“You can pretend to trip. He will forget what he asked while he is seeing to your welfare.”
Sophia’s blond eyebrows lifted. “And what if we’re sitting?”
“I don’t know. Uh, drop something.”
“Like what?”
Regina swung her head side to side searching for an object Sophia could take with her that wouldn’t be out of the ordinary. She spotted a folded handkerchief with delicate pink roses stitched at the corner on the bedside table and grabbed it. “Drop this.”
Regina shook the flimsy muslin square in front of Sophia, and she grabbed it. “Fine, but I might be dropping my handkerchief all afternoon.”
“Then perhaps Crispin will be too winded from retrieving it to ask anymore questions.”
Sophia giggled and hugged the square to her chest. “Now I want to drop it more than necessary. A silent Margrave would be music to my ears.”
Twenty-seven
Later that morning, Xavier’s sister followed him to the foyer of the town house she shared with her husband and son. “I still don’t understand the reason you are letting rooms at the Pulteney. We have plenty of space and we enjoy your company.”
Xavier placed his valise beside the door and decided to change tactics. “You will have less space once the baby arrives. I’m sorry, but I need quiet and privacy.”
Serafine winced, and he wanted more than anything to recant. Hurting his sister was not part of his plan to protect her, but she wasn’t accepting his decision to move to the hotel.
He softened his voice. “I enjoy your company as well, Sera. I’m not setting up house across the sea. Once you return from Brighton, you may visit whenever you like. Simon and Isaac are welcome as well.”
“Perhaps we should postpone our holiday until after your wedding.”
“Lisette needs you more than I. Our cousin will give birth any day, and she is likely frightened out of her wits. She has always looked to you for guidance. You should be there for her and Rafe.”
Rafe was Lisette’s younger brother, and he’d been the center of his sister’s attention since their mother died in childbirth. An infant in the home would take some adjustment.
“The boy might feel ignored for a while after the baby arrives,” he said, “and your presence will bring him comfort.”
She bit her bottom lip, as she seemed to grapple with her choices. “I suppose you are right about Lisette needing me,” she said at last, “but I would like to be here for you, too. I wanted to be present for your wedding.”
“I understand. I wish I could have been here for your wedding, too. I’m sorry I missed your special moments.”
And all the smaller ones in between.
A lump formed in his throat, and Xavier placed his arm around Serafine’s shoulders. Too much time had been lost between them already, and now even more was being stolen. But a temporary separation was preferable to losing each other forever.
“Please go to Brighton. Miss Darlington and I won’t marry for several weeks, and you would miss out on the birth if you waited.”
He hated lying to his sister, but he wanted her far from London when the time came to challenge Farrin. He hoped she would forgive him when she learned he and Regina were married by special license within days of her departure—if Margrave’s connections proved useful.
“What if my bride and I honeymoon in Brighton?” he asked. “Our family would have an opportunity to become acquainted with Regina, and I would like to meet Lisette’s husband and welcome the new babe.”
A bright smile lit Serafine’s face. “That would be lovely.” She gave him a brief hug then stepped away as if she needed to release him quickly, or she would never let him go. “Do you promise to come to Brighton?”
“I do. And do you promise to set off at dawn? You have a long journey ahead.”
“I will see that she makes good time.” Xavier looked up to see Isaac descending the stairs. Serafine’s husband came to slip his arm around her waist. “It is time to let your brother go. You will reunite soon.”
“I know.” Tears shimmered in her eyes, and she leaned her head against Isaac’s shoulder. “Do you swear we will see each other again?”
“Yes.” Xavier’s voice cracked. “This is a temporary separation. Remember, I am not going anywhere.”
After his discussion with Regina’s aunt, he’d come to a decision. The family house in New Orleans held too many unpleasant memories. He didn’t want to raise his children in a home tainted by anger and despair. England would become his home, where his bride would be happiest and his kin would be close.
He retrieved his valise. “We will see you in Brighton.”
