Brotherhood 02 - Broken Promise

by Laura Landon

  “Yes,” Austin said. His demand was unyielding, his anger palpable. “I’m very interested in knowing why you told me you were Lady Fledgemont.”

  Sarah’s head snapped up. “I didn’t tell you I was Lady Fledgemont. If you recall, you assumed that’s who I was when you broke into my home.”

  Major Talbot’s eyebrows arched upward. “How interesting, Austin.”

  “I didn’t break into Lady Fledge—” He stopped. “…into Miss Bentley’s home. I knocked on the door.”

  “Yes, then forced your way in when I refused to admit you.”

  Major Talbot held up his hand. “I think we’ve established that you somehow entered the lady’s home. Please, continue, Miss Bentley.”

  One by one she looked at the people in the room. Her gaze stopped when it met Austin’s and she intensified her glare. “What I told you is exactly what happened. Viscount Fledgemont hired me to care for his wife before Jonathan was born.” She paused. “For the few months they were married, they were the happiest of couples. Their house was filled with constant laughter. Until Lord Fledgemont died.”

  Sarah rubbed her aching arm. “The first days after Lord Fledgemont’s death, I was afraid Lady Fledgemont would die too. I’ve never seen anyone so consumed with grief. No matter how often I told her Lord Fledgemont would want her to carry on for the babe’s sake, words didn’t help. She’d lost her will to live.”

  Sarah stopped then swallowed hard. She didn’t want to relive how frightened she’d been. She tried to swallow again but her throat was too dry.

  As if Austin recognized how difficult this was for her, he reached for the glass of water at her bedside and handed it to her.

  Their fingers touched. She anticipated they would. There wasn’t a way to avoid contact with him and the effect was the same as it always was. A shattering jolt rocked her with warm shivers.

  He pulled his hand away, but the shivers remained. So did the heat where their fingers touched.

  She took a drink and lowered the glass to her lap. It felt good to have something to hold. “I was afraid when the baby came Lady Fledgemont wouldn’t survive the birth. She told me if the babe was a boy he’d be too difficult a reminder of Lord Fledgemont.”

  Sarah swept away a tear that spilled from her eye. “Then, Jonathan was born, but she had very little to do with him. No matter how much I encouraged her to look at the babe and hold him, she wouldn’t.”

  “Was someone there to help you?” Lady Lydia asked. “There was the babe to care for as well as Lady Fledgemont.”

  Sarah tried to smile. “I’ve always cared for people. First my mother when she fell ill, then my father. Caring for Lady Fledgemont was nothing new.”

  “But the babe.”

  Sarah smiled. “Yes, that was something new. Several of the local women offered their help, but Lady Fledgemont became agitated when strangers were there, so I managed by myself. The only person she allowed to come near Jonathan was the wet nurse, Mrs. Carmody.”

  Another errant tear spilled down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. She didn’t want them to see how frightened she’d been. Or how sad. “Her health failed more each day until she was so weak she could barely speak. She used the little strength she had to tell me every threat Lord Penderly had issued and make me promise that he’d never find out Jonathan existed. She was convinced Penderly would try to kill him.”

  “What threats did Penderly make?” Major Talbot asked.

  Sarah lifted her head. “That he would never accept an actress as his daughter, or any heir that came from their union. That he wouldn’t allow an actress’s blood to taint the Penderly title.”

  The major turned to Austin Landwell. “Did you know about this?”

  “Yes. Penderly told me he’d made some foolish threats when he confronted Miss Flemming. He even tried to buy her off, but she wouldn’t take anything from him. He told me that’s when he realized how much his son loved her. And how much Collette Flemming loved his son. The amount he offered her was staggering. She refused it.”

  Major Talbot refocused on Sarah. “Then what happened?”

  “A man broke into the house and tried to kill Jonathan.”

  Sarah heard Austin’s sister gasp, then Lady Lydia rose from her chair and sat on the bed beside her. She reached for Sarah’s hand and held it—the same as her brother often had.

