Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Poison? I don’t understand how that can be. Dr Shine is a respected physician.” Felicity sat across from him in the den, perched on the armchair facing his father’s massive desk, looking thoroughly stunned.
Seated in his father’s desk chair, Teddy regarded her, searching for signs of duplicity. He saw none. Drumming his fingers on the leather blotter, he asked, “Says who?”
“Well, Jonathan. And your father, of course.”
“Where did this doctor come from to begin with? What happened to Doctor Pierce?”
“Your father asked Jonathan to bring in someone else.”
“Why?”
She flushed and looked away. “You know how private your father is. He wanted someone who wouldn’t be in a position to spread gossip.”
Ah. His father hadn’t wanted word of his son’s shameful condition getting out. His heir could not be seen to have any inherent defects. “Do you have this doctor’s direction?”
“Of course.”
“Send for him.”
“Now? At this time of the evening?”
He gave that some thought. He could practically hear Danvers advising him to wait until he’d strategized with a cool head. “Let’s set a meeting for first thing tomorrow morning. And, I think it’s best you make no mention of my having returned.”
“Very well.”
“By the by, am I correct in assuming Jonathan is residing here?”
“Yes. He began an accounting internship in London shortly after your departure and, the earl, as a favor to his younger brother, invited him to stay for the duration of his time here.”
Teddy wondered how much of the real man his cousin had gotten to see as a house guest for such an extended time. Typically, the earl kept his mask of banal imperturbability in place for all to see—for all save Teddy whom he viewed as little more than a reflection of himself.
“Excellent. I’d like to talk with him. When do you expect him home?”
She looked distinctly discomfited. “Tomorrow, midday. He’s currently enjoying a weekend away at a country house party.” She swallowed. “He and Lady Catherine.”
God, not Catherine again. And why on earth would his father’s wife feel the need to broach her name, now? Unless…
“Never say Jonathan’s developed a tendre for Lady Catherine?” He could not imagine a more unlikely pair than his mild-mannered cousin and the elegant, hot-and-cold Lady Catherine.
The countess plucked at her silk skirts. “The two have spent a great deal of time together of late. I’m sure it’s of no consequence.”
Teddy, unable to curtail the impulse, laughed. Would he never be free of the stigma of entire world linking him with Lady Catherine?
Seeing the countess’s taken-aback expression, he sobered and waved one hand in a dismissive gesture. “Do not concern yourself on my behalf. Whatever was once between Catherine and me was of no lasting significance, I assure you.”
She slanted him a dubious look. “Your father seems convinced otherwise. He was pleased by your cousin’s friendship. Only since his illness did rumors concerning the changed nature of their acquaintance begin to circulate.”
He shrugged. “She broke things off with me the day before I departed for Spain.” Granted, it had taken a bit of coercion on his part to bring her to the realization the two of them would not suit, but eventually she arrived at the desired conclusion.
The countess seemed to take him at his word, reflecting, “There was some speculation that was the case, especially when…never mind. If you say it does not signify, then I am glad.”
“I do. The doctor?”
“Of course. I will see a message dispatched at once.” She rose and exited the office.
He thought he could guess what she’d started to say—that Catherine had another suitor after Teddy left for the war.
Thinking back on it, he’d gotten the distinct impression she’d already been considering replacing him, but had refrained in order to hedge her bets, so-to-speak, in case the other suitor did not come up to scratch.
Clearly, whomever he was, he had not, as the one-time diamond of the first water remained unwed. He hadn’t wished that on her. He simply hadn’t wanted to find himself shackled to her, himself.
She might fit the mold of the perfect countess in his father eyes, but to Teddy, the idea of being bound to the woman for a lifetime, once he saw past her stunning exterior, had struck him as nothing short of a prison sentence in hell.
Catherine was all sharp edges, inside and out, with no softness about her to speak of. Every word, every deed, was motivated by self-interest—unlike Georgina, who poured herself out for those she loved without a thought for herself.
