Whisper To Me of Love

by Shirlee Busbee

  “Well, that’s something I’d prefer you keep to yourself,” Royce said bluntly.

  Bullard glanced at him keenly, and then, nodding his blond head, he said fervently, “You can trust me, sir! I wasn’t rude, but I didn’t tell him anything. He didn’t seem to like it when I told him that the master didn’t encourage his servants to gossip! Drove off in a bit of a temper, I can tell you.”

  Royce smiled faintly, amused at the idea of the haughty Earl being reprimanded by a mere servant for gossiping. Clapping Bullard on the shoulder, Royce urged him toward the door. “No harm’s been done, so don’t dwell on it. Do, however, warn me the very instant anyone questions you, and tell your brothers the same.” Smiling easily, Royce opened the front door and asked lightly, “Have you all settled comfortably in the cottage?”

  Bullard nodded eagerly. “Oh, yes, sir. It’s a good thing that there are three of us living there and taking turns at the gate, otherwise I might have missed that young man tonight.” And thinking that Royce might have thought he had committed further dereliction in his duties, he said quickly, “Before me and the young man came to the house, I woke Elmer and Harry, and they are standing guard until I get back.”

  “Very good. I will rest easier for what is left of the night, knowing that I am in the competent hands of the Bullard brothers.”

  Beaming proudly, Bullard departed, and after shutting the door behind him, Royce stared at the carved wood for a moment, a faint smile curving his mobile mouth. It seemed that he had chosen his gatekeepers well, if tonight’s actions were anything to go by. Then his smile faded as he considered what John Bullard had told him. So the Earl was asking questions, was he? Why? Royce wondered. Was it simply the embarrassment of having such an obvious byblow of his embarking upon an undeniably scandalous career? Or was there another reason?

  When Royce entered the salon, he found Morgana and Jacko sitting side by side on one of the low, tapestry-covered sofas in the large, elegant room. Zachary, in his night robe, was lounging in a channel-back chair of straw-colored satin, and it was apparent from the tense expression on all three young faces that they had been discussing Ben’s incarceration in Newgate. Strolling over to stand in front of the handsome fireplace with its classically designed mantel of gray marble, Royce said quietly, “I think that we should postpone any further talk about Ben until after Chambers has served us and departed.”

  Since that topic was uppermost in everyone’s minds, it was an oddly quiet room that Chambers entered a few moments later. Aware that he was preventing conversation, and not unnaturally consumed by great curiosity, Chambers tried to go about his duties quickly, longing to stay and listen and yet knowing that nothing of interest would be said as long as he remained in the room. Setting down a huge tray which held a variety of liquid refreshments, brandy, whiskey, even a pot of tea, as well as several plates heaped with cheeses, breads, cold ham, and thinly sliced roast beef, he bowed in Royce’s direction and said evenly, “Will that be all, sir?”

  Royce nodded, and eyeing the plates of food, smiled. “I see that Ivy must have been aroused by our little contretemps also.”

  Glad of an excuse to linger, Chambers nodded. “Oh, yes, sir! The pounding on the front door woke several of us, but”—he sent a meaningful look at Royce—“while Ivy was determined to follow me, I insisted she remain in the kitchen as I thought it best if I saw to any trouble by myself. I ordered the others to go back to bed—told them that it was probably nothing and that Ivy and I would take care of everything.” His expression becoming even more eloquent, he added pithily, “The less people involved, the better, don’t you think, sir?”

  Amusement twinkled in Royce’s eyes; he knew very well that Chambers would like to be invited to remain, but indicating that the butler was no longer needed, he walked with him to the door. “You handled the situation most admirably ... and I shall not force you to languish too long before I satisfy all of your curiosity about tonight’s events.” He hesitated a moment, the twinkle dying from his eyes, and said seriously, “For now, you will have to be content to learn that our unexpected visitor is Morgana’s brother, Jacko Fowler, and that he has brought us important news about her other brother, Ben. I would prefer you keep that information between yourself and Ivy.”

