by Laura Landon
“All?”
“Yes. Did you follow your invitation with a letter?”
“I’m not sure I understand.”
Cassie studied the confused expression and knew Ellie wasn’t responsible for the letter. Dear God, she said as a prayer, as a plea. That meant someone else knew her secret.
“What letter did you get, Cassie?” Ellie stepped closer and placed her hand over Cassie’s in a comforting manner.
“I shouldn’t have come,” she said. “I should have been satisfied with things the way they were.”
“No, you shouldn’t. You and Harrison have made remarkable strides to heal the hurt between you. If you are in any kind of trouble, this is exactly the place you need to be.”
Cassie wished Ellie were right. She wished she and Harrison could go back in time and forget everything that had torn them apart. And she thought maybe that was happening.
She remembered how he’d swung her around in the air after she’d made her last shot. She should have known Waverley was watching. Their show of affection had undoubtedly been the impetus he’d needed to carry out his threat. If only she hadn’t let Harrison touch her or hold her. Perhaps if she hadn’t agreed to be his partner...
She squeezed shut her eyes and considered her alternatives. She had to tell Charfield and Harrison’s brothers that Waverley was responsible even though he’d deny it when confronted. Without proof there was nothing anyone could do. And Waverley would be free to try to kill Harrison again.
Her heart raced even faster.
”I have to leave. Harrison won’t be safe until I’m gone.”
“You’re not thinking clearly, Cassie.” Ellie grasped her by the shoulders and held her.
She spun away. “Yes, I am. I only came because of the letter. But that no longer matters. Nothing is worth Harrison’s death.”
“What letter?”
Cassie shook her head. The sooner she left, the better.
An abnormal calm settled over her. The most terrifying part of any tragedy was not knowing what action to take to fix it. But she was past that. She knew now what she had to do.
She took a relaxing breath when the door opened. She heard George thank the doctor for coming, followed by his order for Fitzhugh to be sure to feed the doctor before he left. When Fitzhugh and the doctor left the room, Cassie entered.
She rushed across the room and didn’t stop until she reached the bed where Harrison lay.
He wore no shirt or nightshirt and his upper arm was heavily bandaged in clean, white cloth. She looked from the bandage to Harrison’s face and her breath caught in her throat.
He was beyond pale, no doubt from the doctor’s painful ministrations as well as the loss of blood, but he appeared to be all right.
“How are you?”
“Better now that the doctor’s finished torturing me.”
Cassie knew he’d intended his last remark to be a joke, but she couldn’t form a smile.
He frowned. “Are you all right, Cassie?”
She nodded. “I’m going home, Harrison. My maid is packing now and I intend to leave as soon as my luggage is loaded.”
Harrison’s eyes closed on a regretful sigh, then he opened them and faced her. “Of course. No one can blame you for wanting to leave after what just happened. I’ll have my staff assist you with whatever you need.”
Charfield stepped forward. “I’m afraid we can’t allow you to leave, Lady Lathamton.”
He leveled a stern look in her direction. “At least, not until you tells us who shot Lord Fellingsdown.”
CHAPTER 16
All eyes focused on Cassie and she felt the blood rush from her face.
“Cassie?”
Harrison whispered her name but she couldn’t bring herself to look at him. If she did, he’d know it was her fault he’d been shot.
“I think you need to tell us what you know,” Charfield said.
The impact of his words caused her to stagger. “I can’t.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
It was suddenly impossible for her to keep her balance. If George hadn’t been near enough to steady her, she would have slumped to the floor.
“Jules, would you please close the door?” Charfield ordered. “And make sure the hall is empty of any guests.”
Jules rushed to close the door.
“Spencer, perhaps you can find your sister and Lady Lathamton a chair. I'm sure they'd be more comfortable sitting.”
Elly’s youngest brother went for chairs.
“George, help me up,” Harrison said, already trying to raise himself.
