The Lords & Ladies Box Set

by Fenella J Miller

  Ned woke immediately. 'Have you fetched my supper?'

  'No, I have come to tell you someone has recognized me as the daughter of Lady Siddon. I'm sure this information will have been given to Dr Hunter and his mother. I must return with you when the lawyer comes to collect you tomorrow. I have nowhere else to go.'

  'No, you must stay away until after the first of December. It will not be safe at home, especially if he knows you are betrothed.'

  'Doctor Hunter will have none of me once he knows my true identity; he's made it quite clear he hates the aristocracy.'

  'But you have money now, Aunt Charlotte, you can rent yourself a fine house and we can come and live with you.'

  'Until I have reached my majority, Ned, I am under my brother's control. Neither you nor the twins can live with me, much as I would like you to do so.' The child looked crestfallen at her refusal to consider his notion. 'However, perhaps I could stay with Mr Ditchin, keep my whereabouts secret from your father for a few more weeks. We must wait until the morning to talk about this.' She tucked in his blankets and kissed him gently. 'One thing is certain; my brother will no longer have access to my money. I shall refuse to sign the papers in future. I shall make sure it's used to improve the lot of the tenants and to see you have sufficient food on the table and clothes on our backs.'

  He nodded, grinning happily. 'I don't suppose there's any supper left? I'm ravenous you know, and I did enjoy the midnight feast you fetched the other night.'

  She was about protest that it was far too late to be creeping about in the kitchen when her stomach rumbled loudly. She giggled. 'I have not eaten at all today, all this talk of food has reminded my insides they are empty. I shall go down and see what I can find for us. There was so much on the table, I cannot believe it was all consumed.'

  She finally retired to her room in the small hours feeling a little more confident about her future. Perhaps her identity was not revealed, those women might not have mentioned their suspicions. It would be unwise to do anything precipitate, far better to wait until she was certain her secret was revealed. Ned was pleased to pretend he was Master George Jones, and she must continue to dissemble also.

  The next morning when she went downstairs the house was restored to its usual pristine condition. There was no sign of there having been over a hundred guests the previous night. The house was also strangely quiet. She met the housekeeper in the vestibule.

  'Mrs Jones, you have done a magnificent job putting the house to rights. Could you tell me where Mrs Hunter or Doctor Hunter are this morning?'

  'Doctor Hunter was called out on an emergency first thing, Miss Edwards. Mrs Hunter has gone to view a house in Bishopsgate. The master said not to disturb you, and he would return to speak to you as soon as he could.'

  'Thank you, young George is awake and seems remarkably well for a boy with a broken leg. I do hope we soon discover from whence he came, his parents must be desperate for information.'

  She ate a lonely breakfast, selecting only a freshly baked roll and strawberry conserve and chose to drink coffee, her head still felt sluggish after her deep sleep and she always found this bitter drink a natural restorative.

  James had asked her to begin on his correspondence. It would be an intrusion into his privacy, a right she no longer had. No, she would spend the day with Ned, although he had his own attendant to look after his bodily needs, his lively intelligence demanded constant entertainment in order to keep him from becoming restless.

  It was almost noon when a carriage rolled up outside the house. Ned's small guest room faced the street. 'Who is it, Aunt Charlotte? Can you see?'

  She peered cautiously around the curtains, not wishing to be seen doing something so vulgar. 'Good heavens! It's Mr Ditchin, I did not expect him to come until tomorrow. That means you will be removed from here before the doctor returns, I'm not sure if that is a good thing or not.'

  She could hardly rush down and greet the lawyer, she was supposedly in ignorance of his existence. She paced the small chamber waiting for the knock on the door. A few minutes later a footman arrived to request her to come downstairs to speak to a gentleman who had information he was not prepared to divulge to anyone but her.

  'I shall not be long, Ned, this is most peculiar. I wonder why he did not mention your name or his own?'

  The lawyer was hovering anxiously in the entrance hall. 'Mr Ditchin, I did not expect you until tomorrow. Have you come to take the patient back?'

  He glanced over his shoulder. Something was very wrong, the man looked harried, not at all the way he had when she had spoken to him last.

  'It is far worse than that, Miss Edwards. Someone has recognized you, and Lord Siddon is on his way to take you. You must come with me at once, I cannot remove Lord Edward, it's better that he stays here to be claimed by his father. But you must come, I fear you will not be safe if you are forced to go back to Siddon Hall.'

  'I shall be with you in ten minutes, I must tell Ned what is happening, and collect…' she paused, there was nothing she should take with her, none of it belonged to her. All she could do was bring the money the lawyer had given her and go. She spoke to Ned and he was sanguine about matters.

  'It's a good thing that you can go before Papa arrives. Don't worry about me, Aunt Charlotte, I'll come to no harm.'

  'You're a brave boy, Ned, give my love to the others and God willing I shall see you again in December.'

  She kissed him quickly and then ran to the study, there was one further thing she had to do before she left. With deep sadness she removed her betrothal ring. There was no time to write a note of any length, but she scribbled quickly.

  James, I know you will not forgive me for my deception, but believe me I did not know my true identity until a few days ago. I love you, and hope you will come to understand why I deceived you in this way. Charlotte.

