by Fanny Walsh
“This is not done, Hillington,” Duncan said.
“We shall see about that,” Kent laughed.
Duncan walked slowly back to his carriage in defeat. He boarded the carriage and ordered the driver to depart, resisting the urge to look at Hillington as the carriage pulled away.
With nothing to be done about speaking to Mary for the moment, Duncan decided that there was no time like the present to track down his cousin.
When the carriage driver hesitated at the end of Hillington’s driveway, Duncan gave him the order to take him to his cousin’s home. The sun was just beginning to set, and if he were lucky, he could catch his cousin before he headed out for the evening.
When he arrived at Theodore’s estate, the staff informed him that he was not there. He pleaded with the butler, telling him that there was a family emergency and that he desperately needed to speak with his cousin, but the staff would not say where Theodore had gone.
The butler claimed that Theodore had left in the middle of the night a few nights ago, not speaking a word of his intended destination to his servants. Duncan was unsure of whether he believed this, but he thanked the butler and left.
Frustrated and angry, Duncan returned home to plan his next move. Duncan did not personally know anyone from any of Theodore’s gambling circles, but he did know some of the places where his cousin liked to play card games.
For three days, he searched the town and those immediately surrounding, checking every pub and tavern and seedy establishment he believed that Theodore had been known to frequent, searching for him.
By the end of the third day, Duncan had given up and resorted to asking members of ongoing card games he encountered if they knew his cousin, or anything about his whereabouts.
The only answers he received were nasty glares and grumbled denials. With each failed attempt to find his cousin, Duncan grew more enraged, but he knew that someone could alert his cousin to his agitated state and then he might never find him.
Duncan would have considered asking his father if he had seen Theodore recently, but he was still furious about what had happened with Mary.
When he was finished with Theodore, Duncan resolved to find her and try to set things right with her. He thought he might even take her advice and defy his father once and for all. He could never choose that horrible man over the woman he loved. If, that was, she was not gone for good this time.
Desperate, Duncan wrote a letter to Julius. He did not explain much in the letter, except that he was looking for his cousin and that it was urgent.
However, after his conversation with Julius, he knew that little would need to be said. He just hoped that Julius would get the letter soon, that he was not out of town on business, and that he would write back to Duncan quickly.
His hopes were realized just days later when Julius arrived at his clinic. Duncan was documenting the office’s inventory when Julius walked in.
“Your timing is enviable,” Julius said as he entered. “As is your luck, it would seem.”
“Julius, I am glad to see you,” Duncan said, smiling.
“Not as glad as you will be in a moment, I suspect,” Julius said, his eyes twinkling.
“Please, come to my office,” Duncan said, escorting Julius down the hall.
Once the two men were inside, he closed the door. He poured two glasses of brandy and handed one to Julius. Then, he took his seat at his desk and motioned for Julius to do the same.
“I am afraid I cannot stay but a moment,” Julius said. “But I will join you in a drink. I have, after all, deserved it.”
Duncan laughed.
“I take it, then, that you received my letter?”
“I have,” Julius said, “And I come bearing news.”
“What have you learned?” Duncan asked, hopeful.
“As it happened, I returned from a business trip to London the day your letter arrived. On the evening before I left, I overheard a group of men discussing a high-stakes poker game taking place tonight. It would seem that your cousin is one of the players rumored to be in attendance.”
“Rumored?” Duncan asked. “They did not say for sure?”
“It seemed as though not many other people have heard from Theodore of late, either,” Julius said. “But these… gentlemen seemed quite hopeful that Theodore would not be able to resist the allure of a poker game with such high stakes.”
“Of that, I am certain,” Duncan said bitterly. A thought occurred to Duncan, and he looked at Julius sharply.
“Did you say that the game takes place tonight?”
“At about 8 o’clock, at this little place called The Rose,” Julius replied.
“Then I shall ensure that I am also in attendance at this game,” Duncan, rising. He finished his drink before stepping from behind his desk.
Julius finished his brandy as well and walked with Duncan out of the office and toward the exit.
“Would you like some company?” Julius asked, his face suddenly serious and concerned. No doubt, he was thinking that Duncan might do something rash once he found his cousin.
“No, thank you, my friend. You have done more than enough,” Duncan said. “And fear not, I only wish to speak with him.”
“As you say,” Julius said. “Please let me know what you learn.”
“Of course,” Duncan said, seeing his friend out of the office before closing up.
With a half-hour to spare, Duncan found The Rose and chose a table in a corner obscured in shadow, but well in view of the table already filling with men with decks of cards and money in hand.
