Chapter Nine #3
“I spent a good portion of my day yesterday teaching dealers and others at a gaming hell how to recognize the uttered notes passed by your uncle and cousin,” he admitted.
“We have men collecting the forgeries all over town.” Navan was taking a chance that she would not inform Moreau of Navan’s confession, but his instincts said the woman possessed a refreshing goodness about her.
She motioned for him to sit, and he finally closed the door. They sat together at the small table. “How terrible it must be for others,” she observed.
“Your relations and a small army of what we call ‘street forgers’ are flooding London with uttered notes. Shopkeepers. Young girls selling vegetables out of a cart. Liveries. Even donations to the church are all happening, while your uncle and cousin live a life not earned, but rather taken as if they were privileged to do so,” he explained.
“Then you are saying I should assist Alexander and Lord Duncan?” she asked.
“I am saying you should finish pouring the tea before it becomes too cold for either of us to tolerate. As to anything else, it must be your decision. I will continue to be your loyal friend no matter what you decide.”
Though she was not assured she had made the right decision, she was delighted with the addition of one Lionel Carter to her new friends, though she supposed he was an old friend from her childhood in London.
Audrey could not previously recall ever having laughed so hard and so long.
Lionel Carter had a charming way about him, and he told story after story of her short life as Robert Dutton’s daughter living in the rookeries.
Her brother and Lionel brought her enough food for several meals, which she quickly stored away where the cook could not see them.
“Can’t tell you how many times I pulled Axe here from the way of a coal cart or the rare horse passin’ through the alleys. He’d have ye hoisted up on his shoulders and you’d be saying ‘Top,’ to stop people from stepping in front of you, but not everyone thought you as special as Axe and me.”
Through her laughter, Audrey said, “Having two gallants made me special, and I realized how fortunate I was, even then.”
“You were one then, and, if Marksman says so now, I believe you will still be as before.”
Her brother laid his serviette on the table. “Not that I am not enjoying these tales of our childhood together, but I feel a necessity to protect your future. If you are still agreeable, my dear, I would have your permission to search for information on Honfleur’s plans when he returns.”
Audrey again felt a bit of guilt at the idea of spying on her uncle.
She still experienced some difficulty in believing the man who had raised her as a second daughter would be involved in some sort of ruination of the Bank of England.
Yet—yet, she had to admit, her Uncle Jacobi, over the past three years, or perhaps longer, if she were honest in her assessment, had changed in his treatment of her.
He blamed many of his faults and his failures upon her.
Most assuredly, he would never have left his real daughter alone in London in a house with no servants and the home’s owner demanding payment for past and present rents.
She had talked most of this through with Beaufort last evening.
Ironically, her friend had permitted her to come to her own decision, which she was now questioning for a totally different reason.
“You will practice excessive caution in all you touch, will you not? I would not be surprised if my uncle has not rigged the drawers and shelves in some means of knowing if I have invaded his personal property. He did something similar when we were aboard ship with the valuables he had plundered and had stored in his quarters. Used a dark thread to indicate whether something had been disturbed or not.”
“The English government provides its agents with various means to examine such spaces,” her brother assured.
She stood slowly. “Then, let us straighten the kitchen. I do not want Cook to realize you were kind enough to feed me properly.” Audrey chuckled softly when she looked upon her empty plate. “I did not know how hungry I was.”
Her brother started stacking dishes to return them to the baskets he and Lionel had brought with them. “I believe you enjoyed the company equally as well as you did my cook’s food.”
“I did,” she admitted. “You have been most solicitous in meeting my needs.”
“Not as much as I would prefer,” Marksman countered, “but I understand you require small steps in claiming your birthright.”
“You were the same,” Lionel declared. “You didn’t want to give up your freedom, even for the privilege of a steady meal to fill your stomach.”
Her brother smiled easily. “I was fortunate to have had Lord Duncan as my mentor and to ease my way. There was much for me to learn of the ways of the aristocracy. Duncan, I must say, has the patience of Job.”
After her few encounters with Lady Theodora, Audrey said cattily, “I imagine Lord Duncan has multiple reasons to practice more patience than the average Englishman must display.”
It was Lionel’s turn to bark a laugh. “Aye, he do, my lady. Lady Theodora can be a real test to any sane man’s fortitude.”
Forty minutes later, they entered her uncle’s study, having found nothing but empty drawers in Honfleur’s quarters. The fact her uncle had not even left as much as a handkerchief behind had Audrey again wondering how little she really knew of her uncle’s business.
“It assuredly appears as if Uncle Jacobi never meant to return,” she had whispered as her brother and Lionel moved carefully about the room. The words had barely left her lips when Lord Marksman caught her up in his embrace.
“You will never be left alone again unless such is your wish.”
He held her tightly for more than a minute until she presented him a nod of gratitude. Now, he led the way into her Uncle Jacobi’s study, after they found a key hidden in a nearby vase. “Examine the bookshelves first. A book with a carved out inside is a common hiding place for important papers.”
Audrey was not confident regarding for what she searched, but she studied each shelf carefully.
The room required dusting, and she thought of her cleaning duties for the first time in several days.
When they had finished their search, she would remind her brother not to call tomorrow, for Cook, and possibly the housekeeper, would show.
Audrey would return to her cleaning duties in other parts of the house tomorrow, but not her uncle’s study.
