Vexing the Viscount

by Christie Kelley

  “Do not go after her,” Jonathon warned. “We have to wait and make sure she leaves.” Jonathon returned to his seat next to Emily on the sofa.

  “That was the hardest thing I have ever done,” Braden admitted slowly. He walked to the window and stared outside as if to catch a glimpse of her one last time. He doubted it was the best decision, but Jonathon convinced him that he could not marry her until after this mess was settled. Braden wondered if she would ever forgive him for the deception.

  “I know, Braden,” Jonathon said. “After what you and Emily told me, I am sure we can convince her that this was purely for her safety. If she was married to you, the next viscount could not make a claim for the title until after it was determined she was not carrying your child, and that could take months.”

  “We could have told her that. She would have understood my reason for not marrying her tomorrow.”

  “No,” Jonathon said vehemently. “She needs to be away for her own safety.”

  “I understand, but it does not make the matter easier to swallow.” He glanced away from them. “I fear she will never forgive me.”

  “Of course she will,” Jonathon said. “I can explain it to her.”

  “No,” he said harshly. “I will make this right with her. No one else.”

  “He is right, Jonathon,” Emily finally spoke up.

  “I will send for Mia at once,” Braden said. He walked to the hall to speak with Nelson. “Has Miss Featherstone left yet?”

  “She stormed out of here a few moments ago, my lord. Is everything all right?” Nelson looked down. “Please excuse my impertinence, my lord.”

  “She and I had a slight disagreement.”

  “She took her valise with her,” Nelson added.

  Good. So far their plan was working. “I see,” he said. “Please send a note to Lady Hartsfield. Inform her that we need her medical experience, but it is not for her sister. I wouldn’t wish her to worry.”

  “Very good, my lord.” Nelson gave him a strange look before turning away to write the letter.

  He walked with leaden feet back to the study. What were they going to do with Emily? “I sent for Mia.”

  “Thank you,” Emily whispered.

  “What do we do now?” Jonathon asked. “I can’t let her go back to him.”

  “I won’t go back to him,” Emily said resolutely. “I will divorce him now.”

  “Divorce is extremely difficult,” Braden said. “Very few women ever achieve it. I know Eldridge has been unfaithful and now this. But I need to understand what drove him to beat you.”

  Emily blinked her tears away. “Your visit this morning. I believe he heard more than I had imagined. He demanded to know if I was meeting Jonathon. And how I was doing it.”

  “Did you tell him?” Jonathon asked.

  “No, of course not. Then he thought he could beat it out of me. If my maid had not come in, I don’t know what might have happened.”

  Guilt spread throughout his body. She had been injured purely due to his visit. He should have known Eldridge would suspect her of harboring Jonathon. “Perhaps she can stay with Mia and Hart.”

  Jonathon went silent for a long moment before shaking his head. “That makes sense, but will Hart allow it?”

  “Yes,” he said without a thought. Hart had a soft spot for women. And knowing his past, he would want to assist Emily.

  Within a few minutes, Mia and Hart arrived. Mia blustered into the room much like her mother would have done.

  “What is wrong? Where is Tia?” She scanned the room. Seeing Emily, she went to her. “Who did this to you?”

  Emily stared at her hands without saying a word.

  “Can someone please tell me what is going on and where my sister is?”

  “Lady Hartsfield, this is Emily, Lady Eldridge,” Braden said. “I don’t know if you have met my brother, Mr. Jonathon Tavers.”

  “Yes, I met him over the summer at the estate,” she muttered. “Now that we all know who we are, I will ask again—where is my sister?”

  Braden cringed. “Quite possibly on her way back to the estate.”

  “And why would she be doing that when you and she are to be married tomorrow?” Mia asked in an all-too quiet voice.

  “There will not be a wedding tomorrow.”

  She glared back at him with eyes the same color as Tia’s. “Why not?”

  Braden sat down with a sigh. “I cannot tell you the specifics, but right now she does not want to marry me. Before you say anything, I will tell you that once this little mess is done, she will forgive me and marry me.”

  “I would not be so certain if I were you, my lord,” Mia said, fishing some items out of her small valise.

  “Why not?”

  “We Featherstone women have long memories and don’t always forgive so easily.”

  It was probably a good thing she did not see her husband shaking his head and mouthing the words not true to Braden. “I will take your words under careful consideration, Mia.”

  “You had best do that,” Mia replied, wiping the dried blood off Emily’s face. “How long ago did this happen?”

  “Two hours ago,” Jonathon said as he watched the wise woman.

  “Why was I not called sooner?”

  “There were other, more important issues that needed to be attended to, Mia,” Braden said sharply. Hart leveled a deep scowl at him. “I apologize for my behavior.”

  “Did he hit you anywhere else? Are your ribs all right?” Mia turned her attention on Emily again.

  “No, just my face,” she finally admitted.

  “And how far along are you?”

  Emily’s face went pallid. “How did you know?”

  Mia gave her a look far wiser than her twenty-four years. “I knew the moment I saw you that you were carrying. So why would your husband have done this to you?”

  “How do you know it was him?” Emily whispered.

