A Sense of Purpose

by Soliman, Wendy

  Archie flexed his brows. ‘Has she indeed?’

  ‘She’s as poisonous as ever,’ Luke said sharply. ‘So get that look out of your eye.’

  ‘I read that her husband died and left her near destitute.’

  ‘His revenge for her playing fast and loose. You were not the only one she dallied with.’

  ‘I didn’t imagine that I was,’ Archie said, looking unnaturally serious.

  ‘She attempted to foist a girl I was considering marrying onto me for reasons that would have given her revenge.’

  ‘Revenge for what?’ Archie asked. ‘You didn’t bed her.’

  ‘Precisely,’ Paul replied.

  ‘Ah, I see. You offended her sensibilities by refusing her.’ Archie grinned. ‘Shame on you. Most ungentlemanly.’

  ‘Suffice it to say that Flora realised what she was attempting to achieve through Lily Carlton and saved me from that particular commitment. I owe her a great deal.’

  ‘How much precisely?’ Archie asked, his eyes glistening with irreverent interest.

  ‘Not that much!’ Luke shook his head. ‘Some things about you never change, Archie.’

  ‘Ah well, certain parts of my anatomy weren’t affected by that fall. If they had been, life definitely wouldn’t have been worth fighting for.’ He grinned. ‘You’d be surprised how sympathetic dusky French maidens can be when confronted with a helpless cripple in need of the gentle touch.’

  Archie’s friends laughed. ‘Incorrigible as ever,’ Alvin remarked. ‘Just remember what manner of shenanigans turned you into a cripple.’

  ‘Indeed, but what’s life without a few risks, my friend?’ He paused. ‘Is Magda still in the district?’ he asked casually.

  ‘You’re not thinking of…’ three voices asked at once.

  ‘Hell, no! I was thinking more in terms of avoiding her. She would, without doubt, not be fooled into thinking I am my cousin. She knew me too…intimately.’

  ‘No. She is gone,’ Luke said. ‘We left her with no option.’

  ‘Then I’m glad for all manner of reasons.’

  ‘You have a long journey back to Felsham Hall,’ Luke said. ‘I can offer you a bed but you’ll have to stay hidden in your room.’

  ‘Go to Greystone,’ Alvin said, referring to his own house nearby. ‘It’s on your way home and you won’t have to hide yourself away. I’ll return after dining here and we can talk about old times.’

  ‘Thank you. That sounds like a reasonable compromise,’ Archie said. ‘Damned legs seize up if I sit too long in one position and carriages jolting along cause merry hell.’ He staggered to his feet, leaning heavily on his stick, and shook each of their hands. ‘It’s good to be back,’ he said.

  ‘I’ll probably regret saying this,’ Luke said, speaking for them all, ‘but it’s good to have you back. Try not to get into more mischief, at least until your father has returned you to respectability.’

  Archie gave a good-natured laugh. ‘You ask a lot.’

  Chapter Fifteen

  Miranda had desperately wanted to join Flora in the earl’s library in the hope that Charlie would return from London and join them there too. But Flora advised against it, pointing out that the earl’s sisters had been told that she and Miranda had planned to visit her former governess that afternoon. If Miranda was seen in private consultation with him, it would give rise to questions that Lord Swindon would prefer for Emma and Mary not to raise. Naturally, their safety was his priority. Frustrated, yet obliged to Flora and Charlie for their willingness to involve themselves in her affairs, she adjured herself to exercise patience.

  ‘How was your visit?’ Emma asked when Miranda joined her.

  ‘Very pleasant. It was as though we had never been parted.’

  ‘It’s often that way with old acquaintances.’

  ‘I wish I knew what Luke’s game is,’ Emma complained a short time later.

  ‘What do you mean?’ Mary asked, looking up from her drawing.

  ‘Alvin arrived a good half-hour ago—’

  Mary shared a smile with Miranda. ‘And you know that because you were watching for him from the window.’

  Emma gave a lofty toss of her head. ‘I might have glanced out and just happened to notice his arrival.’

  Mary gave a sage nod, looking to Miranda as though she was trying hard not to laugh. ‘Ah, that would be it then.’

  ‘Do you want to know why I’m upset with Luke or not?’ Emma asked impatiently.

