The Duke's Dilemma (8 page)

The horses were led out. The first of each trio
had a second lead rein attached to their halter allowing a man to lead his
small group. Ralph prayed they could get the horses, and themselves, back
without mishap.

He wondered if he should leave someone here to
see who came back to collect the animals but decided against it. He was
seriously short of manpower and every instinct told him this was only the
beginning. The man orchestrating these events had intended he should be
unnerved, that he would think the strange disappearance witchcraft or some
other such fustian, but he had now disproved that theory. What he didn’t know
was why his aunt had left; what he did know was that she hadn’t been spirited
away by ghosts. There were no ghosts Neddingfield Hall.

 
He
didn’t have time to ponder about who had left the horses; he was fully occupied
keeping himself in the saddle and hanging on to the three he was leading. He
became aware as they approached the Hall that there was no longer any need to
drag the Neddingfield mounts, they recognized they were approaching home and
began to increase their pace knowing a warm stall and good food awaited them.

This presented a problem of its own. The fourth
time the horses surged forward, trying to rush past, causing a blockage in the
narrow lane, Ralph decided to take action before one of them was hurt.

‘All of you, release the leads; let them find
their own way. It will be safer for us.’

The three men responded to his suggestion with
alacrity. Their sleeves must be as full of snow as his and their boot tops
also. In spite of his gloves his fingers were numb to the bone and hanging on
to the lead rein had become increasingly difficult. His left arm felt as if it
had been wrenched from its socket several times in the past hour. It would be
impossible to release the horses whilst still mounted. He remained where he
was, leaving Robin to organize matters for him.

He smiled at his man’s antics whilst taking the
opportunity to shake as much of the snow from his person as he could. ‘I’ll
leave you in charge, Robin. I’ll head back and let them know what to expect.’
He looked round, whistling loudly. Jet loped into sight and together they set
off towards the Hall.

Ralph considered what he’d discovered. He could
have gone in and shaken a little more information out of the old man but not
enough to make to make such brutal treatment acceptable. He would never
willingly harm anyone weaker than himself. He let Thunder have his head; the
horse was as sure footed and as eager to return as he was.

He had been through the study examining every
piece of paper but had discovered nothing to give him a clue as to his aunt’s
whereabouts. His cousin was right; the missing people had been taken to the
coast and then embarked on a ship.

Like an icy chill one piece of the puzzle
unexpectedly fell into place. Was it possible the letters Cousin Hester and he
had received summoning them to Neddingfield had not been written by his aunt?
This was the one thing he hadn’t checked. As soon as he got back he would find
Aunt Agatha’s diary and compare it with the letter he had in his room. Someone
had wished to lure them here. He glanced over his shoulder as if expecting to
be ambushed at any moment.

Chapter
Eight

Hester was in the study reading her aunt’s diary
when her cousin burst in. ‘Good heavens, you’re dripping wet! Aren’t you going
to change your clothes before joining me?’

He stopped and looked down at his mud-spattered
breeches then shook his head, grinning. ‘If you’ve no objection, my dear, I
shall remain as I am. I did take time to remove my greatcoat and gloves, which
will have to suffice.’

Intrigued, she laid the book down, waiting to
be enlightened.

‘Is that Aunt Agatha’s diary you have in front
of you? It’s what I came in to see.’

Hester noticed he had a square of folded paper
in his hand and understood his mission. ‘The letters, of course! They must be
forgeries, nothing else makes sense. I’m afraid I don’t have mine to compare,
it’s back at
Draycot
.’

He came across to join her by the desk, smoothing
out the missive as he did so. She opened the book and waited expectantly for
him to place the it down. When he did so she felt a wave of disappointment.

 
‘Oh
dear, we’re wrong. This is by the same hand. Look - the ink’s identical and I
believe the same quill was used, I can see the blobs and splatters on the last
page of the diary are the same as those in your letter.’

Ralph grabbed another straight-backed chair and
brought it over so that he could sit next to her. ‘I’m not so sure. There
are
differences. See, the S in the
letter is quite different.’ His finger stabbed at the letters and she felt a
thrill of excitement.

‘Yes, you’re right and the signature is not the
same either. If I recall correctly Aunt Agatha always added a swirl underneath
her name. There’s none here.’

He slapped his hand on the desk making her
jump. ‘My God, you’re right. This letter wasn’t sent by Aunt Agatha, but by
whoever spirited her away. At least one part of the puzzle is solved.’

His arm was pressing close to hers and his heat
burnt through her sleeve. He stilled and she glanced upwards, seeing a strange
expression on his face; then he was on his feet and striding up and down the
carpet.

‘Tell me, did you find the horses hidden
somewhere near the coast?’

