* * *
Henry wandered his library at a loss of what to do with himself. The house was so blasted empty with Marigold married and Selina and her daughters gone. He stared out the window and reflected on how anxious he’d been to get his daughters married that he even made up the rule that they could only marry in order of their birth.
Elise had been the one he most wanted to see settled. He didn’t mind how she was running his life, but in all honesty, he did want her married and settled. A parent always desired to see their children settled in life for when the parent departed this earth. Even though Elise had been happy with her spinster status, she was a much happier wife and mother. Not quite so edgy and quick to take offense. Content with a man to direct and children to raise.
“My lord, you have a visitor.” Mason stood at the entrance to the library, a card in his hand.
Henry reached the man and took the card.
Mr. Ebenezer Darwin, Solicitor
London, England
“Show Mr. Darwin in, and send for tea.” Henry walked to his desk and settled into the chair. He couldn’t imagine why Crampton’s solicitor would be visiting him.
Henry stood as the man entered. “Please, Mr. Darwin, have a seat.”
The older gentleman sat at the edge of the chair, clutching a satchel to his chest. “I apologize for interrupting your day, my lord, but something has come up that I feel needs to be brought to your attention.”
Henry nodded for the man to continue.
“I tried to contact Lady Crampton first, but she was not at home. Since I know you two are”—he coughed—"quite close, I wanted to do my duty as quickly as possible.”
While Henry was digesting those puzzling words, Mason returned with a tea tray. As the butler laid out the tea things, along with the substantial sandwiches he had instructed Cook to send whenever he requested tea, Darwin remained silent but obviously on edge.
Once Mason had poured the tea and the men served themselves, Darwin took a sip of liquid and placed the cup in the saucer. “My lord, my concern lies with Lord Crampton.”
“I assume you are not referring to the dead one.”
Darwin almost spit out his tea and looked quite taken aback. Henry didn’t know why since he thought that a reasonable question.
The solicitor wiped his mouth with the serviette and placed it alongside his saucer. “No, my lord. The very much alive Lord Crampton.”
“Go on.” The sandwich he just took a bite of was wonderful. Thick bread, several slices of beef, and a horseradish type of sauce that Cook made. Delicious.
“Lord Crampton visited my offices quite recently. He tried, I might add unsuccessfully, to explain to me why he should petition the Chancery Court to obtain guardianship of Lady Crampton’s daughters.”
Henry sucked in a breath.
“Yes. I agree. I have no reason to believe he would prevail in such a petition. He tried to offer as reason Lady Crampton’s reputation as immoral.”
Henry growled, and Mr. Darwin’s eyes grew wide.
“I am quite certain whatever rumors the man quoted to me were started by him. I will tell you this, my lord. The former Lord Crampton was a difficult man. As my client, I cannot reveal any confidential information, but I will speak to my discomfort on how he executed his will. But, as his solicitor, I had to do as he wished and probate the will as he had stated.
“I find the new Lord Crampton if not equally difficult, at least somewhat so. His unreasonable demands at the reading of the will set me on edge. I was quite happy when he returned to Greece and placed his stewards in charge of his properties.” He leaned forward, tension in his body. “I must impress upon you that the man is up to no good. Watch out for Lady Crampton.”
“Have no fear in that regard, sir. I intend to make Lady Crampton my wife, but as you know she would forfeit her daughters’ inheritance if she did so.”
Darwin shook his head. “A very unpleasant situation. But please be assured, Lord Crampton must be watched.”
They both turned as Selina burst into the room.
* * *
Lord Crampton watched from across the street as Lady Phoebe and Lady Prudence went from shop to shop, their maid and a footman trailing behind them. This was the third day in a row he’d followed them as they wandered about town as he waited for the right time to put his plan into action.
How the bloody hell many clothes did they need?
Finally! After leaving a millinery, they both strolled arm-in-arm and settled in seats at a table in front of Gunter’s Tea Shop. The maid and footman stood about twenty feet away, chatting.