  After folding the ring inside the paper she sealed it with a blob of wax placing it in a prominent position on the desk. The clock struck noon, it reminded her again of the girl in the fairytale. Mr Ditchin was waiting in the vestibule, he smiled with relief as she reappeared.

  'Come along, my lady, the earl might be arriving at any moment. We must be away from here before he does; he can demand that you accompany him and there would be nothing I could do to prevent it.'

  The groom was waiting at the carriage door. No sooner had she collapsed on to the seat than the steps were up, the door slammed and the coachman urging his horses forward. She'd scarcely had time to catch her breath and had left the house without thinking what was to happen next.

  'Lady Charlotte, I'm taking you to stay in the country with a relative of mine. I shall deny all knowledge of your whereabouts, it would be wise to be known by a different name, Miss Edwards must be abandoned. In your new home you shall be known as Miss Eleanor Simpson.'

  Too choked to answer, she nodded her understanding of the situation. After a short while she regained her composure sufficiently to speak. 'Mr Ditchin, I have no belongings, I have the money that you gave me but nothing else. What am I to wear?'

  He patted her hand. 'My sister-in-law, Mrs Anna Thomas, has daughters your age. It's arranged that you shall borrow what you need from them. It would not do to have a fresh wardrobe made just now, it is the very thing your brother will be enquiring about.'

  'Does Mrs Thomas understand my circumstances?'

  He shifted uncomfortably on the seat. 'Not exactly, I have told her only that you are obliged to remain incognito until your name day. I have said that you are being forced to marry a gentleman not to your liking and as your lawyer I felt obligated to assist.'

  More lies. When would she be free of them and able to take her place in the world under her own name? 'I understand, and I thank you for your assistance. If you will forgive me, I have the headache and need to sit quietly.'

  Her heart was breaking; she would give away her fortune in a second if by so doing she could put the engagement ring back upon her finger.

&nbs
p; Chapter Seven

  James returned home surprised to find a smart carriage outside the front door. Inside the place was in uproar. His mother was weeping and wringing her hands whilst a tall, dark visaged gentleman, who looked familiar, was shouting at her. He was not having this. How dare a stranger berate his mother in her own home?

  'Enough, you shall not behave in this way here. Remove yourself at once.' He squared his shoulders and glared, it had the desired effect. Confronted by someone larger than himself the man's belligerence vanished to be replaced by a false smile.

  'I beg your pardon, I should not have raised my voice. I am Siddon, Earl of Southway. You must be Hunter.'

  James was not so easily placated. His mother rushed to his side, her face tearstained. 'I don't care who you are, remove yourself before I do it for you.' He stepped forward his fists clenched and Siddon held his hands in front of him as if to ward off an attack.

  'I have….'

  'I have no interest in your business. I have given you due warning. What happens next, you have brought upon yourself.' Without hesitation he jumped forward grabbing the intruder by his collar, two hefty yanks and the man was catapulted headfirst through the open door. He slammed it behind him before turning to comfort his mother.

  'Tell me, what has been going on here? Why was that man shouting at you?' He took her arm and guided her into the drawing-room, the fracas had attracted an array of interested spectators. 'Under no circumstances open the door, is that quite clear?' The butler nodded and gestured to the gawping staff to get about their business.

  'George Jones is not the boy's name, he is Lord Edward Siddon, that vile man's son. And there is worse, James, our dear Charlotte is not who she said she was. She is Lady Charlotte Siddon, that man's sister.'

  James felt his world disintegrate. He had asked a member of the hated aristocracy to be his wife – however much he loved her, he could not become connected to someone from that class. 'Where is she? She will be devastated to discover her true identity.' He turned, but then the full enormity of what had happened crashed over him.

  'She has known since the boy arrived, has she not? I cannot believe she would deliberately deceive me. The boy must be removed and returned to his father, I shall go upstairs and speak to him. Can you ask Charlotte to join me in the study?'

  Not waiting for her reply he strode upstairs, ignoring the shouts and hammering on his front door. The child was struggling to get himself out of bed, the maid assigned to take care of him trying to push him back.

  'Lord Edward, you must not try and stand as you will damage your leg. Remain seated and Daisy will help you dress, as no doubt you have gathered your father is here to claim you.'

  'I'm sorry I lied to you, I could not tell you who I was without revealing my aunt's identity.'

  'I do not blame you for this. If you will excuse me I must speak to your aunt before she leaves.'

  Charlotte was not waiting for him in the study. He frowned, she must be out of the house, the noise her brother was making was enough to rouse the dead. He glanced at his desk and saw a square of folded paper sealed with wax. Snatching it up he opened it and his ring tumbled into his palm. It was worse than he thought, her memory had returned but she'd continued to deceive him. A wave of anger swept through him and he was tempted to hurl the note and the ring into the fire.

  He paused, arm raised as something occurred to him. Why should someone like Charlotte wish to remain plain Miss Edwards? There was something he did not know, none of this made sense. There could be only one reason why she had made this choice, she truly loved him and was prepared to give up her life of luxury in order to remain at his side.

