Revealing A Marchioness's Heart (The Chronicles of Loyalty)

by Jessie Bennett

We will find them.

  “Jesus,” Nathan replied as his eyes scanned the note.

  “What is it?” Loyalty looked paler still. “You aren’t being sent off again, are you? You aren’t, tell me you aren’t. You just got home.”

  “I’m not being sent off again,” Nathan assured her, glancing at Jerrico. “Do you know about this? You’ll find out shortly; I’m sure your orders are on the way.”

  “Do I know about what?” Jerrico asked, leaning forward slightly. He extended his hand, and against his better judgment, Nathan handed over the note. There was a circle of trust within the room, but he was still technically breaking protocol by telling Jerrico.

  The guard’s blue eyes, which were previously cloudy, widened. “What?” he looked up at Nathan. “No.”

  “Will someone please tell me what is going on?” Loyalty asked, looking between the two of them. “Is the king dead?”

  Both of them gasped at that language. To say such a thing was treasonous, heresy. However, Loyalty simply crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. “Well?” she demanded. “Is he? Because otherwise, you’re both frightening me out of my wits.”

  “He’s not dead...” Nathan said slowly. He told her everything, and he saw no harm in telling her this, aside from the fact that he wasn’t supposed to do so. “But the Prince will be declared regent by the end of the week.”

  “Everyone has been predicting that,” Loyalty replied, but Nathan took a deep breath.

  “There’s more, though. The prince has come forward and said that he has had three illegitimate children, who he has lost track of over the years. One of them is a boy. He’s willing to acknowledge them in case a proper heir never comes into play.”

  “And,” Loyalty bit her lip, her mid whirling as she put the pieces together. “With he and Princess Caroline estranged....”

  “There is a very good chance that there might be a bastard on our throne,” Jerrico finished her sentence.

  “Some poor child, raised in poverty, suddenly becomes prince?” Loyalty’s eyes sparkled. “Isn’t that marvelous?”

  “No,” Nathan was always the logical one, quick to point out the facts. “It’s terrible, actually.”

  “Because...” Loyalty said, and he sighed.

  “Because a throne is unsecure enough during a regular reign. Putting a bastard on the throne will create a lack of stability. People will fight wars over it; people will kill over it. For the prince to acknowledge a bastard heir over his own siblings...it’s horrible for them. In addition, whoever takes the throne will not be raised for it. There are many problems with the plan. But it appears Prince George sees none of them.”

  “Isn’t that why you exist?” Jerrico asked. “To tell him all of them?”

  “No,” Nathan replied. “I exist to find a way out of the messes he creates.” He put a hand to his face, thinking. “I’m sorry, Loyalty. We were to have such a nice night too.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” she said with a shrug. “Duty calls. Besides, Jerrico will keep me company until you return.”

  “I should go with him,” Jerrico said, but she shot him a dirty glance.

  “You will not,” she replied. “You will sit there until you can run circles around the house.”

  “Women,” he glanced toward Nathan with a half grin. “What are you going to do about it?”

  Nathan smiled slightly, although his mind was elsewhere. He had heard stories before, of course, of bastard children being sent away by the rules of a nation. They were often forgotten about, lost or raised by a family who had no idea who they were. This was not going to be an easy task. They would have to follow up on every lead, scour the entire countryside and perhaps beyond. In addition, even if they found out who it was, there would be no way to know for certain. There would always be unanswered questions and there would always be a threat to whoever they found.

  He tried to focus on dinner, but his mind was truly elsewhere. Whoever he found as a piece to this puzzle, there was no doubt that they would have their lives changed forever. Changed, and perhaps ruined.

  Nathan felt bad for the bastard prince before he had even found him. It was certainly not a good start to a mission, or a shore leave. Nevertheless, this kind of job was why he was chosen. Nathan could always find the answer, no matter how badly laid out the clues, and this time would be no different.

