Clue of Affection

by Ellie St. Clair

  Sighing inwardly, Violet did not reply, but simply kissed him again, her fingers reaching for his shirt buttons. When he tugged down the shoulder of her dress, she did not stop him, suddenly desperate for his touch. His lips tore from hers and moved down the column of her throat and along her collarbone, just as her own hands touched his bare skin.

  The heat in his eyes as he lifted his head made her start, and she stared at him for a moment as though realizing exactly what it was they were about to do. Then he was kissing her again and Violet knew with all certainty that, despite what had happened between them, she wanted this. She wanted to be with him. He was the only one who could fulfill the need that was growing steadily within her.

  It seemed as though time stood still as he led her through the act, bringing her to a crescendo that then slammed down around her ears, making her body jerk and clench around him. He had been so careful, so gentle, just as he had been the first time, and Violet could not help but love him for that. It had been something of a surprise to her to use the table as their bed, but it had been more than suitable. Her heat was only just cooling in her veins as he righted her again, smoothing down the skirts he had lifted and giving her a moment to ensure her dress and undergarments were suitable.

  "Perhaps we should change," he murmured, as one arm slipped around her waist. "Lord Taylor will be here soon."

  Quite sure that her cheeks were crimson, Violet nodded and tried to smile, feeling more than a little comforted when he brushed his lips across hers.

  “I won’t leave this time,” he whispered in her ear, his hand tightening on her waist. “I won’t ever leave you again, Violet, I swear it. I am truly sorry.”

  “Oh, excuse me.”

  Sometime later, Lord Taylor looked quite abashed as he stepped inside, evidently aware that something had shifted between the two of them. Violet smiled at him, aware that Joshua had not dropped his hand from her waist.

  They had both returned to their rooms to change and had then come to the drawing room once more, and she had expected Joshua to sit apart from her. Instead, he had chosen to sit as close to her as possible on the settee, wanting to ensure that she was quite well after their encounter. His kindness and consideration spoke volumes.

  “I have only just arrived,” Taylor continued, glancing at Violet. “And a messenger arrived just as I did. It appears that Lord Swinton has sent you an urgent note. The butler was in search of you and I said I would bring it up.”

  "Thank you," Joshua said, frowning. "I do not know Lord Swinton very well at all." He got to his feet, took the note from Taylor and breaking the seal, opened the parchment.

  “Nor I,” Taylor mumbled, looking more than a little intrigued. Violet, too, could not help but wonder what the letter was about, remaining seated and folding her hands in her lap so that she would not be tempted to read over her husband’s shoulder.

  “How very interesting,” Joshua murmured, quietly. “He has become aware that I was seeking information about his brother’s recent death and wishes to speak to me of it.”

  “His brother?” Violet echoed, confused. “Was his brother one of the men on the list?”

  “I believe he was,” Taylor replied, slowly. “A Lord Stephen Swinton – a viscount, if I remember correctly.” He looked at Joshua with a glimmer of excitement in his eye. “Mayhap he has had his brother’s fortune taken from him and given to our Swinney North!”

  “And has only been able to retain the title, since that cannot be given away,” Joshua said, softly, his expression growing serious. “I must go and speak to him at once. If he can tell us who the beneficiary of his brother’s will was, then we will know who we are looking for! I shall return shortly. Taylor, if you would stay until I return, I would appreciate it.”

  Violet clasped her hands together as Joshua practically ran from the room, leaving her and Lord Taylor alone. Her heart beat a little more quickly in her chest as her optimism grew, desperately hoping that this meeting might be the key to solving the mystery of who Swinney North really was. Finally, they could capture the man in question and she could be free to live her life with her husband, without fear or anxiety about simply walking out the front door.

  “I suppose we might take another look at that diary whilst he is out,” Taylor suggested, ringing the bell for tea. “It will give us something to do, at the very least, for I can see that you are almost as agitated as I!”