  ‘Oh, we’re agog. Do enlighten us.’

  ‘He is being thoughtless. Engaged couples have a right to snatch a few minutes alone together. It’s…well, traditional.’

  ‘You’ve been talking to Grandmamma,’ Mary said. ‘It’s the sort of behaviour that she would encourage.’

  ‘Our grandmamma is very wise and worth listening to.’

  ‘That’s not what you said when she insisted that Mr Morgan’s dog was the reincarnation of one of her lovers.’

  ‘Yes well, she is wise most of the time. Anyway, Luke purloined Alvin the moment he arrived and they have been closeted together in his library ever since.’ Emma folded her arms, looking disgruntled. ‘My maid overheard Woodley tell him that Luke required to see him immediately.’ She frowned. ‘I wonder what could possibly be so important.’

  ‘Ask Flora,’ Mary said absently. ‘She went to see Luke the moment she got back from her excursion with Miranda. I was passing his library and saw her go in myself.’

  ‘She isn’t there now. I heard her talking to Grandmamma a few minutes ago,’ Emma said. ‘Now, should we have white soup or consommé as a first course at the wedding breakfast?’

  ‘White soup,’ Mary asserted. ‘Can’t go wrong with that. As for Luke, I expect he, Paul and Alvin are laying plans for Alvin’s final nights of bachelorhood, nothing more sinister than that. You know how close they are. Alvin is the first of them to break ranks.’ She chuckled. ‘They probably look upon that as cause for a wake rather than a celebration.’

  ‘Thank you very much!’ Emma cried indignantly. ‘I am sure no one twisted Alvin’s arm.’

  ‘I didn’t mean it like that. They all have to marry but pretend that they would prefer not to. I’ve heard it said that they consider there’s safety in numbers.’

  ‘And when one falls prey to the parson’s mousetrap, the rest of them tumble like dominoes,’ Miranda said, grinning.

  ‘There was someone else in the library with them, I think.’ Emma frowned. ‘There’s something sinister afoot, I just know it. I saw a strange carriage arrive just before Alvin did. I don’t know who was in it, but whoever it was has been with Luke and the others for absolutely ages.’

  ‘You are worrying unnecessarily, I am sure of it,’ Miranda said soothingly. ‘Pre-wedding nerves, nothing more. I know how important it is to you that everything should go off without a hitch, and it will. Besides, Alvin will come to see you soon enough and you can ask him what was so important, if it concerns you that much.’

  ‘Oh, I couldn’t do that.’ Emma looked appalled. ‘He would think that I don’t trust him before we are even wed, but that’s not it at all. I’m simply curious.’

  ‘He will probably tell you in his own time if he thinks you need to know,’ Mary said, abandoning her drawing with a frustrated sigh. ‘I can’t get the tree I’m trying to draw to look like a tree. It more closely resembles a line of washing.’ She rested her chin on her clenched fist, contemplatively. ‘If the mystery visitor is a close friend of Luke and the others, I dare say he will be invited to dine, and the puzzle will be solved.’

  Miranda agreed with Mary and the conversation turned to other topics. Miranda tried not to make it obvious that she was watching the window for Charlie’s return. Her heart lifted when she finally saw him arrive, looking windswept and distracted, shortly before dinner. He was in the drawing room when she went down with the girls but there was no opportunity for them to converse in private. Nor was there any sign of the mystery visitor, or of Flor
a either.

  ‘Grandmamma is improving,’ Sam, the earl’s youngest brother, told them all. ‘I just now went to see her. She’s sitting up and complaining about everything, so she’s obviously on the mend. But she won’t be coming down. Flora is remaining upstairs with her.’

  ‘I don’t envy her attempting to keep Grandmamma in line when she’s feeling crotchety,’ his brother Henry said in response. ‘But still, you have to hand it to her. She manages it most of the time.’

  Miranda sensed tension between the earl, Mr Dalton and Emma’s intended; as though they were a-party to some sort of disquieting secret. She wondered if their distraction was attributable to the mystery visitor, about whom no mention had been made. The girls had tried to catch a glimpse of him when he left Beranger Court, but all they managed to see was a brief glimpse of a tall man leaning heavily on a stick, his hat concealing his features. Mary concluded that the stick implied an ailing gentleman of advancing years, which caused their interest in him to subside.

