A Murderous Masquerade (Unrivalled Regency Book 2)

by Williams, Jackie

  “Thank you. It’s good to know that someone believes me.” He hesitated before speaking again. “I...I’m also grateful for your influence. This does make a difference.” He swept his hand about the room.

  Alexander let out a laugh.

  “Don’t know about influence but I do know about money...It’s amazing what a few coins can do.”

  Giles’ face flushed.

  “You mean that you’ve had to pay to get me this treatment? Oh God! Now I feel...hang on.” He paused as his mind went over something Anne had said to him. “Lavenham is strapped for cash! He was dangling Anne in front of Lord Foxcombe’s eyes only last week. Lavenham wanted her to marry the old goat because he’s absolutely loaded and Edward agreed with him.”

  Alexander’s eyes went wide.

  “You mean the old Lord Foxcombe? Heavens! He must be fifty if he’s a day! His wife only died last year. He already has a grown son so why would he want another bride?”

  “Something about a wayward fourteen year old daughter I gathered, besides, apart from yourself and Geoffrey, who are far too honourable to even think about it, what man wouldn’t want to bed someone like Anne?” He shuddered at the mere thought of anyone but him touching her.

  Alexander rubbed the stubble on his chin as he thought about that piece of news.

  “How’s he bringing this prosecution against you then? I imagine that Gates doesn’t know. He won’t like it if the Earl dupes him.”

  Giles snorted and then laughed.

  “It would bloody well serve him right for not believing me.” He sat down on the bed and leaned his elbows on his thighs. He looked up at Alexander. “Go home. Lily needs you and so do both of my ladies. There’s nothing more you can do here.”

  Alexander nodded, knowing that his friend was right.

  “Craddock will bring you dinner later. We’ll look for a hidden passage from Edward’s room tonight and I’ll start making enquiries first thing in the morning. I’m going to call on Latham and Rookwood first. One of them will break if they have anything to hide.”

  Giles nodded and then laughed grimly.

  “If you want to make sure of getting a result, take Charlotte along with you. If you can’t get anything out of them, I’m damn sure that she will.”

  Alexander knocked on the door. It opened instantly and clanged firmly shut behind him as he left the room. Giles listened as the door was locked before lying back on the bed and staring at the ceiling. There were swooping cobwebs in all the corners but at least the room didn’t smell of body fluids and mildew.

  He crossed one boot over the other and linked his hands behind his head as he stretched out. He closed his eyes and immediately his thoughts were flooded with pictures of Anne lying naked in the bath of bubbles the previous afternoon. He groaned and willed his body to ignore the images but it was a near impossible task. He opened his eyes again as he wondered how he would ever get through the next few days without her by his side. He could only hope that she would remain strong and ignore anything her father told her. He was absolutely sure that Lavenham would try to poison his name even further and he could only thank the Lord that he had led a fairly uneventful life.

  He was pondering what else he could do to help his situation when the door opened again. Craddock entered bearing a tray that looked as though it was about to collapse under the strain. Giles sat up and stared at the feast.

  “Good God! Are we feeding the whole prison? Or is the king in residence somewhere?”

  Craddock raised an eyebrow.

  “You have to keep your strength up while in here. Wouldn’t want your lovely lady to find that you had turned to skin and bones when you are released.”

  Giles stared pointedly at the whole capon, the gammon ham, the dish of buttered potatoes, loaf of bread and the raspberry tart. There was also a bottle of brandy and a bottle of port wedged between the plates of meat.

  “She’s more likely to think I’ve turned into her brother if I eat even half of this amount each day.” He lowered his voice and whispered to his valet. “Good grief, man! You do realize that if the worst comes to the worst I am going to have to make an escape through that window. If you keep feeding me like this I’ll never fit!” He tried to bring a little levity to the situation.

  Craddock began serving the dishes onto a plate as he pointedly ignored his master’s attempts at frivolity.