  “Indeed,” Violet laughed, getting to her feet and moving to the table in the corner of the room where all the documents and pieces of parchment were strewn. “Although I am not sure what use I can be in looking at something we have already studied in great detail!”

  He shrugged and waited for the maid to place the tea tray in the middle of the table before holding a chair out for Violet. “Who knows?” he said, as she sat down. “We may have missed a vital clue.”

  Some ten minutes later Violet heard the front door slam, certain that Joshua was now on his way to meet Lord Swinton. She smiled to herself, her quill doing nothing more than squiggling some letters on a blank bit of parchment.

  Her heart was full of hope and expectation, both for the conclusion of this mystery and for the future with her husband. The kiss they had shared had been one filled with promise, and she was already looking forward to the next time they could be alone. It was more than an attraction -- she had grown to love him, and she could only hope he truly felt the same.

  Suddenly, she paused in her musings and looked down at the letters she had drawn on the parchment. Her heart slammed into her chest, making her draw in a sharp breath, as she pushed her chair away and rose to her feet.

  “What is it?” Taylor asked at once, frowning heavily. “Is something the matter?”

  Violet gestured down to what she had written, and Lord Taylor came over to stand next to her, staring down at the parchment.

  “You have written two names,” he said, slowly, clearly not understanding in the least. “What of it?”

  “Look,” Violet whispered, her hand trembling as she resumed her seat and traced under the names. “Lord Swinton? Swinney North?” She drew in a deep breath, trying to stop the shaking in her soul. “They are a little too familiar, are they not?”

  “They are a little similar, yes,” Taylor replied, pulling up a chair next to her. “But that is not so alarming.”

  Violet’s mind worked quickly and she picked up her quill once more, sorting out the letters. She took the letters of ‘Swinton' out of the name ‘Swinney North,’ leaving her five remaining letters, which she reworked until, written there in bold strokes, stood the name ‘Henry Swinton.’

  “Tell me that Lord Swinton’s Christian name is not ‘Henry’?” she begged, looking over at Taylor in fright. “Tell me my husband has not just gone to visit the one man who is behind all of this.”

  Taylor did not reply for a moment, as he stared at the name. Then, without saying a word, he threw back his chair and looked at her in horror.

  “I must go,” he exclaimed, racing from the room. Violet followed him at once, rushing down the stairs after him.

  “You cannot come,” he shouted, over his shoulder. “It is too dangerous!”

  “I will not wait here,” she replied, her blood thundering through her veins. “He is my husband!”

  Without even waiting to put on her gloves and bonnet, she shouted at the footman to open the front door and hurried outside, with Lord Taylor now just behind her. A hackney was hailed and, within a few minutes, they were on their way. Thankfully Lord Taylor knew the address and, although it only took less than fifteen minutes to arrive, Violet could not stop herself from seeing visions of her husband’s lifeless body falling to the ground, with orders from Lord Swinton to throw him in the Thames.

  “We have to save him,” she said, half to herself as she stared anxiously out of the window. “I cannot lose him.”

  Lord Taylor did not say a word, his eyes fixed on something out the other side of the carriage.


  “Here we are,” he said, loudly, grasping the door handle and throwing the door open, descending as quickly as he could. “Come, Lady Greville.”

  Violet followed him as best she could up the walk to the entrance of the large stone manor, frustrated that her voluminous skirts prevented her from moving as quickly as she wanted.

  “Open the door,” she heard Taylor say, evidently speaking to the butler who held the door open just a crack. “I have urgent business with Lord Greville, the Earl, who I believe is speaking to your master.”

  Evidently, the butler was not in the least impressed with the title, for the door did not open further.

  Violet climbed the steps, pushed herself in front of Taylor, and glared at the face that looked back at her. “You will open up this instant,” she said, loudly. “My husband is in there and I intend to see him. It is a life and death matter and, if you refuse me entry, his blood may well be on your head.”

  The astonishment etched on the butler’s face gave Violet more than enough hope, and, within seconds, the door opened and Violet stepped inside.

  "Now, where is your master?" Violet demanded as Taylor came in behind her.

