The Elusive Heiress (32 page)

He gave her a crooked smile. ‘I’d had a good run. It was time I settled down to my responsibilities at home. These days I’m happy to follow Lord Wellington’s success in the Peninsular from my armchair.’

Kate sensed that his loss went deeper than he was willing to admit. However, he wasn’t the kind of man to sit around bemoaning his lot. Instead he had forged a new life for himself, learning to manage his estates and pursuing his academic interests.

‘Did your decision to take the honourable course bring you any closer to your father?’ she asked curiously.

Randle gave her a sharp look, but he did not deny that a rift had existed. ‘It was too late for us to become friends,’ he admitted. ‘But at least I had the satisfaction of knowing he died content.’

‘I am honoured you chose to confide in me, Randal,’ Kate said in a quiet voice. ‘But I’m afraid I don’t really understand why you thought it necessary to do so.’

His grip tightened on her hands. ‘I suffered another attack six months ago and the doctors told me that it could recur again.’

The disgust in his voice told Kate that, like most strong healthy males, he had no patience with his own illness and saw it as a humiliating weakness, but before she could utter a word of reassurance he was continuing in the same rapid tone.

‘My health is otherwise good and I have every intention of living to a ripe old age, but you ought to know what you are letting yourself in for if you take me on.’

Kate went very still.

‘Sweetheart, do you understand what I’m saying?’ Randal’s gaze held hers intently. ‘The other night when I saw you in danger I
knew
I couldn’t live without you! I love you and I want you by my side always!’

Kate swallowed hard. Dear God, what had she done to deserve this torment! Like Tantalus of old, what she desired most in the world was within her reach, but she couldn’t grasp it.

‘I’m aware we agreed to wait until we knew each other better, but I need to know if there’s some hope for me.’ Her continuing silence brought a puzzled look to his face and then a humorous smile lit his bright blue eyes. ‘Ah, I see I shall have to do the thing properly!’

In a quick movement he dropped to one knee before her.

‘My dearest love, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?’

His beloved promptly burst into tears.

* * * *

‘Please go away!’

Abandoning his attempts to comfort her, Randal asked if she wanted him to send Alicia to her.

‘No!’ Kate mopped her eyes with the handkerchief he’d given her and then in a quieter voice added, ‘I don’t want anyone. I just want to be left alone!’

‘Don’t you mean to give me an answer, sweetheart?’ he asked gently.

‘I’m sorry, but I can’t think straight right now,’ she gasped, choking on another half-hysterical sob.

‘Then I shall wait until you are ready.’ The expression on Lord Redesmere’s face revealed that he longed to say more, but, after dropping a light kiss upon her bowed head, he withdrew.

Kate knew that he was puzzled by her behaviour and she suspected she had hurt his feelings into the bargain. An aching sense of deep regret filled her.

She hadn’t dreamt that he would actually ask her to marry him. For a single brief second joy had blazed in her heart.

The knowledge that she must leave him had extinguished it.

She would have to refuse his offer, of course. What he would think of her when she then grabbed Kitty’s money and loped off sent fresh tears pouring down her face.

At length she grew calmer and was able to creep from the study and make her up way up the rear staircase which lay close by. Randal had invited several guests, including herself and Lady Edgeworth, to stay overnight and she had been given the same bedchamber in which she had slept on her last visit.

To her immense relief she didn’t meet anyone on her way there.

The room was empty. Kate realised that Mary must be in the servants’ hall enjoying the festive atmosphere. However, there was sufficient water in the ewer on the washstand for her to cool her hot cheeks and remove the streaks of eye paint which had run when she’d wept.

She had the necessary cosmetics with her and she quickly repaired the damage to her
maquillage
before tidying her hair and applying a little more perfume.

Her mirror reflected a calm face, which hid her inner turmoil. There was no further excuse to linger.

Kate steeled herself to open the door and stepped into the corridor.

‘You took your time.’

She gazed in dismay at the blue-satin clad Cavalier who lounged against the wall outside her room.

He straightened, unfolding his crossed arms, and as he approached Kate could smell the aroma of gin on his breath.

‘Still, the improvement was worth the wait. Been crying, had you?’

‘Keep away from me or I’ll scream!’

His eyebrows climbed up to the fringe of his heavy becurled periwig. ‘Why so unfriendly, Cousin Kitty?’

