Chapter Thirteen
April 25, 1820
“Why the hell am I so nervous? I’m not the man being wed this morning.” Gabriel asked this of his wife as they put the finishing touches on their toilette.
“Because you love Henry, and you want the best for him.” When Mary smiled at him, heated need shot along his shaft. “But I know what you mean. I feel the same, and it has nothing to do with the imminent nuptial ceremony.” She drew on wrist-length gloves. “However, I have faith that everything will be right as rain soon enough.”
“Indeed.” He came up behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and then pulled her close. “You are quite beautiful in that purple color.” The gown had simple lines but where the main garment was a royal purple, it featured a lavender overskirt, with golden ribbon lining the waist and bodice. “It will draw every eye to you.”
“While that is sweet, I rather think all eyes will be on the bride.” She rested her head against his shoulder. The violet scent of her perfume wafted up to tease his nose. “But I do enjoy this hue. It makes me feel hopeful.”
“As well it should.” For long moments, they remained like that, not talking, merely taking respite in each other. Then he released her. “I should finish my own toilette else my valet will die a thousand deaths if I go downstairs not turned out to his standards.”
Mary nodded. “You already look scrumptious in your formal attire. I can’t wait to dance with you tonight at the ball.”
“I feel the same, and I’m quite certain I’ll burst from pride after seeing my son enter this next phase of life.” His grin felt a tad maudlin. “He is fully an adult now.”
“Don’t despair.” She drifted close again and laid a hand on his chest. “This is the way of things, but take heart. You have another son, and he will be young for some time to come.”
“This is true.” Yet he heaved a sigh. “I knew this day would come, of course, but I don’t think I’m as prepared as I should have been. How I am this ancient?”
“As if a seasoned man is such a bad thing.” Mary rested her palm against the side of his face. “If you’ll remember, I have never taken an issue with your age, and your form could challenge any younger man’s.”
“Thank you for stroking my ego.” Heat sneaked up the back of his neck. “Once I’m finished here, I want to drop in on Henry and give me some last-minute advice.”
“He would enjoy that.”
A knock at the door interrupted their conversation. While Gabriel finished with his toilette, Mary pulled open the wooden panel. With a cry of gladness, she admitted Miss Wright as she escorted the children into the room.
“Well, this is a lovely surprise, and how wonderful both of you look.”
Gabriel finished with his cravat. He grinned at the children. “Indeed, they do.”
The governess softly cleared her throat. “I will retrieve the children after the ceremony. Since breakfast for the guests will be out on the terrace, the children are having theirs in the schoolroom.” Miss Wright smiled at them both. “Afterward, there are fun games planned so the children can celebrate this day as well.”
“Thank you, Miss Wright.” Gabriel came across the room. “Cassandra and Charlie resemble a young lady and gentleman.”
The pale blue dress Cassandra wore had been trimmed with white satin ribbon at the flounced hem, and the hue brought out the blue in her eyes. Girlish bell sleeves were decorated with the same ribbon, and one tied back her platinum blonde hair. While Charlie wore a black suit almost identical to his, right down to the gold brocade waistcoat. Mary must have ordered it for him.
The little girl smiled. “I’m a princess today.”
“Yes, you certainly are.” Gabriel patted her cheek before he peered at Charlie. “And who is this handsome fellow?”
Confusion lined the boy’s face. “It’s Charlie, Papa.” He pointed to himself. “Charlie.”
“I know.” Gabriel chuckled while Mary and Miss Wright laughed as well. “Charlie, you will break hearts later in life, I’m sure of it.” Then he ruffled the boy’s hair. He glanced at the governess. “Thank you for bringing them down.”
Mary nodded. “Do you attend the ceremony as well, Miss Wright?”
“Yes. Priscilla asked if I could since I’ve been with your family since January.” She offered a shy smile. “I should go quickly dress.”