  “Just a feeling. Mr. Tavers is watching my every movement around you like a mother hen. So it isn’t terribly difficult to assume what happened.” Mia finished cleaning Emily’s face. “You shall be bruised for a few days, but it’s not that bad.”

  “Not that bad?” Jonathon shouted.

  Mia turned her glare on him. “No, it wasn’t all that bad, Mr. Tavers.”

  “How can you say that?” Jonathon said. “You have no idea what it is like to have a man beat you like this.”

  “Oh, you might need to intercede, Hart,” Braden said with a cringe.

  “My wife can fight her own battles, Middleton. I made certain of that.”

  Mia rose and placed her hands on her hips. “Indeed? Mr. Tavers, I should warn you to tread very carefully here. I spent weeks recovering at Hart’s home because a man abused me. I am not saying what happened to her should be dismissed. But she will not need to stay in bed while her entire body attempts to recover.”

  Jonathon looked abashed. “I apologize, my lady. I had no idea.”

  “Now,” Mia said, looking at all the men in the room. “What are we to do with Lady Eldridge? She cannot stay here. Nor can she stay with Mr. Tavers. And I will not allow her to return to her husband.”

  “I was hoping she could stay with you,” Braden said in a gentle tone.

  Mia rolled her eyes before glancing over at Hart. He shrugged. “It is all right with me. However, if her husband comes to my home to retrieve her, we have no option but to turn her over to him.”

  “You will do no such thing!” Mia exclaimed.

  “It is the law, Mia,” Hart said. “He has the legal right to bring her back to his home.”

  “It’s not right,” she retorted.

  “I can’t agree more.”

  Seeing Emily’s white face, Braden said, “If it is settled, we need to get her out of here before Eldridge pays me a visit.”

  Mia and Hart departed with Emily as Jonathon watched from the window. Braden wrote a note to Alistair asking him to join them. Braden wondered where
Tia was right now. He needed to speak with Mrs. Abbott.

  “Nelson, ask Mrs. Abbott to come see me in my study.”

  “Of course, my lord.”

  Mrs. Abbott’s hasty footsteps soon rang out from the hall. “Yes, my lord?”

  Braden had hated asking for Mrs. Abbott’s assistance, but it had been the only way Tia would return to the estate safely. “How did it go with her?”

  “She took the money you gave me and told me she was heading back to her mother’s house.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Abbott.”

  “My lord—” Mrs. Abbott started and then stopped.

  “Speak your mind,” he said gently.

  “Do you think it was for the best to send her away now? Begging your pardon, my lord, but what if she is carrying your child? She will need the security of your name.”

  “And she will have exactly that as soon as this mess is finished. Please don’t say a word to any of the other servants. Only you and Nelson are aware of the situation.”

  “Of course, my lord.” With a quick bow, she left the room.

  Braden had turned in some favors from his gambling days to make sure this would all go off without incident. As long as the servants kept quiet, everyone was would play their part. Alistair arrived at four, still looking apprehensive, but willing to agree to the plan as long as Jonathon was involved.

  They discussed the plan in detail over dinner until each of them knew their part. The carriage was pulled around as if they were going for a normal outing. Alistair balked at the driver knowing where they were going, but it was necessary that someone could place them at the house. There was no other way this plan would work.

  They drove toward the Red Door. Turning up an alley, they left the carriage and hurried with quite a bit of noise. Each of them carried a bottle of whiskey in their hands. They passed a few people who must have thought they were already foxed. A small, deserted home Adams owned sat away from the others. They entered the room and discovered Braden’s favors had been turned in when they saw the bodies at the table. Playing cards were spread out as if the dead men had been playing before they keeled over and died. Adams would admit they had all been playing cards before he had been called back to the Red Door due to an issue there.

  Jonathon lit the fire in the fireplace as Braden and Alistair spilled whiskey all over the bodies. Adams had supplied enough whisky that the small house should be up in flames in no time. They spread the alcohol all over the area of the room where the dead bodies were propped over the table. Braden lit the room and raced out the back door and down the street where Adams left the back door to the gaming hell open.

  They were hurried up to the third floor. Braden went to the window and watched as the fire quickly engulfed the house. He felt a twinge of guilt for those poor dead men, but he’d been assured no one had come to claim them. So for now, all they could do was wait until Nelson reported back to Adams that the new viscount had arrived. And in Braden’s case, wait and worry over Tia’s safety.

  Tia finally arrived back in the Midlands a few days after the incident in the study. She would be forever grateful to Mrs. Abbott for lending her the money to take the postal coach. She’d felt sorry for the passengers who had to endure her endless tears the entire drive. After a few days, she now felt as if she had no more tears to shed. A certain numbness had come over her that she could not shake. Honestly, she preferred the numbness to the agony of heartache.

  She walked slowly toward her mother’s cottage, wondering what her mother would say to her. Knowing her, Mother would tell her to return to Middleton Hall as the wise woman there. When she finally reached the door, she didn’t know what to do. Should she knock? Should she just go inside?

  She decided to knock and open the door. “Mother? Are you home?”

  “Mia, is that you?” a voice called from the bedroom.

  “No, Mama,” she said with a catch in her voice. “It’s Tia.”