  Immensely pleased that the master had enlightened him somewhat, Chambers bowed low, and sedately left the room, his neatly tied flannel robe flapping softly around his bony ankles. Turning back to the other three, Royce pushed his hands in the pockets of his own night robe and said quietly, “I think we can talk freely now. Tell us what happened, Jacko.”

  Morgana poured her brother a glass of whiskey and pressed it into his hand as Jacko began speaking. “Since our ship sails on Monday, me and Ben were planning on coming down here tonight to see Pip.” He took a big gulp of the whiskey and, sending Royce a defiant look, went on doggedly, “We figured you wouldn’t mind if we stayed overnight—we wanted to see for ourselves that all was well with Pip and to make certain that you were going to keep your word about bringing her with you when you sail in the fall. Besides, being as how it would be our last chance to see our sister for several months, we didn’t think you’d—”

  “What the devil are you talking about?” Morgana demanded sharply, an accusatory glance moving back and forth between Royce’s inscrutable features and Jacko’s stubbornly truculent ones.

  “You haven’t told her?” Jacko asked in astonishment. “She doesn’t know that we were to sail to America on Monday?”

  “Ah, no, as a matter of fact,” Royce answered easily, ignoring Morgana’s gasp of stunned outrage. “I had intended to tell her long before now, but the time never seemed right.” He glanced at Morgana, his golden gaze moving with unmistakable appreciation over her lovely features. She looked very small and appealing in a robe of purple velvet, her curly black hair rioting in wild disorder over her head as she sat there beside her brother, but the furious expression in those slanted gray eyes ... Royce sighed. She was angry, and a part of him didn’t blame her for feeling as she did. He should have told her. His eyes meeting hers steadily, he admitted bluntly, “I wanted you settled in before I embarked upon an explanation that you weren’t going to like. You were going to be upset to learn that your brothers were leaving you here in my care while they sailed to America, and I wanted to postpone distressing you as long as I could—at least until you felt more comfortable here at Lime Tree Cottage.”

  Ben forgotten at the moment, oblivious to Zachary and Jacko’s utterly rapt interest, Morgana glared at Royce, the gray eyes dark as storm clouds. “Distress me?” she demanded. “When has that ever stopped you?” Springing up angrily from the sofa, she stalked across the room and stood militantly in front of Royce. “Is that what tonight was all about? Is that why you came to my bed?” Her voice rising scornfully, she added, “To make me more comfortable?”

  “An unfortunate choice of words on my part,” Royce answered coolly, the topaz eyes watching her narrowly. “As for tonight and what happened between us, I don’t intend to discuss it in front of an audience!”

  Suddenly becoming aware of Jacko and Zachary and their undisguised fascination with what was being said, Morgana blushed becomingly. Her fight disappearing in an instant, her mouth set in a mutinous line, she flounced down on the sofa next to Jacko, contenting herself with throwing Royce a look full of daggers.

  With great aplomb, Royce poured himself a snifter of brandy and stood once more before the fireplace. “Now, where were we?” And glancing at Jacko, he continued with unruffled composure, “I believe you were saying something about coming down to see your sister before you sailed on Monday?”

  “Er, yes,” Jacko muttered, still caught up in the revealing exchange between Morgana and Royce. The changes in his sister in the weeks since he had last seen her were enormous. She was no longer a grimy little street urchin of indeterminate sex; instead, he had been confronted by a beautiful, clean young lady in costly clothes—granted, the clothes cons
isted of little more than a nightgown and robe, but Jacko could recognize quality when he saw it. Where once dirty, unkempt hair had framed an unwashed face that habitually wore a pinched, almost crafty expression, he now found silky, artfully cut curls, and the features he now stared at were softer and more lovely than he had ever imagined. There was a bloom about Morgana that was unmistakable, a sparkle in the gray eyes that had never been there before, her clear skin glowing with health and vitality, and even the way she moved was different, flowing and feminine where before she had been forced to hide behind a boyish disguise. The changes pleased Jacko, and yet they made him feel slightly awkward, almost as if he didn’t know this beguiling, sweetly scented little creature who had flung herself into his arms and whose fingers even now clung tightly to his dirty hand. He had been self-conscious, uncomfortably aware of his filthy body, greasy, disheveled hair, and equally filthy, foul-smelling, stained clothing, but the sharp exchange between Pip and Royce had somehow reassured him. She might be wearing fancy clothes and look like a lady, but Pip was still Pip! Gathering up his straying thoughts, Jacko pressed Pip’s hand more warmly and said, “We had planned to be here before dark. We figured we would stay here until it was time to leave for the docks in London.” He shot Royce a dulcet look. “Thought you wouldn’t mind providing us transportation back to London, and we didn’t think that if the one-eyed man noticed we were missing, he would look for us here.”