  4

  CHAPTER FOUR

  When Nathan got to headquarters, it was absolute chaos. It was usually chaos, of course, but there was something different about this. People were walking about with almost fear in their eyes, with purpose and dreams of the future. When the Old King did die, there would be a new Kingdom. For some, that meant there would be a whole new Kingdom, and a whole new rule, a younger rule, a perhaps more logical rule.

  For Nathan, however, the future wasn’t his concern. Finding three lost heirs in the entire world with little clues was a challenge he wasn’t sure he was ready to face. When he got into the room, his colleagues, as well as a few of the great minds from headquarters, were waiting for him.

  “Rambles,” Doe said. “Excellent. We can get started.”

  “Sorry if you were waiting on me,” Nathan took a seat. “I was...”

  “We know where you were, Rambles,” Doe teased.

  Nathan didn’t correct him because he didn’t want to share the truth of his adventures with Jerrico. A few of the top guards were standing in the corner, and if he revealed Jerrico’s secret, all would come crashing down. “What do we have?”

  “The only things we have are the vague memories the prince had about the kind of people his bastards were handed off to at birth. The person who arranged them, John Descartes, has long since died. The prince remembers their birthdays and other vague details, but he never met the adoptive parents, so he only has what Descartes gave him.”

  “So basically nothing,” Nathan said as he looked over the files. “Half the children in this country don’t have an idea about their exact age, let alone proof of a birth date. It doesn’t really help.”

  “Well, it’s all we have, Rambles,” Doe replied, sighing. He liked Nathan and knew that the boy was on the fast track. However, sometimes he acted his age. He was the youngest in the room, and although his mind outdid most of the men here, it was clear that they had years on him. “So. The plan coming down from the higher powers is that we start knocking on doors, following children of the right age. Although it’s possible that they could be anywhere in the countryside, we can at least start locally.”

  “This is a needle in a haystack,” Nathan stared at the data that they were provided. “I have a better idea.”

  “Which is?” Doe raised an eyebrow at him.

  “John Descartes wouldn’t have used the royal carriage to drop off these children; he would have hired a small carriage. The adoptive parents wouldn’t have come to the palace, because that would have given away who these children were. There are records of all visitors to the palace, including carriage drivers. They keep them in case there’s an attack; they have likely suspects. So they would have had to sign in upon arrival.”

  Doe checked the forms. “Fifteen to twenty years, ago, Rambles?”

  “We have archives, don’t we?” Nathan replied. “And Descartes was a known face. A screaming baby is another thing that someone would remember. We can check the archives around their birth dates and see if we can find any of those carriage drivers. Are any of the mothers still alive?”

  “No,” Doe confirmed. “But they were court ladies, and the children were born at court. It’s not a bad theory.”

  The others considered it silently, staring at the paper. Finally, one of them sighed. “Well, let’s do it, boys. The records would be in one of the upper dungeons.”

  Everyone stood, chairs scraping and muttering to themselves. Nathan, however, tunnel-visioned onto the papers in front of him.

  Baby Boy. June 1st, 1800. Baker.

  Baby Girl. November 18th, 1798. Farmers.
<
br />   Baby Girl. July 18th. 1797. Printer.

  Nathan scanned over the descriptions and then sighed, looking up as Doe came forward. “I don’t like that look in your eye, Rambles,” Doe said. “It means you are thinking something that you shouldn’t be.”

  “I was thinking that if we are going to be working on a top secret case for the prince, we might as well speak to him.”

  Doe’s mouth fell open. “What? You can’t speak to the prince.”

  “Why not?” Nathan asked, raising an eyebrow. “We’re...”

  “No,” Doe shook his head. “There is no reason we have to. He doesn’t have any more details than are on the paper. He probably didn’t even see the children. So, let’s get to those records.”

  “Needle in a haystack,” Nathan sighed, but followed Doe out the door.

