“He looks too young to be the oldest.”
“He is twenty-four years old. Are you saying Anne looks old?” she asked, raising her eyebrows with a large smile to show she was teasing him.
“I would never suggest a woman looks old,” he responded with mock abhorrence.
“I think this is the first smile I’ve seen on your face since you’ve been here,” she said. A strange sensation came over her as she bent toward him. She wondered what it would be like to have him touch her face or hold her hand.
“I haven’t had much to smile over. Or perhaps it is all of the contusions healing on my face. If I smile too much, they could reopen.”
Pulling herself out of her thoughts, she giggled a little. “I’ve never heard such a ridiculous excuse.”
“Tell me more about your family.”
“Richard and I are the youngest. Richard wants to go into the clergy. He is twenty. Anne is twenty-two. Last year we thought Anne would be married by the end of the season. Mr. Bennett spent a lot of time with her throughout the season. We were all surprised when he left London and broke Anne’s heart.”
“Mr. Bennett? I think I might know him.”
Emma perked up and turned toward her friend. “You think you know him?”
“The name sounds familiar.”
“Perhaps he will know you. My family plans on going to London for the season. If you remain with us, you will also go.”
“I have a few months to start walking again; perhaps I will be able to dance by the time the season starts,” he joked.
Silence followed their conversation as Emma tried to find another conversation starter. She noticed he was rubbing the sides of his head with his eyes closed.
“Are you ill?” she asked, reaching toward him.
“A headache is all. I am certain it will go away soon,” he said as he continued to rub the sides of his head.
“Would you like to go back inside?”
He looked up at her and gave a sad smile. “I think it would be best. Perhaps it is the sunlight causing the pain.”
She pushed him back into the house and waited as Nurse Brown helped him into his bed. The pain in his head seemed to increase from the time he was in the garden to getting him back to his room. The nurse sent her to get a servant and hot water and asked her to give him time to sleep.
Emma was not allowed into the sick room without Nurse Brown now that their houseguest was healing. Doctor Price arrived to assess the headache, so Emma decided to take some time to herself. She gathered her notebook and pencil and walked out to the orchard. She found a soft spot under a tree and looked through the drawings she had already finished. She had drawn the man in their house numerous times as he slept. Now she wanted to draw him with his face healed. She started drawing from memory as she spent so much time in his presence.
“May I join you?”
Emma looked up to see Anne walking toward her. “Yes, you may.”
“Does he have any memories back yet?” she asked as she sat.
“He said he continues to see a woman’s face. I thought I would die of curiosity when he would not answer my question about how he feels when he sees this woman. Do you think he could have an intended?”
She saw the knowing smile on Anne’s face. “What if the woman is his wife?”
“Never say so!” Emma said while cringing.
“I worry you are allowing your romantic sensibilities to run away from you.”
Emma blushed. “I know. I can’t help myself.”
She saw Anne’s eyes focus on her pad of paper and regretted not trying to hide it when they were talking. “What have you been drawing?” she asked as she reached forward and grabbed it.
“Landscapes; they aren’t very interesting,” she said, trying to take the book back from her sister.
The book opened and one of the drawings of their houseguest fell out. “Oh, Emma.” The pity in Anne’s eyes was evident.
Emma looked down at her hands and admitted, “I’m very fond of him.”
“I feared you were.” She examined all of the portraits in the notebook, thumbing through each page and shaking her head. “These are very good drawings.”
“A nice way to look on the bright side of the mess I’m in.” She wiped the tears away as they formed.
They sat in silence as Anne continued to look through the drawings. Emma rested her head on her sister’s shoulder.
Anne rubbed Emma’s back. “How long have you been drawing him?”
“Since the night he arrived.” She closed her eyes so she wouldn’t see her sister’s response. “Am I a lost cause?” she asked as her sister finished thumbing through the sketches.
“You are hopeless,” Anne said with a laugh, “but we need to go inside. Mother sent me here to find you. Father and Henry are due from London.”
They walked arm in arm back to the house. Emma continued to wipe the tears away, hoping her insensible romantic heart would stop hurting before they reached the house. “Has the doctor relieved his headache?”
“When I left they were administering laudanum. He should be sleeping.”
Six
The days and weeks blended together as Edward and his family waited for information regarding Phillip. He’d been missing for two weeks. The house party ended much sooner than it was supposed to due to the disappearance. Edward continued to hold out hope of Phillip being found, as did his entire family. His moods went from worried, to anger, to fear, and finally to grief. His heart was breaking, as a part of it was missing. He and Phillip had only ever been separated for short periods of times in the past, but they always knew where the other one was.
Lord Folly admitted to seeing Phillip ride out the morning of the party. He was the last one to see Phillip alive. The thought of his brother’s death caused Edward to feel like he might lose his mind. Thomas admitted to putting a book in Phillip’s saddlebags. The book of Shakespeare’s sonnets was found in perfect condition.