George hesitated. “Are you sure, Harry? You’ve just been—”
“Help me up,” he demanded.
Charfield moved to one side of the bed and George to the other. Together they moved Harrison to a sitting position and Elly rushed to prop a pillow behind his back.
“What’s this...about, Charfield?” Harrison’s voice was ragged but exhibited a strength Cassie was glad to hear.
Charfield turned his attention toward her. His expression remained serious. He knew.
“Why don’t you explain what’s going on, my lady?” he said when Spence brought in two chairs and Elly and she sat.
All eyes shifted to her. Sheer willpower was all that kept her upright in her chair.
“Cassie, what do you know about the shooting?” Elly asked. The frown on her face matched the question in her voice.
Cassie took a deep breath and focused her pleading gaze on Charfield. “I have to leave The Down. It’s the only way Harrison will be safe.”
“Safe from whom?” Charfield asked.
She shook her head. She couldn’t tell them. She couldn’t.
“Tell us,” George demanded in an uncommon display of forcefulness.
“I can’t,” she cried out. “If I leave, everything will be all right. He just wants me away from here.” She paused. “Away from Harrison.”
Tears fell from her eyes and she swiped them from her cheeks. “I didn’t think he was serious. I’m so sorry.”
Harrison’s gaze narrowed. “Who, Cassie?”
“I can’t tell you. You’ll do something foolish.” She swiped her hand to include all of them. “And it will only make things worse.”
“If someone intentionally shot Harrison, we don’t intend to ignore it,” Spence said.
He was the most outspoken of Harrison’s brothers and had the quickest temper. He was also the one to forget a wrong the fastest. But Cassie knew he wouldn’t forget this. None of them would.
“Telling you won’t do any good.” She wiped her tears with the handkerchief Charfield handed her. “And you can’t go to the authorities. He’ll only deny he shot Harrison.”
“We have no intention of going to the authorities,” Jules said. “We’ll handle this ourselves.”
“No! You can’t! I’m the only one who can keep Harrison safe!”
Harrison reacted with the strength of a man whose arm wasn’t in a bandage and who hadn’t just had a doctor sew his flesh together. “Bloody hell, woman!” he said, slamming the fist of his uninjured hand down beside him on the bed. “Do you think I’m the kind of man who’d hide behind a woman’s skirts?”
She slid from the chair and knelt on the floor beside the bed. She reached for his hand and wrapped her fingers around his fist. “What happened is my fault. I should have known he meant it, but I didn’t think he was serious.”
“Who, Cassie?”
“Waverley.”
“Waverley?” George said in disbelief. “What does Waverley want so badly that he’d try to kill Harrison to get?”
For a moment no one spoke, then Charfield answered George’s question. “You’re looking at her,” he answered, then nodded to where she knelt.
“Waverley’s in love with Cassie?” Harrison shifted on the bed as if he wanted to rise. George placed his hand on Harrison’s shoulder and he settled back against the pillow.
“I don�
��t think love has much to do with Waverley’s motives. Am I right, Lady Lathamton?”
She nodded.
“When did you realize what Waverley’s intentions were?” Charfield asked.
Another stabbing of fear spiked through her and she gazed at him with a pleading look that begged him not to say more.
“Answer Charfield’s question, Cassie,” Harrison said, the hardness in his voice leaving no room for mistaking his determination. “How long has Waverley bothered you?”
“A little more than six months,” she said softly. “His comments were innocent at first. He began by reassuring me that he’d always be there to help me.” She breathed a sigh that shuddered. “Then his suggestions became more personal. He told me that since it was unthinkable for me to remain alone, I should give some consideration to remarrying. Especially with a young son to raise and two estates to manage.”
“Two?” Spence said.
Cassie rose from the floor and sat on the edge of her chair. “I’m sure you heard the rumor that my father disowned my brother, Benjamin. It happened the night before...my marriage.”
“Do you know why?” Charfield asked.