Serafine allowed him to walk out her door this time. The hack he had ordered was waiting in the street. He glanced around the neighborhood in search of Farrin’s men, but he only spotted an old woman in a hooded cape moving in his direction, a footman approaching the door of the house on the corner, and a few ladies out for a stroll. The street had been clear of Farrin’s thugs all morning, but Xavier had no doubt he was still being watched. A prickle of unease lifted the hair on the back of his neck.
The coachman opened the carriage door and placed the steps for him. “May I take your case, sir?”
He handed it to the man and grabbed the door to steady his climb when something tugged at his jacket. He startled and turned to discover the old woman clinging to him. The hood blocked her face from view. A beggar in need.
The coachman’s boots thudded against the cobbles when he hopped from the carriage. “Move away, wench.”
“Xavier,” she mumbled and lifted her head.
He gasped at the sight of her—her eye was swollen shut and her lip was split. “Claudine? What happened? Who did this to you?”
Her chin quivered. “The duke.”
Xavier cursed under his breath and darted his gaze around the neighborhood to see if she’d been followed. Madame Parma had compared Claudine to a bird in a gilded cage. The Duke of Stanhurst wouldn’t allow her far from sight.
“Are you certain you were not followed?”
“No one pays attention to old women. I wasn’t followed.”
He took in her tattered attire, recalling how he had mistaken her for an elderly woman moments earlier. The way she’d slumped forward, as if her back were bent from years of bearing heavy loads, and her wobbling walk had convinced him at a glance. She had always been an excellent actress.
Xavier placed his hand on the small of her back. “Climb inside. I will take you someplace safe.”
He considered providing shelter at the Pulteney Hotel and quickly discarded the idea. She might be recognized, which would make the duke’s task of tracking her easier. He knew of only one place where she would be given safe haven.
Once he had her settled in the carriage, he spoke quietly with the driver. “My destination is Conduit Street. Wedmore House.”
The driver gave a sharp nod.
Xavier climbed into the carriage, pulled the curtains, then joined Claudine on the bench. The carriage lurched away from Serafine’s house and rattled over the uneven street.
He swiveled toward Claudine. “Will you allow me a closer look at your face?”
She flinched, pulling the hood lower to hide. “I’m embarrassed for you to see me this way.”
“You have no reason to feel embarrassed. You are not to blame for what has been done. Stanhurst should be ashamed to show his face. I only want to examine your injuries. Will you allow me?”
She inclined her head slightly and didn’t move as Xavier removed the hood. Her chestnut hair hung in tangled waves around her shoulders. He was careful to maintain a blank expression as he inspected her battered face, but his hands shook with repressed rage. She would heal, and those who looked on her would consider her beautiful. Most would never see the scars she carried inside, but they would be there.
“Stanhurst must answer for what he has done. I will call on him, and he will answer to me.”
“No!” Cl
audine grasped his hands, clinging as if he might walk out of the moving carriage to confront the duke. “You can’t go to him. He wants you dead.”
He smiled, hoping to help calm her nerves. “We have something in common. I want him dead, too. Although I will settle for gravely wounded.”
She didn’t return his smile.
“Tell me what happened,” he prompted. “What precipitated his attack?”
“One of the actresses spoke with you at the theatre. She knew you’d come looking for me.” Claudine pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve and gingerly dabbed at the tears when they slipped onto her cheeks. “She thought she could ingratiate herself with the duke by claiming I was being unfaithful. She wants Stanhurst to toss me aside, so she can assume my position.”
“I can’t believe Madame Parma betrayed you.” The leading lady’s compassion for Claudine had struck him as genuine. She had played him for a fool.
“It wasn’t Lia. She is a loyal friend.” Claudine sniffled. “Zoe is a young upstart with high ambitions. She has no idea the price she would pay if Stanhurst made her his mistress.”
The pixie. Stanhurst would delight in squelching the girl’s high-spiritedness, just as he’d taken joy in robbing Claudine of her confidence. Knowing the young actress was responsible for Claudine’s current state made it difficult to feel sympathy for her, however.
