On the Duke's Authority (Ducal Encounters series 4 Book 3)

by Wendy Soliman

  ‘Do you think he intended to shoot you?’ Vince asked.

  ‘No, Lord Vincent. I think he intended to frighten me, and he succeeded better than he could know.’ She elevated her chin, looking pale and discomposed, yet regal and determined. ‘All this pressure over so many months is starting to take its toll. If I were not so stubborn I would have given in before now, but I fail to see why I should surrender what is rightfully mine.’

  ‘Well, regardless of your personal circumstances, you cannot get back to London in this weather,’ Zach said. ‘You had best return to Winchester Park with us. I dare say Frankie will be pleased to see you, and if there is anything I can do to help with your difficulties, you can be sure that I will intercede.’

  ‘Thank you.’ Lady Marlowe let out a long sigh, evidently relieved. ‘You are very gracious, but I cannot permit you to put yourself out. I am sure the landlord can accommodate us here overnight.’

  ‘Which will not keep you safe from the man who seemed so determined to pursue you. Besides, you came to the district in the hope of seeing me.’

  ‘That’s true.’ Lady Marlowe took a moment to reflect and quickly came to the only decision available to her. ‘If you are sure, then I shall indeed impose upon your hospitality.’ She stood, collecting up her possessions with a hand that remained unsteady, indicating just how discomfited she had been. ‘Come along, Ethel. We have already inconvenienced his grace quite enough.’

  ‘Extraordinary,’ Amos said as the three brothers reclaimed their horses and Lady Marlowe’s carriage followed them from the mews. ‘What do you make of it, Zach?’

  ‘Not sure yet.’ Zach took a moment to reflect. ‘There was something not quite right about her explanation. But presumably Frankie will remember the family and be able to cast some light on their history.’

  By the time they arrived at the Park the snow had become heavier and started to settle.

  ‘The boys will love this,’ Amos said as he dismounted.

  ‘I recall that the four of us always made the most of it,’ Vince agreed.

  ‘And Anna,’ Zach and Amos said together, laughing.

  Lady Marlowe’s coachman had driven directly to the stable yard. Zach helped his guest from her conveyance and hurried her towards the house, her maid scurrying along to keep up. Faraday, butler at the Park since Zach’s father’s day, materialised when the small party entered the house by the side door.

  ‘This is Lady Marlowe, Faraday,’ Zach said. ‘We rescued her from the storm. She will be staying with us for at least one night. Show her upstairs so that she can get settled.’

  ‘At once, your grace.’

  ‘Come down when you are ready, Lady Marlowe,’ Zach added, turning to their guest, ‘and we shall be at leisure to discuss your situation.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she said softly. ‘You are very considerate.’

  ‘You did that on purpose,’ Amos said, watching her go.

  ‘Certainly I did. I want to quiz Frankie before we take matters further, see what she recalls about her.’

  ‘Very wise,’ Vince agreed. ‘She wouldn’t be the first to use underhand tactics to recruit you to her cause.’

  ‘Her situation sounds extraordinary,’ Zach replied. ‘But she cannot have known that we intended to be at the Crown this afternoon, and seemed genuinely terrified of the man who threatened her.’

  The brothers made their way towards the drawing room as they continued to discuss the matter. They found Frankie there, along with Vince’s wife Nia and Sara, who was married to their cousin Max.

  ‘Ah, there you all are.’ Frankie looked up and smiled. Zach estimated that he would have to reach the age of at least a hundred before that smile lost its power to captivate him. ‘We began to think that you must have become snowed in at the Crown.’

  ‘I won’t ask how you know that’s where we were,’ Zach replied, taking the chair beside his wife and watching his dogs fighting one another for the warmest space in front of the fire.

  Nia smiled. ‘Very sensible of you,’ she said. ‘You know how gossip spreads like wildfire around these parts, and anything that the great duke and his brothers get up to is of immense interest to all and sundry.’

  ‘Then you will already be aware that we have inflicted a visitor upon you who will be staying the night,’ Zach said, addressing this last comment exclusively to Frankie.

