Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Silas remained still atop Lewis, trying not to make any sudden movements lest he inspire their guests to shoot him. Lewis let out a sigh of relief and crawled out from beneath the Duke, dusting off his coat as he glared at those who had intervened on his behalf.
“What took you so long?” he hissed. “He nearly killed me! You said you wanted to finish him off, and you left me to handle everything – as always.”
“That is hardly fair, my Lord. After all, we were the ones who administered the poison to the horse. We are just as committed to this mission as you are, so do not for a second let yourself believe that you bear the brunt of everything.”
That voice… No, it couldn’t be.
“Your Grace – must I address you formally in this situation? I mean – you are going to die soon, so I do not believe there is any use in doing so. Silas, stand up and turn around… slowly.”
Silas raised his hands and rose, slowly turning around to face the newcomers, dismayed when he realized that he had not imagined the voice that had been speaking with Lewis.
Right next to him stood two figures that had been present through most of his life, practically responsible for his upbringing, alongside his grandfather.
His butler used the gun to motion him to move to the side, his eyes hard while his sister – Silas’ housekeeper – folded her arms, watching with the same cold expression.
“You two… what are you doing?” Silas quietly demanded. “Please tell me you both did not side with that moron.”
Lewis reached for the gun in Lukas’ hand, looking like a child petulantly trying to recover a toy he wished to play with from his siblings.
“Give it to me. Perhaps after I put a bullet or two in him, he will learn his place.”
Marion pulled Lukas away with a tut of disapproval, “Patience, my lord. In due time, we will all have our revenge, and he will get his just desserts.”
“My just… what did I do to you? I’ve known you both since I was a boy. We’ve lived together for practically my entire life. My grandfather treated you like family. So why –”
“You mean, besides the way you have treated us lower than scum beneath your shoes since your beloved grandfather passed? Other than your blatant disregard and disrespect on a consistent basis? Our anger likely stems from the fact that you relieved our brother of his duties as your stable boy and sent him away without a single shred of pity.” Lukas snapped, adjusting his aim so the gun was pointed at Silas’ chest.
“… Max? This is about Max? Is he the reason you joined forces with Lewis to hurt me – hurt Agnes? He was a drunk! I did everything in my power to help him, to guide him to change, but he preferred the company of his spirits to my advice or his job.”
“He was troubled! You could have been kinder to him! Sending him away was not the only solution, Silas. Don’t fool yourself into believing that cruelty was the only path you could have taken.” Marion spat, her cheeks flushed in anger.
“It was the only choice he left me. I did my best, but he was not willing to change. And I could not have him corrupting the other members of our staff. I did not simply wake up one day and cast him out. I spoke to him and warned him time and time again about the consequences of his actions. He had fallen asleep one night and forgot to lock the stables, and a handful of horses wandered off. We weren’t able to find Cider after that – and he had been one of grandfather’s favorites.
Still, I forgave him and hoped that he would change.
You can't… you can't force people to do what they do not wish to. But you can prevent them from causing any more harm. That is what I did – only what I needed to do,” Silas said, gradually lowering his hands and staring down at them in conviction.
“Excuses, excuses,” Marion scoffed, unimpressed.
“I did not expect anything less from you, Silas. You are so wound up in your mind, so caught up in your own ways, that you refuse to see things the way they are. That is what blinded you from seeing that we were working alongside your cousin to bring about your undoing. But you cannot be solely faulted for being the way you are, dear. After all, you got this narrow worldview from your grandfather. He, too, did not see our betrayal coming.”
Not for the first time that day, Silas’ world screeched to a halt.
Did she mean… but Lewis had said…
“No…” Silas croaked, shaking his head as he stepped back. “You – you loved my grandfather. You had devoted your entire lives to him. There is no way that you – Lewis said –”
“Lord Hamilton is a lot of things, but capable is not one of them,” Lukas spoke up with an irritated expression.
“I beg your pardon –”
“Dear, hush,” Marion held a hand up to silence the Marquess.
“The adults are speaking; wait your turn.” Lewis turned red in embarrassment but remained silent as the housekeeper carried on.
“As you know, your cousin is quite incompetent. But he does make a wonderful scapegoat. It was easy to make it seem as though it was all his idea, as though he had the biggest bone out of all of us to pick with you. An angry, jilted man is a man full of weaknesses. We said we would help him bring down your grandfather, but really, we were making arrangements for him to take the fall.”
“He had suggested we poison the old Duke. Can you believe that? Even the way he thinks is sloppy and childish.” Lukas raised his gaze up as if he were stating a complaint to God about his creation being defective.
“We suggested that a carriage accident was a certain way to ensure that pain was inflicted and would be sure to wipe you both away. But you survived like the roach you really are. Poor Silas, cursed to outlive those who love him. Still, we were not too upset about your survival because we thought that after the death of your grandfather, you would be so broken it would make you rely on us greatly.”
“We thought we would be able to convince you to rehire our little brother again. Instead, it turned you into an insufferable, rude brat. Three years – three years, we had to endure your harshness and disrespect. And we’re at our limit.
Do not bother begging for forgiveness now.
The only thing that you can do for us now is to die.
We’d greatly appreciate that without a fuss.
” Marion clapped like a mother urging her child to put on a performance.
Silas felt sick with disbelief, grief and disappointment.
These people had made up the foundations of his life.
He could barely remember a time before them.
And to think that they had harbored such hate for him…
to the point where they had no qualms about murdering a man who had treated them with immense kindness and respect.