  “Don’t be ridiculous, My Lord. You’ll walk out of the door a free man by the end of the week.” He placed the plate on the table and lay out a knife, fork and linen napkin before bowing to Giles and backing out of the room.

  Giles stared at the mountains of food and then sighed as he took up the bottle of brandy. At least he could drink himself into oblivion if he so desired. He poured a small glass and put the stopper back in. There was far too much at stake to even think about becoming drunk.

  He took his time eating his meal. The capon was cooked to perfection, the ham deliciously tender. The potatoes melted in his mouth and the raspberry tart cleansed his palate.

  He heard shuffling beyond the door of his prison. There were several coughs and at one point he even thought he heard a deep, wistful sigh. Looking down at his empty plate and the mountainous piles of food left over, he knew that in the heat of the night the rest of the feast would spoil. He gave a sigh of his own, hacked off several slices of the ham and wrapped them in the bread just in case he became peckish in the night before he knocked on the door of his room. It opened a crack almost instantly. The pockmarked guard stared at him.

  Giles looked down at the man’s drawn features and tattered clothes. He wouldn’t be much opposition if Giles did attempt to make a break out. The man licked his lips as he glanced past Giles towards the left over tray of provisions and Giles raised an eyebrow in question. The man looked upwards and stared pleadingly into Giles’ eyes.

  “I ‘ave three lit’luns to feed, Me Lud,” the man rasped as his eyes flicked back to the cooling food. “We don’ make more un a few shillings a week in ‘ere. My Betsy do what she can bu’...”

  Giles stood back from the door.

  “Take what you need and then share the rest with the other men here. It will all spoil before morning anyway.”

  The guard didn’t hesitate.

  “I’ll bring the tray an’ dishes back tomorra’, Me Lud, an’ if there’s anythin’ I can do for you, don’ ‘esitate to ask. So long as it’s in me power to do it, call it done.” He hurried back through the door to the excited chatter of the other guards who had eagerly gathered around the plates of food.

  Giles sat back down on his bed and laughed quietly as the noises settled and the guardhouse became still again. He glanced over at the door, knowing that it remained unlocked and that he was temporarily forgotten before reaching into his pocket and removing the tightly folded note that Alexander had given him. Sure enough, Charlotte had made detailed plans for his escape, all of which relied on slitting some poor devil’s throat. He almost laughed again as he took a final glance towards the unlocked door of his prison. It was sorely tempting to just walk out and disappear into the night, but however slack they were, the guards’ livelihoods depended on their jobs and he found that he couldn’t do it to them. He perused the canopy of the bed and the thick swathes of cobwebs again.

  Well, he wouldn’t do it to them this evening! He thought silently.

  Chapter Nine

  Anne tried to ignore Charlotte’s pinched expression as she explained for the tenth time why she was not allowed anywhere near the gaol.

  “My dear, please don’t make yourself ill. Giles and Alexander are only thinking of you. The gaol is no place for a young lady.”

  Charlotte pounced immediately.

  “You’re still young and you’re going!” She exclaimed angrily.

  Anne smiled inwardly at the compliment, but sighed deeply as she walked towards the window. She stood beside the angry girl as she stared out at the grounds.

  “Charlotte, do not be annoyed
with us. You know perfectly well that there is a difference. Not only am I several years older than you, I am a widow who is now betrothed to your cousin. No maiden should be allowed anywhere near the town gaol. The place is full of reprobates, thieves and murderers.”

  Charlotte snorted in a most unladylike fashion and spun away from the beautiful view.

  “I hope that you’re not including Giles in that sweeping statement. I know that he’s not a thief or a murderer and I don’t think he’s done anything to qualify calling him a reprobate either. He’s certainly only ever been charming to me.” She turned to Lily who was lying upon the chaise, relaxing as she read a book. Charlotte waved her hands to attract her attention. “Can’t you make Alexander take me? It’s not fair that I should be left behind. He’s already been in that horrible place for three days. Giles needs me!”

  Lily lay her book across her stomach and smiled gently at Giles’ ward.