She would permit this particular room its loneliness.
“Dark string,” Lionel announced. “Just as you suspected, Miss Anna.”
When she had previously mentioned the chance of a string, Audrey had not thought such might prove true. She was quite proud to have contributed to their search.
Her brother brought the candle closer. “You still have the eyes of a hawk, Lionel,” he declared in admiration.
After carefully examining the arrangement from several angles and the manner in which the string stretched across the books, her brother used a thin stick with a small hook on it, which he claimed from a purse in an inside pocket, to move the end of the string aside.
“The dust will assist in our returning this to its original position,” he said softly.
“I was just thinking I should not clean this room, even though it could use a cloth to its various hard surfaces.”
Her brother’s eyebrow rose in obvious disbelief, but he did not comment on this new realization. After a long moment where they all held their collective breaths, Alexander lifted a book on history from its place, leaving behind the two on either side.
“Very well done, Axe,” Lionel said as he expelled the breath he held.
Her brother glanced around the room. “Perhaps it is best if we place the book on the floor. I do not wish to disturb any of the things Lord Honfleur has added to Amgen’s rooms.”
“Don’t believe he be permitting a maid in here while he be in residence,” Lionel declared, as they each knelt in a circle to place the book upon the expensive, but well-worn rug.
“Not important now,” her brother said. Audrey realized how intent he was on knowing assurances that their find was properly handled. Once the book rested on the floor, he said, “You two should move away while I open this.”
Lionel caught Marksman’s hand. “I’ll be opening it. You have a sister to tend to now. No more heroics for you.”
Her brother’s hand did not move for several elongated seconds. “You are a remarkable friend, Lionel, and you are well aware I would argue if you did not speak the truth. I cannot leave Annalise alone now that she has returned to me.”
A nod of agreement passed between the two men, and Audrey was a bit jealous, for, although she adored Caroline, Audrey did not think her cousin would purposely place herself in danger in order to save Audrey.
Marksman rose and reached down a hand for her.
“Let us move to the hall for a moment, my dear.”
She looked between the two. “Do I have no say in this matter?”
Lionel shook his head in the negative. “Join your brother, Lady Annalise.”
Alexander had placed her behind him for protection, but it was not necessary. Audrey did not know what either he or Lionel had expected to occur, but the situation proved quite without incident. However, such could not be said of what they found inside the hollowed-out book.
Before they unfolded the pages, Alexander had examined the small bundle from every angle, memorizing how the papers were arranged—how they were folded. Meticulously, he removed the paper on the top and opened it very slowly.
“What be it say?” Lionel asked softly into the silence. “Don’t keep us in suspense.” Audrey belatedly realized she held her breath, and she made herself let it out slowly.
“Appears to be some sort of list of creditors,” Alexander said. “I will show these to Duncan and then return them.”
Audrey panicked. “You cannot remove my uncle’s papers. You said nothing of taking Uncle Jacobi’s correspondence with you.” She glanced about the room, suddenly aware of the perfidy they practiced. “What happens to me if my uncle discovers I permitted you admittance to his study?”
Her brother placed the item aside to reach out a hand to stay her rising to her feet.
“Whether Moreau returns tomorrow or a month from now or never, your future does not lie with him. Moreau cannot touch you without bringing the power of the British government down upon his head. I believe he is already aware of our relationship—of your being my sister. At a minimum, he strongly suspects what lies between us, for he purposely warned you away from me. Did he not? Did he also warn you away from Lord Bacggart at the masque, or was it only me of whom he disapproved?”
“Only you,” she affirmed. “Even before you asked me to dance, he noted how my eye was drawn to you.” Reality crept deeper into her soul.
Alexander continued, “You must understand, Annalise, this is serious business. I would not ask you to act, if it were not. My first instinct will always be to keep you safe.”
“Lady Annalise,” Lionel said in compassionate tones, drawing her attention away from her brother.
“Marksman won’t tell you this, but I will.
Your brother had a daily prayer all those years you were gone.
He prayed for your safety and your return.
He dedicated every ounce of himself to becoming Marksman, for an earl possesses the power to save another, something those in the rookeries couldn’t do. You must trust him, girl.”
Audrey knew him to be correct, but she had been frightened for so long, abandoning that fear completely would be difficult to come by. “I shall attempt to do so, truly, I shall.”
Alexander caressed her cheek. “So shall I,” he repeated.
There were two more pages with the names and directions of various shopkeepers and establishments. “Some of these men are known to pass fake notes with some regularity,” her brother explained.
After that, by silent agreement, they left the book open on the floor and locked up the room again. “I will return these tomorrow,” Alexander assured.
“Cook will be here tomorrow and, perhaps, the housekeeper.” Audrey glanced at the study door.
Her brother interpreted her thoughts exactly. “The housekeeper will not enter Honfleur’s study. I promise.”
“I know,” she said weakly. “Instinctively, I know what you say is true. Yet—”
“Someday you will trust me exclusively.” He reached for her hand.
“Now come with me. Although Moreau and his daughter know of the passage I will show you, it may be necessary for you to escape this house in a rush someday.” He handed her a card.
“My directions are on this. Catch a hackney and have the driver carry you to Marksman Hall. My butler has orders to admit you immediately, even if I am not at home at the time, and to pay the driver double.”