  All three ladies sat forward expectantly.

  ‘Actually no,’ Frankie frowned. ‘That interesting snippet had not reached our ears. Who is he?’

  ‘He is Lady Leona Marlowe. I believe you are acquainted with her.’

  ‘Vaguely, years ago, when she was Miss Moorcroft. Whatever brings her to these parts?’

  ‘Your generosity. You sent her a note when her husband died.’

  ‘What of it?’ Frankie lifted a shoulder. ‘I would do the same when anyone I knew, however slightly, leaves this world.’

  ‘Yes, do explain, Zach,’ Sara said, smiling. ‘We are all bursting with curiosity. Our lofty status as members of this family does not, I’m afraid, diminish our interest in gossip. We are just as addicted to it as the occupants of the Crown’s taproom.’

  ‘We never would have guessed,’ Vince said, flinching as he avoided the playful cuff that Nia directed towards his arm.

  ‘Did Marlowe leave her well provided for?’ Zach asked, addressing the question to Frankie.

  ‘I have no idea. I never met the man. Leona is a good ten years my junior, as most people seem to be nowadays.’ She sighed. ‘When I knew her in France she had not yet come out, but I took a liking to her, being lonely myself. She was an only child and her father in particular was very ambitious for her. She wasn’t thirteen, but he already had suitable husbands lined up for her in his imagination, and made it clear that he expected her to marry whichever of them he deemed to have the best prospects when the time came.’

  ‘I don’t know if she was happy with his choice, but the marriage cannot have lasted for very long, and now it seems she’s being bullied over her husband’s estate,’ Zach said.

  ‘And came here thinking you could help her.’ Frankie frowned. ‘She must be desperate to approach a stranger.’

  ‘Surely her lawyers can manage her affairs,’ Sara said. Her own husband was a solicitor, so it seemed natural that her thoughts would turn in that direction.

  ‘It’s certainly odd,’ Frankie agreed.

  ‘We all felt there was more to her story than she actually gave us,’ Vince said.

  Amos and Zach nodded in agreement.

  ‘Well, whatever her problem is, I dare say she will have the goodness to explain it in full.’ Frankie tilted her head and Zach could hear the thunder of what sounded like a dozen pairs of tiny feet running down the stairs. ‘In the meantime, I believe we can expect less sophisticated company,’ she said, smiling as the door burst open and the children tumbled through it.

  Chapter Two

  Leona sat in the window of the sumptuous guest chamber she had been conducted to, feeling a little overwhelmed. She watched the snow falling steadily, reminded by a guilty conscience that she hadn’t told the duke the complete truth about her circumstances. In her own defence, she had not expected to encounter him while running from the bullying brute who had been dogging her footsteps all day.

  ‘I did tell you that a storm was brewing,’ Ethel said as she bustled about unpacking Leona’s belongings. If the duke were to learn about the amount of luggage she had with her, hauled up to her room by two straining footmen, he would already know that she hadn’t been entirely forthcoming. Why would the trunk of her carriage have been filled to the brim if she had intended to return to London that same day?

  ‘I had best go down and face the music,’ Leona said, half to herself.

  ‘I’ll fetch hot water. You’re not fit to be seen as you are.’

  No sooner had Ethel spoken than a knock at the door heralded the arrival of a housemaid bearing a brimming jug of the hot water that Ethel dee
med so necessary.

  ‘A very organised household, I must say.’ Ethel nodded her approval as she directed the girl to the ewer and stood over her while she decanted the water into it.

  ‘What do I do now?’ Leona asked aloud, throwing her head back and growling at the ceiling.

  ‘Go down and tell his grace the complete truth,’ Ethel replied with a stoic shrug. ‘He’s been very kind taking you in, so don’t waste the chance to elicit his help. If even half of what you’ve heard about his fair-mindedness is true, and if your recollections of his duchess are accurate, then I don’t doubt they’ll do what they can to help you. Anyway, what choice do you have? Make the most of this opportunity.’