‘You know why, Sullivan,’ Kate retorted.

‘All I want is a little chat,
mavournin
.’

‘Get out of my way!’

To her surprise, he obligingly flattened himself against the wall.

Her flesh creeping, Kate stalked past him.

‘Still, I am thinking you should listen to me,’ his lilting voice followed her. ‘For what I’ve got to say is to your advantage, Mrs Devlin.’

Chapter Twelve

Slowly Kate turned round. ‘How did you find out who I was?’ she asked flatly, not wasting time on denials.

‘I saw you a couple of years ago at the theatre in Limerick. You were playing the part of Viola in
Twelfth Night
. I thought you a handsome piece!’ A sneering smile curved Sean’s mouth. ‘When I first arrived in England I wasn’t sure if you were the same woman or not. For a common actress you ape the part of a lady to perfection.’

Kate ignored the insult.

‘I knew you were an impostor, of course,’ he continued in the same patronising tone. ‘Then last Sunday I suddenly remembered seeing a handbill in Dublin puffing off the Gillman Players. Once my memory had been jogged I recognised you at once.’

He started to pull something from the deep pocket of his coat and Kate stiffened in alarm until she saw that it wasn’t a weapon.

‘That’s how you got this, isn’t it?’ Sean dangled the Nixon locket in front of her. ‘You helped that silly little bitch escape the river.’ His eyes narrowed. ‘I was sure she would drown!’

Kate resisted the temptation to try and snatch the locket from him. ‘Air trapped in her skirts kept her afloat,’ she informed him coolly.

‘I should have made sure she was dead before she went into the water.’

The look of revulsion on Kate’s face made him laugh. ‘Squeamish, eh? Well, at least that answers my next question. I did wonder whether you might have finished the job before presenting yourself here, but I suppose you left her alive.’

‘I don’t believe in violence,’ Kate replied cautiously.

‘So, she’s gone into hiding somewhere.’ A frown twisted his petulant mouth. ‘Do you know where she is now?’

‘I helped her get to Dublin in exchange for the locket,’ Kate lied. ‘I don’t know what became of her after that.’

To her surprise Sean shrugged. ‘No matter. I can deal with her if she turns up here.’

Misliking the feral expression burgeoning in his light eyes, Kate tried to wrest control of the conversation. ‘Why didn’t you denounce me when you realised who I was?’ she demanded boldly.

He looked at her as if she were stupid. ‘Why should I want to do that? You are my ticket to a fortune, Cousin Kitty.’

A cold dread shivered down Kate’s spine. ‘You can’t imagine I would
cooperate
with you!’ she exclaimed in accents of disgust.

‘I did wonder if I could make you trust me enough to accept an offer of marriage.’

Her expression revealed that he had been right to abandon hopes of charming her.

He laughed unpleasantly. ‘My parents put pressure on Kitty to wed me. You’re a damned sight more attractive, but, all in all, I will be happy to settle for the money.’

‘I won’t give you a penny of it,’ Kate said tersely.

‘Sure now, it’s very greedy of you to want to keep it all,
mavournin
.’

Kate opened her mouth to protest and then realised that to do so would betray her knowledge of Kitty’s whereabouts. She had to let him go on thinking she was acting from the same corrupt motives which drove his own pursuit.

‘Especially when you’ve got your eye on Redesmere. Now don’t poker up, Mrs Devlin. Anyone can see you’re sweet on him…or his money, but I’m not out to spoil your game. You can have him for all I care so long as you hand over half of Kitty’s inheritance.’ His feral smile reappeared. ‘I’d say it was a fair bargain. Pay Pa and me to keep silent and you get half of the old man’s money and a rich husband if you can catch him.’ His smile deepened. ‘I’ll warrant you that Redesmere won’t suspect a thing. Your past and your involvement in defrauding Kitty will be our little secret.’

Kate clasped her hands tightly together to stop them trembling. ‘Really? It had occurred to me once or twice that his lordship might be in league with you and your family.’

Astonishment flickered over Sean’s face. ‘Redesmere? What maggot put that idea into your head? He’s too damned honest! Besides, why should we want to join forces with him? He’s the one who stands to inherit if Kitty fails to register her claim.’

