When Love grows doubt

by Barbara Eckhoff

  But she only had to read the determination in his face to know that she was lost. He would not let up, not until he had gotten the whole truth out of her. Horrified, she watched as he opened the can and was amazed at what he found inside. Apparently it had not been what he had suspected. He held the opened can under her nose.

  "What is this and why did Dumfrey give it to you?"

  Speechless, she looked at him. But then he thundered the next words down on her.

  "Start talking. I want to know what this is."

  Moira was at a loss for words. The pure despair was seen to her and she felt the tears well up in her eyes. Robert felt the inner battle his wife was fighting with herself and he was inclined to take her in his arms to comfort her. But if he gave in now, he would never know what was being played here and so he steeled himself against the sight of his distraught wife and looked down on her implacably.

  "I think it's a sleeping powder," she said in a low voice.

  "You think it is, but you're not sure? What should you do with it?"

  "I should administer it to you."

  For a moment Robert looked at her in amazement.

  "Why?"

  "Dumfrey wants to keep you from getting in his way in the bay."

  Slowly it dawned on him. Dumfrey was behind the smuggling, but how was Moira involved in all this? Was she part of this gang? He couldn't believe where his thoughts were taking him.

  "You've done this before, haven't you? The first night you were with me, I woke up the next morning at my desk. Why, Moira, why? "

  A dam broke loose and in a tearful voice she pleaded with him.

  "Please Robert, I didn't mean for any of this to happen, but I had no choice."

  "You always have another choice."

  "No, he has me in the palm of his hand, and if I don't do what he says, a lot of people are going to suffer."

  "Won't you finally tell me everything?"

  "Since my parents have been dead, Dumfrey has been courting me. Despite my refusals, he has continued to press me. He wanted to buy the lands and rebuild my parents' house if I married him, but I didn't want that. One day he came with a promissory bill signed by my father. He had owed him ten thousand pounds and Dumfrey demanded this sum back from me, knowing full well that I could not raise it. He then also threatened me with imprisonment and the expropriation of my property, if I didn't work off the money with him. For some reason, he wanted me to keep you away from the bay, and so that we could get to know each other and I could have the opportunity to do that, he took me to the ball at that time."

  "So it's all been theater from the beginning? Our getting to know each other and everything that came afterwards until today? I have to say, you're more hard-nosed than I ever thought you'd be. Did you at least have a delicious time at my expense?”

  The full contempt towards her spoke from his words and put a stab in Moira's heart. This was no longer just about telling the truth, it was now about fighting for her marriage, because no matter what he thought of her at the moment, she loved him with all her heart.

  "It wasn't a game. I really do love you, Robert."

  He laughed wickedly.

  "Who's going to believe you now? How could I have fallen for you like that? How many times have you slipped me some of that powder?"

  "Twice, he had me believe, that it was only a sleeping powder, you must believe me Robert I didn't know. Then when you got so ill, I confronted him and told him I wasn't going to continue. I had no idea what he was capable of."

  "I had you to thank for that nausea? God Moira, what was it? Poison, perhaps?"

  "Arsenic, but I didn't know anything about it. He didn't tell me until the next day. You must believe me, Robert, please. I wouldn't have given you this otherwise. I didn't know what to do. He kept threatening to put me in the whorehouse, or do something to Eileen or the kids or you. What was I supposed to do?"

  She tried to put her hands soothingly on his, but he pushed them away.

  "Why didn't you ever tell me anything. Didn't I tell you from the beginning that I want to help you? I laid my heart at your feet and you stomped on it. You are a criminal and should be punished."

  Horror and fear erupted in her. Dumfrey had warned her never to tell him what she had done. Now she experienced it firsthand. His harsh words reached her only through a veil of tears.

  "Actually, I should hand you over to the authorities, but you carry my name and my child under your heart, if this is not just an act, too. As long as you are pregnant with my child, you'll spend most of your time here in this room. You will only leave this room once a day for an hour to get some fresh air. When I have social duties, you will play the dutiful, loving wife by my side. This should not be so difficult for you, since you have been doing it well all along. The rest of the time, until the birth of the child, you will spend in this house and you will never see me again."

  Horrified, she looked at him.

  "You lock me in this room here? You can't do this, please Robert I beg you. Don't do this to me."

  "You are a criminal and I have every right in the world to treat you like this, and besides, I think this way is better than the wet, damp cellar holes of the local prisons. Tomorrow Albert will get my belongings out of here and take them to the West Wing. You can hope that you are really pregnant, because the child is saving you from the gallows.”

  Without caring any more about Moira, he left her standing there and went to the door. Once there, he turned to her once more. Now, completely calm and emotionless, he turned to her one last time.

  "I loved you, truly loved you. Why?"

  With these words he turned, opened the door and went out. Moira heard the door close behind him.

