Chapter 20 #2
“But before I go, do let us take a look in the chest,” said Emeline. “Perhaps it doesn’t contain anything of interest at all.”
With that, she turned the key and opened the lid. Inside lay a cloth of royal blue velvet, the corners folded in on themselves. The two women exchanged a look, then Emeline opened the layers of velvet.
“Oh!” Emeline exclaimed softly. It felt as if she were looking back in time, perhaps to a small group of treasured possessions from someone who had lived a thousand years ago.
Nestled among the velvet furrows was a triangular gold belt buckle. It was a stunning piece, for it was rare to find a buckle made of real gold.
Her heartbeat accelerated. Moving the velvet aside, Emeline beheld a delicate, gold lady’s ring, crowned with a setting that resembled a flower.
Garnets and emeralds were inserted in the tiny petals, while a larger garnet was mounted at the center.
Next to the ring was a small note, written in what appeared to be a youthful hand.
Emeline read: Private – Do not touch! Secret treasure discovered by myself, Miss Theodora Fenwick, on this tenth day of June 1799, while digging my kitten’s grave near the ruins. If Found, Return at Once to Miss Theodora Fenwick, Woodcroft Priory, Boyton, Suffolk.
Again, Emeline was transported to another time and place.
Vividly she imagined Hart’s mother as a little girl, accidentally coming upon these artifacts, centuries after they were first placed in the ground.
The buckle seemed to signify grave goods, buried with the remains of a prominent male leader. But what did the woman’s ring mean?
A soft voice brought her back to the present moment.
“It is fascinating! And that reminds me, Miss St. Briac…a letter was delivered today from the priory, barely an hour after Lord Jasper departed for Lisbon. It is from the gardener, Cyril Ackerman…” Crossing to Hart’s desk, Mrs. Peachey picked up a thick envelope and brought it to Emeline. “Perhaps it’s important.”
She shook her head. “In that case, you should read it, not I.”
The housekeeper looked doubtful but broke the seal.
As she opened the heavy sheet of parchment, a smaller piece of paper, folded several times around a flat object, fell out.
Emeline retrieved it and waited. Her pulse accelerated as she watched Mrs. Peachey scan the scrawled note from Hart’s gardener.
“Cyril writes that they have not touched the site since Lord Jasper was there last month, as he instructed.” She glanced up, sensing Emeline’s surprise.
“Perhaps you did not know? When we traveled back from Florence, Lord Jasper wanted to visit the priory before we continued on to London. I think Cyril and Peter, the old gamekeeper, had discovered pieces of the sword by then. And while we were there, Lord Jasper, Cyril, and William uncovered the jeweled hilt.”
“I see!” Emeline felt a pang as she realized how much he had never shared with her.
Mrs. Peachey returned to the letter.
“It seems that, although Lord Jasper had instructed that a barrier be erected around the excavation site, one rainy day Cyril glimpsed something shining in the ground. He encloses it here and asks that his lordship come to the priory as soon as may be, so that the explorations can continue before the weather worsens.”
They both stared at the folded packet in Emeline’s hands.
Her fingers shook slightly as she opened it and spread the parchment out on the desk.
In the middle was a small, ancient gold coin, with carving on both sides.
Her pulse raced, for she knew that the coin might be the key to the treasure’s date and origins.
“This little coin may have an important story to tell,” she said softly.
“November approaches, and Cyril is eager to begin digging again before the rains come,” mused Mrs. Peachey. “But Lord Jasper may be in Lisbon by the time word reaches him!”
“The gardener cannot carry on alone, even if he has some knowledge. He must be supervised. It’s very important that such work be done properly, or the artifacts could be damaged!
Do you think…I might go to Woodcroft Priory, to assist Mr. Ackerman?
I could ask my cousin Louise, who has spent years unearthing rare fossils, to accompany me.
And I know of a male antiquarian who might come as well. ”
“Oh, miss, I think that is a splendid idea!” The housekeeper’s cheeks colored as she reached out a hand to Emeline. “And no matter what has happened between you and Lord Jasper, I know he would trust you to oversee this matter in his absence.”
“Yes.” Her eyes stung. “It could be a last gift between us.”
Emeline arrived home to discover Louise working in their converted study, papers spread before her on the long table.
“Where have you been?” Louise looked her up and down. “I know you didn’t return here last night. How did you manage to change your gown?”
“Such a lot of questions!” Emeline gestured indifferently toward her striped dress. “I changed my attire at my parents’ house this morning.”
