Chapter Twelve #2
“None of us should be worrying over Axe, for he has set his mind to bring you home to Derbyshire. You must simply hold your own in Lady Theodora’s household.
I know Axe is very fond of her and she of him, but she’s accustomed to having things her way or no way.
She must learn to share Xander with another, though she’ll not like it much. ”
Nothing more could be said for the door opened, and a proper butler appeared. “Mr. Carter,” the man said with a slight frown indicating he did not approve of Lionel calling at the main door.
“This be Marksman’s sister, Lady Annalise,” Lionel responded civilly, but Annalise heard a bit of irritation in her friend’s voice.
“I be told by Beaufort to deliver her here. Have someone fetch her belongings from the boot.” To her, he said, “I’ll be around until we know Axe’s fate. When he wakes, tell him of my prayers.”
“I will,” she said as the butler ushered her inside. Annalise looked about the magnificent foyer in awe. The house had to be three times larger than Amgen House.
“There you are, my dear,” Lord Duncan said as he came forward from an adjoining room to greet her. “I am glad to have you among us, but we all wish it was under better circumstances.”
“How is my brother?” she asked.
“Shot in the chest by your cousin,” Lord Duncan explained.
“Yes, so Caroline said,” Annalise responded, “when she and I fought.”
“Fought?” Lord Duncan asked in surprise. “Where is Beaufort? Did he capture Caroline Moreau?”
Annalise emphasized, “Actually, Caroline and I were fighting in the weapons’ room, when his lordship and Lionel arrived.
My cousin had fallen on her backside just as they appeared.
” She wanted his lordship to understand she was as capable as his daughter in that manner.
“Beaufort escorted Caroline to whomever is in charge of the investigation.”
“That would be my husband,” a female voice said from behind Annalise, and she turned to view the same stylish blonde Annalise had viewed previously.
“My daughter in marriage,” Lord Duncan declared with a hint of pride in his voice. “Lady Emma Orson. Countess to my son Richard.”
Annalise blushed. “I was briefly in Lady Orson’s company one day in the park,” she explained, “but we held no actual conversation, and I do not believe you were then Lady Orson.”
“I was not,” her ladyship said. “And none of us knew of your relationship to Lord Marksman then.”
“It was a great surprise to all of us,” Annalise stated the obvious.
“Did Lord Beaufort not accompany you to Duncan Place?” Lady Orson inquired.
“His lordship said something of first delivering Caroline to the authorities and then assisting Lord Liverpool’s men with the investigation with someone named Yates.”
Lord Duncan said, “Beaufort does not do well when someone for whom he cares is seriously injured. When I found him as a child, he begged his mother and father to come back to him.” Annalise was not confident why Lord Duncan shared such private information with her, but she simply acknowledged the information with a nod of her head.
“I am Lord Graham,” the other man in the room said. “What happened to those Moreau employed?” he asked. “I mean when both Lionel and Beaufort showed up to fetch you?
“They all left before I managed to escape,” Annalise explained. “Mrs. Sable thought to prevent my leaving, but Lionel’s appearance sent them scattering. Mrs. Sable kept saying my uncle was a marquis, but the maid Clara claimed she warned them all that my uncle was not an aristocrat.”
Lord Graham’s eyebrow rose slightly, which also lifted the scar on his cheek. “That is assuredly odd behavior, for the housekeeper knew something of Moreau. The woman was having an affair with the man.”
Annalise knew she frowned, but she could not disguise the gesture. “I was not aware. Perhaps she is the reason why I was made to move my belongings into the drying room.”
“Before others begin to question those Moreau employed, one of us should do so, do you not think, my lord?” Lord Graham asked.
“As is customary, you remain the sensible one, Aaran,” Lord Duncan said with a heavy sigh. “Though I know you, too, are worried for Alexander.”
“I am, but I mean to be useful. There are still many questions to be answered, and Alexander will wish to know all those answers when he wakes. We must bring all involved to justice. We cannot permit Alexander’s sacrifice to be in vain,” Lord Graham declared.
“I would be happy to assist you in any manner you think necessary,” Annalise declared.
“For now,” Lady Orson instructed, “why do you not come with me, Lady Annalise? Lady Theodora has taken up a vigil outside Alexander’s room. She could use your company.”
Annalise was not so assured Lady Theodora would welcome her presence, but Annalise meant to be as loyal to Alexander as he would be to her.
At least, when she approached the young woman, Lady Theodora did not attack Annalise for being the cause of Alexander’s injuries.
She did ask if Caroline had been caught or not.
“Thompson said she is the one who shot Alexander.”
Annalise was not confident she knew who Thompson was, but she explained how Caroline had returned to Amgen House and how she and her cousin had fought and finally how Beaufort had escorted Caroline to the authorities.
Naturally, Ladies Emma and Theodora asked about Annalise’s relationship with Beaufort, and Annalise had been happy to explain how he had saved her from the fire and how they had become friends.
That is, until Lady Emma warned, “Do not set your heart on him. His lordship is the only one of his family who survived a slaughter and that was because his mother had hidden him away in a secret room. His lordship may appear debonair on the outside, but he is quite shattered.”
“As are all of Lord Macdonald Duncan’s sons,” Lady Theodora added.
Annalise was quite uncomfortable, for her heart had a mind of its own when it came to Lord Beaufort.
However, she managed to say, “Our relationship is nothing of the sort. Lord Beaufort assisted me in saving Lord Amgen’s kitchen and perhaps the man’s house.
After that, he would bring me meals and keep me company.
I was in the house alone and quite frightened by the prospect that my uncle did not mean to return for me.
He proved to be a friend when I desperately required one.
In fact, he came to rescue me a second time when he spotted my fighting with Alexander.