Theodore did not make him wait long, and Duncan sighed with relief. The thought had crossed his mind that his cousin might, for whatever reason, decide against joining this game, and that Duncan would once again hit a dead end in his mission to confront his cousin.
The men greeted Theodore heartily, shaking his hand and clapping his shoulder, smiling broadly. No doubt they cannot wait to take him for everything he has, Duncan thought bitterly. Or everything I have.
Duncan stormed to the table before Theodore was seated. He did not intend to suffer another game with his cousin, nor would he wait until the game ended.
“Cousin, a word,” Duncan said through clenched teeth.
“But I’ve only just arrived,” Theodore said, looking puzzled.
“This cannot wait,” Duncan said, pulling his cousin’s arm as he led him away from the table. Theodore tried to pull away, but Duncan tightened his grip and glared at his cousin. Without another word, Theodore reluctantly followed Duncan.
Duncan led his cousin out the back door of the establishment and into a small alley where they would not be overheard by passersby and tavern patrons.
“This had better be good, cousin,” Theodore said, trying to feign bravado.
Duncan scowled at him, his face contorting into a mask barely concealing his rage.
“Are you not supposed to be abstaining from these games, as we discussed?” Duncan growled. “And since you quite obviously had no intention of keeping your word, it would be wise of you to hear what I have to say.”
Theodore blanched, but said nothing more.
“You will tell me right now why you are terrorizing Lady Linden,” Duncan said. Now that the two men were alone, he did not bother trying to hide his anger.
Theodore looked at Duncan in disgust.
“I am doing no such thing,” he said. “I cannot believe you would accuse me of this.”
Theodore’s blatant denial nearly made Duncan lose his temper. He stepped toward Theodore until his face was almost touching his cousin’s.
“I know that you asked for her hand in marriage,” Duncan hissed. “So, you would do well to start being honest with me, now.”
“Since when is asking for a woman’s hand a crime, cousin?” Theodore said.
“It should be, if you intend the woman in question harm,” Duncan said. His blood ran hot and throbbed behind his eyes.
“That is o
utrageous,” Theodore bellowed. “I intend no one harm.”
“Liar,” Duncan hissed. “What about the threatening letter Mary received?”
At this, Theodore looked genuinely surprised.
“What… what letter? I’ve not sent Lady Linden any letters,” Theodore said. Duncan noted his cousin’s perplexed expression, but he would not be deterred.
“There was a letter delivered to her, threatening my life if she moved forward with marriage to me,” Duncan said.
Theodore stared at Duncan, his eyes wide.
“Cousin, you cannot possibly think that I would ever wish to harm you,” Theodore began. Duncan moved closer to Theodore, forcing him up against the wall of the building.
“I believe more than that,” Duncan said. “I believe you were in some way responsible for the fire in the teahouse.”
Theodore’s anger returned.
“Why, the nerve of you,” Theodore roared. “I was very nearly a victim of that fire, as well.”
“And yet you managed to escape without a single injury,” Duncan said.
“As I recall, so did you,” Theodore retorted.
Duncan raised his arms and placed his hands on the wall behind Theodore, one on either side of his cousin’s shoulders, effectively pinning him in place.
“If you do not tell me what is going on, which of us do you think the authorities will believe, if they should happen to get involved?” Duncan said, clenching his teeth.
Theodore swallowed hard, his face growing paler by the minute.
“Alright,” Theodore said after a moment. “I did ask for her hand.”
“Why?” Duncan asked.
Theodore shifted his gaze away from his cousin. Duncan shook his collar again.
“Tell me why,” Duncan demanded again.
“I did it because I did not think that you would loan me what I needed to pay my debts,” Theodore said, his confident façade beginning to falter.
“What does Lady Linden have to do with any of that?” Duncan asked.
“I know that she is rich,” Theodore stammered. “A-and she is available for marriage. I knew that if she accepted, I would never need to worry about debts or money again.”
Duncan’s eyes flared. He knew that many men sought Mary’s hand for many similar reasons, but he would never have believed his cousin capable of something so crass. And, if he was capable of that, of what else was he capable?
“Your addictions and habits are none of Mary’s concern,” Duncan said, his jaw tightening. “And she certainly does not deserve to die for them.”
Theodore’s eyes widened in shock and anger.
“Of what, exactly, are you accusing me now, Cousin?” Theodore asked. He reached up to remove Duncan’s hands from his collar, but Duncan held fast.
“Do not play games, Theodore,” Duncan said.