She shook her head. She tried not to remember anything about that night. It was the second worst night of her life. “Benjamin came to see me before he left England. He’d been disowned by Father and was on his way to the docks. He had passage to Boston, in America.
“I didn’t know until Father died two years later that he’d left everything to me. I’d always hoped Father would forgive Ben for whatever he did and leave him Hollyvine Keep. But he didn’t.”
She looked into Harrison’s eyes and prayed he’d tell her she’d told enough.
“Go on, Cassie.”
“Hollyvine Keep isn’t entailed and neither is our London property. I have control of everything until my son reaches his majority. Then it goes to Andrew.”
“Does Waverley know this?” Harrison asked.
“I’m sure he does. He’s managed the Lathamton holdings for years. Even though Hollyvine has its own steward, I’m sure he’s kept abreast of how it’s being managed.”
“How did you know Waverley intended to harm Harrison?” George asked.
“He told me.”
”He told you!” Spence slammed his fist against the small table closest to him. “When?”
“Last night.” She turned her gaze to where Harrison lay on the bed. “He saw us...on the terrace.”
“What did he say?” Harrison asked.
She shook her head. “I don’t remember exactly, but he mentioned that developing a friendship with you wouldn’t be beneficial to me. Or to you. I didn’t dream he meant to harm you.”
“There’s no way you could have known,” Harrison said. “None of this is your fault.”
“Perhaps not. But I can prevent anything more from happening.” She rose to her feet and faced them. “I need to leave here.”
Charfield answered her announcement with a rebuttal. “I’m afraid we can’t allow that, Lady Lathamton. You need to stay.”
”But Harrison won’t be safe if I stay.”
“We’ll make sure nothing happens to him. Or to you.”
She shook her head. They didn’t understand Waverley’s desperation for power. Or his desire for wealth. “How are you going to do that? By guarding Harrison night and day?”
“No,” Charfield said. “By eliminating the threat.”
George took a step forward. “It would be my pleasure to ask Waverley to leave The Downs.”
“We’ll help,” Spencer said, giving Jules a nod.
“Asking him to leave won’t make him any less dangerous,” Charfield said. “He has to admit his guilt to someone whose reputation is beyond reproach and whose word carries enough weight to force him to reside far away from here. Preferably out of England.”
“Do you have someone in mind?” Harrison asked from the bed.
Charfield smiled. “You have among your guests some of the most influential members of the House. Your two brothers-in-law, for example.”
“They’re related,” George reminded him. “I’m afraid their word won’t carry as much weight as someone who’s not.”
“The Duke of Parneston isn’t,” Charfield added.
“No, he isn’t.” George said with a serious grin on his face. “But Waverley’s hardly likely to admit to any of us that he tried to kill Harrison.”
“No,” Charfield agreed. “There’s only one person who can get him to admit what he did.”
Everyone in the room was quiet as they considered who that might be.
Cassie’s heart beat faster, her pulse pounded in her head. Charfield was right. There was one person to whom Waverley would boast.
Harrison was the first to realize who that person was. “No. I won’t allow it.”
“Allow what?” Jules asked.
“It’s the only way,” Charfield said in a soft, calm voice.
“Then we’ll find another way,” Harrison said.
“Would someone explain what’s going on here?” Spence demanded.
“There’s nothing to explain,” Harrison said, trying to sit up in bed. “I won’t allow it.”
Cassie stood. “Yes, you will, Harrison.” She tried to keep her voice as steady as possible. “Because I’m not required to ask your permission.”
“We’ll think of something else, Cassie.”
She ignored Harrison’s protest and looked at Charfield. “I take it this plan of yours involves me.”
Charfield nodded. “Yes. It also involves a certain degree of danger.”
She wanted to laugh. “As compared to what? Harrison dying the next time Waverley shoots him?”
“Cassie, no,” Harrison said. “We’ll think of something else.”