Or so he’d thought. She was every bit as canny and conniving as Catherine could ever hope to be. He’d fallen for her ruse, lured by her make-believe confessions of undying love and the sweet feel of her body yielding beneath his.
He slammed his fist onto the desk as a sharp pain lanced through him. Not because he needed her, of course, but because she’d made a fool of him.
Danvers’s words came back to him, surly and argumentative as if the man was here, now, taking Teddy to task.
So what, she lied. You’re a fool if you can’t see why. Some people go their whole lives and never have someone willing to risk their own necks for the sake of someone they love.
He’d said something else, too.
You’re well and truly married.
Clearly Georgina did not believe that to be the case. She believed herself engaged—to whom? Come to think of it, where had she been when he first arrived? And why hadn’t he bothered to ask these questions when he saw her?
Oh. Right. Because he’d been more interested in garnering an admission of guilt from her, and an explanation—seeking one in particular, which she had not offered—for why in hell she’d set out to trick him in the first place.
The countess bustled back in, a welcome distraction from his spinning thoughts.
“The courier has been dispatched to the doctor’s residence.”
He rose from behind the desk. He had things to see to before the good doctor called. Time enough to contemplate the conundrum that was Georgina Belfry later.
Teddy looked up from Georgina’s notebook, and the pages through which he was combing for details about the maddening woman, as Jenkins entered the drawing room with the doctor in tow.
“Dr. Shine, my lord.”
Pasting a pleasant smile on his face, Teddy set the notebook aside and rose. He had the pleasure of seeing the man’s bland expression morph with shock before he managed to school his features. He hadn’t expected Teddy. Little wonder.
“Dr. Shine, good of you to come,” Teddy said.
“Lord Arlington, I hadn’t realized you’d…er…”
“Escaped Brook Haven? They could hardly keep me incarcerated once my memories returned,” he replied.
“Congratulations on your recovery, sir. Always said it was a mere matter of time.”
“Indeed. Come. Sit.” He gestured to the armchair adjoining the one he’d vacated.
Looking mildly wary, the doctor made his way to the seating area.
“I took the liberty of pouring you a brandy. Hate to imbibe alone,” Teddy murmured, offering a grin of camaraderie. He plucked up the aforementioned crystal glass with its amber liquid contents, and waited as Shine settled into the armchair.
“Don’t mind if I do,” the doctor replied, his expression easing.
Teddy handed Shine the brandy. “Now then, I’m sure you’re wondering why I sent for you.”
Shine sipped, then sent Teddy a smug smile. “No, not really. Undoubtedly, you’re anxious for word of your father’s condition.”
“Why, yes.” Teddy hoped his feigned astonishment was believable. “What can you tell me? The countess informed me my father had an apoplexy and has been abed ever since.”
Face grave, the young physician nodded.
How old was the man, Ted wondered? He could not be older than five and twenty, two years his junior.
Dr. Shine stretched out his legs and crossed them at the ankle. “Exactly right, after which Mr. Arlington, your cousin, called me in. I performed a thorough examination, after which, I determined his collapse owed to a weak heart.”
“His heart. I see. At which time you prescribed him bed rest and…?”
“A tisane,” Dr. Shine replied.
Teddy smiled. He’d uncorked a bottle of his father’s finest for this little experiment.
“Ah. This tisane. It has many health benefits?”
“Indeed,” the doctor replied.
“It isn’t, by any chance, the same blend you prepared for me?”
The doctor blinked.
“I only ask because, clearly, the mixture did wonders for me. After all, here I am, fully recovered.”
Dr. Shine beamed. “As a matter of fact, it is the same—or nearly so.” He swirled the brandy in the cut crystal glass before taking another mouthful.
“I thought so. I recognized the charming scent.” Teddy watched him draw the glass to his lips. “As it is so very healthful, you may be glad to know I took the liberty of adding a large portion to your brandy.”
No sooner had Teddy uttered the words, than the doctor, eyes bugging, hinged forward on the wingback chair to ignominiously spit what liquid was left in his mouth back into the sparkling glass.