  The lack of information, however, proved that they really were going to come up with nothing. Nathan felt his eyes cross and his head pound as he headed back to Loyalty’s that night. His colleagues had long since given up, and he wasn’t one to persist at something when he knew it was impossible. There were much better things to waste time on than finding information that would do nothing but give them false hope.

  He knew he needed access to the prince in order to purge his memory. He needed more sensitive details, anything, even things that the prince might have thought were trivial bits. However, if Doe was determined to deny access, Nathan knew he could lose his position for trying. That was the part of the military that he didn’t really like. Even if one thought the rules were stupid, they had to be obeyed. Even if it meant life or death, and even if it meant that their final words were said in vain, the rules had to be obeyed. He had learned it early on, but unlike the others, it was not second nature just to follow orders. Nathan was too smart for that; he questioned everything. Most of the time, it turned out fine. However, in cases like this, it kept him awake at night, trying to find a way around things.

  It turned out as he opened the door that he didn’t need to find a way around things. For sitting at Loyalty’s table while she slept on the bed was Jerrico. He was reading by candlelight, and Nathan could tell that he wasn’t feeling completely well. However, he did look better than when he’d left, and that was progress.

  “Penny for your thoughts?” Jerrico asked as Nathan closed the door behind him.

  Nathan winced, making sure the door didn’t make too loud a sound. “Nothing but the usual military nonsense,” he replied, sinking into a chair. “Are you better?”

  “Yes, although there will be hell to pay if I leave without your intended’s assessment,” Jerrico smiled slightly. “How did it go?”

  “Ridiculous. We have no information whatsoever beyond birth dates and possibly adoptive parents. I know that the prince must know more, I know it,” Nathan leaned back in the chair. “But Doe is denying me access, so we’re left with checking records and looking for a needle in a haystack.”

  “What do you think he knows more about?” Jerrico asked, closing the book. “About where the children went?”

  “Well,” Nathan thought, trying not to make it sound like a conspiracy theory. “If this was part of his plan all along...in the sense that his bastards might be heirs, if all else failed, then he knows more than he’s sharing with us. Even if it’s in the back of his mind; even if it’s a small detail, he remembers something else. There’s someone or something he’s kept hidden. If this was always his plan, he wouldn’t leave it all to chance.”

  “Huh,” Jerrico replied. “Well, no one expected Charlotte to die.”

  “No,” Nathan answered. “Of course not. But every prince does everything he can to secure his rule. Backup plan upon back up plan. But if I can’t ask him...”

  “I can ask him,” Jerrico perked up noticeably.

  Nathan raised an eyebrow. “That’s a very personal question.”

  “I know. But I’m also with him at very personal moments. And if I put it like that, the way you put it, he can’t refuse. The prince is a reasonable person, Nathan, no matter what else he appears to be. In his moments alone with just us, he’s almost normal. Wants the same things, cracks the same jokes, and gives us the same looks. Trust me, if what you say is true, he’ll understand why I’m asking.”

  “Or you’d lose your job,” Nathan replied, and Jerrico sighed. He fiddled with a loose string on his jacket for a few moments before speaking.

  “Yeah, well,” he replied, picking at the thread. “It’s not like I can keep this up much longer, Nate. The truth is, if I don’t get ousted now, it won’t be long.”

  Nathan gave him a sympathetic look. “You shouldn’t talk like that.”

  “I’m the only one who can talk like that,” Jerrico said and gave him a smile. “I expected the rest of you to give me encouragement and hope until the day I die.”

  “Here lies Jerrico, demanding right up until the end,” Nathan grinned.

  “No, no,” Jerrico made his hands shape out a tombstone in the air. “R.I.P. Jerrico. This is on me.”

  “What is on...?” Nathan trailed off and then rolled his eyes. “For God’s sake. You want people to snicker as they walk past?”

  “Why not? As in life, also in death,” Jerrico said with a shrug. “That’s the plan anyway. But we all know that life doesn’t go according to plan half the time.”