‘I apologize, I should have said when I came
in. Things were as exactly as you predicted. I came on ahead but no doubt the
animals are back in their stables now. Someone will have to ride in to town
later as we’re going to need more outside staff.’

‘Please, won’t you sit down and explain exactly
what happened? I’ve been beside myself with curiosity these past two hours.’

When Ralph had finished his story she realized
he’d missed what could be a vital clue. ‘The old man at the farm, he didn’t
seem surprised to see you?’

‘No, that’s true, he didn’t. He was expecting
someone to come back and reclaim the horses.’

She nodded encouragingly, waiting for him to
reach the same conclusion. For a moment he looked blank then his mouth curled
in a heart stopping smile. ‘You’re there before me, once again. The man was
expecting someone like me to arrive, so was not surprised when I hammered on
his door. This tells us that whoever’s behind this must be a member of the
gentry.’

‘That indeed, narrows list of suspects down.
There can be only several thousand people to deal with, not several million.’

 
‘I can
think of no reason why I anyone should wish to lure me here under false
pretenses.’

‘However, you were. But we have not proved that
my letter was false. In fact, I’m almost certain that it had the correct
signature and the wording was quite different. Exactly when did you receive
yours?’

‘The day before I arrived; Aunt Agatha said the
matter was of extreme urgency.’

‘My invitation was of long standing, it was
arranged weeks ago, is it possible that whoever sent for you didn’t know I was
expected too?’

‘This gets more complicated by the minute.’

She had been thinking about this had come to
the same conclusion from whichever direction she approached the problem. ‘I
think I might have an explanation, it’s a trifle far-fetched, but then this
whole scenario is bordering on the ridiculous. Do you wish to hear it?’

He was all attention, leaning forward, his
expression expectant.

‘It has to be to do with money, it always is,’ she
paused, ‘or love, of course; sometimes it’s to do with love.’ She glanced up,
eyes twinkling, ‘I rather think an elopement can be ruled out in this case. I
think this must be to do with your recent inheritance. Could there be someone
else who had expectations? A man who wants the title and your fortune enough to
kill you for it?’

As soon as she said the words out loud she felt
as if a stone lodged in her stomach. Her eyes widened and the colour drained
from her face. ‘I’m right, aren’t I? Someone has brought you here to kill you?’
She looked fearfully around the room as if expecting the murderer to appear
from behind the curtain hangings. ‘And as I’m here, they will have to kill me
too; they will not wish to leave a witness.’

Her startling announcement hung in the air
between them, then Ralph was on his feet and at her side and she felt his arms
around her, warm and comforting, and her fear began to subside.

‘Kill us? What a nonsensical idea.
  
You’ve been reading far too many Gothic
novels, sweetheart, and they’re making you fanciful. There’ll be a far simpler
explanation, it has nothing to do with murder or money.’

*

As Ralph gathered the shaking girl in his arms
and spoke his words of comfort he was lying to her. She was correct. It had to
be his inheritance. Both of them stood to gain on Aunt Agatha’s demise, and now
he also held a title and a massive fortune of his own.

He’d come to her side with the intention of
offering reassurance; she was ten years his junior and seemed not much more
than a green girl. But his body was telling him differently. He felt her
warmth, the softness of her breasts pressing against his shirt front and the
sweet scent of her hair caused his body to respond accordingly.

This wouldn’t do. He was her guardian, he would
not take advantage; it would be unpardonable. Releasing her he stepped away,
turning his back to hide his embarrassment. He wandered across to gaze morosely
out of the window waiting for his arousal to subside.

There were enough complications at the moment
without adding a growing attraction to his beautiful cousin. He straightened,
his eyes narrowed and his face relaxed. Was it such an outlandish idea? Why not
her? He was turned thirty, held an ancient title – what would make more sense
than to marry his second cousin and keep the money in one place? This was the
ideal opportunity to stake his claim. They were virtually unchaperoned, and he
would have every opportunity to seduce her and make it impossible for her to
say no to matrimony.

*

Hester watched him puzzled by his sudden
departure from her side. Had she done something to offend him? One moment she
had been warm and safe, next rudely put aside and he was standing on the far
side of the room staring out across the snow. She didn’t know a great deal
about men, didn’t go often to public events, but knew enough to be aware of a
slight and didn’t enjoy the experience at all. A growing anger at her shabby
treatment replaced her fear and she stood up. Should she berate him for his
rudeness?

She was standing indecisively, when he swung
back to face her, looking at her in a most disconcerting way. It was as if he
was seeing her for the first time. She felt his glance linger on her face then
travel swiftly down across her heaving bosom to her toes. She responded by flushing
pink all over. Why was he staring at her in this way and making her feel
uncomfortable? She nodded regally and turning her back on him, departed in
dignified silence. The last thing she wanted was for him to take an
interest
in her.

