Savage Destiny (The Hearts of Liberty Series, Book 1) (31 page)

"Someone ought to stay with Ian. I don't think he should be left alone."

Alarmed, Sarah stepped close and lowered her voice to a hushed whisper, "You don't think he'll harm himself, do you?"

"I don't want to give him the chance."

"Well, if Elliott has to stay here with him, couldn't you come with us, Alanna? I know Melissa would expect us to take an interest in her son. Have godparents been chosen?" Robin asked.

"Yes," Alanna surprised herself with that answer. "Elliott and I will have that honor."

"When was that decided?" Byron asked.

Readily understanding Alanna's reasoning, Elliott was quick to take her side. "You mustn't be insulted. Alanna and I simply have more time to devote to Christian than you do. That's all."

"Is that what Ian said?"

Unconsciously mimicking one of Melissa's gestures, Alanna laid her hand on Byron's sleeve. "We're doing our best to ease Ian's burden, but if he would like to choose other godparents when the time comes to christen Christian, we'll step aside. Now let's not argue. We need to pay attention to our guests."

"Alanna's right," Elliott insisted. "So many people have brought food. Why don't we have something to eat?"

Byron watched Elliott link arms with both of the Frederick sisters, then moved in front of Alanna to prevent her from following them. "Wait just a minute. Mother didn't want us to stop and see Christian, and something's made you equally reluctant to take others to see him. Is there something wrong with the baby? Is that why you don't want him to have visitors?"

Alanna wished Elliott were still with her, but left on her own, did her best to stall him. "It's really too crowded in here to talk. Can we discuss this later?"

"There is something wrong, isn't there?" Byron glanced over her head to survey the crowded parlor. "You're right, it's much too crowded here to talk. Let's go upstairs to my room."

"Your room?"

"Don't look so shocked. You're like a sister to me, and I'll not try and seduce you."

"I know that. It's just that this is such an awkward time to discuss anything and—"

"Right now, Alanna. Come with me."

Not wanting to create a scene, Alanna managed a few shy smiles as she followed him to the stairs, but she dreaded every step. Byron was only two years older than Elliott, but he had always been the more serious of the two, and he and Alanna had never been close. Explaining to him was going to be every bit as difficult as speaking with Ian, and she didn't have nearly enough time to phrase her words carefully before he shut his door behind them.

"Is the babe sickly?" he asked. "If you don't expect him to live more than a week or two, then we all ought to hurry on over to see him, rather than wait until he's dead, too."

Alanna glanced around the room, started toward the chair at the desk, and then decided she would rather stand. "Christian appears to be a healthy little boy. He is small, of course, but that's to be expected, since he was born a month early."

"I thought he was due in January, not December."

"Oh, yes, I'd forgotten you and Elliott were never told about Melissa and Ian's elopement."

"What elopement?"

Byron now had his hands on his hips and looked ready to wring the truth out of her, if she didn't hurry up in telling it. She explained the secrecy about the elopement had been his father's idea, and that Ian and Melissa had agreed to go along with it and have a second wedding. The rest of her tale was far more difficult to tell.

"I know you loved Melissa."

"I asked you to tell me about the baby, Alanna, not my sister."

"First you must promise me not to tell Ian what I'm about to tell you, until he's far stronger than he is now. Will you give me your word?"

"I thought you said the baby was healthy?"

"His health isn't the issue. Now will you give me your word, or not?"

"You should know better than to have to ask."

"Forgive me then, but this is too important a subject to be bandied about."

Byron crossed the short distance between them, and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Are you never going to satisfy my curiosity? Must I ride into Williamsburg and have a look at the child?"

Feeling as trapped as Melissa must have, Alanna tried to state the facts calmly, but when she revealed that Christian was Hunter's child, Byron reacted even more emotionally than Elliott. For several seconds he simply stared at her, too shocked to speak, but then he shoved her away and bolted from the room. She ran to the door and watched him sprint down the stairs and out the front door. She didn't have to wonder where he was going, she knew, and she couldn't let him go alone.

Chapter 14

The black taffeta gown Sally Lester had provided for the funeral was far too expensive and elaborate an outfit to wear on horseback, and Alanna went to her room to change into one of the comfortably worn dresses she wore for riding. The earlier rain had gradually diminished to a heavy mist, and while her cloak was still damp around the hem, it would keep her warm and dry. With the hood drawn up to cover her curls, she thought she could succeed in leaving by the back door without being observed, until Graham Tyler called her name.

Obviously concerned about her, he was frowning slightly. "Surely you're not going out again?"

Alanna had seen Graham among those at the church, but she hadn't spoken with him. She had been at Charity Wade's the morning he had come to the house after learning of Melissa's death, but Ian hadn't felt up to seeing anyone and he had been sent away. He had made the effort to console his friend, however, and she admired his thoughtfulness.

"I have to go back into Williamsburg. Byron's gone to see the baby, and I need to be there."

"I have a carriage for the day, I'll take you."

"That's very kind of you, but then you'd have the bother of bringing me back home. I'd rather ride, and then I can return home with Byron."

"There's no reason for you to risk falling ill by riding in the rain. I'm free for the whole day, and it will be no trouble for me to bring you back here."