Randal was innocent! Struggling to keep her expression dispassionate, Kate pointed out that Gerald would automatically receive £10,000 in that case.

‘A mere bagatelle when we could be sharing the whole lot with you.’ Sean grinned. ‘This way all of us win.’

Kate laughed shortly. ‘You’d start blackmailing me the minute you’d wasted your share of the old Nabob’s money!’

‘I might,’ he conceded. His thin lips twisted into a sneer. ‘It’s a risk you’ll have to take if you want Redesmere.’

Sean knew that it was his own acknowledgement of her claim to be Kitty Nixon which had secured her Redesmere’s support and paved the way for a brilliant marriage. Luckily, he still had a lever to force her obedience. She was trying to hide it, but he recognized that she was scared witless of Redesmere finding out she was an actress.

‘Well, what do you say, Mrs Devlin?’ Sean played idly with the locket, dropping it into his coat pocket and lifting it out again. ‘Do you want to go to prison or do we have a bargain?’

Kate hesitated, thinking quickly. She had no intention of cooperating with Sean, but he would wreck everything unless she pretended to accept his vile proposal.

‘Promise me you will leave Kitty alone.’ It was only too easy to inject a faltering note into her voice. ‘I can’t consent to murder.’

‘I swear it.’ Sean made a showy gesture of laying his free hand across his heart.

Kate wondered if she dare try any more delaying tactics, but seeing the impatience in his cold eyes decided there was no sense in annoying him.

‘Very well. I agree to your demands. You may call on me in Abbey Square after I have signed the papers.’

Kate started to turn, eager to get away.

‘Won’t you shake on it,
mavournin
?’ Sean stepped closer. One hand was still casually thrust into his pocket, but he held his other out to her in the universal gesture of goodwill.

Realising that she had to make him trust her, Kate swallowed her revulsion and smilingly extended her hand.

* * * *

‘Ah nevvy!’ Emerging onto the courtyard terrace, Godwin Crawford hailed his nephew, who was staring moodily out into the darkened garden. ‘Have you seen Kitty?’

Randal turned to face him, his abstracted expression sharpening. ‘Why?’

‘She was promised to me for this dance.’ Godwin shrugged. ‘That fellow Sullivan was asking after her too. However, she seems to have disappeared.’

Randal stiffened.

‘Is something wrong?’

‘I don’t know. But I intend to find out.’

‘Do you want me to come—’

‘No. Please stay and entertain our guests.’ Randal flashed him a brief smile and strode away before his surprised uncle could protest.

Several ladies sought his company as he quickly scanned the rooms for any sign of his elusive heiress. Adroitly sidestepping their entreaties, Randal excused himself. Reaching the main staircase he rapidly mounted to the first floor. To his dismay, Katharine’s room was empty.

A nameless anxiety clawed at his heart.

Should he find Emma and ask her to check the room which had been designated the ladies’ cloakroom for the evening? Or would that be as fruitless as he suspected it might be to seek out Mary?

Katharine had been upset, but surely there was no reason for her to avoid him? Or did she really think he would pester her like that fool Sullivan?

Randal’s mind slammed back to the night of Alicia’s dress party. Katharine had hidden herself away on that occasion too.

His thoughts whirling, Randal began to search the other rooms along the corridor. They were all deserted and his uneasiness escalated.

Could it be Sullivan she was trying to elude? Of a surety, she disliked the fellow, but why did his instinct insist that she was afraid of the Irishman?

A monstrous suspicion made Randal draw in a sharp breath. Hellfire, if only he had caught a proper look at the rogue who had attacked her!

Something blue lying on the floor just inside the entrance to the Gallery caught his attention and, distracted, it took Randal a moment to realise what he was staring at was a feathered fan.

He picked it up and stood for an instant turning it over in his hand, his gaze unfocused. Then with an inaudible curse, he hurried towards the steep staircase which led up to top floor of the house.

* * * *

The cold kiss of the knife blade at her throat urged Kate on.

‘There now, that’s better!’ Sean kicked the door of the Confessional shut behind him and, ordering her to set down the lantern which he had forced her to carry, smiled smugly at Kate. ‘I knew we’d manage those stairs if you cooperated.’

Kate’s eyes glared at him over the silken gag which silenced the angry curses she longed to hurl at him.