Crampton strode across the street and slowed his pace as he approached their table. No need to cause alarm to anyone. “Good afternoon, ladies.” He offered a bow.
The girls looked up at him in surprise, then responded with a slight smile. “Lord Crampton. Good afternoon to you, too.”
He waved to a chair. “May I join you?”
“Yes,” one of the girls said. “Please do.”
Ah, good manners. Exactly what he had expected. “Have you ordered yet?”
“No.” One young lady looked around just as a server approached their table. They placed their orders for ices, and the man wandered off.
“I must admit, I have a very difficult time telling one of you from the other.” He turned to the girl on his right. “Who are you?”
She giggled. “I am Lady Phoebe.”
“Ah, yes.” He glanced over at the other girl. “Then you must be Lady Prudence.
She blushed and nodded, casting her eyes to her lap. Hmm, she seemed more subdued than Lady Phoebe.
“How is your lovely mother? She is not with you today?” He offered them a warm smile, knowing full well Lady Crampton rarely accompanied them on their afternoon stroll around town. Hopefully, their harridan mother hadn’t said too many horrible things about him that they would chase him off.
“Mama is fine. She spends a lot of time in the afternoon catching up on correspondence.”
“And you both enjoy shopping,” he teased, trying very hard to be seen as the endearing older male relative. An uncle, brother, cousin. Anything to make them trust him.
Their ices arrived, and they chatted about the weather, the end of the Season, and how they would make their come-outs the following year. It was bearable speaking with them since they were not of the simpering, giggling, gushing type. Their maturity was remarkable.
The entire time he was fully aware of the maid who had stopped speaking with the footman and watched her charges with diligence. The girls might be trusting, but it was obvious the maid was not.
Once they had finished their ices, the girls seemed to grow restless.
He wiped his mouth and adopted a pleasant expression. “May I escort you to your carriage?”
Lady Phoebe nodded and began to rise when her sister placed her hand on her arm. “I think we should visit that last shop we were considering.”
The girl looked puzzled. “What shop?”
Lady Prudence blushed. “You remember, sister. The one where we said we would return.”
“I am not sure what you mean. I don’t remember saying we would return to another store. We decided to take ices before we left for home.”
It appeared Lady Prudence was more cautious than her sister. He had to assuage the urchin’s fears, or he’d have to carry out his plan another day. “Please, do not let me interrupt your day. If you were planning on more shopping, then I would be happy to accompany you to the store and see you home.”
“Lead the way, sister, since I don’t remember which store you refer to.” Lady Phoebe waved in the general direction of the row of shops.
“Um, on second thought, I believe I was wrong.” Lady Prudence blushed again. “I guess we are ready to depart for home.”
He extended his arms and both girls placed their hands there. He kept up a lively chatter until Lady Prudence seemed to relax, as did the maid and footman following them who ha
d resumed their conversation.
Once they left the busiest part of the area, he stopped. “Shall we send your footman to summon the carriage?”
“Yes, of course.” Lady Phoebe turned. “Marshall, please have the carriage brought here.”
“Yes, my lady.” He strode away from them, and Crampton discreetly beckoned his driver who waited at the end of the block. He kept the girls busy exclaiming over all the ribbons and other fripperies they’d bought that day.
Once his carriage had rolled to a slow stop right next to them, Crampton opened the door. With one quick movement, he grabbed Lady Phoebe around the waist and lifted her. “In you go.” He shoved her into the carriage, jumped in behind her, slammed the door shut, and shouted at the driver, who pulled away at a rapid pace.
Leaving Lady Prudence and the maid staring after them open-mouthed.
Chapter 12
Selina awoke from her nap feeling sluggish instead of revived. She had no idea what was wrong with her, but ever since she moved out of Henry’s house she had not felt well. Upon awakening each morning, she eyed the cold spot where Henry should be, and her stomach churned as she fought the need to run to the chamber pot.
