Cinders and Ashes

by King, Rebecca

  Although she didn’t say as much, Isobel knew that Sebastian would definitely have an opinion in that regard. She was fairly certain that his determination to visit Eastleigh had more to do with informing the man of his intention of marrying his daughter, than discovering Eastleigh’s connections to Hawksworth.

  With a shaky smile of thanks, Amelia took the toast from Isobel and sipped her tea.

  Sebastian felt tension creep through him when the small procession of horses turned onto the sweeping driveway of Tingdale House later that day. The sight of the large stone edifice lying in resplendent tranquillity in the evening sunlight looked even more inviting with the knowledge that Amelia was waiting inside.

  “Don’t worry, it will be fine,” Dominic murmured as he rode alongside.

  “She threatened to leave if I returned with him.”

  “He insisted on coming with us,” Dominic reasoned. “He offered us assistance in identifying Hawksworth from the death mask. He can hardly do that from Kent, now can he? Propriety demands we accommodate him while he is here.”

  Behind them, Edward and Peter rode alongside the Earl of Eastleigh, who had insisted on accompanying them back to Tingdale on horseback. His eagerness to reacquaint himself with his daughter was tangible in the man’s enthusiasm and ready acquiescence to anything they suggested.

  Despite his concern at Amelia’s possible reaction, Sebastian still felt certain sympathy for the Earl. On the afternoon of their arrival at Eastleigh House, Sebastian and Dominic had introduced themselves before recounting events to date. They wasted no time in putting forward their suspicions that the man on the Penny Dreadful may be Hawksworth. Eastleigh was astonished, but in turn confirmed that the drawing did indeed look like Hawksworth. The only way to be certain was to take a look at the death mask.

  Knowing the dangers involved, Sebastian had cautiously revealed the possibility that his attacker may be Ballantyne. He had recounted his brutal kidnap and beatings, before reluctantly revealing that he had in fact been saved by Amelia.

  After a few moments of stunned silence, the older man had practically crumpled before them, slumping into the chair behind him with a heavy thump.

  Sebastian and Dominic had both lurched forward to offer assistance, taken aback by the tears of relief and joy in the man’s eyes.

  Immediately, Eastleigh had peppered them with seemingly endless questions about his daughter’s wellbeing, her safety, her whereabouts, before being overcome with emotion. It was evident, even to strangers such as Sebastian and Dominic, that the man had been desolate over losing her. There was nothing suspicious about him. He was simply a parent who was riddled with regrets, and self-recrimination, over circumstances that had changed everyone’s lives. Eastleigh’s anger towards his sisters had been palpable, as he assured both men that his sisters had been cast out for their callous treatment of his daughter.

  Hugely reassured, Sebastian had wasted no time informing the man that he intended to take Amelia to wife. The older man had been shaking with joy, when he said he would be delighted to accept Sebastian as a son-in-law, and would give assistance in bringing Ballantyne to justice.

  Sebastian had decided not to spare the man anything. Although reluctant to ruin the man’s jubilation, in all conscience he couldn’t allow Eastleigh to be ignorant of Amelia’s threat to leave if Sebastian returned with her father.

  After a few moments of thoughtful contemplation, Eastleigh had assured them that she needed to hear the absolute truth of events. He wouldn’t be put off meeting his daughter, or be kept out of her life in the future, no matter how difficult things got.

  If Sebastian was entirely honest, he didn’t have the heart to deny the man.

  As they drew to a halt in front of the main door, Sebastian jumped down and threw open the front door with a thump. Despite his concern over her reaction, he was eager to see her.

  “Sebastian!” Amelia gasped, catching sight of him when he entered the study. Casually tossing her sewing onto the floor, she jumped to her feet with a smile of delight on her face.

  “Hello, darling,” Sebastian replied, as he strode across the floor. The delight on her beautiful face was a joy to behold. Despite the presence of his sister-in-law, Sebastian swept Amelia into his arms. “God, I’ve missed you,” he murmured softly into her neck, inhaling the delicious scent of apple blossom that was quintessentially Amelia.