  “No,” Nathan replied with a sigh. “It doesn’t.” He glanced toward the sleeping Loyalty. “We should have been married long before now. Children on the way or clinging to her skirts. But without my promotion...”

  “Maybe this will get you a promotion,” Jerrico said.

  “Or lose my job,” Nathan echoed. “I just want what’s best for her, any way I can.”

  “No one has any doubt of that, mate,” Jerrico said, stifling a yawn. “No one has any doubt of that.”

  The two men sat in silence awhile, eyes sliding shut. Jerrico eventually gave up the ghost, returning to an overstuffed couch that he often slept on when Nathan was there.

  Nathan slowly got up from the table after a few moments, pulling off his shirt and heading to the curtained off bedroom. He was trying to be quiet, but Loyalty still awoke when he shifted into bed.

  “Did you find them?” she whispered to him.

  “Did I find who?” Nathan asked. “The royal bastards?”

  “Yes,” she whispered and snuggled deep into his arm. “I figured it would be an easy job for you.”

  “Ha,” he answered, kissing her on top of her head. “It won’t be easy. But I think I found a way to do it.”

  “That’s good,” she replied sleepily.

  “Go to sleep, Loyalty, it’s nothing for you to concern yourself with in any case,” he said.

  “There’s a princess out there, isn’t there?” she said softly as his eyes slowly closed. “Two princesses who don’t know who they are. I know you’re against it for a prince, but a princess would have a wonderful life.”

  “You are my princess,” he replied, wrapping his arms around her. “You’re my beautiful princess and that’s all I am concerned about.”

  “I love you, Nathan,” she said as sleep took her.

  “I love you too,” he said, giving her one last kiss on the head. Perhaps there was a princess out there, longing for palace life, and a prince who would soon inherit. It seemed so odd to him that he was working on changing the course of history. However, would anyone remember what he did? On the other hand, would this be a move that was lost by the history books, a failed attempt to save a failing throne?

  He fell into an uneasy sleep, dreaming of the ship. He missed the ship, although he was happy here with Loyalty. If he could stay with her in his arms the rest of his life, perhaps dry land would suit him. Perhaps solving this mystery would be the key to all of that.

  5

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Jerrico hadn’t told the other two just how close his friendship with Prince George was, mostly because he couldn’t believe it himself. However, over the
past few months, especially as the mounting pressure to take the throne grew, George had sought council with the people that surrounded him the most, including his guards. Since he was supposed to be more guarded in case of regency, there wasn’t much of a chance for him to speak to his friends outside his circle of guards. Therefore, the optimistic but steady Jerrico had become one of his closest friends. It was something that still baffled him, because he didn’t think that he had much in common with the prince at all.

  Today, however, it was something that he was glad for actually. Rolling over on his bed, Jerrico hoisted himself up, his taut stomach sore from two nights before at Loyalty’s house. Jerrico didn’t seem to do anything in moderation, and he never had. When he was ill, he was horribly ill. When he was well, he was the picture of health.

  He was supposed to report to the prince’s rooms at dawn in order to take over the guard detail from the night shift. Ever since Princess Caroline had moved abroad, their marriage estranged, the prince had taken to sleeping in his own room every night. There was sometimes a mistress or two, of course, but it was much easier to find him when they knew he didn’t deviate from his path. Jerrico had commented on it once, and the prince had just chuckled, expressing his joy at making everyone’s life easier.

  Today, Jerrico dressed with haste, because he knew he would have a few minutes alone with George. His partner for this shift was going to be late, having sent a message last night that his wife was giving birth. He promised to be there by seven, though, which gave Jerrico an hour alone with George. Since things were still changing over, the guards also acted as grooms for the bedroom, helping him dress. It confused Jerrico, but apparently the grooms that had served him as prince now had to be replaced since he was king in all but name.

  Jerrico understood rank, of course, but he didn’t understand how it was alright for him to do so until then. Then again, royalty always confused him. He thought half their traditions were silly, even if he had learned to respect them.