Theodore looked away from his cousin. When he once again met Duncan’s gaze, his eyes looked wounded, as well as enraged.
“If you are still suggesting that I have, or ever would, do something to hurt her, you are terribly mistaken,” Theodore said. “I do not even care about her, and I certainly do not want her enough to wish or cause her harm.”
Duncan had not expected an instant confession, but he also had not expected his cousin to seem so sincere in his denial. Duncan allowed his grip on his cousin’s coat to slacken, but his cousin made no move to shove Duncan away again.
Duncan decided to try a different strategy.
“What happened at the overseas game?” Duncan asked.
Theodore blinked and looked at Duncan blankly, as though not recalling to which game Duncan was referring. Duncan’s temper flared again.
“You were there the night that Miss Beaumont’s father was killed, were you not?” Duncan asked.
Theodore nodded, still looking perplexed.
“Yes,” he said quietly. “It was a terrible tragedy.” Bewilderment dawned on Theodore’s face, and his jaw dropped.
“Duncan, you cannot possibly think that… That I had anything to do with that? Please, Cousin, say it isn’t so.”
“What else could I believe?” Duncan asked, his voice rising. “Proof turned up that it was a knife just like yours that killed him.”
Theodore snorted.
“I am quite sure that many men carry the same kind of knives these days,” he said.
“Not one as rare as one with an ivory handle,” Duncan said, his body beginning to tremble with rage.
This time, Theodore looked genuinely stunned.
“Cousin, I lost that knife in a bet before Miss Beaumont’s father was killed,” he said.
It was Duncan’s turn to be caught off guard.
“How long before?” Duncan asked, now completely unsure of what to think.
“A few weeks,” Theodore said.
Duncan thought for a moment. His mind was spinning. If Theodore had not possessed the knife at the time of the murder, it could have been in the hands of almost anyone.
“Do you remember to whom you lost the knife?” he asked.
Despite his cousin’s accusations, Theodore now seemed fully willing to answer Duncan’s questions.
“Yes,” he said firmly. “I lost it to Kent Hillington.”
Duncan froze.
Chapter 29
Back at home, Mary knew exactly what she must do. She scribbled a letter to Duncan, thankfully with no tears falling onto the page this time, breaking their engagement once and for all. She sent out the letter at once, still very hurt by what she had overheard between Duncan and his father but determined to hold her resolve.
She had loved Duncan, but she would not be a pawn in some scheme he had to keep his inheritance or please his crude father.
As she reorganized the mountains of paperwork on the desk in her study, she noticed two letters from Duncan. For a moment, she considered opening them, since she could not be sure when they were sent.
After a brief hesitation, however, she decided against it. It did not matter when he sent them, because she did not want to hear anything he had to say. She glanced at them one last time, then tossed them into the fire.
For the next few days, Mary kept herself quite busy. She made several trips to her father’s office to handle some business deals and sign more documents, and she and Beatrice spent a day shopping.
Mary decided that that would be the perfect time to mention the feelings that Mr. Langdon seemed to have for Beatrice, as well as the perfect distraction from the loss she felt over Duncan.
“Have you spoken with Mr. Langdon lately?” Mary asked as she and Beatrice marveled over dresses they were considering for next year’s Season.
Beatrice’s face flushed a deep red, and Mary had to conceal a laugh.
“Yes, just a couple of days ago,” she said. “But he has not found out much else about the case.”
“I do believe that Mr. Langdon would be interested in discussing more than just the case with you, dear,” Mary said.
Beatrice looked at Mary, her face redder still and her eyes wide.
“Whatever do you mean?” Beatrice asked.
“At the ball, he seemed to be quite smitten with you,” Mary said.
Beatrice shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant.
“Oh, did he?” Beatrice asked as she pretended to carefully examine another dress. Mary noticed a small smile spreading across her friend’s face.
“And, from the looks of things, it seems that you might be rather taken with him, too,” she said, laughing.
Beatrice looked at Mary again, her face sheepish but glowing.
“He is rather handsome, is he not?” Beatrice asked.
“And quite charming and witty, if I dare say,” Mary said.
“Oh, but I am sure that he has no interest in me other than helping me with this case,” Beatrice said, with a face that said she was not at all sure that was the case.
Mary laughed again.
The two women finished their shopping and then depart
ed from one another’s company, promising to meet again very soon. Just as at the ball, Mary was thrilled that her friend has found someone who seemed to be so wonderful to, and for her.
However, she could not ignore the ache in her heart as she thought about how she had almost had the same thing. Or, at least, she thought she had almost had it.