  “The study, my lady,” the butler replied, still looking quite astonished. “This way, the second door on your right.”

  Violet did not stop to thank him, nor even wait for him to lead the way. Instead, she hurried forward until she found the door and, before Taylor caught up to her and without a moment’s hesitation, she pushed it open and stepped inside.

  16

  “Violet!”

  Joshua called out his wife’s name in surprise after turning around at the sound of the door opening, shocked to see the white face of his wife enter the room, swiftly followed by Lord Taylor. A puzzled frown brought his eyebrows together as he rose from his chair, grasping Violet’s outstretched hands as she ran to him. Confused even further by the trembling he felt through their joined hands, he looked from her to his friend, who was glaring at Lord Swinton for some inexplicable reason.

  “Oh, thank goodness you’re all right,” Violet gasped, clinging onto his arms for dear life. “You didn’t drink anything, did you?”

  “No, I’ve only just arrived,” Joshua replied, trying to calm his wife down. “For goodness sake, Violet, whatever is the matter?”

  The ominous click of the hammer of a pistol being drawn back met his ears and, for a moment, he stared down into Violet’s face, a chill running straight through him. In his eagerness had he overlooked the possibility that the note he had received was, in fact, leading him into a trap?

  “It seems your wife and your friend have worked it out,” came the now cold voice of Lord Swinton, as Joshua slowly turned around. “What a shame. And here I was, intending to let you return home safe and sound.”

  "What are you talking about?" Joshua asked, amazed at the sudden change in Lord Swinton's demeanor. He had gone from a jovial gentleman to an overbearing threat in one moment. Joshua was stunned at how the face that had been smiling at him only a few minutes before was now fiercely angry, evidently filled with rage over Violet's actions. It changed his looks from a well-enough looking, welcoming man, to an ugly face twisted in rage.

  “He is Swinney North,” Violet said, desperately, her hands squeezing even more tightly on his arm. “The man we have been searching for.”

  “You are not going to get away with this, Swinton,” Taylor added, sounding a lot more casual than Joshua had expected. “There are three of us and you only have one shot.”

  Lord Swinton chuckled and drew a dagger from his pocket. "Then perhaps I shall shoot one of you, throw this at the other and keep the lady for myself, although I shall have to cut her tongue out, given what she has already seen."

  A ball of anger settled in Joshua’s stomach, sending sparks flying through his veins. He put one arm around Violet and pushed her behind him, as he stood tall and strong in front of her.

  “You will not touch my wife,” he gritted out, his hands balling into fists as he saw the wicked gleam in the man’s eyes.

  Lord Swinton shook his head. “Ah, Greville. Always so eager and earnest, even when the odds are stacked against you.”

  “What were you intending to do with him?” Violet asked, pushing herself forward in spite of Joshua’s attempts at keeping her behind him. “Why did you call him here?”

  “To find out what he knew, of course,” Swinton replied, with the air of a man completely in control. “Then, if I discovered that he had made one too many connections, he would be disposed of – which would have left you entirely vulnerable.” A dark look crossed his face. “You have been a difficult lady to get a hold of.”

  “Deliberately so,” Joshua ground out, stepping in front of Violet once more.

  "Oh yes, I am well aware that she is your wife," Swinton continued, giving Joshua something of a disdainful look. "Did you not realize that, in taking her as your wife so swiftly, you alerted me to your presence at the ball that night? Your wife was a witness and was easily identified, but no one knew who the gentleman accompanying her in the gardens was."

  “The carriage accident?” Violet asked, now holding onto Joshua’s hand with her own. “You arranged that?”

  Lord Swinton smiled lazily. "Yes, of course, I did. I am a man of great power, Lady Greville, unless that fact has escaped you. How unfortunate that the gentleman in question was so eager to keep you safe, so desperate to wed you as quickly as possible. Had he not chosen to do so, his identity would have remained a mystery for a little longer."