  She rapidly blinked tears away as she pulled back in his arms with a smile of relief. His response was everything she longed for, as his lips captured hers for several long moments.

  “Ahem.” Amelia jerked in surprise at the interruption. Immediately her cheeks heated as she became aware of the others, now standing just inside the room.

  “Hello, Amelia.”

  Amelia shivered as the hauntingly familiar voice of her father spoke from the doorway. Everything within her froze. She turned her head slowly, and stared at the grey haired man standing across the room.

  A sense of betrayal swept through her so strongly that she swayed on her feet. She tried to pull away from Sebastian, but he wouldn’t relinquish his hold. Instead, he pulled her tighter against his masculine length, tension thrumming through every fibre of his being as he watched her reaction with dread.

  “Listen to me, Amelia,” Sebastian ordered, blatantly ignoring the betrayal that filled her eyes. “You need to listen to his side of events.”

  “You told him,” Amelia choked out. “Despite everything I said to you.”

  She pushed hard against Sebastian’s chest, breaking free. “You told him.”

  She shouldn’t be surprised really. If she was honest, a small part of her knew that he wouldn’t keep her secret.

  “Wait, Amelia. Please, you must listen to me,” Eastleigh pleaded, moving towards them.

  His daughter had changed a lot in the last five years. Her hair had matured to a rich sable colour. Her beautiful face had a porcelain glow that immediately made one want to stroke her cheek to see if she was real. Her feminine curves spoke of an elegant grace that was simply stunning. He was so proud of her, it made his heart ache. She was such a beautiful young woman; it was easy to see why Sebastian adored her.

  “All I ask is that you give me a few minutes of your time. If you still hate me afterwards, I cannot say I really blame you considering everything you went through.” Barely restrained emotion made his voice shake.

  Amelia had never seen such a look of abject fear on her father’s face, and it made her pause. The mental image of his aloof stance, his back turned towards her as he cast her aside rose unbidden in her mind. It was in stark contrast to the humble man who now stood before her. The man now standing a few feet away was her father from her childhood memories, but no longer her father.

  A wave of confusion swept through her and she frowned, trying to make sense of the tumult of emotions that churned inside her. Quintessentially he was the same, although older. His hair was liberally peppered with silver, and there were fine lines around his eyes and mouth that hadn’t been there before. Although he was a tall, proud man, there was a slight stoop to his shoulders now that highlighted his age.

  Sebastian tried to take her arm, but she was still stinging with the sense of betrayal that despite everything, he had once again gone against her wishes. She jerked her arm away and glared at him, resuming her seat on the chaise in wounded silence.

  “Your father insisted on coming with us,” Sebastian informed her harshly. “Of course I told the man you were here. You are his daughter. You need to know the truth from his side of events. He deserves to learn what actually happened to you when you left the security of Eastleigh.”

  He felt his own chest tighten with sympathy when Amelia raised wounded eyes to his, but he wouldn’t take the blame for Eastleigh’s determination to see his daughter again.

  “If I hadn’t told him, Dominic would have. He has been trying to find you for years. Do you now realise there are two sides to every story?”

  He knew by
the way she held his gaze, that he had sparked her curiosity.

  “Do you not want to know what happened at home to push him to send you to Bath in the first place?

  Despite her anger at him, Sebastian moved to squat down before her, taking her hand in his as he spoke. “For the sake of your future happiness, give the man a few moments. He has been riding for days to get here to see you.”

  When she hesitated, he rose to pour a brandy, handing it to her silently before moving to sit beside her, silently offering support without pushing her. He watched as Eastleigh took the seat opposite, determination clearly etched on his face.

  The conversation that followed was emotion-fuelled, as a humbled and regretful Eastleigh revealed that he had married his wife Henrietta, because he had been tied into a contract between the families. A contract that had been set up while he was still in the nursery.

  Marriage to Henrietta had created an alliance that formed the vast Eastleigh wealth, but did little to fulfil his emotions. Unfortunately, that left him tied into a marriage to a woman he didn’t care for; hence they had only had one daughter.