  “He needs assurance tha’ you are safe and well, Charlo’e. He has asked tha’ even Anne doesn’t pay him another visit, so it is not only you that is suffering. We know tha’ you would like to see him but you cannot wish to cause him a moment’s more distress than he is already suffering.”

  Accompanied by Alexander, Anne had visited the gaol the day before and while she appreciated that Giles was in superior accommodations, the dirty and cramped state of the guard house had her worrying about his health.

  Giles had not been pleased to see her. He had made all the right noises and had held her close to his chest for a long moment before setting her away from him. It was obvious that he was uncomfortable with her there.

  “You shouldn’t have come, Anne. I don’t want you to see me in here.” He’d tried to turn away from her but she held him fast and ran her fingers into his thick hair.

  “If you keep saying and doing things like that, I will wonder about your constancy. Don’t push me away, my love. It’s bad enough knowing that you are here, let alone that you are alone. I will visit every day.”

  Giles had shaken his head while taking a few deep breaths before forcing out his words.

  “No, Anne. You don’t know what this is doing to me. Seeing you will only make it more difficult for me to endure, but never fear, you have my constancy and my love forever. Please listen to my plea; I cannot see you here again. It breaks my heart that you should witness me reduced to this.” He motioned his hand around the poky accommodations. At least the cobwebs had been removed by an enthusiastic Craddock earlier that morning, but he was still uncomfortable seeing his betrothed in such a place. That she had braved the sweating, leery guards outside the door was beyond more than enough. “Promise me that you won’t come again. This time apart will be over soon. We will not have to wait long until we can be together.” He’d glanced at Alexander and his friend had taken his hint, removing Anne from the room before she could protest further.

  Realizing that she was not about to win any arguments with the two women, Charlotte slumped down in the chair, her dress catching on the arms as it billowed away from her. She felt something hard press against her thigh and felt in her pocket to pull out the cinnabar box. Anne looked at it curiously.

  “What do you have there, my dear?”

  Charlotte turned the box over a couple of times before holding it up to Anne.

  “It’s a secret box. Can you hear that something is inside?” She gave it a quick rattle. “The trick is to discover how to open the box. It was my father’s and he tried for years to open it but to no avail. I think he had bought it at an antiquities shop when he was in the Orient on his travels. The story he was told was that there is a huge diamond inside, but I have no idea whether that is true.” She passed the box to Anne.

  Anne gave the box a shake too and opened her eyes wide as the clear sound of a stone rattled inside. She stopped shaking it and began looking at all the carvings, etched deeply onto the outside.

  “It is a beautiful trinket but it’s a wonder that your father didn’t just smash it to discover the contents if he was short of money. I know many men that would have. The carvings are so intricate and detailed. I never saw such embellishments before. It looks as though it tells a story.” She pointed as Charlotte leaned in closer. “See here, there is a man. He looks as though he is chasing that bird, and if we follow around the box, the next scene is the bird sitting in a cage. Maybe it’s a nightingale. I seem to remember a story of a Chinese Emperor who had a golden cage made for a nightingale. Could this be the same story?”

  Charlotte peered at the images.

  “I don’t know, but I don’t think it ever would have crossed my father’s mind to break the box open. It didn’t occur to Giles either. Neither man would ever destroy such workmanship. They would use their brains not their brawn to discover the puzzle, though I don’t think that it ever occurred to my father to look for a story in the symbols, to see them as a means to an end. Giles and I looked at it together while on our way here. We never looked for a story either. Perhaps if we can find the beginning of the tale we can work our way to the conclusion and discover the secret spring,” she spoke excitedly as she followed the etchings with her fingertip. “Then if we find a huge diamond we can sell it and use the money to free Giles!”

  Anne blinked hard. The thought that the young woman would use any prize inside the box to free her cousin rather than restore her family to its wealth warmed her heart but saddened her too. She glanced over to where Lily had gone back to her sewing.