She oftentimes skipped her morning tea, just not able to swallow it. It was difficult for her to keep her eyes open past luncheon, and instead of accompanying the girls on their shopping treks, made up an excuse about taking care of correspondence when she was actually crawling into bed for a nap.
This malaise that had overtaken her had to cease. She could not marry Henry until the girls were wed and settled with their rightful inheritance. They were young and deserved the chance to marry someone who loved and cherished them. She did not want for her daughters the type of marriage she’d been forced to endure. If that meant she had to put her hopes and dreams aside, then that was the way of it.
She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed and grasped the mattress at the lightheadedness that swept over her. Selina, behave yourself. Stop acting like a child and get on with your life.
She eased out of bed and rang for Jenny. Within minutes, one of the younger maids entered after tapping on her door. “I’m sorry, my lady, but Jenny is off with the girls, shopping. What can I do for you?”
“Yes. I forgot about that. Please have tea set up in the drawing room. I’m not expecting company, but I need to rouse myself.” As the girl turned to go, she said, “Before you leave, can you please help me with my gown?”
The girl moved behind her and tightened her stays and fastened her gown. “Would you like me to fix your hair, my lady?”
“No. I can do that myself. And thank you.”
The girl curtsied and left the room. Selina stared at herself in the mirror, and her spirits sagged. She looked terrible. Dark circles under her eyes, her hair listless, and she was quite pale. Even the very light freckles across her nose stood out like dots of dark chocolate. She dropped the brush onto the table and covered her face with her palms. After a minute, she lifted her head and looked again in the mirror, shocked when tears flooded her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. Whatever was wrong with her?
“Mama!” Her heart thumped, and she swung around as Prudence raced into the room, her eyes wide, tears streaming down her face. Her bonnet had come off her head and dangled behind her, bouncing against her back as she hurried toward her. “He took her!”
Selina jumped up and grabbed Prudence by her upper arms. “Calm down, Prudence. What are you talking about? Where’s Phoebe?”
“That’s it, Mama. He took her. He took Phoebe!” Her daughter collapsed onto the bed in a heap and wailed.
“Prudence!” she snapped. “Compose yourself and tell me what happened!”
Jenny flew through the door, wringing her hands. “Oh, my lady. I am so sorry. I was not paying attention like I should have been.”
Selina’s head pounded, and although she had no idea what had happened, her stomach muscles twisted and her mouth dried up with fear. “Jenny, please, you must quiet down and tell me what happened.”
Between apologies, hand wringing, and swiping tears from her face, the girl told her how they’d met Lord Crampton at Gunter’s and how he pretended to walk the girls to their carriage before suddenly opening the door to another carriage, throwing Phoebe in before climbing in after her, and instructing the driver to go.
“Oh, my God.” Why would he want Phoebe? She had no money to pay for a ransom, if that was his thinking. Selina could think of only one thing to do. “I must go see Henry—I mean, Lord Pomeroy. Have the carriage brought around. Immediately!”
No longer concerned at how poorly she felt and looked, she raced out of the bedchamber door and down the stairs. After leaving a note for Lady Penrose, who was making her afternoon calls, she shrugged into her pelisse, pulled on her gloves, and ran toward the carriage, still tying the ribbons on her bonnet. “Lord Pomeroy’s house. And hurry.”
She fought down the returning nausea and tried very hard to ignore her headache, which was growing with every turn of the carriage wheels. It seemed to take forever to reach Henry’s house, but once she was close, she jumped from the carriage, stumbling to her knees. Ignoring the burst of pain in her knees and how she must appear to people on the street, she limped up the steps and pounded on the door.
Mason opened the door and bowed. One look at Selina’s face, however, and he stepped back. “His lordship is in the library.”
“Thank you,” she mumbled as she hobbled past him to the library. She burst into the room, at first not seeing Mr. Darwin seated in front of Henry’s desk. “Henry! Phoebe’s been kidnapped.”