  “I do not understand why you are doing this,” Taylor interrupted, stepping closer to Joshua so that Violet was kept even more out of sight. “Are you not a rich man in your own right?”

  An ugly look appeared on the man’s face, his lip curling. “I will be, once those men meet the cold, damp earth. My brother wasted my entire fortune, you see, on gambling and on whores. How sad I was when he met his untimely end!” The smile on his face made Joshua feel almost physically sick, leaving him in no doubt as to what Swinton had done to his brother.

  “When I inherited,” Swinton continued, airily, “there was barely anything left. The estate was mortgaged heavily and I could not allow myself to be so shamed as to be forced to sell our ancestral home.”

  “Most men would marry an heiress,” Joshua interrupted, caustically. “But I presume the eligible young ladies must not have found you much of a prospect.”

  A snarl erupted from Swinton’s throat, as he took a step closer to Joshua, his dark eyes flashing.

  “So you decided to concoct this scheme,” Violet murmured, from behind Joshua. “And managed to garner a great deal of men to your cause.”

  Joshua saw the way that Swinton took a breath, clearly settling his frustration and upset. “I am providing a living for such men, Lady Greville,” he replied, after another moment’s pause. “They work for me and receive benefits in kind. The more wealth I have amassed, the more loyal they become.” His mouth drew into a thin line. “And I am not about to have all that I worked for so quickly disbanded by the likes of you.”

  “Sir Whitby was growing tired of your scheme,” Taylor stated, quietly. “He would not change any more wills for you.”

  Swinton shrugged, as though it did not matter. “I already have a great number of last wills and testaments declaring me as their sole heir to their fortunes, title aside. In short, I will have enough wealth to keep me in good comfort for some years, once these men reach their final days – whether brought about by my hand or not.”

  Joshua shuddered at the vehemence in the man’s eyes, thinking that perhaps Swinton had lost his senses.

  "I am sorry that I shall have to kick the three of you into eternity – although the lady, perhaps, shall stay at little longer on this earth. I do not intend to have anyone preventing me from seeing this through," Swinton continued, his pistol now aimed at Joshua's head. "I do apologize."

  At that moment, Joshua felt himself shoved, from behind and he
toppled over completely, such was his surprise. He slammed directly into Lord Swinney, and, knocked over by yet another large object, fell backward and hit his head on the floor. There was a loud retort and such a great cacophony of shouts and screams that, for a moment, he was entirely disorientated.

  “Release me!” he heard Swinney shout, as he attempted to get to his feet. “How dare you!”

  “Joshua!” Violet gasped, crawling over to him and putting her hands on his chest. “Are you all right? You’re not hurt, are you?”

  "No, no." Sitting up, Joshua saw Taylor sitting on Swinton's back, his fingers reaching to grasp the pistol that lay on the floor. With a great deal of force, he hit it across the back of Lord Swinton's head. Swinton's voice stopped at once, his entire body going limp. Taylor fell backward onto the floor, gasping for breath, pushing himself up onto his elbows.

  There was a short silence, as Joshua, Lord Taylor and Violet all stared at one another, their gazes then moving to the man on the floor.

  “I can hardly believe it,” Joshua murmured, wrapping his arms around Violet and dragging her into his arms. “I would never have known.”

  “You have your wife to thank,” Taylor replied, sitting up and shaking his head. “It was she who made the connection.”

  “And you saved me,” Joshua murmured, as she rested her head on his chest. “Was it you who pushed me?” At her nod, he continued, “Had you not, then that shot could have been –”

  “Don’t say it,” she interrupted, looking up at him with an expression of relief. “It is over now, is it not?”

  “It is,” Joshua replied, quietly. “And we should get you home. I’ll send a boy to fetch our carriage.”

  “I’ll get the constabulary and arrange everything,” Taylor said, getting to his feet. “I’ll be back at the house in a few hours.”

  Grateful for his friend’s understanding, Joshua got up and helped his wife to stand, amazed at how little she appeared to be affected. There was no hysterics or even a fainting fit, although she did lean into him as they walked from the room.