  The thought of this sacrifice began to restore his equilibrium. If she could love him in these circumstances then he must not reject her quite so readily. He could not allow the boy to leave until he'd explained the whole to him. The hammering continued, the stream of abuse no doubt alarming his neighbours.

  'Tell Lord Siddon his son will be with him as soon as we can get him ready. However, the boy shall be brought to him, he will not set foot in my house again.' The butler beckoned for two sturdy footmen to join him before he approached the door.

  His mother met him at the bottom of the stairs. 'Charlotte has left, she took nothing with her and told Daisy she would not be returning. Oh, James, what a muddle. I cannot understand how things have come to this.'

  'Please don't worry yourself, Mama, I don't believe the circumstances to be as dire as they might seem. I must speak to Lord Edward before he leaves, I believe he has the answer to how this came about.'

  The boy was half dressed and in spite of his brave demeanour it was obvious he was finding the activity distressing. 'Leave him to me, Daisy, I need to examine his leg before we proceed.'

  He smiled encouragingly and the boy managed a weak grin. 'Now then, my lord, let me give you something to ease the pain.' This time the laudanum was swallowed eagerly. 'If you feel up to it, there are certain questions I should like answered.'

  'Aunt Charlotte wanted to tell you when her memory returned, but I persuaded her against it. My father wishes to get his hands on her trust fund; when she failed to return he was unable to access the interest as usual. Her lawyer has taken her somewhere safe until after December the first, when she is one and twenty and her inheritance will be hers alone.'

  This was quite unexpected information; not only was she an aristocrat she was also immensely wealthy. The weight in his chest began to ease a little. Her note had been no lie, she loved him as much as he loved her. Somehow they must bridge the gulf between them so that they might find happiness together.

  'Thank you for being so honest, young man. Can you give me the name of her lawyer? I shall let matters settle for a week and then ride down to see her.'

  'Mr Ditchin, he has chambers behind Bond Street.'

  The boy sighed and his eyes flickered shut. Excellent, it would be better for the child to be moved whilst he was unconscious. He hated to carry him down and hand him over to Siddon, but he had no choice. Wrapped in a warm comforter, with pillows to support his injured limb, his patient would suffer no lasting harm. He should have enquired about his home circumstances, hopefully there was a mother who would take over his care.

  With Foster and two footmen standing guard, he carried the boy down and placed him in the carriage. He ignored the blustering and muttering coming from Siddon, the threats the man was making against his person and his sister were best ignored.

  'Lady Charlotte must be returned immediately, she is my ward and you cannot keep her here.'

  'I would not dream of doing so, Siddon, but she left these premises this morning and I have no notion where she's gone. Lord Edward will sleep for an hour or two, is that sufficient to get him home?'

  The man scowled. 'Siddon Hall is in Richmond, we shall be back within the hour. I have an excellent physician to attend to my son, no doubt he will need to rectify your amateur attempts to set the leg.'

  James restrained the urge to floor this unpleasant aristocrat. 'In which case I do not need to give you further opiate. I bid you good day. There is no call to thank me for taking care of your son and your sister, it was my pleasure.'

  He flinched at the torrent of vitriolic abuse that rained down on him. The man was deranged, he should never have let Lord Edward leave the house. He turned, intending to demand the boy be returned, but was too late. The coachman cracked his whip and the team surged forward, the carriage took off at speed, leaving him standing on the pathway praying the boy would survive the journey.

  *

  Charlotte was thankful to be shown immediately to a small guest room at the front of the house that was to be her sanctuary for the next four weeks. Mr Ditchin had departed with promises to visit soon. For the second time she was to rely on borrowed clothes. She had thanked her hostess profusely for her kindness, had smiled and nodded at the three girls whose garments she was to use, and retreated to her bed chamber.

  Although t
he journey had not been long, she was exhausted from bottling up her grief. She needed to rest in the privacy of her bed, draw the hangings, and allow herself to cry. A neatly folded nightgown was waiting for her on the pillows, a simple bedrobe hanging on a hook behind the door. The closet contained garments she would be quite at home in, she had never felt comfortable in the silks and satins she'd been wearing recently.

  The days passed slowly but their very monotony was soothing to her nerves. Every day she rose and joined the family for prayers in the drawing-room, then after breaking her fast she would assist in various tasks about the house. Although a cook and two general maidservants were kept, but was no housekeeper or other indoor staff.

  By the second week of her lodging she was sufficiently familiar with her surroundings to offer to run errands to the village. The weather was inclement, more like winter than autumn, and Ellen and Maria had succumbed to a feverish cold leaving Annie and herself to assist Mrs Thomas with all the household tasks.

  'I should be happy to deliver the basket to Mrs Peters in the village, ma'am, I know exactly where she lives as I accompanied Maria last week.'

  'If you would be so good, my dear, that means Annie can take care of the patients in my absence. I shall not be more than an hour or two, I do not have much to purchase in town today.'

  With her borrowed cloak pulled close about her throat, her bonnet ribbons tied firmly under her chin, Charlotte set off to take the basket to a retired retainer who now resided in a tiny cottage on the village green. The two family spaniels gambolled around her feet delighted to be taken for an airing on such they day.