“Of course.” Mary nodded. Once the younger woman exited the room, she met his gaze. “I’ll take Cassandra and Charlie and meet you in the drawing room.”
Suddenly feeling as if he were losing a vital piece of his life, a wave of vulnerability smacked him in the chest. “Actually, I’ll take Charlie with me. Perhaps my sons and I need this moment.” Then, scooping Charlie up so the boy could sit on his shoulder, he edged toward the door. “I’ll see you soon.”
Then he left the room. Charlie chattered the whole way to the library, where Gabriel assumed Henry would be prior to the ceremony beginning. He didn’t know why, but it felt right, for his son wouldn’t mingle with his friends; he would crave privacy and solitude before such an important time in his life. That’s how he’d always been—his mother’s memorial, when Gabriel had wed Mary, the exit ceremony at Cambridge when he’d finished his term early.
At the library door, he rapped on the half-closed panel then pushed it open when bid. “Would you like some company?”
Henry glanced up then scrambled to his feet. “Papa!” Emotions flitted over his face. “I’m glad you’ve come, for I am suffering from nerves.” Then he glanced at Charlie on Gabriel’s shoulder. “I hope you enjoy being a child for as long as you can.”
Charlie nodded. “It’s bully fun.”
Both Henry and Gabriel chuckled.
Setting Charlie onto his feet, Gabriel straightened and laid a hand on Henry’s shoulder. “I have seen how you’ve matured over the years. I’ve watched you choose the path that interests you the most, and I’ve rejoiced in the fact that you have started a home for you and your bride.” For a few seconds, he paused, thinking over his next words. “And I also know that as you take your first steps into this new life, you will continue to make me proud.”
“I appreciate that.” Henry’s whispered words came with moisture in his eyes. “I have only wanted to walk in your footsteps and cast myself as an honorable man.”
Gabriel frowned. “Is that why you’re marrying now?”
“No, no, of course not.” His son quickly shook his head. “All I meant was you have proven yourself as someone I wish to be more alike than not. The man you were when I was younger and the man you have become since meeting Mary are quite different. I want to continue growing like that. With Priscilla’s help.”
“You do love her, right?” He cleared his throat. “What I mean by that is you aren’t marrying this young woman merely as a platform for your growth?”
“Fear not, Papa. I love Priscilla with all my heart, but I can also want other things beyond love.” He grinned, and all traces of anxiety were swept from his expression. “The point is that I want happiness in my life and a union like you have with Mary, not like what you had with Mama.” His grin was genuine. “I believe I have that with Pricilla. The murder notwithstanding, and I hope that won’t herald bad luck this morning.”
“Of course it won’t. That only means something horrible is at play that has nothing to do with your or your bride-to-be.” A crash behind him had Gabriel turning about in time to see books tumble from a shelf to land on the floor at Charlie’s feet. “What the devil?”
Charlie simply climbed over the thick tomes with a sheepish grin. “I thought I saw a mouse and I wanted to make him my friend, but the books fell.”
“Why do I have a feeling this son is going to run me ragged?” With another chuckle, Gabriel crossed the room, picked Charlie up from the scattered books, and then set the boy on his shoulder once more. “Charlie, tell your brother congratulations. He will marry in less than an hour.”
The boy snorted. “I ain’t never marrying. Girls are mean.”
For the moment, Gabriel overlooked the deplorable grammar, but he shared a laugh with Henry. “Sometimes they are mean, but most of the other times, girls are rather lovely.” He focused back on Henry. “Truly, congratulations. May you have many wonderful years together with Priscilla.”
“Thank you.”
Charlie blew out a breath. “Will you still visit me?”
“Of course.” Henry tweaked the younger boy’s nose. “How could I ever forget about my sister and brother? And we will, of course, still go to Hyde Park and sail boats.” It had become something both boys wildly enjoyed.
“Huzzah!” When Charlie kicked his feet, his knee clipped Gabriel in the jaw.