  Sarah was glad. She didn’t want to be alone. She didn’t want to relive that horrible night. “I—” She tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. “I—”

  She shook her head. She couldn’t do this. She looked at Austin, pleading with him to help her. He nodded and spoke for her.

  “Someone broke into their home. Luckily, Lady— Miss Bentley heard the intruder. She hit the man over his head when he tried to suffocate the babe.”

  “Oh, no!” Lady Lydia cried out, then squeezed Sarah’s hand tighter.

  “Did you see his face?” Major Talbot asked.

  “It doesn’t matter, Gabe. The attacker is dead.”

  Major Talbot’s brows shot upward. “Do I want to know how he died?”

  Austin shook his head.

  The major paused before continuing. “Go on.”

  “Miss Bentley threw some things into a bag and took Lady Fledgemont and the babe and ran.”

  “I knew Lady Fledgemont wouldn’t survive the trip,” Sarah added. “She was in poor health, and the longer we journeyed the weaker she became. But I didn’t have a choice. I needed to get as far away from Wakemoor as possible. I thought if I could get to London, we could get lost in the masses of people. But Lady Fledgemont didn’t make it.

  “By the time we reached an inn called the Horse and Bridle, she wasn’t strong enough to go on. We had to stop.”

  Sarah brushed away a tear that spilled down her cheek. She noticed Lady Lydia did the same.

  “The innkeeper’s wife was a blessing. She helped me care for Lady Fledgemont the best we could, but nothing helped. I knew it was only a matter of time until we lost her.”

  Except for a quiet sniffle that came from Lady Lydia, no one spoke.

  “Before she died, she made me promise that I wouldn’t give Jonathan to the Earl of Penderly. She made me promise I’d keep him safe.” Sarah lifted her gaze. “Do you see now why I can’t let the earl have him? Lady Fledgemont was convinced Penderly wouldn’t stop until the child was dead.”

  She waited for Austin to say something, but he didn’t. Instead, Major Talbot spoke. His question wasn’t directed toward her, but toward Austin Landwell.

  “Are you sure Penderly isn’t behind the attempts, Austin?”

  …

  Austin walked to the window.

  Was he sure Penderly was innocent? Sure enough that he would risk an innocent child’s life? Or was he so desperate to replace the son he’d taken from Penderly that he was blind to the truth?

  He braced his hands on either side of the wood frame and dropped his head between his outstretched arms. He’d been so sure, but now…

  A dozen options flashed before him. How could he prove Penderly hadn’t been lying? He couldn’t hand over the infant if Penderly’s intent was to kill him.

  He turned. Everyone awaited his answer. He knew that Gabe would support whatever decision he made. Liddy would, too. That only left Sarah Bentley.

  He studied her red-rimmed eyes and the blotches on her cheeks. He should be angry with her. She’d lied to him, deceived him. Let him believe she was the Earl of Penderly’s daughter-in-law. And yet…

  Knowing what she knew, how could she have done anything differently? And knowing what he knew now, how could his heart not still be open to her? He wanted to comfort her, to hold her. Every part of him wanted to yield to her wishes. She was the only mother Jonathan had known in his short life. And Sarah Bentley considered him her son.

  A painful knot settled deep inside his chest. Whether to hand Jonathan over to Penderly, or let Sarah Bentley take him into hiding wasn’t a decision he had the
right to make. The decision had never been his to make. It was hers—Sarah Bentley’s.

  Lady Fledgemont had left Jonathan in Sarah’s care, had forced Sarah to swear to protect him and not let anything happen to him. She was the only person who could decide what Jonathan’s future would be. He didn’t have the right to force her to live with the consequences of his decision—whether right or wrong.

  “You’re right, Miss Bentley. You are the only person who has the right to decide Jonathan’s future.”

  A look of shock, then disbelief covered her face. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m telling you that the decision as to whether or not Jonathan lives his life with the Earl of Penderly, or with you, is yours to make.”

  Tears ran down her face and with her free hand she flung them away. “You would let me keep Jonathan and raise him as my own?”

  Austin’s heart began a steady pounding. “If that is what you think is best for the infant.” He paused. “But only after you’ve given Penderly the chance to prove his innocence or guilt.”