  ‘Your sound common sense makes me ashamed of my dithering,’ Leona straightened her shoulders. ‘Naturally, I shall be honest with my host. Whether the duke can spare the time to champion my cause is another matter. He must be a very busy man. It’s not as if we are acquainted, and I only know the duchess slightly, but still…’

  Desperate, lonely and unsure of herself, Leona had never been the sort of woman to exploit the good nature of others. Her explanation to the duke had gained her access to this magnificent house, but she would not remain beneath its roof under false pretences. She would tell him the absolute truth, and if he couldn’t or wouldn’t do anything to help her then she would just have to find a way to help herself.

  Thus resolved Leona patted her hair, took a deep breath and walked towards the magnificent staircase, pausing in the gallery at the top of it to admire the family portraits displayed there, including one of the duchess with her children. Leona had never forgotten the lovely Lady St John, as Frankie had been when Leona had first made her acquaintance. Unlike the other ladies in the complex and structured diplomatic social circle of the time, Lady St John had not ignored the confused creature on the brink of maturity who was unsure what was expected of her because no one had taken the trouble to explain the rules.

  Leona’s mother took little interest in her, leaving her to her own devices, but Lady St John had listened to her problems, answered her questions and offered practical suggestions. No one else seemed to notice her during those confusing days when England was on the brink of war and people like her father were doing all they could to prevent the country from plunging headlong into conflict. Leona, young as she had been, had sensed a great sadness about Lady St John, and recognised in her an elegant and compassionate kindred spirit.

  Leona had followed Lady St John’s progress after the death of her husband, sensing that the older lady had been released from her marital chains. Now, as an adult and a widow herself, Leona fully understood. When she read of Frankie’s engagement to the highly eligible Duke of Winchester, she had been delighted for her old acquaintance but too timid to send her congratulations, thinking that the soon-to-be duchess would no longer recall who she was.

  She had clearly been wrong about that, as evidenced by the duchess sending a note of condolence upon George’s death. That was why Leona had thought of her when all other efforts to resolve her problems had failed and she found herself at the end of her tether. She had heard that the duke was a resourceful and influential man who could make things happen. Having met him and his brothers, she had initially been a little overwhelmed by their formidable yet naturally authoritative bearing and the manner in which they came to her aid, taking up the cudgels on her behalf without even knowing who she was. They were so imposingly similar in appearance that no one could doubt they were brothers and anyone with an ounce of sense would think twice before attempting to oppose their authority.

  The possibility of obtaining their assistance gave her courage. Now all she had to do was explain herself, ask their advice and if humanly possible persuade them to come to her aid before she lost everything that was rightfully hers.

  She reached the entrance vestibule, where the butler who had previously shown her to her room informed her that the family was in the drawing room. She had concluded that much for herself, hearing their cultured voices and the laughter of children emanating from behind the ornate double doors that Faraday opened for her.

  Leona was a little taken aback by the sight of the duke and his brother Amos crawling about the floor, small boys screaming with laughter as they rode on their backs. It was bedlam, but the ladies in the room—she recognised the duchess immediately—looked on with indulgent expressions and no evident concern either for the welfare of the expensive furniture or their menfolk.

  ‘Ah, Leona.’ The duchess saw her, smiled and stood up. The two young dogs she had seen earlier in the tavern were now helping with the children’s game that had taken over the entire huge room, but they broke off and trotted up to her, wagging their tails. ‘You have not changed a bit, other than to have become even lovelier than I remember. Welcome to Winchester Park.’

  ‘Thank you, your grace.’ Leona bobbed a curtsey and bent to pet the dogs. ‘It is very kind of you to take me in, and I hope I am not causing too much disruption.’

  ‘None whatsoever.’ The duchess smiled again and nodded towards the children, who were now bickering amongst themselves, the human horses having outlived their usefulness. ‘If it’s disruption you seek, look no further.’ A very attractive young woman with thick black hair and an olive complexion had placed herself in the midst of it all and appeared to be dealing effectively with the problem. Leona wondered who she was. She could be the children’s governess, but Leona doubted it. Perhaps she was a distant relative or another visitor. Lord Amos, she noticed, watched her rather than the children.