“That’s enough.” He moved his jaw back and forth to help alleviate the sudden pain. “Well, we should join Mary in the drawing room. No doubt the guests are already finding seats in anticipation for your ceremony.”
“I’m glad you are here, Papa,” Henry said with a bit of a waver in his voice. Then he closed the distance and hugged Gabriel. After stepping back, he flashed a more confident grin. “I wouldn’t have enough confidence to do this without your support.”
A trace of moisture rose into his eyes. “I don’t know about that. You are quite an impressive young man.” Then, with a wink, Gabriel left the library with Charlie still on his shoulder. “Let’s go find your mama, hmm?”
As he came out of the library, at the end of the corridor, he glimpsed Quentin Forsythe arguing with Robert. From the looks of things, it was quite an intense conversation when they both should have been on their way to the drawing room upstairs. Because the case hadn’t yet been solved, Gabriel had a niggling feeling that things would come to a head soon.
Robert stormed past him in the corridor with a nod and an intense expression.
With a frown, Gabriel moved toward Mr. Forsythe, whose anger hadn’t diffused, for it was written all over his face. “Is all well between you and Mr. Rightenour?”
“Oh…” As the other man drew closer, he schooled his expression into a mask of boredom with an ease that spoke of many years of practice. “He and I got up to cards last night. Unfortunately, he suffered heavy losses.” The skin beneath his left eye ticced, but he didn’t act as if he noticed. “Now he doesn’t want to pay me what he owes, and a man should always pay his debts, shouldn’t he?”
That was something Gabriel couldn’t answer, for there were too many variables. “That’s important to you, isn’t it?” Why did he think this wasn’t about a gambling debt?
“It is.” His usually calm facade was beginning to show a few cracks. Why? “It is one of the things that separates us from the animals.”
“Perhaps.” Keeping a steady hand on Charlie so he wouldn’t wriggle off his shoulder, Gabriel kept his gaze on the other man. “What will you do if he doesn’t pay the debt?”
“I haven’t decided.”
“Ah.” From the depths of his memory, something that Charlie said a couple of days ago about a sword rose, and his thoughts went to those damned rings the men all worse. It seemed that at some point, one of them had acted without honor; in short, they weren’t a hero, and a bond had been broken. What, he couldn’t quite say, but he could take a guess, merely to see how Mr. Forsythe would react. “I suppose you would know all about keeping score regarding outstanding debts, since Edwin and Robert showed themselves as cowards when they sent you and your two friends to prison a few years ago, hmm?”
Of course, he didn’t truly know that, but after puzzling over the clues gathered yesterday, it could very well be true.
Surprise jumped into the man’s eyes. “I’m afraid I don’t’ know what you mean, Inspector.” He flicked his left thumb over the inside of the pinky finger on that hand, as if he were used to fussing with a ring there, that was now missing.
“I find that difficult to believe, Mr. Forsythe. In the course of interviews since the murder, more than one person has mentioned a certain scandal in your past that saw you in Newgate.”
The other man remained silent.
Gabriel blew out a breath. “For the investigation, Mr. Forsythe, please remove your gloves and show me your hands.” Had one of his fingers been broken?
“How ridiculous. I will not.” The other man’s eyes flashed with annoyance.
“Fair enough.” At that point, he suspected one of those young men murdered Edwin—quite possibly the man before him— but he needed to be certain. Was it he who’d intended to torture young Kendrick in the woods but had been interrupted?
There was no way to be certain. Besides, there really wasn’t anything he could do about it until after Henry said his vows, because family came first this time around.
A bit of an angry flush rose upward into the other man’s cheeks. “Just because there is a scandal in my past doesn’t mean anything. Were the twins and I friends at the time? Of course we were, but that has no bearing on my life now.” His shrug was a tad too theatrical to appear fully negligent. “The simple truth is that Robert lost at cards to me last night, and I want to collect. Don’t read too much into it.”