“Zoe will have to fend for herself,” he said, “but you are never returning to Stanhurst. Is your friend still in Vienna?”
“I don’t know. The duke’s servants hold the post until he inspects it. If Sarah has written to me, I’ve never seen her letters.”
Xavier felt his nostrils flare, but he kept his temper in check. Cursing the Duke of Stanhurst wouldn’t help Claudine. “My betrothed and her family will provide you safe haven for now. We can write to the theatre owner once you are settled. If your friend has moved on, he should know where she was headed next. Then we’ll write to that theatre and continue sending letters until we find her.”
She shook her head. “Searching for her would take too long, and I couldn’t impose. Please accept my congratulations on your betrothal, though.”
He leaned against the seatback with a smile. “Thank you. Regina is the most magnificent young lady I have ever known. She is also kind and tenderhearted. I imagine she will insist you stay at Wedmore House.”
Claudine grimaced. “I didn’t seek you out to request your assistance. I came to warn you against Stanhurst. When he called at the town house last night, he kept ranting about how he should have killed you himself instead of trusting others to do it.”
Xavier’s breath caught in his lungs. Could the duke be responsible for his imprisonment? “Did he say anything else?”
“No.”
“Are you sure? Think about it a moment.”
“I don’t think there was anything else. His ramblings were nonsensical most of the time. He talked of finding out about Vienna and that you were assisting me, but I already knew he had discovered our plans. He told me the morning we were supposed to leave. That is how I learned the servants are loyal to him.” Her brow furrowed. “Xavier, what happened to you? The duke said you left without me, but I couldn’t believe it was true.”
“It was a lie. I’d been winning at the gaming tables, so I made one last trip to the Den the night before our departure.” He’d wanted to return home wealthier than when he’d left and prove his sister’s worries about gambling were for naught. He had won at Hazard that night and lost over two years of his life.
“I hadn’t arranged for a carriage to come at a certain time, because I hadn’t wanted to be forced to leave if I found myself in the middle of a lucky streak. I remember a biting wind whipping through the alley, and how glad I was that I would be home soon where the winters are milder. I’d overindulged. I wasn’t listening for footpads, and I couldn’t see anything in the dark. I don’t recall much after leaving the Den, other than I experienced a blinding pain at the back of my head. I was in and out of consciousness, and every time I woke, I was traveling in a carriage. I was held prisoner until several days ago.”
“This had to be the duke’s doing, only I think he never meant for you to survive.” Fresh tears wet her cheeks. “I am sorry. I never should have accepted your help. Can you ever forgive me?”
“There is nothing to forgive, Claudine.”
He opened his arms, and she fell into his embrace with a sob. He held his friend as she cried tears she’d likely been storing inside for years. She was spent by the time the carriage arrived at Wedmore House.
“Could I take a moment to speak with Regina alone? She isn’t the type to require smelling salts, but I don’t want to catch her by surprise.”
Claudine tried to wipe away evidence of her tears with the damp handkerchief. “You should send me on my way. I am afraid of causing trouble for you.”
Xavier opened the carriage door and stepped down without waiting for the coachman to set the stairs then turned back to address her. “You are not returning to the duke. Now, please wait here. I won’t take long.”
As he started toward the front door, it flew open and Regina greeted him with a brilliant smile. Instinctively, he blocked her view of the carriage interior. Regina drew up short, her smile falling away. He’d hoped to prepare her and absorb some of the shock of seeing Claudine’s battered face.
“I’ve brought an old friend with me,” he said. “She has been hurt and needs tending.”
He cautiously moved aside, so Regina could see into the carriage. When she spotted Claudine, she covered her mouth with her hand.
He cleared his throat. “This is Claudine Bellerose. I’m afraid she has nowhere to go. Could I bring her inside?”