“Ah. Despite its healthful benefits, I take it, you do not care for henbane yourself?”
Wheezing, Shine glared at Teddy from his stooped position. “What are you playing at, Arlington?”
No longer bothering with his phony jovial attitude, Teddy narrowed his eyes at him in return. “What am I playing at? I think the more pressing question is, what is your end game, Shine?”
Straightening, the doctor reached into a pocket, withdrawing a handkerchief to mop his brow. “I have no notion what you mean.”
Teddy pulled a gold watch from his waistcoat, snapped it open. “You have sixty seconds.”
Shine slanted Teddy a watchful look. “What happens after that?”
“I send for the magistrate, of course.”
His mouth worked, but no words came out.
“Thirty seconds.”
“Now see, here,” Shine finally began. “It wasn’t my idea. I merely provided a service.”
Teddy cocked his head. “A service? That’s an interesting way to phrase it. For whom?”
“Your cousin, Jonathan Arlington. He sought me out.”
“Did he indeed?”
“Indeed, sir.” The doctor seemed to have recovered a measure of his aplomb. No doubt, the fact Teddy had not actually added any of the noxious herbal mixture to the man’s brandy helped.
Shine went on. “Initially, he requested my advice in treating your unusual case. His main concern was for discretion, as per the earl’s request.”
Teddy grunted in acknowledgment.
“But, soon thereafter he requested something else entirely. He asked that I prepare a tonic for you, one that might render you…er…more malleable to suggestion.”
“Among other things,” Teddy added, with a feral smile for the doctor. “And you willingly obliged his request to drug the Viscount of Helmsley, and future Earl of Ainsworth?”
Shine flushed. “He was very convincing.”
“Oh?”
“After completing my apprenticeship in York, I received my license to practice from the Archbishop of York—all aboveboard, I assure you. But your cousin threatened to bring charges of fraud to the Royal College of Physicians in London. Well, I don’t mind telling you, as a new practitioner, a whisper of such a claim would ruin me. ”
“I see. On the other hand, a large influx of cash would help establish your practice.”
The doctor sniffed. “He was quite generous, and I thought, what would be the harm? A low dose of henbane would cause little more than extreme fatigue. Added rest is, in fact, quite healthful.
“But then, he asked that I increase the dose. When I balked, he threatened to expose me for prescribing it in the first place. Surely you see my dilemma?”
Teddy sent him a flat stare.
“I did warn him that the herbal, given in sufficient quantities, could prove lethal. My lord, you must believe me, the very last thing I would want associated with my name would be the death of a patient—especially a high-profile patient such as yourself.”
Teddy flicked a glance at the doctor’s obviously well-made clothing and gleaming boots. “Naturally, he increased your fee for services rendered?”
“You’re missing the point.”
“Which is?”
“I didn’t want to prescribe the…er…”
“Poison?” Teddy put in, helpfully.
Shine huffed. “He forced my hand. He would have ruined me.”
“Why?” Teddy pondered aloud. His cousin had always been an amiable sort. And it wasn’t as if Teddy had ever mistreated him. Why would his mild-mannered, oft-times-shy, and socially awkward cousin suddenly stoop to such villainy?
“I got the feeling it had something to do with his lady friend.”
Teddy studied Shine. He hadn’t expected an answer. “Beg pardon?”
“The beautiful young lady frequently on his arm. Surely, only an inheritance of some magnitude would elevate a man such as your cousin to the status necessary to offer for a lady of her obvious pedigree.”
An inheritance? Try the bloody title should both Teddy and his father perish. Jonathan, as the son of his father’s late younger brother, was next in line for the earldom.
“An interesting observation.” He unfolded from the chair and started across the room toward the door.
Shine surged to his feet. “Are we…is our interview at an end?”
Teddy arched a brow at the man over his shoulder. “No,” he said, very definitely. “You’re not going anywhere until I and my father have had a chance to consult about what’s to be done with you.”