  After Amelia had been born, they had each gone their own way. Eastleigh had taken a mistress on the other side of the village that held his affection, and Amelia’s mother had taken lovers. Many lovers. As divorce wasn’t an option, they had agreed that they could see whomever they chose as long as they kept their lovers away from the house, and Amelia.

  All had gone well, until Eastleigh had returned home from a business trip early to discover his wife in bed with Ballantyne. He had been angry that his wife had casually dismissed their agreement and, unable to continue to live with her any longer, began trying to persuade her to move into the dower house.

  Henrietta had refused to go, hence the arguments. Eastleigh had suspected his wife was having her lover visit her in her rooms during the daytime regardless, but had no proof. It was inevitable that at some point Amelia would discover the truth, or worse, catch her mother in bed with her lover. It was a possibility he couldn’t countenance. He couldn’t bear his daughter to learn that her parents’ marriage was a sham.

  Both had agreed that until they could resolve matters, Amelia needed to go away. Unfortunately the only place that had appeared practicable was to her aunts in Bath. He had no idea of the extent of their greed. Ignorant of the truth, he had offered them a very generous payment to take good care of his daughter, while he resolved matters with his wife.

  Unfortunately Henrietta died, leaving Eastleigh to deal with the lover, and the resultant gossip. He had been aware that rumours were circulating in the village of Lady Eastleigh’s many bedroom visitors, and had resolved to keep Amelia away from the scandal. Left with no alternative, he had sent her to Bath anyway.

  It had taken several months before gossip calmed down enough for him to consider sending for Amelia. From the letters he had received from his sisters, Amelia was having a wonderful time going to balls, soirees and the like, and was thoroughly enjoying the social scene in Bath.

  He paused and looked at Sebastian when he scoffed at that. “I know the reality was very different.”

  Sebastian stared at the older man. “Did you not want to see the truth for yourself? Did it never cross your mind that, having fun or not, your daughter might want to see you?” He couldn’t keep the disgust out of his voice. “She had just lost her mother.”

  Amelia glanced across at Sebastian, surprised to see the anger clearly etched on his handsome face.

  “I know, but as Amelia will attest, our last meeting was full of anger and pain. I didn’t want to dampen her newfound happiness by turning up unannounced, bringing unwanted and unhappy memories with me.” The older man shook his head remorsefully and turned back towards his daughter. “To my utter shame I decided to remain at Eastleigh, seemingly secure in the knowledge that you were enjoying yourself and having a coming out of sorts. If I had of known the truth-.”

  He added that at first he hadn’t considered anything amiss when Amelia hadn’t responded to his letters. To begin with, he thought she had been too angry with him for being sent away. Then he had put her lack of response down to her enjoying her new lifestyle too much to remember her father, and the bad memories that were linked to him. After a while, he became suspicious but had to wait until winter had cleared, and the roads had become passable again, to make the journey to Bath.

  When he had arrived at Bath, Amelia had already gone. The altercation with his sisters had been unpleasant, and he had resorted to threatening the staff with prison before they relented enough to tell him she had left several weeks before.

  He had been searching for her ever since. Never giving up hope that one day she would be found.

  Amelia was so wrapped up in the pain clearly evident in her father’s voice, she wasn’t aware of the tears that coursed down her cheeks. She didn’t know what to think. The sisters were greedy and manipulative. It didn’t surprise her that they had blatantly lied to her father to keep Amelia under their roof.

  “Amelia?” Eastleigh’s soft voice broke through her thoughts, and she jerked in surprise. She glanced upwards with a raised brow so like his own that it brought a small smile to his face.

  “I know there is a lot to absorb, my dear, but I sincerely hope you can find it within you to allow me a small period of time to make amends for all of the pain I have caused with my blindness.”

  “I think there is a lot to think about, and consider,” Amelia whispered, unsure where to begin.

