugs, her eyes alight in anticipation of the battle ahead. “I believe so, ladies. I will let you know as soon as I have any news. Goodbye for now, and do not worry!”

The two sisters seemed cheered, some of the strain clearing from their faces. Vivianna kept the brave smile plastered to her own face until the coach set off, rumbling down the driveway to join the London road.

The Beatty sisters had given her much to think on. Not that she had the solution to their problems, not yet, but at least she felt she knew more about Oliver Montegomery, the man, than she had before. Perhaps she could turn it to her own advantage. Then again, she doubted he would be so easily overcome. For all his lazy smiles and indolent charm, there was a sense of strength and purpose about him that she was yet to fully understand.

Oh yes, there was far more to Oliver Montegomery than met the eye.

And what about Anthony’s fiancée and the rumors that Oliver had stolen the lady’s affections and his brother had seen them? Hardly admirable. But would a man seemingly without scruples be so changed by what he had done that he spent his days and nights in a drunken stupor? Surely they were more likely to be the actions of a man suffering excessively from guilt and regret. A troubled soul.