Constable Adams asked the duke and duchess for an audience with Edward. Edward paced back and forth through the parlor, wishing the conversation was over. He had a feeling he knew what the conversation was going to be. The heir to the dukedom had disappeared. They were searching for reasons anyone would want to kill him.
“Your Grace,” Mr. Hodgens said as he walked into the parlor, “Constable Adams is here to see Master Edward.”
“Thank you, Hodgens,” his father said, standing from his place on the couch. “Please show him in.”
Edward looked to his parents. Charles, Charlotte, and Marianne were all in the parlor with them. Each one expressed their desire to stay during the meeting. He wondered if the constable would allow them to stay for support. Now the constable had arrived, and Edward wished he was back to pacing and waiting.
“Constable Adams,” Hodgens announced.
The man walked into the room and bowed to Ashby, Duchess Margaret, and the girls. He then turned and said, “Lord Edward, I would like to speak with you in private.”
“Anything you have to say to Edward will be said in front of the rest of us,” Ashby said. He spoke in a commanding voice, letting the constable know there was no need to argue.
Adams nodded his head and moved further into the room. Edward pointed toward the chair his father vacated and sat with the constable.
“Lord Edward,” Constable Adams said as he pulled his notebook and pencil out of his pocket, “where were you the day Lord Arundel disappeared?”
Edward was ready for the question. “I was at the garden party.”
“Which was held where?” Adams asked.
“It was held here at Wentworth Hall,” Edward said in response.
“Tell me,” Constable Adams continued, “can anyone verify you were at the garden party?”
“I can,” Charles stated, cutting
into the conversation.
“I can also,” Marianne and Charlotte both said at the same time.
Constable Adams turned to look at the them. “You can verify he was at the party the entire time? There was not a single moment he was out of your sight?”
Charles chose to speak. “Certainly he was out of our sight as we were speaking with guests throughout the day. But he was here.”
Constable Adams wrote on his notepad. He sat back in his chair for a moment, contemplating, and then turned to ask Edward, “When did you notice Lord Arundel was no longer at the party?”
Edward shook his head in frustration. “I don’t remember when I realized he was gone.”
“Why would he leave?” Constable Adams asked Edward immediately after receiving the last answer.
“He was unhappy about the engagement. He didn’t want to marry Lady Olivia,” Edward supplied. He looked at his father, who was facing the mantel of the fireplace.
“Where did you disappear to during the party?” Adams asked, again not giving any time between questions.
Edward stopped speaking, as he didn’t expect the question. He thought his assignation with Lady Caroline had gone unnoticed.
“I have a witness who will testify you left the party after Lord Arundel. Where did you go?”
Unsure how much he should say, Edward remained silent. He looked to his parents to see the disbelief in their expressions but still said nothing. If he divulged his whereabouts, it would bring more questions, and Caroline wouldn’t appreciate his loose tongue.
Adams looked up from his notepad. “Answer my question.”
“What were you told about my brief outing?”
“My witness saw you leaving the party.”
“So, you have no evidence of foul play, but you come here to accuse me and make my family believe I had part in my brother’s disappearance?”
Adams didn’t respond. Instead he fired off another question. “Did you follow Arundel into the woods and kill him?”
“Certainly not!” Edward said, anger rising in his voice.
“Why did you follow him into the woods?”
“I didn’t follow him.”
“Where did you go?”
“You may continue to ask, and I will continue to ignore your question. I have no intention of divulging my secrets.”
“Edward,” his father said in anger, “answer the constable so he can move forward in this investigation.”
“I cannot, Father.” Edward refused to cower. He’d always found favor with the duke and didn’t have any fear of ignoring an order.
He watched as Ashby ran a hand through his hair while he considered what to say. “Adams, Edward did not injure Arundel. I can attest to his innocence.”
“You believe this, yet you have no indication of where Lord Edward went during the hour he was away from the party?”
“Yes, I trust my son.”
Turning to Edward, Constable Adams continued, “You are now the heir to the dukedom. Do you see how suspicious it looks? There is an hour of missing time where no one can vouch for your presence.”
Edward stood, feeling anger build. It was rare for him to lose his temper, but Constable Adams had crossed a line. “I don’t want to be the heir. If Phillip is gone from this world, which I don’t believe he is, I will be more than happy to give the inheritance to Charles.”
“Edward!” Ashby yelled. This was the first time Edward could ever remember hearing his father’s voice raised toward him. Phillip always received the rebuke and punishment, because his father held him accountable for far too much. It wasn’t fair to Phillip, but it was the way of their father.
“Yes?” Edward asked with defiance.
“Tell Adams where you went during the party.”
“No, I cannot.”
Edward wasn’t expecting the impact. Just as Ashby had never yelled at him, he had never hit Edward. He should have recognized the symptoms of abuse, as he’d seen Ashby hit Phillip for as long as his memory went back, but it was a surprise to him to be hit. Edward stepped backward and stared in disbelief.
“Tell the constable where you went. Now.”