She sat on the bed and reached for Harrison’s hand. “I’m not about to let Waverley threaten you if there’s something I can do to stop him.” She gave Harrison a decisive nod, then turned to Charfield. “Please explain what you’d like me to do?”
“In order to eliminate Waverley as a threat, we must get him to admit he shot Fellingsdown, and will do so again.”
“When would you like me to meet him?”
“As soon as possible. Tonight. He’d be a fool not to realize you suspect him. Especially since he threatened Fellingsdown last night.”
George stepped closer. “There will be musical entertainment after dinner. A chamber quartet. Perhaps Lady Lathamton can ask to speak privately with Waverley during the performance. We’ll leave the yellow drawing room door open and the room brightly lit.” George turned to look at her. “Do you know which room I’m talking about?”
“Yes.”
“That room will be perfect,” Jules added. “There are connecting doors on either side that lead to Elly’s study on one side and the library on the other.”
“There’s even a small office space in the back where Father’s secretary works when he comes from London,” Spencer said. “It will be the perfect place for the Duke of Parneston to hide so he can overhear Waverley’s confession.”
“Do any of you realize the danger Cassie will be in?” Harrison glared at everyone surrounding his bed.
George crossed his arms over his chest. “She won’t be in any danger, Harrison. We’ll keep her safe.”
Cassie was touched by Harrison’s concern. She lifted his hand and held it close to her breast. “I won’t allow Waverley to think he got away with nearly killing you. He needs to be stopped.”
“If anything happens—” Harrison started to say, but Charfield held up his hand to stop him.
“It won’t. We’ll make sure we’re nearby so nothing goes wrong.”
It was settled, then. She would do whatever it took to stop Waverley. One question still bothered Cassie, though. She looked at Harrison, then Charfield, hoping they could give her an answer. “What can Waverley possibly hope to gain that is worth committing murder?”
Charfield was the only on
e to offer a solution. “I don’t think Waverley intended to kill Fellingsdown. If murder was his intent, he could have done it easily enough. Fellingsdown was an open target more than once.”
“Then what was his goal?” Spencer asked.
“I’m only guessing here,” Charfield said, locking his hands behind his back. “I think his goal was to frighten Lady Lathamton into leaving The Down. He can only achieve his goal to control Lathamton Estates and Hollyvine Keep if he marries Lady Lathamton. When he saw a friendship growing between the two, he was desperate to stop it. His intention in shooting Fellingsdown was more than likely to injure him severely enough for the party to be called off.”
Cassie felt her disgust for Waverley intensify. “Even if we married, it would only give him Hollyvine. Lathamton Estate is entailed. When Everett died, the estate as well as the title passed down to Andrew. The only way for him to gain possession would be if something were to happen to—”
Her heart stuttered for several beats. “No!” The terror that raged through her stopped her breath. “He intends to kill Andrew!”
Harrison squeezed her hands. “He won’t get the chance. When the Duke of Parneston hears Waverley’s confession, the authorities will have all the proof they need to lock him away for the rest of his life.”
With a great deal of effort, Harrison pushed himself to sit straighter on the bed. “George, you and Spence and Jules take turns watching Waverley. Don’t let him out of your sight.”
“We won’t,” George said. “Jules, go down now and keep an eye on him.”
Jules started for the door. “What should I tell everyone when they ask about you?”
“Tell them I just received a scratch. That I’ll be down for dinner tonight and am looking forward to the evening’s entertainment.”
“Are you sure?” Cassie asked. Harrison’s injury wasn’t severe compared to how grave it could have been, but he’d lost a great deal of blood and that wasn’t something to take lightly.
“I’m sure. Go, Jules. I want Waverley to know his plan to call off the party failed.”
When Jules left the room, Charfield focused again on Harrison. “Having you fit enough to join us for dinner should work to our advantage. Hopefully Waverley will be so furious he’ll let down his guard when Lady Lathamton speaks to him.”
