Chapter 21 #2
“What’s wrong?” Alaina asked as she settled on the bench, Christopher pulling the horse and phaeton back onto the gravel path, this time toward the main manor house.
“I am not sure, but I certainly did not leave the window nor the door open. And to my knowledge, there is only one animal who can enter a latched portal.” And with that they rode back to the manor house in quiet, hopeful of more security, but both upset that their seclusion and bliss had been violated just shy of a week into marriage.
“See that the cabin is cleaned and secured,” came Christopher’s voice from the lower level. Alaina could hear him talking to his butler, Baldwin.
“Yes, sir. Any idea who would have intruded?” came the even timbre of Baldwin, who had been the butler of Rochester estate for over a decade.
“Unfortunately, no, Baldwin. I will keep you apprised if I hear anything,” Christopher sighed, sounding defeated.
Alaina descended the rest of the stairs, having paused midway to listen to the conversation not out of suspicion, but out of worry.
She could almost see Christopher pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration and it made her heart lurch.
As the early morning sun played along the wall during her descent, Alaina wondered how early Christopher had gotten up to see to the hunting lodge.
Alaina knew her husband had been awake well past midnight, and she had awoken this morning to find him already gone from their bed.
The trip back to the manor house from the hunting cabin had been largely silent and tense.
Arriving around the dinner hour, Christopher had been surprised, but a little thankful, that all their house guests, even their closest family and friends, had seen fit to return to their own homes.
Alaina felt a pang of absence that her family was not there to greet her, but was also thankful for the peace after an unsettling evening.
Rounding the final corner into the front hall, Alaina saw Christopher, alone and staring off in the general direction of the cabin, his eyes glassed over with thoughts that Alaina could only begin to guess.
At the sound of Alaina’s footsteps, Christopher turned to meet his approaching wife and could not help the smile that came to his face, although it was a little less bright than usual.
Alaina’s simple day dress of ice-blue damask complemented Christopher’s more rugged riding attire that he had donned early in the morning to inspect the grounds, including the hunting cabin, for any signs of who had intruded on his estate.
Even with that weighing on his mind, it was hard to ignore the vision his wife presented.
“Alaina, my dear, I hope you were able to get some restful sleep,” Christopher said, his voice straining to sound normal and nonchalant, and failing exceedingly.
“Well, I think we were both restless last night, but after you left the bed early this morning, I think I got at least a couple hours of exhausted sleep. Where did you go?” Alaina asked, yawning uncontrollably as a sort of punctuation.
“Out to survey the property, just a little restless, considering,” Christopher shrugged.
Christopher weighed how much of his concern he should share with his wife, considering how little he really knew at the moment.
It was most likely a random passerby who had taken advantage of the vacant but warm place to stay, only to be scared away from the premises by their untimely arrival.
Still there was something nagging about the lack of evidence he found in the house; he would have felt better to have come across a poor soul by the fire, surprised by an intrusion.
In his mind, it had to be someone planning to not get caught, or at least someone with a lookout.
The lack of light or warmth in any of the fireplaces was odd as well.
Nothing seemed to sit right in Christopher’s mind, but there was nothing he could put into words.
“Maybe once the groundskeeper takes another look at the cabin he will find something that gives us a clue about who is to blame for the break-in and why. Until then, there is nothing more we can do,” Alaina offered, the words not providing much comfort to Christopher.
A half-smile came across Christopher’s face, another failed attempt to act nonchalant.
By all accounts, he had expected his young wife to be in hysterics.
He knew his own mind was almost in such a state, and yet here she was, trying to comfort him.
How truly blessed he was to find one with such strength, intelligence, and beauty, both inside and out.
If he was so lucky to share a long-wedded life with Alaina, Christopher knew they would face times such as these just like now, as an unbreakable team.
In an effort to shake the pall hanging over them, Christopher took Alaina’s hand and placed it through the crook of his arm, and he smiled down at her. “Shall we at least pass the time with a tour of the manor house? I am sure there are some corners you have yet to explore.”
Alaina answered with a gentle squeeze of his arm, a soft warmth of pleasure creeping up from the neckline of her gown. “Well, I would be remiss in my duties as mistress of the house if I did not know every corner intimately.”
“Well, let us begin then, shall we, my love?” Christopher winked and led them toward the west wing of the house, through the hallway under the grand staircase.
The parlors on this side of the house were less used and left mostly alone by the staff except for weekly cleanings, a perfect situation for how Christopher planned on passing the day and distracting them both.
Through the remaining part of the morning, Alaina and Christopher explored much of the quiet side of the house, mostly parlors, studies, and libraries that stood unused.