  Suddenly there was silence in the room, which was still in darkness, but she did not register any of this. Her world had just collapsed. Sobbing, she fell to her knees and buried her face in her hands. Robert heard her crying outside the door and his heart clenched. He still loved her, but somehow he had to manage to forget her. She had lied to him and cheated on him from the very beginning and he could not forgive that.

  Chapter 21

  The next morning, everything had taken place just as Robert had predicted. He must have told his household that she was pregnant and not well at the moment, and in order not to endanger the child's life and to give his wife rest, he had moved into another bedroom, for Harried, with a knowing smile, brought her breakfast and had told her that everything would get better with time. Then Albert had appeared and removed Robert's clothes from the room and in the afternoon Harried had come again to help her into a dress so that she could go out. After that she had been alone in the room again and had seen no one except the servant who had brought her dinner. She had neither heard Robert's voice nor had she seen him herself. As much as she had hoped that he would talk to her again the next day, she had to realize that in the evening he had put into practice everything he had told her. That evening she cried herself to sleep.

  The next day did not begin any better. She saw the servant only for breakfast and then again for lunch. In the time in between she lay listlessly in her bed and thought. She had to talk to him again. Trying to explain to him that she really loved him. He could not really believe that she had been acting for him all those nights. In the evening she gave the servant a letter for Robert, in which she asked him to talk to her. But the evening passed and

  Robert did not appear.

  "Samuel, I need to talk to you," Robert called out to his foreman and gave him a wave, that indicated he wanted to meet him at the stable. Samuel, recognizing the urgency in Robert's voice, literally dropped everything and hurried after him. Robert was just checking his tack when Samuel came up behind him.

  "What is it?"

  "I need you tonight. I want you to accompany me to the bay."

  Finally there was something exciting to do and so he could hardly hide his excitement.

  "Tell me, wha
t's going on?"

  "I asked you the other day about smugglers in this area, remember? There are some at work in the bay below."

  Samuel patted his hand on his thigh.

  "Didn't I know it from the start, that the thing back then with the book was an excuse."

  "Okay, I admit it, I just wanted to make sure no one else was in on it.

  "You thought I was in on it?"

  "Not really, but I had to make sure. Sorry."

  "Bygones. So what are you up to?"

  "I know the gang's coming back tonight. And I want to know what's going on."

  "Don't you think we better get the police if you're going to let them get busted?"

  "I don't want to bust them tonight, I want to know who their mastermind is. It's not enough to just get the henchmen. I want the head of the gang, and I want you to help me get him. Will you do it? It could be dangerous."

  "You can count on me. Man, then it's probably been going on there for a while, because your uncle already suspected something. I'm sure of it now."

  "I think you can go even further and say he knew something and that puts a whole different face on his death. I want the head of the gang, because I want to ask him that very question."

  Samuel nodded in agreement.

  "When do you want to go?"

  "Meet me here tonight at ten."

  A few hours later, both men were lying on the cliffs of the bay in wait. Their horses were well hidden and so they waited there quietly until they heard footsteps and voices in the distance.

  "They're coming," Robert whispered, and they both ducked deep into the tall grass. A whole horde of men passed them by and disappeared a short time later in the bay below them. Cautiously, Robert and Samuel crawled to the edge to see what was going on down on the beach. Just like the last time he had been up here, some boats came in from the sea to the beach. Tonight they must have been expecting a

  particularly large load, because four boats were pulled ashore. Immediately the smugglers set about

  unloading the boats, which were right away lowered back into the water and disappeared into the darkness.

  "What do they have in those barrels?"

  Samuel quietly asked.

  "I can only guess, but I think it's rum that they're smuggling into the country to avoid the tax."

  "That ought to make a real penny with that kind of quantity."

  "It's probably a very large shipment today, too. The first time, there were only eight of them. Today there are three times as many. We couldn't have done it alone. Come on, let's hide again. They'll be coming up the path any minute now and then we'll go after them."

  Immediately they crawled back into their hiding place and waited. When the heavily laden rogues had passed them panting and they had been given a certain head start,

  Robert and Samuel straightened up.

  "Did you also notice what I saw?"

  "That William, the Page, was among them?"

  Samuel nodded.

  "Well, if I catch him. I'll read him the riot act."

  "No, you won't."

  Astonished, Samuel looked at Robert.

  "Why? He's double-crossing you."

  "Yes, and he will not escape his punishment, but we may still need him. We now know the enemy in our camp, and that gives us an advantage over the others."

  Grinning, Samuel replied, "You really are a fox."

  Robert patted Samuel on the shoulder.

  "Come, we don't want to give them too much of a head start. Grab your horse and then follow me."

  Surprised that Robert did not follow the group but rode inland, he turned to him again.

  "I thought you were going after them?"

  "Don't worry, we will, but I know where they come out on the road, and that's where we'll wait for them."

  A few minutes later, as they hid in the bushes opposite, they could see two carts fully loaded driving from Moira's property onto the road and from there towards the village.