  “I think your aunts have played you both for fools,” Sebastian said, handing her a handkerchief with a soft smile. “They are the ones who should be held responsible for the things you endured both at their home, and afterwards in Glendowie.”

  “Glendowie?” Eastleigh queried, raising his brows.

  “It was where Amelia was working for a Sir Hubert. He knew who she was, and agreed to give her a home and food, in exchange for her being his housekeeper. Amelia informed him that she had nowhere else to go, so he offered her a home of sorts. It was there that she lived, until I landed half-dead on her doorstep.” Sebastian glanced ruefully at Amelia, remembering that tiny cottage in the middle of nowhere, with something akin to reluctant fondness.

  “Housekeeper?” Horror filled Eastleigh’s eyes, as he stared at his daughter.

  “It was fine. Sir Hubert was a wonderful old man who struggled to live by himself. He wasn’t very demanding, and afforded me what he could. If it wasn’t for him, I don’t know where I would have been.”

  “Was?” Sebastian repeated with a frown, his heart sinking as Amelia’s eyes welled up with tears again.

  “He died, Sebastian. A few days after arriving at his brother’s house.” Her voice quivered with surprised emotions.

  “Oh darling, I am sorry,” he murmured, tugging Amelia against him.

  “I never got to say goodbye, or thank you,” Amelia whispered through her tears.

  “You missed the funeral,” Sebastian sighed regretfully. “I’m sorry.” He was only grateful she still held enough affection for him to allow him so close.

  For a moment there, he seriously considered he had lost her.

  “By the sound of it, there is much we have to thank Sir Hubert for,” Eastleigh offered from across the hearth. He was disturbed by Amelia’s affection for the unseen Sir Hubert, but was pleased to see for himself, Sebastian’s clear devotion to his daughter.

  “I think, when you feel strong enough, you should pay your respects at his grave. You should consider taking a few days of sea air while you are there.” He didn’t add that it could be a very suitable honeymoon destination. “I know someone who has a hunting lodge there you may borrow. When you feel the time is right.”

  “Thank you,” Sebastian replied, his own thoughts running along the same lines. He had already secured the man’s agreement to marry his daughter. If only getting Amelia’s agreement was as easy.

  “I think you are right. But it is up to Amelia.”

>   “I should like that,” Amelia whispered softly, drying her cheeks. All she seemed to do lately was cry.

  “Let us deal with Ballantyne first. Then we shall all go to Devon to pay our respects. I think all of us, in our own way; have a lot to thank Sir Hubert for.” Sebastian’s eyes met and held hers. “If he hadn’t have given you the cottage to live in, you wouldn’t have been there to save my life. I would have died, cold and alone by the side of that track and probably not be found until spring.”

  “Don’t,” Amelia chided with a shudder.

  “It is the truth, though. Sir Hubert didn’t venture out anywhere. It was on the edge of the Bestwick estates, far away from where the ground staff ventured. I wouldn’t have been found.” The thought made even Sebastian wince.

  “It sounds like there is much I have yet to learn about what happened between you two,” Eastleigh muttered ruefully, with a smile. He should have been outraged at the obvious intimacy between the two unmarried people, but seeing the clear adoration on Sebastian’s face, could only find himself happy for them.

  “When you are ready, I think I should like to hear what you have not seen fit to inform me of yet,” he added with a knowing look at the couple.

  “You already know a lot of it,” Sebastian replied ruefully, smiling down at Amelia.

  Amelia felt her cheeks heat at the hidden meaning in the exchange, but refused to apologise for it.

  “There is a lot to catch up on,” she replied softly, a hint of reconciliation in her voice. She watched in surprise when Eastleigh lifted her hand off Sebastian’s shoulder, and kissed the back of it tenderly before giving her a small bow.

  “We shall have time, my dear. If I have anything to do with it, there shall be no further secrets between us. There is much more you need to know.” He glanced at Sebastian to include him in that statement. “But for now, I think we could do with a brief respite. With your permission, I will go to my room now and get settled. I do believe you may have a death mask for me to look at.” With that, he quietly left the room.