  Her mother ran from the room and brought her into a warm embrace. “Oh, my darling, where have you been?”

  The dam burst and her tears spilled over. “Oh, Mama,” she cried.

  “Hush, it can’t be as bad as that.”

  “It is so much worse,” Tia mumbled. The heat of her mother’s arm warmed her numb body.

  “Come on, we shall sit and have some tea and you can tell me all about your travels. I can’t imagine where you’ve been. I even sent Middleton to London to find you. I suppose I shall have to write him and tell him you have returned.” She led Tia to the sofa by the fireplace.

  “Please don’t write him.”

  Her mother looked down at her. “Why would I not?”

  “I do not want him to know I am here.” Although, she supposed it would be the second place he checked, the first being Mia’s home in London. If he even cared to look for her at all. At this point, she doubted he would.

  “Oh my.” Her mother sat next to her on the sofa. “I believe I had better hear this before making tea.”

  She didn’t know where to start. How did you explain to your mother that you became a man’s mistress?

  “I take it he found you?” her mother asked.

  “Yes.” Slowly, she found the words to explain what had happened over the past few weeks. The tale sounded incredibly sordid.

  “Oh my,” Mother said again. “So you do love him?”

  Did she? She thought she had been in love with him, but after hearing about how he was using her to get vengeance on Jonathon, she wasn’t sure any longer. “I do not know.”

  “I know,” her mother commented. “I can see how much you love him in your eyes and your tears. It wouldn’t hurt this much if you didn’t love him.”

  She couldn’t deny that. It felt like someone had stabbed her in the heart and continued to turn the knife. “I do love him,” she whispered. “But I don’t want to.”

  “I don’t know,” Mother said. “I haven’t known the man for long, but he never seemed the kind of man who would use another person to get vengeance. I think he could have thought of another manner of revenge on Mr. Tavers.”

  “Then why else would Jonathon have said that?”

  “I am not sure. But it does seem as if something odd is going on in London these days.” Her mother went to the fire to heat some water for tea. “Does he honestly believe that staging his own death will make the culprit come forward?”

  “Yes, he does.”

  “Hmm . . . again, seems quite odd to me.” Her mother turned away from the fire and stared at Tia for a long moment. “Are you with child?”

  “I won’t know for a week.” Oh God, the last thing she had ever wanted was a child outside of marriage. She wanted the life her mother and father had, with a home full of love. Her lip trembled.

  “Either way, we shall make things work out,” her mother said, returning to the sofa with the tea. “Drink. Tea has a way of making everything seem fine.”

  Tia doubted a cup of tea would help her today. But like an obedient child, she sipped her tea and then put her head on her mother’s shoulder. “Thank you, Mama.”

  “For what?”

  “Understanding and not criticizing.”

  “I could never throw that first stone after what I did even younger than yourself.”

  Tia lifted her head and stared at her mother’s red face. “And what exactly did you do?”

  A slight smile lifted her mother’s lips upward. “Shall we just say that even for twins, you and your sister were very premature.”

  For the first time in days, Tia smiled.

  Tia spent the next fortnight at her mother’s cottage, moping about. So far, her mother hadn’t said a word to her about returning to her cottage at Middleton Hall. She hadn’t said a word about her even helping out here. But after two weeks, she was ready to do something. Staying inside the cottage was making her feel too isolated. Today, she would return to her ways as a wise woman.

  She hadn’t heard a word from Braden and expected she neve
r would. At least, she had one less worry as her monthlies had arrived like clockwork. Even if she had felt the bite of disappointment that first day, it was for the best not to be carrying his child.

  “Mother, I need to get back to work,” she announced as they ate a meager breakfast of toast and tea.

  “I agree. With the colder weather setting in soon, I will need the assistance. If you do not feel comfortable going to Middleton Hall, I would understand it. I will not force you to return there and take the chance of seeing his lordship.”

  “Thank you. I doubt he has returned yet. And I think getting out and seeing people will help me.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. It is far better to surround yourself with people who love you than to stay away from them all. There is not a soul on this estate or even Middleton’s who wouldn’t support you.”

  With her mother’s boost of confidence, Tia set out to visit the tenants at Middleton Hall. And as her mother had said, they all welcomed her into their homes. If they had heard any rumors of her involvement with Braden, they remained silent about it. After six hours, she strolled back to her mother’s cottage. The October air was getting much cooler now and it refreshed her weary soul.

  She opened the door to find her mother and a man sitting at the table, deep in conversation.

  “Tia, this is Mr. Andover. You need to sit down.”

  “Mr. Andover,” Tia said with a bow. “How can I help you?”

  “I’m afraid there has been an accident involving Lord Middleton.”

  Tia did her best to look surprised. As angry as she still felt over Braden’s deception, she would not give up his charade. Until he discovered the truth, his life was in danger and she could not let him die. “An accident? Is he all right?” Dear God, she hoped he had the sense to listen to her about the fire.

  He shook his head. “I am sorry to say we believe he died in a fire.”

  “Oh, God.” She covered her face with her hands. Where were all those tears when she needed them? She blinked furiously in an attempt to bring one to the surface. “Are you his solicitor, then?”