“Yes, of course.” Regina came forward as Xavier helped Claudine from the carriage. She placed her arm around the actress and guided her inside Wedmore House. As soon as Xavier closed the door behind him, she called out for her sister.
Evangeline appeared in the corridor outside of the library and hurried toward them with a rustling of skirts. Her eyes widened as she drew near. “Good heavens. Who is this? What happened?”
“This is Claudine, an old friend to Mr. Vistoire.”
Evangeline skidded to a stop. “Oh?” She drew out the word, glancing warily at Regina, perhaps seeking direction on how she should react to Xavier bringing a strange woman into their home.
Claudine’s chin quivered again as she seemed to fight against tears. “I am sorry. I shouldn’t have allowed Mr. Vistoire to bring me.”
Regina frowned at her sister. “Of course you should have. Forgive us if we have given offense. We are simply surprised because we were unaware Mr. Vistoire knew anyone in London aside from his sister.”
“Claudine is an actress,” Xavier said. “We lost touch, but she sought me out today to warn me that someone wishes me ill.”
Regina arched an eyebrow. “Evangeline, please show Claudine to the guest room while I ask Cook to put the kettle over the fire.”
“Come this way, miss.” Evangeline ushered Claudine toward the staircase. “Are you able to climb?”
“Oui, if we move slowly.”
Regina’s sister linked arms with the actress. “Take as much time as you need. Once we have you settled, I will find a clean gown for you.”
He stood guard as the women ascended the staircase, holding his breath every time Claudine tottered, and Evangeline fought to rebalance them both. When they reached the landing without incident, he exhaled with a noisy whoosh then turned to Regina.
“I should see to the kettle,” she said, “but when I return, I would like to understand what is going on.”
Several moments later, she bustled back into the foyer. “Cook will prepare a pot of tea and a pitcher of fresh water to clean her cuts.” Regina tried to whisk past to lead him to the drawing room, but he captured her around the waist and pulled her to him for a chaste kiss.
“I haven’t delivered my belongings to the hotel yet, an
d I would like word of my move to reach Farrin before sundown. Serafine and Isaac will be leaving early tomorrow morning. Could we discuss Claudine when I return?”
She frowned. “I am more interested in discussing who wants to harm you.”
“Claudine’s benefactor made threats against me, but there is no need for worry.” Stanhurst was a coward who only hurt those who couldn’t defend themselves. He had enlisted others to do his dirty work last time, and Xavier would be watching over his shoulder now. It seemed highly probable Stanhurst was responsible for his troubles with Farrin, but Xavier would like his suspicions confirmed.
“Have you had any luck finding the map?”
“No,” she said with a sigh. “But we haven’t finished searching the library. You should continue on to the hotel. We will watch over Claudine while you are gone.”
“Merci.”
Regina’s lashes fluttered as if she couldn’t understand him.
“Thank you,” he said, thinking perhaps his French had confused her.
She laughed. “I know what you said. I’m simply trying to understand why you are thanking me.”
“Many ladies wouldn’t acknowledge a woman of Claudine’s background, much less welcome her into their home. Thank you for not turning her away.”
“It never entered my mind,” Regina said with a shrug.
“I know.” He cupped her face, his fingertips nestling into the luxuriously soft hair at her nape. Tenderness filled his chest, bursting through in his smile. “This is why I love you.”
Her eyes widened, and she stared at him with her lips parted. His profession hung between them for several labored breaths. His gut clenched. He hadn’t planned to tell her that he loved her. At least not now, and not like this.
“Um...” She glanced toward the stairwell then back at him.
He decided to spare them both. “I should be going.”
She grasped his forearm as he turned toward the door. “May you find a gold coin in the street and be run down by the post coach.”
He blanched. “I beg your pardon?”
“It is a ritual.” A furious blush made her cheeks glow. “Before my uncle leaves on a journey, I wish him bad luck to trick the gods into keeping him safe. It is a silly child’s game. I’m sorry.”
Secrets to a Gentleman's Heart (Gentlemen of Intrigue Book 1) Page 21