Alanna was in too great a hurry to argue with him. "All right, thank you. Can we leave right now, please?"

"Of course." Graham turned to gesture toward the front door, and Alanna hurried by him. Outside more than a dozen carriages were parked in a single row, and while he found his immediately, it took him several minutes to locate the driver who, along with the other drivers, had been invited into the kitchen to keep warm.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting," he said. "It's a shame Byron has already left, or we could have all ridden together."

"It was a hasty decision on his part. I'm sorry to have drawn you into it."

Graham had taken the place beside her and reached for the blanket lying on the opposite seat. "Here, let's wrap this around ourselves, so we don't become chilled. It will do little good if I keep you out of the rain and then still allow you to fall ill."

"I'm seldom ill." Alanna wasn't used to being fussed over, but she soon realized what Graham had really wanted was an excuse to cuddle up close. He was a sweet man, but his timing was so incredibly poor she couldn't abide it. "We buried Melissa only this morning, and I'd rather not be fondled."

Mortified that he had offended her, Graham moved aside several inches. "Forgive me if I seemed too forward, but it's been difficult for me to keep my feelings to myself all these many months. We met last spring and—"

Graham had recently been promoted, and Alanna remembered to use his new title. "Captain, please. I've never encouraged your affections, nor misled you in any way. Perhaps you ought to tell your driver to turn around, and I'll get into town on my own as I'd originally planned."

"No," Graham responded too sharply. "I'll behave myself."

He looked thoroughly miserable, but Alanna was more concerned about how Byron might behave at Charity's house. Byron had a temper, but she prayed he would not vent his anger on a helpless babe. "Melissa's death is not our only problem," she explained. "There's also her son's welfare to consider. I shall undoubtedly be preoccupied with his care for several months, if not years, and you ought to find yourself a young woman who can devote herself solely to you."

"I'll decide what's best for me. Besides, the babe is rightfully Ian's responsibility now, not yours."

"You saw how he looked today. He doesn't even remember he has a son."

"He loved his wife dearly, so his grief is natural, but it will lessen over time, and he'll take more of an interest in their child."

"A young widower with a commission in the King's army? It's unlikely."

"I think you're underestimating Ian. He's not one to shirk his responsibilities. He'll want to provide for his son. He's kept up the rent on the house he and Melissa lived in briefly. He can well afford to live there, and hire a housekeeper and nanny to make a home for the boy."

Reluctant to spin a web of lies as intricate as Melissa's, Alanna nodded rather than argue. She had given the driver Charity's address on Nicholson Street, and when they reached her house, Byron's horse was tethered to the gate. "Would you mind waiting here?" she asked. "Mrs. Wade wasn't expecting us, and I don't want to trouble her."

"I'll do whatever pleases you."

Alanna was merely exasperated by his abject adoration and hurriedly left the carriage, as soon as the driver had opened the door. The front door of Charity's house was slightly ajar, and Alanna could see her children playing on the rug in front of the fireplace. Hearing adult voices coming from the back room, she rapped lightly and then entered.

"Hello, children, where's your mother?"

The eldest boy ran to get her, and Charity appeared almost immediately. She was holding Christian in a frantic grasp. Byron was right behind her. "This man claims to be the babe's uncle. Is that true?"

"Yes, Melissa had two brothers, Byron, whom you've just met, and Elliott."

"I know I told you I'd be happy to have visitors, but I'd expected them to display better manners."

"I've not been rude," Byron contradicted.

"That, sir, is a matter of opinion."

"May I hold Christian?" Alanna asked.

"You sure may. Do you want to hang your cloak on a peg?"

Alanna left the long garment hanging by the door, scooped Christian from the wet nurse's arms, and then nodded toward the bedroom. "May we use the back room for a few minutes, please?"

Charity nodded and stepped aside without glancing in Byron's direction. "I'd just finished feeding Christian, when this gentleman arrived. If you rock him, he'll go right to sleep."

The small bedroom held a double bed, a cluster of small beds for the children, and the cradle where Christian slept. Alanna sat down in the rocking chair, and looked up at Byron. "There was no need to upset Charity. She's been very good with Christian."

Byron looked around for another chair, but there wasn't one. Too weary to stand, he sank down on Charity's bed. "How long do you plan to allow this farce to continue?"

"I wouldn't describe what we've done for Melissa's son as a farce."

"Just who is 'we'?"

"Dr. Earle, Polly, and Elliott. They were the only ones who knew this is Hunter's son rather than Ian's, before I told you."

"You'd not have told me if I hadn't insisted upon seeing him though, would you?"

"You would have been told today, after all the guests had left."

"How thoughtful of you. Did you intend to tell my parents then, too?"

"No. This was as great a surprise to me as it is to you, Byron. I knew Melissa seemed troubled, but I didn't even suspect that she could have such a terrible secret. If I've not handled things as well as I should have, it's been because there's been no time to plan. Elliott and I wanted Melissa to have a proper burial, before we took anyone else into our confidence. We were only trying to help you ease Ian's grief, not exclude you."

Byron raked his hand through his rain-soaked hair. "You must realize there are some who will say she ought not to be buried in hallowed ground."