  “I think that Alexander has already offered a huge reward for anyone with relevant information to come forward. No one has accepted his offer yet.”

  Charlotte stopped turning the box as a tremble shivered down her body.

  “He has? He should have told me. If he has to lay out this money I will have to pay him back.”

  “You’ll do no such thing!” A dishevelled Alexander stepped over the threshold of the drawing room. His dark hair looked windswept and his cheeks appeared flushed, as if he had been riding hard. “I’ve just returned from speaking to Rookwood. Slimy devil was no longer with Latham and had hightailed it back to his family seat. His father had the audacity to attempt to keep me from speaking to the blighter, but I would have none of that.” He strode over to his cabinet and poured a good measure of brandy. He looked towards the ladies and took out some sweet wine. He watered Lily’s glass before he handed them their drinks then fell onto the chaise beside his wife.

  Lily took his hand in hers, lifted it to her lips and kissed it gently. Alexander’s broad shoulders relaxed visibly while the women waited to hear what had occurred.

  “Rookwood denies any knowledge of Ellesworth’s plan. He agrees that he never found favour with anyone of a lower standing but equally that he had never said a word against Giles within his hearing either. I would have believed him if he hadn’t been grinning like a monkey when he said it. He either knows of Edward’s caper or suspects something at the very least. Latham was marginally more forthcoming. He went as far as to say that he suspected that Edward would be furious if he had heard that Giles is now a Lord. Even though I had locked them up before Giles made the announcement I am sure that Grady would have congratulated him on the event when he took him his supper. Grady is so old fashioned it would never have occurred to him that he might anger the young man further.” He swirled his glass and took a sip of the brandy. “Latham was also adamant that they were expecting Edward to be at the inn. They had a rendezvous with...well I will let you imagine, but Edward wasn’t there and he was adamant that no one had seen him. I made enquiries at the Bear and Dragon on the way home and can confirm that all the staff agree with Latham’s version of events. Mary was clearly very disappointed that Ellesworth hadn’t turned up. She obviously had plans for him.”

  Anne gave a disgusted sniff.

  “Ugh! I cannot believe the depths to which some men...” She stopped and closed her eyes briefly before changing the subject. “So we have come no further in finding my brother. He must have cli
mbed out of that window and found some kind of transport from the grounds.”

  Alexander shook his head.

  “No horses are missing and no one has reported an extra person in their carriage, but he definitely climbed out of that window. Everyone knows that he has gone missing. Someone would have seen him and come forwards by now. I sent messages to every household asking them to send word if any had seen him that night. I can only conclude that he walked from the grounds and is hiding somewhere nearby.”

  Anne appeared puzzled.

  “He would have been walking in his stockinged feet as his boots were left in the bedroom. If he was going to walk far you would have thought that he would have worn them.”

  Alexander agreed.

  “But it would be hard to climb down the ivy wearing them. The soles would slide and it would be hard to feel ones footing between the leaves. Carrying them would have been nearly impossible as you would need both hands to make a safe descent. I assume that’s why he left them in the room.”

  Charlotte looked up from the red box.

  “He won’t have gone far then. I bet your cobbles are a nightmare to walk on without shoes. I presume that you have checked all the outbuildings and forest?”

  Alexander nodded.

  “First place we all looked. Nothing, not even a footprint, but then everything has been so dry for weeks that the ground is turning into dust. The merest hint of a breeze and any footprints would be blown away.” He slung back the last of his brandy. “I must bathe before dinner. The ride has left me filthy and has wearied me. We can carry on discussing our thoughts over dinner.” He stood to leave the room.

  Charlotte stamped her foot in frustration. This was getting them nowhere. She put the box into her pocket and sat back in the chair. She picked up her sewing just for something else to do. The design was one that Lily had given her, but she had little interest in the pursuit. She bit back a wince as the needle speared the tip of her finger and she narrowed her eyes at the hateful implement. Huffing out a breath she put the sampler back in the basket by her feet and stood up to look out over the grounds of Ormond.