  Charlie said little, but looked her way a great deal. Miranda was bursting to know what he had discovered but there was no opportunity to speak privately with him until the meal had ended. The gentlemen remained preoccupied when they rejoined the ladies. Sam and Henry went off to play billiards. Emma and Alvin seated themselves a little away from the others and conducted their own conversation in muted tones. Mary occupied herself with a book and the earl disappeared altogether. Charlie sent Miranda a speaking look and nodded towards the terrace. She dutifully wandered out there and he joined her a few minutes later.

  ‘At last we are at leisure to discuss our respective findings,’ he said. ‘I apologise for my tardiness. My train was delayed by a cow who had most inconsiderately dropped dead on the track, completely blocking it.’

  ‘That’s unfortunate, but I don’t suppose she did it simply to disoblige you.’

  ‘I dare say not.’ His infectiously wicked smile caused heat to wash through her body. ‘How are you?’

  ‘I am very well, and you should not be apologising to me for anything, Charlie. You put yourself out on my behalf, so it is I who should be thanking you.’

  ‘It was entirely my pleasure, and very enlightening.’

  Miranda listened as Charlie told her everything he had learned from Mr Fenchurch.

  ‘There can be no doubt then,’ she said when he ran out of words. ‘In spite of what Daley told me, a small part of me still hoped…Poor Papa,’ she said with a heartfelt sigh. ‘He knew that Christina had disregarded her wedding vows and yet did nothing about it for my sake.’ She brushed aside a single tear. ‘And his consideration cost him his life.’

  ‘And his good intentions have placed you in danger.’

  ‘He didn’t know that he would die at such a young age.’ Miranda swallowed, feeling anger pushing aside her melancholy. ‘That his wife would deliberately murder him.’

  ‘What makes you so sure of that?’ he asked gently. ‘You mentioned Miss Daley. What did she tell you?’

  It was Miranda’s turn to enlighten Charlie. His features turned forbidding when he absorbed what she had to say.

  ‘I cannot bear to think of you spending another night under the same roof as such ruthless individuals!’ he cried passionately.

  ‘Nothing will happen to me at once,’ she replied, with more confidence than she felt.

  Miranda was unwilling to admit that the expression on Matthew’s face when they had deliberately driven away from him in the village earlier had frightened her. It was a side of him she had seldom seen before. A lazy, indolent individual, losing his temper probably required too much effort. But once or twice, when he didn’t get his way, she had sensed a darkness in him that made him dangerously unpredictable. Matthew Cooper used his looks and charm to breeze his way through life without lifting a finger to help himself. Miranda had an important, indeed vital, role to play in his plans for his future, she now realised. If she failed to obligingly fall in with those plans, as he fully expected her to, then she would indeed be placing herself in the direct path of danger.

  Miranda stood a little taller. She was no longer the trusting child who believed every word spoken to her, as Matthew would soon discover for himself if he tried to force her into anything against her will.

  ‘I agree with Flora’s opinion that the outbreak of influenza was the opportunity Christina and Philip had been waiting for to put their plan into action.’ Charlie’s voice recalled Miranda’s wandering attention. ‘Which is why an excuse had to be found to have your Miss Daley dismissed.’

  ‘I think it was spiteful to take Daley away. She couldn’t prove anything and wouldn’t have attempted to, given her attachment to me.’

  ‘But she would always have been a threat.’

  Miranda blinked. ‘What do you mean by that?’

  ‘She has told you now, and might well have done so sooner if she had remained at Ashton Lodge. Philip Cooper is a careful man. He wouldn’t take the risk.’

  Miranda strolled the length of the terrace with Charlie prowling disconcertingly close to her side, his presence muddling her thinking. ‘It seems to me that she would have been more likely to raise her suspicions after she had been unfairly dismissed.’

  ‘As you say, she couldn’t prove anything, so her allegations would most likely have been dismissed as an attempt at revenge by a bitter woman.’