  "They are using Moira's property for their deeds and she doesn't know about it?"

  You bet she knew about it, Robert thought, but he kept it to himself and let the cart get another larger lead before he and his horse slowly followed. He was not surprised that the tracks led to Dumfrey's property, but now it was no longer a guess, but certainty. The bastard was the head of the gang.

  "This is the property of Sir Dumfrey's. It can't be."

  Samuel looked at Robert and was surprised to see that he wasn’t as surprised as he was.

  "You knew that, didn't you?

  "Didn't know, but suspected, and now I have confirmation."

  "How did you know?"

  "That's a different story, maybe I'll tell you sometime."

  "What do we do now? We can't let him get away with it."

  "I don't intend to. We have William, he'll know when this shipment is going to be shipped out, and then we'll strike."

  "Genius."

  Chapter 22

  Impatiently he tapped his fingers on the upholstered back of his seat. He hoped for the messenger that his information was really important, because if it wasn't, he would make him a head shorter for depriving him of a well-deserved night's rest. Already last night he had stayed up to wait for the delivery.

  His men had done a good job and now his cellar was filled to the brim with good Jamaican rum.

  The customers were already waiting for it and it was up to him to distribute the goods to them as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, the transport had to be delayed for a while, because his contact person had informed him that the police had raided some of his buyers. Now some time had to pass before completing the transaction. He could well have been lying in his bed instead of waiting here for his informant. Suddenly there was a knocking from above against the roof of the car. His Coachman signaled him the arrival of his informant. Dumfrey stuck his head out of the window and saw the young man standing in front of him.

  "I hope for your sake that the message is important."

  Somewhat nervously, his counterpart indicated:

  "You said yourself that you wanted to be informed about anything new right away."

  "Yes, yes it's all right. So what do you have to report?"

  "Milady is pregnant and does not seem to be well. At least she's been in bed."

  "Well done, and now go, before you'll be missed."

  "Isn't the information worth at least a few Shillings?"

  The boy held out his open hand toward him, but Dumfrey ignored it.

  "Get out of here and don't be so greedy. You get enough yet."

  With that, he gave his driver the command to leave, leaving the young man standing there.

  William was nervous. Never before had the lord summoned him. What could possibly be the reason for it. With wet fingers he knocked on the door of his writing room, when a "Come in! from inside sounded and he entered the room. He was surprised to see not only his master but also Mister Summerton in the room.

  Not knowing how to behave now he stood awkwardly at the door. Samuel stood at the window with his arms folded and watched the arrival. Robert, on the other hand, was sitting behind his desk, looked up and gestured to his bellboy to come closer.

  "Please close the door behind you and come over here."

  He did as he was told and then stepped in front of the table.

  "How old are you, William?"

  "Sixteen, sir."

  "And how long have you been working here?"

  "A little over two years. Lord Dunbar, your uncle, employed me."

  "Do you live in this village?"

  William secretly wondered at the lord's questions. Never before had anyone taken an interest in him.

  Dutifully, however, he gave the information.

  "Yes, I live there with my mother and my siblings."

  "How many siblings do you have?"

  "There are six of us at home, I'm the oldest." />
  Robert looked at him in silence for a while and William became visibly more nervous. What did the lord intend by these questions. Robert however, was completely elsewhere with his thoughts. What a bastard Dumfrey was, that he used a child for his crimes. How could he reconcile it with his conscience,

  to bring this boy to justice. He had been guilty of a misdemeanor, and he didn't even know that the noose around his neck was slowly tightening. A quick glance over at Samuel signaled that he seemed to be thinking the same thing, then he turned back to his page.

  "Where is your father?"

  "He died in an accident a little over two years ago in the field. Since then my mother has been trying to get us through."

  "What does your mother do?"

  "She works at the bakery. But the money isn't enough, and that's why I took the job here and put in my wages."

  It was getting better and better, Robert thought. He couldn't have the second earner of this family locked up.

  "Are you satisfied with your wages?"

  "Oh, yes, my lord. It helps my mother very much."

  "Then I ask you now, why do you deceive me?"

  William turned pale in the face. He tried to defend himself.

  "Who, me?"

  "Yes you. You needn't deny it, because Mr. Summerton and I saw you working with smugglers in the bay last night. Smuggling is punishable by prison, as I am sure you know."

  The boy now looked hurriedly from one to the other. The trap had snapped shut. Robert rose from his chair and came around the table. He stood up in front of the frightened boy. The latter, however, pleaded with him.

  "Please sir, don't throw me in jail. My mother wouldn't survive it. She doesn't know anything about it, but we could use the money so well. It was easily earned. I just carried the barrels to the wagon, that's all."

  "Don't forget to mention, in your confession, that you are also a spy for Sir Dumfrey."

  Horrified, the boy backed away. With bowed head and shaky voice, he asked, "How do you know that?”