He did not know it was Alexander. Neither of us knew of my connection to Marksman then.
When he learned, Beaufort told Alexander that all his brothers would be extremely jealous, for Marksman would have something none of them would ever know. ”
Their days and nights were quickly consumed by tending to Alexander’s recovery.
Annalise could not say she was any happier to be in Lord Duncan’s house and under the watchful eye of all of Alexander’s family, but not her family.
She might have found it more comfortable if Lord Beaufort had made an appearance, but, like the others, she had learned that his lordship was in Birmingham and serving the British government.
Meanwhile, Annalise had convinced herself the man was purposely avoiding her.
Perhaps it would have been better if she and Lady Theodora could overcome the awkwardness that remained present between them since coming into each other’s lives.
On that evening, they had taken each other’s measure, and it was obvious that their base sentiments remained.
That is not to say that they did not experience moments when Lady Theodora and she seemed of one mind, but Lady Theodora had been raised in luxury, where Annalise had often fought for her safety and meals.
Though others would tell her something different, Annalise blamed herself, for she was the outsider in Lord Duncan’s household.
Everyone else could finish each other’s sentences, but not her, for she shared no history with anyone in the house, not even with Alexander, who remained heavily sedated and offered no signs of recovery.
The first two days, she and Lady Theodora had shared a room, but Annalise had finally suggested that she should claim one of the other rooms so they both would rest better.
Predictably, Lady Theodora had offered no objection.
They truly had nothing in common. All her life, Lady Theodora had been coddled and loved by six men, while Annalise had only known her Uncle Jacobi’s conditional recognition.
Yet, what really bothered Annalise happened yesterday. The evening before, Annalise had told Lady Theodora, “Should not Alexander be coming out of his constant fever by now? It does not seem right to me. Could your Mr. Rheem have missed a sliver of bone or a flake of metal off the bullet?”
Mayhap, it was Annalise’s use of “your” that had Lady Theodora pulling herself up royally in objection. “I assure you, Mr. Rheem is one of London’s finest surgeons,” her ladyship had pronounced in tones of dismissal.
Imagine Annalise’s irritation when she returned from a day out at a modiste with Lady Emma to learn that Theodora was being congratulated for discovering that an infection had set in around the bandage wrapped under Alexander’s arm and never once did the woman thank Annalise for the suggestion.
She attempted to tell herself that what really mattered was a turn for the better for Alexander, but Annalise could not shake the idea that Lady Theodora’s actions were purposeful.
The problem was she had no one to whom she could complain.
Though she was no longer scrubbing floors, she was still being ignored by those around her. They talked at her, not with her.
When Alexander finally awoke two days later, Annalise could have lodged her complaint, but the whole house was so elated that her brother had taken a turn towards healing that her concerns would sound petty, especially as Alexander appeared quite happy to return Lady Theodora’s affections.
Annalise would have preferred to retreat to Dutton Hall, but she dared not make the request. Finally, Beaufort arrived on Friday, and after spending time with Alexander, he sought Annalise out in the library.
“There you are,” he said with a smile, and the knot in Annalise’s stomach unwound. She scrambled to her feet to greet him.
“You have been sorely missed, sir,” she said.
“You are surely claiming more hours of sleep than you had at Amgen House,” he said as he gestured for her return to the chair she had abandoned seconds earlier, before seating himself beside her.
“Not really. I was excessively worried for Alexander. I still am. I know it is selfish of me to say so, but I wonder how I shall fit into Alexander’s life with his impending marriage to Lady Theodora.
” Annalise had not been best pleased to learn her brother had proposed to Theodora before he had been shot.
Such was a tidbit of information he had not shared with her.
“Alexander is determined that you will reside with him,” Beaufort cautioned.
“Even so, I have been thinking of claiming my own household. If I understand it correctly, many young women, when they are taken from school, run their own households with the assistance of a companion. Alexander will not approve, but by the beginning of the year, I shall reach my majority. It is my understanding from what Lord Duncan shared, my father, in the hopes of my one day being found, set aside a small allowance for me.”
“If such is your wish I could make some private inquiries on your behalf,” he offered.
“You are not going to offer up a line of objections?” she asked in surprise.
“I see no reason that a young lady cannot be her own mistress, especially if she employs a companion who can instruct her in how to perform in society.”
“Thank you, Beaufort,” she said softly as she studied his beloved features, memorizing them to add to her dreams. “Hopefully, you will call upon me often.”
“I would enjoy that also,” he said politely.
“When do you leave for Ireland?” she asked, knowing she would miss him greatly when he had gone away.
“I have promised your brother that I would stand with him when he marries Theodora,” he said softly.
“As to my departure, I was thinking I would depart after the Belewards’ annual ball, which serves as a marker for the end of the London Season.
Marksman says, if he is able to do so, he wishes to escort both you and Theodora to the ball, as an indicator that you both will be under his care, as wife and sister. ”
“He has not said anything of that nature to me,” she admitted.
“You will quickly discover that Alexander thinks the rest of humanity understands his thoughts, though he has yet to think them,” he warned her.
“I shall be so nervous,” Annalise admitted.
“I am assured Marksman will recruit his brothers and Duncan to be your dance partners,” he explained.
“We shall dance again?” she asked.
“I thought I might claim your supper set so we might be required to sit together during the meal. I have become quite accustomed to conversing with you during our meals.”
“Then I shall see you periodically?”
“I am still assisting Liverpool’s men. And I must be available to testify against Honfleur and your cousin.”
“Shall I also be called?” she asked in alarm.
“I doubt it, but you may be asked to write out your recollections, which will be read into the records, but I promise to assist you, if such is how the trial proceeds.”
“Thank you, Navan. You appear to know me better than any of those gathered within this house.”