Along the way had been stolen kisses, and soft caresses that turned into passionate embraces, until both of them had been swept away, but thankfully not before closing the doors to the peacock parlor, at least that is what Christopher had dubbed it as a child.
It was decorated by some previous marchioness in teals and purples, a screen painting of a group of peacocks taking part in a mating dance gracing the long wall of the room.
Some of the furniture had been covered by dust cloths, and Christopher had hastily removed one to reveal a small sofa that Alaina and he promptly fell onto, their hands clasping at buttons in order to quickly free themselves of clothing.
A sharp rap sounded at the door, bringing Alaina and Christopher back to their senses, or at least a vague awareness of their surroundings. Christopher gritted his teeth as he pulled back from Alaina, who was quickly trying to repair her appearance.
Christopher looked down at Alaina after refastening his breeches and found her still struggling to right her chemise and bodice, the latter still gaping indecently in front, revealing thinly veiled peaks.
Alaina’s hair was also quite askew. His loins still hot and hard, Christopher steeled himself before plucking Alaina from the sofa by her waist and setting her on her feet in front of him.
Christopher left little time for her to be confused before he turned her around and quickly righted her bodice, fastening buttons and smoothing the fabric of her skirts down over her petticoats, both of which he had been seeking to move out of the way before they were rudely interrupted.
A quick kiss on her neck did little to ease the strain of the interruption, but it was hardly something he could avoid doing when presented the opportunity.
As Alaina, having regained more of her senses, fixed the hair that had escaped from her gathered twist with some scattered pins, Christopher replaced the dust cloth and walked to the door, checking one last time that both of them were respectably clothed before opening the door, revealing Baldwin and the groundskeeper, Thomas.
“What is it?” Christopher blurted, not intending to sound brusque, but failing in his current state. He cleared his throat. “I take it you have found some information at the hunting cabin?” His tone softened a bit.
The groundskeeper glanced into the room to find Alaina standing only a few feet away, seemingly unsure of where exactly she should be. Baldwin’s face remained staid as he recounted to Christopher, “Well, my lord, we found things, but we are not sure what it means.”
“Well then, what is it, Thomas?” Christopher asked.
The groundskeeper shuffled his feet uncomfortably and looked at Baldwin in almost a plea for help.
Baldwin shuffled his feet, but his expression did not change. “Well, my lord, we are not sure how much you might want to share with the marchioness.”
Alaina moved beside Christopher, and he responded, “Whatever you have to say, you can do so in front of my wife. It may put her mind at ease.”
The couple let both men into the room, stepping to the side of the door. Baldwin and Thomas entered and stood in the center of the room while Christopher softly closed the door.
“Ok, out with it.” Christopher stated evenly.
“Well…” Thomas started, “it is just that …” His stuttering frustrated the butler.
“It appears as though the only part of the cabin that was disturbed was the study. Nothing is missing, but the ledgers seem disturbed,” Baldwin explained.
“The ledgers in the hunting lodge are old, at least by a few years. Why would anyone look at those?” mused Christopher, almost to himself, as Alaina watched quietly.
Both men shrugged, and Thomas finally found his words. “We have no idea. We hoped you may know.”
“I have no further insights than you,” Christopher responded, mulling over the implications of a person poking around his estates’ financial records, even old ones; nothing pointed to a passing traveler in need of shelter.
Turning toward the windows flanking the peacock painting, Christopher thought about what to do.
After a moment, he turned back to both men.
“And no one has found a trace of anyone on the wider estate?” Christopher asked.
“No, sir. We have sent riders in all directions, but they have found nothing of consequence. Other than what was directly around the lodge, there were only a few sets of tracks, but they look like wildlife. Whoever these people are, they are exceptionally good at staying hidden in the woods and covering their tracks when they choose,” Thomas replied.
“I will ride out again this afternoon to see what I can find. There has to be some trace of them on the grounds,” Christopher sighed. “I appreciate both of your efforts.”
Both men took the marquess’s last statement as a dismissal and quickly shuffled out of the room. Christopher hung his head and raked his hand through his hair as Alaina moved to embrace him. As he wrapped his arms around his wife, Christopher whispered, “I am so sorry, my love.”
Alaina pulled her head back to gaze at her husband, a quizzical frown playing across her face. “Why would you have a need to feel sorry?”
“My most fervent hope is to have you safely ensconced in our marriage bed for at least a month,” a playful smirk half-touched Christopher’s mouth. “But it seems I must root out whatever bandits may be galivanting around Waverley instead.”
A huff escaped Alaina as she nuzzled once more into her husband’s arms. “Dear husband, whatever this is, it is not your fault. And whatever is going on, we will face it together.”