  “But something went wrong?” Royce interjected when Jacko stopped to grab a bite of the bread and meat that Morgana had fixed for him. From the way he wolfed the food down, it was obvious that he had not eaten in a long time. Royce gave him a moment, then repeated, “But something went wrong ... ?”

  The blue eyes full of anxiety, Jacko nodded swiftly. “Bad wrong!” he said in a low, tormented voice. “The one-eyed man showed up at our rooms night before last, said he had a small job he wanted us to do for him. It didn’t seem to be too difficult, and since we didn’t want to arouse his suspicions, we didn’t try to wiggle out of it.”

  “I take it the ‘small job’ turned out to be a trap?” Royce asked quietly, setting down his empty snifter on the mantel and helping himself to a slice of bread and cheese.

  “Yes, it was! And it’s the devil’s own luck that I am not in Newgate with Ben this very moment,” Jacko said roughly. “There was this gentleman the one-eyed man wanted us to rob, said the gentry cove always wore a fine ruby that he had a fancy to own. Told us where the fellow would be this morning, or rather yesterday morning. Said the fellow would be driving up from the country to put his affairs in order before leaving the city for the summer. Said it would be our only chance to bite the blow for a long time.” Jacko rubbed the back of his neck. “It seemed simple enough and it was something we’ve done time and again, so we weren’t looking for trouble.”

  “But you found it,” Royce commented dryly.

  “Oh, yes, we found it!” Jacko replied bitterly. His forehead wrinkled in memory, Jacko said slowly, “The fellow had to have been warned, because he was ready for us—the instant we neared him, before we had even touched him, he struck Ben a mighty blow to the head with his fist, nearly knocking Ben to the ground with the force of it. And then quick as a flash the bloody bastard whipped out a sword stick and came right at me! Ben was groggy, stumbling about while I was trying to keep the fellow’s attention on me to give Ben time to recover and avoid being stabbed at the same time, when all of a sudden out of nowhere four members of the watch are there, swinging their cudgels.” Shame and despair in his voice, Jacko confessed, “All I could think of was getting out of there—I thought Ben was behind me, and I dodged through the alleys and streets until I knew I had lost any pursuers. Ben wasn’t with me when I stopped running, but I wasn’t worried—we’ve often had to split up to escape, and I just figured he’d be waiting for me back at our rooms.” Bleakly he said, “He wasn’t, but someone else was—the watch! I almost walked slap into their arms before I noticed them lurking about where we live, and that’s when I knew for certain that the one-eyed man had betrayed us.” Tossing down some more whiskey that Morgana had just poured for him, Jacko continued, “I hung around awhile, thinking that maybe I had gotten there before Ben, but after a while, I knew that things were very bad for us. I had to keep hidden, but I also had to know what had happened to Ben. I did some damn cautious snooping, not knowing who I could trust anymore, and discovered that he had been taken away to Newgate. As soon as I learned that, I started out for here.” He sighed tiredly. “I walked when I had to, but I was able to cadge a ride with a farm cart every now and then.”

  “I wonder,” Royce began slowly, “if the one-eyed man’s betrayal is because he realized that you had been following him, or if he has somehow learned of your imminent departure from England.”

  Jacko shrugged listlessly. “What does it matter? Ben’s in Newgate, and until he is freed, we’re not going anywhere!”

  “My point exactly!” Royce said bluntly. “By having Ben in Newgate, he has to know that none of you will be leaving the country ... which gives him time to concoct further plots to kidnap Morgana!”