  Leona laughed as the dogs returned to the melee. ‘I see what you mean.’

  ‘They are not all mine. Amos must take responsibility for three of them. But let me introduce you. This is Lady Vincent, Nia. And Mrs Sara Sheridan, Zach’s cousin Max’s wife.’

  Both ladies smiled, bade Leona welcome with genuine warmth that put her at her ease in these otherwise intimidating surroundings. ‘And this is Ariana Sanchez,’ she said, beckoning to the woman who had previously caught Leona’s attention. ‘Ariana, this is a friend of mine, Lady Leona Marlowe. Ariana is Spanish and staying with us indefinitely. Indeed, we already don’t know how we managed without her. The children all adore her and she can persuade them to do absolutely anything, which is more than can be said for us, their parents.’

  Ariana curtsied. ‘How do you do, Lady Marlowe?’ she said in delightfully accented English.

  ‘You have your work cut out, I see,’ Leona replied, watching the boys chasing one another around the furniture and a little girl clinging to Lord Amos’s hand, asking him an endless stream of questions.

  ‘They are not always this rowdy,’ Ariana replied with a smile. She tutted as a vase wobbled precariously on a table when one of the boys crashed into it. ‘Excuse me.’

  ‘Come and sit down, Leona,’ the duchess said. ‘The children are about to go up to the nursery and we shall have a much-needed cup of tea while you tell us what brings you to Winchester. You are always welcome, of course, but I should love to know how you have been getting on since we last met. It seems so long ago now, but I have often thought about you over the years.’

  ‘You have?’ Leona blinked, taken aback by the duchess’s interest in her.

  ‘Much as I should like to hear your news, I think we had best leave,’ Lady Vincent glanced out the window at the falling snow and then up at her husband, who was in the process of tossing one of the smallest boys in the air and catching him again, making him giggle. ‘If we don’t go now we will be stuck. We only live next door,’ she told Leona, ‘but the snow is coming down so hard that it will soon be impossible for our horses to plough their way through it.’

  ‘I think it’s already too late,’ Lord Vince replied, glancing at the conditions. ‘Let’s wait until it stops and Zach’s people have cleared the paths. I don’t want us to break our necks in the carriage, to say nothing of damaging the horses’ legs if they slip.’

  ‘Very well. Sorry, Franki
e, but you’re stuck with us. I hope the children won’t miss us too much. I promised them that—’

  ‘They will be fine with Martina and they won’t even notice that we aren’t there.’

  ‘Martina is Ariana’s sister and she too is blessed with a way with children,’ the duchess explained. ‘She is to be married in the summer but insists upon making herself useful until that time comes.’

  ‘What if our guest arrives?’ Lady Vincent asked. ‘He might well do so today.’

  ‘He won’t be able to get through either, and he will have to wait the storm out.’ Lord Vince chuckled as he leaned across and squeezed his wife’s hand, his expression so affectionate that Leona felt like an intruder. I want someone to look at me with such total devotion. The nature of her thoughts gave her pause, but she put them down to loneliness and the precariousness of her circumstances. She would be herself again soon enough; a strong, independent woman who had no need of another man in her life. ‘He has a knack for finding comfortable taverns wherever he goes. Don’t worry about him, my love.’

  ‘Very well then, I shall not.’

  ‘I should go too,’ Sara said. ‘Max will be concerned…’

  ‘Max knows where you are,’ the duke said. ‘I don’t want you out in these conditions alone.’

  ‘He’ll come for you,’ Nia added. ‘You know how annoyingly protective Sheridan husbands can be, despite the fact that he knows you are with us.’

  Sara smiled in an abstracted manner but still looked worried.

  ‘When can we go outside and play in the snow, Papa?’ one of the boys demanded of the duke.

  ‘Told you so,’ Lord Amos said, rolling his eyes.

  ‘We’re going to have a snowball fight and I shall win,’ the first child said, thrusting out his thin chest.

  ‘Our eldest son seems to think he has a divine right to win at everything,’ the duchess explained with a fond smile. ‘Needless to say, the others are not impressed by his sense of entitlement and make sure that he knows it.’