Edward stood tall, as Phillip had always done during the beatings. If he now was the heir, this was the future he had ahead of him. He would have to get used to the abuse. “No, I cannot divulge the information because it not only affects me but another as well. I will not ruin her reputation.”
He’d said too much. His father’s eyes went wide, as did his mother’s. He didn’t say anything more. Edward didn’t mind a small flirtation with a woman. Nor did he mind meeting up for a tête-à-tête, but he wouldn’t do anything to destroy a woman’s reputation.
“Who is the woman?” Adams asked. It was obvious he didn’t believe Edward in the slightest.
“Stop circling around the questions you want to ask,” Edward said, angry with the constable and his father.
“Did you kill your brother?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Did you take a gun and shoot your brother?”
“No,” Edward said, anger rising in his voice, “I didn’t.”
“If I were to search your room, would I find evidence of your day in the woods?”
“I didn’t spend the day in the woods,” Edward responded. He knew the constable was trying to catch him in a lie, but there wasn’t anything to hide.
“I found a ring by the river,” Constable Adams said, opening a handkerchief to show the finding. “Do you recognize this?”
Edward walked forward and took the ring from the constable. Blood drain from his face. “Yes, I recognize it.”
“Who does it belong to?” he asked even though the smug look on his face told Edward he already knew.
“It’s mine,” Edward continued. “I haven’t worn it for over a year, though.”
“Convenient.”
“This ring has been sitting in my room. I do not know how it ended up by the river.”
“You will be in my custody until further notice,” Constable Adams said. He stood and took the ring back, motioning for Edward to join him.
His father walked forward and stopped Constable Adams from progressing. “You won’t take Edward into custody.”
“Your Grace,” Adams said, defending his decision, “your heir has gone missing. The one person with motive at this time is your son next in line for the inheritance. His ring was found near a pool of blood at the river, and he disappeared for at least an hour and refuses to give evidence to save himself. Unless you have another person to suggest, I will have to take him into custody.”
“Edward was the first person to suggest going out to search for his brother. Why would he make the suggestion if he was the one to kill him?” Ashby responded, trying to persuade Adams to look elsewhere for the culprit.
Constable Adams looked at Ashby. “Don’t make this harder than it already is, Your Grace. I have known both Phillip and Edward since they were young boys. I have caught them in their pranks, and I have seen them grow into respectable men. This doesn’t make me happy. And the loss of Phillip is not only a tragedy for your family but for the entire community.”
“Do you think I don’t feel the loss of my twin brother?” Edward asked, cutting into the conversation. “He is my brother. He is my double. He is my other half. I feel his loss much more than this community. But I don’t believe he is dead.” He finished, feeling defeated and tired.
Constable Adams looked at Edward for a few minutes before responding, “We’ve finished a five-mile search down the hill and the surrounding area. As you know, we were able to track his horse from an area by the stream. The route he took was erratic and didn’t make much sense. Can you tell me why he would take such a strange route?”
“I can only imagine the situation for this course of action,” Edward resp
onded.
“Our tracker found Lord Arundel’s riding jacket, hat, one boot . . .” The constable hesitated before finishing. “A great deal of blood.”
Edward put his head in his hands. Phillip was alive; he had to be. Being a twin, Edward convinced himself he should know if his brother were gone from the world.
“So, you found blood,” Edward said in frustration as he ran a hand through his hair. “Blood does not mean he is dead.”
“Lord Edward,” the constable said impatiently, “your brother is dead. No one could live after losing the amount we found while stuck out in the cold night air. He was shot. We found three bullets lodged in trees. One of them had blood on it.”
Edward closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to decide on a response.
“I have no doubt after he fell off the horse he didn’t live much longer. We are searching the river for a body.” Constable Adams stood. “When we find his body, I will prove you did this. Now, you can either come willingly, or I will arrest you.”
“This is not the answer!” Ashby yelled at the constable, punching the wall. “Edward would never kill Arundel. Never!”
Edward wanted to be thankful for his father, but he was still in shock over being hit. It happened so fast; he hadn’t expected it.
His mother took hold of his arm and spoke to Constable Adams. “If you take Edward into custody, you will need to arrest me as well. I will not have my son sitting in a jail cell when he has not done anything to deserve it. He is already struggling with the loss. I will not have you add this to his stress.”
In another attempt to have the constable search for Phillip, Ashby asked, “Have you checked at local farms? Or what about doing a search of local villages? Have you sent his description out?”
“Your Grace,” Constable Adams said again in an effort to help the family understand they were holding out false hope. “We are searching to recover a body. We don’t expect to find him living. And no, I will not send a description out. His body is at the bottom of the river.”
Edward bent low over his legs, head in his lap. He couldn’t handle listening to the constable announce his brother’s death and accuse him of the murder. He blocked everything else out of his mind as the constable finished his statement. “It would be a miracle if Lord Arundel survived. Again, we are looking to retrieve a body.”
The Earl of Arundel (Earls of England Book 1) Page 4