  ‘I cannot think what to do now,’ Miranda said, throwing up her hands. ‘Both Daley and Mr Fenchurch think that Papa was murdered but they cannot prove it, and nor can we.’ She growled with frustration. ‘I should have taken more notice when Papa was ill. Insisted upon seeing him. Something…’

  ‘It would have made no difference. All you would have seen was a sick man suffering from the effects of influenza. We accept that he contracted the ailment. You were a child and wouldn’t have noticed the effects of arsenic poisoning, even if you’d thought to look for them. I doubt any adult without medical training would notice them either.’

  She impulsively touched his arm. ‘Thank you for trying to make me feel better.’

  He smiled down at her and covered her hand with his own. ‘Is it working?’

  She nodded. ‘You’re right about Papa. About so many things.’ She gave another sigh. ‘But I shall always feel guilty.’

  ‘You have more immediate concerns. We are fairly sure that Matthew Cooper plans to propose to you in order to get his hands on your fortune.’

  Miranda tossed her head. ‘He won’t succeed.’

  ‘Have you considered the possibility that he could…well, get you alone and force himself upon you?’

  ‘He’s welcome to try!’ She lifted her chin, her expression combative. ‘I am no longer the trusting young girl who was talked into remaining abroad for far longer that I was comfortable with. Anyway, even if Matthew managed what you suggest, I still wouldn’t marry him. My fortune at least offers me the freedom to please myself and not care about my reputation being ruined.’

  ‘Even so…’

  ‘I can see that you are concerned for my wellbeing, but you have to let me prove to myself and to the world in general that I am not a soft touch.’ She paused to reflect. ‘If Matthew succeeded in compromising me and then somehow dragged me in front of a parson whom he could bribe into declaring us man and wife over my objections, I would make sure he knew that I wouldn’t relinquish my hold on my fortune. Then I would take the earliest opportunity to get away from him and live elsewhere under an assumed name.’

  Charlie frowned. ‘But how—‘

  ‘Women are no longer obliged to cede control of their assets as a matter of course when they marry.’

  She’d said something that made the grip of winter leave Charlie’s eyes and he fixed her with a slow, sensual smile that melted her heart. ‘No, they are not obliged to,’ he said slowly. ‘I’d quite forgotten about the Married Women’s Property Act.’

  ‘Even so, I—’

  ‘Even so, you won’t be safe, Miranda.’ He c
lutched her shoulders and gently shook them. 'These are dangerous and vengeful people who fully expect their patience to be rewarded. If you have to go back to Ashton Lodge, you can’t be alone.’

  ‘That’s why Flora suggested that I re-engage Daley’s services.’

  Charlie smiled. ‘An excellent suggestion, and there is nothing that Christina can do to prevent you. She won’t like it, mind.’

  ‘I know.’ Miranda returned his smile with interest. He was the first to look away, muttering unintelligible curses beneath his breath for reasons that Miranda failed to understand. 'I am learning to stretch my wings and assert my authority,’ she told him.

  ‘So I see.’ Charlie released his hold on her shoulders and they continued to stand where they were, looking into one another’s eyes. ‘I need to discuss the matter further with Luke. Between us we will think of a way to rid you of them once and for all, even if we can’t prove that Christina poisoned her husband.’

  ‘You are very kind.’

  ‘Not a bit of it. Luke has a responsibility to keep the peace in this part of the world and doesn’t take kindly to having murderers living on his doorstep. I haven’t had much time to discuss things with him, given my delayed return, but—’

  ‘I hear he had a mystery visitor.’

  ‘He did. Even I wasn’t granted admission to his library while that person was there.’ He laughed. ‘It was most odd.’

  ‘Perhaps the earl is planning to marry and his intended’s father called to agree terms.’

  Charlie’s laugher intensified. ‘You have a vivid imagination.’

  ‘He must marry sooner rather than later, one supposes.’

  ‘That he must. But my instincts suggest that his future bride is more than capable of agreeing to the match without parental interference.’

  ‘Oh, does he have someone in mind?’

  ‘If he does, he hasn’t shared his intentions with me. I was merely speculating.’ He took her elbow and turned her back towards the open doors to the drawing room. ‘We had best go back inside before we are missed. Oblige me by sending a note to Miss Daley and have her join you as soon as she possibly can. In the meantime, lock your door at night and don’t allow yourself to be alone with Matthew. Spend the day here tomorrow again, and by the time you arrive Luke and I will have thought of something, I am absolutely sure of it.’