  She frowned. “How?”

  “By meeting with him. By talking to him. By allowing him to talk to you.”

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “I am. It’s the only way. If, after you’ve heard him, you still consider Penderly a threat, and feel that Jonathan would come to harm living with him, I will make sure the earl can never find either of you. But, if after you meet the earl, you realize he is not the threat Lady Fledgemont feared he was, I expect you to tell the earl he has a grandson, and allow Jonathan to take his place as Penderly’s heir. Jonathan deserves as much. So does the Earl of Penderly.”

  Sarah Bentley looked horrified. “Surely you don’t expect me to face him?” she asked. “Not after he tried to kill Jonathan twice?”

  “I expect you to have an open mind, just as you asked of me.”

  “But if Penderly has Jonathan within his reach, nothing will stop him from doing him harm.”

  “Penderly won’t have him within reach. Jonathan isn’t going with us to London. He’ll go with Gabe and Liddy to Southerby. Only you and I will go to London.”

  She was afraid. He could see it in her eyes, in the way her hand clutched at the covers. “I want to see Jonathan. I need to hold him and make sure he’s all right.”

  Austin looked at Liddy and she rose. “I’ll get him for you. Our nurse is caring for him in a room just down the hall.”

  Liddy left and a minute later returned with a sleeping babe in her arms. She took the infant to Sarah and placed him in her arm.

  Sarah nestled him close. The love on her face and in her eyes was plain enough for a blind man to see.

  A stabbing of remorse sliced through him. He realized how difficult this was for her. He also realized the risk he was taking.

  “Why are you doing this?” she asked.

  Austin lifted his brows in a questioning manner. “What? Letting you decide if Penderly is a threat to the babe?”

  “Yes.”

  He took a step closer to her and leaned his shoulder against the tall armoire that stood near the window. He crossed his arms over his chest and gathered his thoughts. “Because I’m convinced Penderly knows nothing about the child. I don’t think the possibility has even crossed his mind.”

  “Are you serious?” Gabe asked, narrowing his gaze.

  Austin nodded. “Did you notice the date on the marriage certificate?”

  Gabe reached for the papers. “January 16, 1857.”

  “And the date of birth on the birth certificate?”

  “April 24, 1857.”

  “And today’s date?”

  “September twenty-first.”

  Austin gave everyone time to do the math. “Penderly told me his son eloped with Miss Flemming shortly after the first of the year. According to my calculations, Miss Flemming was near to having Jonathan when they married.” Austin focused on the dawning expression on Gabe’s face.

  “Which means,” Gabe offered, “that if his son and Miss Flemming had gone about things in a normal manner, there might be a chance that the lady conceived before Fledgemont died, and she is perhaps expecting a child now.”

  Miss Bentley shook her head. “You forget,” she said, looking down on the sleeping babe. “Somehow Penderly discovered Jonathan’s existence. And sent someone to kill him.”

  Austin walked to the bed and sat beside her. “I agree that someone discovered there was an heir and tried to kill him. But I’m not convinced that someone is Penderly. Which is why I want you to meet him, see the expression on his face when he talks about his son and Miss Flemming, hear the words when he talks about the guilt he carries.”

  Sarah Bentley lowered Jonathan to her lap and brushed the backs of her fingers down his cheek. “What if after I’ve met him I’m not convinced he is innocent of trying to kill Jonathan?”

  “Then we will keep the infant’s whereabouts a secret and I’ll take you and the babe where Penderly will never find you.”

  Austin reached for her hand and held it. Her eyes were big and round, a brown so deep and dark he could get lost in them. No matter how angry he was with her for deceiving him, that anger had quickly softened. He wasn’t sure he wouldn’t have done the same had he been in her place.

  “You’ll take us where we’ll be safe?”

  Her words struck him with the force of a punch to the gut. Could he risk letting her take Jonathan where Penderly could never find them? Could he live with himself if she chose to take Jonathan into hiding and Penderly never knew he had an heir? Could he take her where he’d never see her again?

  He’d never felt so in danger of failing than he did at that moment. Never realized how much he’d miss her if she left him—until now.