She shivered in the icy corridor, pulling her
wrap close, and decided to go in search of Birdie. She remembered the ancient
housekeeper had a small room of her own adjacent to the butler’s pantry. The
woman had used both rooms as her domain as there was no butler at Neddingfield.

 
The
large house was divided into sections. The main part was used by Aunt Agatha,
but the smaller wing, which made it into an L-shape, housed the various
domestic offices. As well as the servants’ hall; on the first floor were the
butler and housekeeper’s rooms. These could be accessed only by taking the back
stairs.

The stairs were even colder, the walls not lit
by flickering sconces, you had to hold your own candlestick in order to see
your way. Thankfully emerging in the correct place, Hester was pleased to see
there was a coal fire burning in the grate and the area was a lot warmer than
the main part of the house. The door to the housekeeper’s
parlour
was standing open and her friend was seated at a table writing meticulously in
a large ledger. She hesitated at the door – might it be polite to knock? Birdie
looked up, her plain face softened by a smile of welcome.

‘My dear, whatever are you doing up here? You
had only to ring and someone would have fetched me down to see you.’

‘I’ve no intention of allowing you to run after
me. I told you, apart from a slight headache, I’m fully recovered and the
exercise has done me good. I’m sure if I remained sedentary for long, with my
prodigious appetite I would get too fat to move, even if I wanted to.’

Birdie laughed, as she was meant to. ‘Come in,
you’re very welcome. Actually, it’s far warmer in our side the house than it is
on yours. I’ve just had a tray of tea brought and Cook included some fruit
buns. I’ve finished here; I was just entering what we’ve used from the pantry
today - it’s the way things are done. I’m now free to join you by the fire.’

‘Do you know I’ve never been up here before. I
had no idea it was so comfortable and well appointed. I doubt many houses have
such rooms for their staff. I can see now why you are so eager to become
housekeeper; here you’re warm and don’t have to negotiate the icy corridors
every time you want to move from room to room.’

‘Very true, my dear. Now tell me what you’ve
been doing this morning. One of the girls, Mary, told me the horses have been
found and are now safe in the stables. That’s good news but confirms your
theory that Miss Culley and her staff have taken a sea voyage. Was she in the
habit of taking all her staff with her when she travelled?’

Hester held her tea, served in dainty porcelain
and decorated in pink edged with gilt. She was sure this was not the tea
service normally used up here, whatever Birdie believed the rest of the staff
knew she wasn’t really one of them.

‘It’s something I never asked. Why should I?
Perhaps Polly might know as she was walking out with a young man who worked
here. He could have mentioned he was going to travel with my aunt ‘

They sipped their tea companionably. Hester
devoured two of the freshly cooked buns liberally spread with butter. ‘The more
I think about this, the odder it seems. They left the chickens and the two
house cows but no-one to feed them. Surely if they’d planned to go away they
would have made arrangements for the livestock? I must discuss it with Waverley.’

‘Are you now assisting his grace?’

 
Hester
detected a smug satisfaction in her friend’s voice. Her suspicions were
correct. ‘On the matter of the duke, I don’t appreciate being thrown at his head.
We’re both quite capable of finding a partner if that’s what we desire. Are you
hoping our proximity will cause us to become compromised?’

The usual snort accompanied this comment. ‘You
could do far worse, my dear. You must

own
he’s not an antidote. A trifle tall, I admit, but apart from that he’s
everything he should be. He has no need of buckram wadding to improve the width
of his shoulders or the shape of his calves. He’s been a professional soldier
all his life, I believe. I can’t think of anyone better to take care of you.’

It was Hester’s turn to snort. ‘Birdie, he’s
definitely a man used to giving commands to that I will agree.
I
should not like to be tied to such a
one; imagine being ordered, barked and shouted at all day. It wouldn’t suit me.
Admittedly having a professional soldier around at the moment is more than
fortunate but when this mystery is satisfactorily solved I shall be quite happy
to say farewell and send him on his way.’

She stood up, shaking the crumbs from her lap.
‘I shan’t require any luncheon after eating two buns, but if it’s soup again I
shan’t be able to resist; yesterday it was delicious.’

She paused as an unpleasant thought occurred to
her. ‘Birdie,
this
Cook is still
preparing food for
all the staff, is
she not? The outside men as well? I couldn’t bear to think of them going
without in weather like this.’

Birdie nodded. ‘But of course she is, my dear.
Lord Colebrook insists on it. He has also given permission to light fires in
their rooms above the stables and to take any extra furniture and bedding that
they might require to make their quarters snug and warm. He’s a good man, my
dear, and looks after his own. He’s not like other aristocrats, he wasn’t born
into wealth and has only inherited recently.’