“Oh!” Louise looked slightly disappointed. “I had a notion that you were with Hart last night…” Her voice trailed off suggestively.
To Emeline’s chagrin, her face grew hot. “I shan’t lie to you. I was with Hart. It’s a rather long story.”
Her cousin pushed the papers aside. “Oh, my dear, do sit down. Shall I ring for refreshments?”
“No. I’m not hungry.” Drawing her chair close to Louise, Emeline divulged most of what had happened since her departure from Chesterfield Street the day before.
She was grateful to feel rather numb, so that when she reached the part about Hart leaving for Lisbon, there were no more tears.
“And then…just when it seemed the situation couldn’t get worse, I found a message from Papa to Hart.
Oh, Louise, it has all been a hoax! Papa made a bargain with Hart.
Apparently, the Duke of Caversham owed a large sum to Papa over some failed steamship investment, and Hart pretended to hire us in exchange for Papa cancelling his brother’s debts.
Hart wanted to keep it secret from the duke. ”
Louise sat for a moment, shaking her head. “So much makes sense now. I always thought the situation was too good to be true, but we were so happy to think we were making our own way in the world.”
“Instead, Papa was behind the curtain, directing the entire play! It is infuriating!” Emeline jumped up and paced the length of the long table. “I had to go there this morning to confront him. And thankfully, Mama was there to support me.”
“Uncle Justin has always been bigger than life, I think. He doubtless believed he was doing it all for our benefit.”
“Exactly!” cried Emeline. “But I told him, now that we know the truth, we cannot remain in this house. We will find a way to live independently, just as we always planned…before he secretly interfered.”
Although Louise looked taken aback at this news, she slowly began to nod. “Of course. Perhaps we can find employment at the British Museum.”
“Everyone warns that they would not hire women to do more than scrub the floors, but of course we must find a way to breach the museum’s defenses.
” Returning to her chair, Emeline leaned forward.
“But first, we are going to enjoy an adventure. We must travel to Woodcroft Priory to uncover ancient treasures!”
“Wh-what?”
“I was just thinking that we should keep the house for now, because of Bartholomew. Dora can stay here to look after him. When we return from Suffolk, we will all find a new living situation.”
“Clearly you have done a lot of planning!”
Before Emeline could respond, the knocker sounded at the front door and Louise rose. “I believe that may be Tobias.” She flushed. “I mean, Viscount Melford. He was planning to drop by for a chat.”
Emeline looked on curiously as her cousin went to the door and received Tobias.
He came into the study and took a chair on the other side of the table.
In spite of their rather awkward last meeting, he gave no sign of discomfort when Emeline greeted him.
On the contrary, he seemed utterly at ease, especially when he looked at Louise.
“I believe Dora will be serving a light luncheon,” Louise was saying, her cheeks still pink. “I wanted to thank Lord Melford for taking us to Kew Gardens.”
“Of course!” said Emeline, nodding, a hint of mischief in her tone. “How lovely.”
“Your cousin was kind enough to invite me here to discuss the progress of the excavations at Amity Park,” said Tobias. “You may remember that I hoped both of us might be involved. However, it is going very slowly, and there isn’t much for us to do at this juncture.”
“That is excellent!” proclaimed Emeline. “I have just been telling Louise that I must travel to Suffolk to look into an archaeological discovery at Woodcroft Priory, and I would like her to accompany me.”
“Isn’t that the name of Hart’s estate?” queried Tobias.
“It is, but he has departed for the Continent.” She lifted her brows ever so slightly. “Perhaps you would care to join us?”
“Indeed I would!” The viscount looked between them, clearly delighted, then pointed toward himself. “You will need male protection during this adventure. In fact, I propose that we journey in comfort in my traveling coach!”
This, of course, was exactly what Emeline had hoped he would say. “My lord, we are honored to accept your generous offer.”
“Yes,” Louise chimed in. “It is exceedingly kind of you.”
“Splendid!” Tobias reached one large hand toward Louise, then seemed to remember that they were not alone. “Now that we have settled those matters, I hope you will tell me more about this priory and its antiquities.”
Dora was wheeling a cart laden with covered dishes toward them, and Emeline realized she was ravenous.
“Certainly! I will enlighten you both over lunch,” she said, her spirits rising by the moment. “But first, a question! Is it possible that we might depart for Suffolk without delay?”
“What date did you have in mind?” Tobias inquired cautiously.
Emeline beamed. “Would tomorrow be too soon?”