After the carriage accident, Silas had spent days wishing he had been the one to die that day. That feeling returned with full force, and he nearly surrendered to his fate… only for Agnes’ face to flash through his mind.
He couldn’t die here, at the hands of these people, nonetheless. Not when Agnes needed him to help her find her sisters. Not when he was her only hope of reuniting with her family.
Not when she loved him so.
“You are pathetic,” Silas said to Lewis calmly, hoping to God that he would be able to get the effect he desired.
“How do you feel, knowing that at the end of the day, all your efforts were for naught?
You let your hatred for me blind you so much you could not see that you were being used.
Congratulations, you will finally get to bring me down.
Except that you won't get to enjoy your victory because you are the one who will be made responsible for my death.”
Lewis looked like a lost child as he flinched, backing away from them.
“That’s… that was not the deal. T-They said – they told me –”
“He was quite a delight to work with, your cousin,” Lukas noted with a carefree shrug. “He listened well enough, and his pompous attitude and pride kept him from seeing that he was merely a dog. We greatly appreciated his enthusiasm.”
“Much like you did, I’m sure, when he made several efforts to sabotage your businesses.” Marion nodded.
“Oh yes, those moments were very entertaining. Especially that time he posed as an inspection officer at the docks in a bid to try and steal your goods?” Lukas recalled with a grin.
Marion laughed and clapped her hands with glee. “That was definitely my favorite of his attempts. He ended up being chased by a dog owned by one of your staff and fell into the water. It must have been a sad day, wasn’t it, my lord?”
Lewis looked close to tears, thanks to their mockery, and Silas felt no sympathy for him. He deserved much worse, and the Duke was going to ensure that the Marquess was duly punished for his crimes.
“Anyway, goodbye, Silas,” Lukas grinned and fired a shot.
He had not really noticed that the Duke had been steadily moving backwards while they laughed at Lewis, and so he was prepared for the first shot, quickly dropping down as the bullet whizzed over his head and running to hide behind a stack of barrels.
“Come, now, Your Grace,” Lukas mocked as he walked around the ground. “There is no point hiding. Just come out and let us finish this once and for all –”
“Silas!”
The Duke’s eyes widened at the sound of his name from a voice he had at one point looked forward to hearing for the rest of his days. A chill ran down his spine, and he did not spare himself a single thought as he screamed,
“Agnes, no! It’s a trap!”
True to her character, she did not listen and ran inside.
Silas looked behind his hiding spot in time to see the housekeeper stick her foot out, tripping Agnes to the floor.
His breath faltered as Agnes remained on the floor, unmoving.
Marion sighed in irritation and stepped over his betrothed’s body, speaking dismissively.
“I am truly sorry, Lady Agnes. We had hoped to keep you apart from this issue, but you consistently insisted on maintaining such tenacity. It is unladylike, and hopefully, this will teach you better.”
Silas walked towards them slowly, his eyes firmly fixed on Agnes as he spoke lowly, his senses dulled by his anger.
“I will kill you. All of you.”
“Bold words for a dead man. Lukas, kill him already so we can leave.” Marion sniffed, turning away.
“With pleasure –” Lukas began, faltering at the sounds of footsteps coming in their direction.
He exchanged a panicked look with his sister, and she stared back at him with wide eyes, sparing Lewis a scathing glance before she took Lukas’ hand and led him out of the stable house through the other exit.
Silas rushed to Agnes’ side and lifted her up into his arms, patting her cheek gently in hopes of rousing her.
His footmen arrived, and for a moment, Silas felt at a loss for what to do. He needed them to get those traitors, but he couldn’t think of how knowing that he also needed to get Agnes help. The grounds of the field were swarming with people, and they could be anywhere –
“I know where they are going,” Lewis said suddenly. “I know how they planned to escape.”
Silas held Agnes closer, his eyes spotting Simon in the midst of his footmen, and he jerked his head in the direction of the door.
“Fetch a physician. Quickly.”
After Simon left, his gaze shifted to his cousin.
“Why should I trust you after everything you’ve done?”
Lewis shook his head, his tone bearing a note of urgency.
“You shouldn’t. But you were right – I was selfish. I have been selfish, and I let my desires run too wild, and they have cost me everything. I … I do not hope that this will earn your forgiveness. I just merely wish to try and help for a change rather than cause problems.”
Silas didn’t really have a choice but to believe him, and when he nodded, Lewis turned and pointed in a seemingly random direction.
“South. They went towards the south side of the field. There is a path that leads into the forest, down to a creek. Their brother is waiting for them there with horses for them to make their getaway.”
Silas called for a footman, “Eric. Find them. Whatever it takes. They must not escape.”
The footman stepped forward and bowed. “Do not worry, Your Grace. They will not.”
They took their leave swiftly, and Silas was left holding his betrothed in his arms, praying that she was not badly hurt, and that Simon would be able to find a physician as soon as possible.
Lewis lingered about awkwardly, looking defeated, and Silas thought it was wise of him to understand that he had lost.
He looked down at Agnes’ face, doing his best not to let the panic brewing in his stomach bubble over at the sight of blood on her forehead – an injury she must have obtained when she fell – gently, pushing a lock of hair out of her face.
Regret washed over him once more, and he sighed in mild disbelief at what he had done, what he had been willing to give up.
He felt no different from Lewis – a selfish child who only thought of himself, uncaring about how his actions and words would affect others because he was too busy claiming to be grieving.
His loss of his grandfather did not justify his actions, and he knew that he had disappointed the old man greatly.
Silas only hoped it was not too late to do the right thing.