  Silence fell in the room, no one having anything to add to the conversation. Several seconds passed, all lost in their own thoughts, before Zachary asked softly, “How are we going to get Ben out of Newgate?”

  After tossing down the last of his brandy, Royce replied crisply, “Without a great deal of trouble, I should hope! I shall leave at first light and return to London. George will know which magistrate or judge I should see, and if all goes well, Ben will be sitting here with us by tomorrow evening!”

  “And if it doesn’t?” Morgana asked anxiously.

  Royce smiled gently at her. “Sweetheart, please have a little faith in my persuasive powers!” Attempting to interject a lighter note into the proceedings, he grinned. “If I cannot convince the authorities that Ben must be released in my care, I’m quite positive that I shall be able to find someone who, for a handsome consideration, will be quite willing to look the other way and allow Ben to escape.” His teasing mood disappearing, Royce looked at Morgana and promised grimly, “Believe me, one way or another, I will free your brother for you. It may take longer than we want, but Ben will be free—I swear it!”

  “I shall go with you!” Zachary said grimly, leaning forward intently.

  “And me!” Jacko said promptly.

  Morgana opened her mouth to state her intention of being included, but Royce slanted her a fierce glance and snarled softly, “Don’t even think of offering to accompany me!” Her mouth shut with a snap and her chin lifted belligerently.

  Looking at the two younger men, Royce said forcefully, “No one is coming with me—I’ll need you here to guard Morgana, and I see no reason for us to split up our pitifully few forces any more than necessary.”

  Both Zachary and Jacko were much inclined to argue with this line of reasoning, but eventually Royce made them see the sense of what he proposed. “Don’t you see! He may very well have arranged Ben’s capture for just this reason—to divide us, and in our desire to free Ben, momentarily let ourselves be distracted from his main purpose ... the possession of Morgana! If we all go hying off to London, we may be playing right into his hands!”

  Royce’s words were irrefutable, and the subject was closed. Walking over and putting his empty snifter on the tray, he said levelly, “I think for now we should all seek our beds for what is left of the night. Jacko, there are any number of guest bedrooms for you to choose from, so let’s find you one and let you get some sleep.”

  Jacko grimaced and looked down at his soiled and tattered garments. “I think I should find a hayloft—there is no telling what lives on my body and in these clothes.”

  Royce smiled slightly. “I’m certain that our inimitable Chambers has already seen to it that there is some warm water and soap in one of the bedchambers, and he will have no doubt made arrangements to burn your clothing as soon as you are out of them! I suspect that
he is patiently waiting outside this door to inform us of his actions. Would you like to place a wager on it?”

  A huge yawn suddenly overtook Jacko, and covering his mouth hurriedly, he shook his head. “I’m not used to manners of the gentry—you would be sure to win.”

  The four of them walked out of the salon, and as Royce had predicted, Chambers was waiting for them in the entryway. Bowing and looking not the least incongruous in his flannel night robe, Chambers intoned quietly, “Sir, I took the liberty of having some water heated and placed in the green bedroom, next to Master Zachary’s room. After he has washed, if the young man would put his, er, soiled garments outside the door, I shall see to their disposal. I’m certain by tomorrow morning we will have found him something more appropriate to wear.”

  “Did I not tell you that Chambers would see to everything?” Royce asked, smiling broadly.

  Taking Jacko by the arm, in a friendly manner Zachary said, “Come with me; I shall show you to your room, and I think that as far as clothing is concerned, I have several garments that, with very little altering, would probably fit you. By tomorrow, we’ll have you looking like a swell!”

  It was as well that they all parted on that light note, because Royce’s expression was decidedly grim as he restlessly paced the confines of his room just a few minutes later. He was far more worried than he had let on, and while he was positive that he could make arrangements for Ben’s freedom, he rather doubted that it could be done in a relatively brief time. Which means, he thought darkly, Ben must remain in Newgate, where the one-eyed man’s minions could reach him at any time ... and there was no longer any question of being able to get the Fowler brothers out of the country any time soon.