The words were no sooner out of her mouth than her knees buckled, and she slumped toward the ground.
“Selina!”
Henry caught Selina just before she hit the floor. “Mason!”
The butler had entered right after Selina and stood agog, for once his stoic countenance gone. “My lord. What can I do?”
“Have Mrs. Woolford bring a pan of cool water and a cloth.” He took Selina’s reticule off her wrist and riffled through it, looking for a vinaigrette. Not surprisingly, she did not carry one. He looked up to see Jenny standing there, staring at Selina. “Jenny, go to the kitchen and ask Cook for some vinegar.”
Next, Prudence hurried into the library. “Oh, goodness. Is Mama all right?
“She will be. In a minute.” He picked Selina up and strode to the settee, laying her gently down. She looked so very pale. And as though she’d lost weight. Even though he’d seen her recently, he hadn’t noticed how much she’d changed since she left him.
Jenny and Mrs. Woolford entered the room together with Cook and another maid. “Oh, my. What has happened to her ladyship?” Mrs. Woolford asked as she handed the pan of water and cloth to Henry.
“I don’t have a lot of information right now.” He turned to Jenny and Prudence. “Can someone please tell me what happened?”
As they both spoke at the same time, not making any sense at all, he swiped the vinegar under Selina’s nose, which caused her to move her head aside and cough. He tapped her cheek. “Selina, wake up.”
Her eyelids fluttered open and she frowned. “What happened?” Then she sat up abruptly. “Phoebe.”
Henry reached out and touched her shoulder. “I am just now hoping to get some information, but I think you should lie down for a while.”
“I can’t. I have to find my daughter.”
The poor woman looked dreadful as tears ran down her pale cheeks. He looked around the room. “Darwin, Phoebe, Jenny, all of you take a seat. The rest of you can return to your duties.”
After a great deal of shuffling and murmuring, the room quieted down with Prudence and Selina sniffing into handkerchiefs. Despite how it looked to everyone else in the room, he sat next to Selina and pulled her against him so her back rested on his chest. “Prudence, in a calm voice, please tell me what happened.”
“Lord Crampton kidnapped Phoebe.”
Well, then. T
he girl certainly knew how to come to the point. “Thank you. How did he take her?”
“We were walking away from Gunter’s with him, and his carriage pulled up alongside us and he opened the door, picked up Phoebe, and tossed her into the carriage. Before either Jenny or I could say a word, he hopped in after her and the carriage pulled away.”
Henry closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Before we go any further with this, I want you all to understand that Crampton will not harm Phoebe.”
Selina turned to him, the tip of her nose red. “How do you know that? He is a despicable man.”
“Because he wants money. In addition to being despicable, he is a blackguard who would gain nothing by doing Phoebe physical harm.”
“I hear a ‘but’ in there,” Selina said.
Henry looked over at Darwin. “The will was written so the only way Crampton would get his hands on the money was if Lady Crampton married.”
“That is correct, my lord.”
“But if he married one of the girls, he would gain their portion of the inheritance, which I assume is considerable.”
Darwin’s mouthed dropped open and he nodded. “Yes. Indeed. As her husband, he would have unlimited rights to her money.”
Henry looked down at Selina. “There you have it. He has kidnapped Phoebe with a plan not to harm her, but to marry her.”
“My sister would never marry a man who kidnapped her!” Prudence gasped.
“If his actions come to light, she will be ruined, and she would have no choice but to marry him.” Selina’s words were barely above a whisper.
Henry shifted Selina so she sat against the settee and he stood. He held out his hand. “Come. We are going to Crampton’s house.”
“Why? You don’t think he was foolish enough to bring her there, do you?” Selina asked.
“No. I don’t think that at all, but with his man driving off with Phoebe obviously being taken against her will, there might be others in his household who knew something of his plans.”
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