  The impossibility of such a thought almost seemed humorous in a macabre way. How could he think he might lose her when he’d never possessed her? There was a connection between them. He felt it when he held her, touched her, was near her. She consumed his waking hours and his dreams. But he’d never made his feelings known. How could he? Until now, he thought she was the recently widowed Lady Fledgemont. To have such thoughts so soon after her husband’s death would have been improper. But now…

  He pulled his thoughts back to the magnitude of the decision he was allowing her to make. “A question even more important is: What do you intend to do if Penderly is able to convince you he had nothing to do with the attempts on Jonathan’s life? Are you unselfish enough to give up the boy? Are you willing to allow the babe to assume the role he was born to take if Penderly convinces you he had nothing to do with the attacks?”

  Her face paled and she lowered her gaze to the child sleeping in her lap. The expression on her face told him how difficult that decision would be. She considered Jonathan her own. She’d said as much.

  It pained him to think how heart-wrenching it would be for her to give Jonathan up. She’d been the only mother the child had known. For months she’d cared for him as if she’d given birth to him, loved him as if he were her own. Was it fair to force her to make such a sacrifice?

  He studied the mounting fear on her face and vowed that if Penderly convinced her that he was innocent of the attempts on the babe’s life, and she gave Jonathan over, he would demand that Miss Bentley accompany Jonathan. That she be allowed to remain with the boy as long as she wanted.

  He looked at the troubled expression on her face and all the hurt and pain flowed from her heart to his. He knew she’d always do what was best for Jonathan. She had over and over.

  “Can you bring yourself to give Jonathan to Penderly if you’re convinced he’ll be safe there?”

  Her eyes filled with tears but she dabbed at them before any moisture spilled down her cheeks. “He’s Penderly’s heir. I will have no choice but to hand him over. But only if I’m convinced beyond a doubt that he’ll never come to any harm.”

  Austin gently squeezed her fingers. He smiled at her but her gaze quickly dropped to the baby sleeping
sweetly in her lap.

  “You know what it will mean if Penderly proves he isn’t the murderer?” Gabe said in his no-nonsense military tone. “It means that the real killer is still out there.”

  Austin nodded. “I know. Neither Miss Bentley nor Jonathan is safe until we discover who wants them dead. Which is why I sent for you and Liddy. I want you to take Jonathan with you to Southerby until I know the murderer’s identity.”

  Liddy spoke for the first time. “Of course, Austin. We’ll make sure nothing happens to him.”

  Gabe smiled and reached for his wife’s hand. Austin turned back to Sarah Bentley. “Will you come with me to London to face the Earl of Penderly?”

  She hesitated, but finally nodded.

  He kept his gaze locked with a frightened and unsure Miss Bentley, silently telling her Jonathan would be safe and that everything would be all right. But he wasn’t sure it would be. He was sure that Penderly was innocent and once Sarah talked to him she’d realize it too. But that was all that would be all right. The end result would be anything but.

  She loved Jonathan. It would kill her when she had to give him up. And she would.

  Austin didn’t know how it could end any differently.

  Chapter 13

  Sarah sat in the carriage opposite Captain Landwell and stared out the window as the English countryside rolled by. They’d left the Spotted Goose three days ago and would arrive in London late this afternoon. She was scared to death.

  Major Talbot and Liddy—as Lady Lydia had insisted Sarah call her—had remained until the day before they left, then they’d taken Jonathan with them to Southerby Manor. A small army of outriders accompanied them for protection, but they left Liddy’s maid, Bertie, and Major Talbot’s valet, Vincent, behind to assist Sarah and Austin. Liddy had also sent two large valises filled with gowns and other clothing she insisted Sarah would need while in London.

  Sarah had argued that the maid and beautiful clothes weren’t necessary, but Liddy had insisted, saying it wouldn’t look right to travel without someone to act as chaperone, and that Sarah would need the clothes once she arrived in London. As fortune would have it, they were very nearly the same size. So, Bertie and Vincent rode in a carriage ahead of them with the luggage, and she and Austin rode in a second carriage.