The cheek of this man! Striving to maintain a neutral reaction, Gabriel nodded. “Perhaps you are correct and I’m trying too hard to make a connection where there is none.” He patted Charlie’s leg. “Well, if you’ll excuse me? My oldest son will say his vows soon, and I’d like to be seated by the time that happens.”
“Of course.” Mr. Forsythe stood aside to let Gabriel pass. “Congratulations to Henry. I don’t know him well, but he seems a good sort. Hopefully, the start of his new life will remain uneventful. No doubt your investigation around what was supposed to be celebrations has left a sour taste in his mouth. ”
Was that a veiled threat? He narrowed his eyes. “Actually, Mr. Forsythe, I am ready to wind down my investigation, and will need a few follow-up questions answered from a few people, you included. Perhaps you could spare me a couple of moments of your time immediately following the wedding but before the breakfast?”
A hint of annoyance went through the other man’s expression. “I don’t know why, Inspector. I had nothing to do with the murder.”
“That very well may be so, but I do have those nagging question. I can assure you, it’s all quite routine. Unless you have something to hide, that is.”
“I do not, as I’ve said.”
“Very good, then. I shall meet you in the parlor where Edwin was murdered directly following the ceremony.” Not giving the younger man the chance to respond, Gabriel moved along the corridor toward the stairs. His ire was up, and heated anger infused his entire being, for he knew Mr. Forsythe was lying about something.
“Papa?” Charlie patted his shoulder as they climbed the stairs.
“Hmm?”
“That man was not very polite.”
That made him grin. “No, he was not.” But then, that often happened when one was a criminal turned murderer.
“You should land him a facer to teach him a lesson.”
Gabriel snorted with laughter. “Proper men don’t go about punching other men in the nose for no reason.” Of course, if it turned out that Mr. Forsythe was indeed guilty, a punch might be just the thing to encourage him to talk.
“Ain’t no law sayin’ you need to be proper right now, is there?”
God, how did this young boy become so wise? “First off, language. Use the King’s speech. And secondly, there is every reason to rise above the dreck. When a man has integrity and honor, he separates himself from those who refuse to follow the law. Remember that, Charlie.”
Then they entered the drawing room where wedding guests were gathering. Excited chatter filled the air. When his gaze found Mary, who sat on a delicate chair with gilt-painted legs, he grinned, for that purple gown reminded him of the scent she liked to wear. Cassandra sat on a footstool with an embroidered cushion at her feet, calmly playing with her rag rabbit in her lap. His heart squeezed at the domestic scene. Then his gaze collided with Viscount Titterford’s and he nodded. For the rest of his life, his family would be joined with the viscount’s through Henry’s marriage, and he looked forward to seeing where that would lead.
Finally, he set Charlie on his feet. The lad immediately ran to Mary, and she lifted him onto her lap, whereupon the boy peppered her cheeks with kisses. He’d really taken to her ever since they’d adopted him last Christmastide. When he sat on the chair next to her, he gave her a smile. “I believe Henry is ready.”
“Good.” She nodded, but there was concern in her eyes. “You seem agitated. I can see it in your face. What has occurred?”
Briefly, and quietly, he told her of his encounter with Mr. Forsythe. “I rather think it was either Robert or him who killed Edwin, but I need to go over our notes one last time and put the pieces together before I formally accuse someone.”
She patted his hand. “After breakfast, we shall strive to wrap the investigation. I’m sure Lord and Lady Titterford would appreciate that, as will Lady Parsington.”
Charlie turned to her. “He should punch someone.”
Mary snickered. “That would be rude.”
“Why not? He doesn’t have a sword to run them through. Punching is good.”
“Do hush, Charlie,” she whispered as two men from the church entered the room with Henry. “The ceremony will begin shortly.”
Though Gabriel was anxious to see his son speak his vows, worry chewed its way through his gut. Had Forsythe issued a threat, or did he misread the other man?
I need to think, but that can wait.