Chapter 25
CHAPTER 25
“I must thank you again, Hydra,” Grace murmured as they took up positions outside the local magistrate’s offices.
Her long-time superior and mentor in His Majesty’s Secret Service, Hydra—Sir Charles Bradley—quirked a grin at her. “You were an exemplary spy and great friend; I shall always be happy to help you.”
Her chest warmed at his praise, but she shook the feeling aside. Now was not the time.
The outer rooms of the offices had been secured by Hydra’s men, leaving only Sir Ludlow Vaughan’s office unsecured. Grace pressed her back against the wall outside his door, with Hydra matching her stance on the other side.
Adjusting her grip on the flintlock in one hand and tightening her hold on the handcuffs in the other, Grace nodded her readiness to Hydra. Her pulse was steady and calm, but her abdomen was abubble with anticipation. She’d missed this.
He nodded in return and, as one, they moved, spinning on their heels as Hydra leaned back to kick down the door with one booted foot.
* * *
A great cloud of bergamot and lemons surrounded Maria, even as her arm smarted and every muscle throbbed. Her chest rumbled with a low groan, and fabric rustled at her side.
“Maria?” Jasper whispered, his voice pained.
She blinked slowly, taking in Jasper’s beloved features, creased with worry, and the firelit bedchamber beyond.
“Good morning,” she croaked.
He huffed a laugh, his warm eyes growing glassy. “Good morning.”
She moved to sit up and he hastened to help, bracing her back with a plethora of pillows and bringing the counterpane to her thighs.
Someone had evidently found her a previously owned frock, for she wore an overlarge day dress with short-capped sleeves. It was an old style, made with well-worn fustian, and she was very grateful for something to wear that was neither smoky nor bloodstained.
“Juliana found it in a wardrobe in one of the rooms,” Jasper explained, following her gaze.
She gave him a half-smile. “It’s a far sight better than what I was wearing.”
Thomas crashed through the opened doorway, bumping a tray of covered dishes against the door’s frame. “Blimey. I’ve brought us food, Jasper. And the doctor has— grunt, click —seen Francis, and says— holy Christ , Maria!” He set the tray on a nearby table and stood next to Jasper at her bedside. “How are— grunt— you feeling?”
“My arm hurts, and my body aches, but I feel rather well.”
“You lost a fair amount of blood,” Jasper said thickly.
The vague recollection of her red, sticky fingers gripping Francis’ counterpane flooded her mind’s eye, and she nodded.
“Thanks to you, we found my cousin’s lair, and I’ve had the opportunity to speak with him.”
Maria’s stomach swooped. “What did you learn?”
“He’s remained frustratingly silent, I’m afraid.”
Maria hummed.
Thomas leaned against the side of the bed, his brown gaze curious. “How did you escape, d-d-d— click —dearest? From what we found, it— grunt, grunt —appeared as though he had— click —dosed you with a mixture of laudanum and laurel— grunt —water.”
Rubbing the soft material of Jasper’s counterpane between her fingers in a restless movement, she took a breath and recounted the events of that morning, from the moment she left her home until she dragged Francis through Jasper’s attic.
Jasper leaned forward to rest his elbows upon his knees, his scent of bergamot and lemon wafting closer. “That was remarkably shrewd of you.”
“Thank you.” She smiled, then asked the question that had begun to nag at her. “How did Francis garner Lady Cartwright’s trust?”
“I haven’t the faintest.” Jasper shook his head in apparent self-reproach. “I can genuinely say that I’d not considered the possibility that Francis had taken a lover in town.”
“Mayhap she simply found him handsome.”
“Whatever the reason, the baron has reached town and is furious at not only being the cuckold, but also at the publication in the paper.” Jasper huffed a breath.
She looked beyond the men at the empty doorframe. “Has everyone else gone home?”
Thomas shook his head. “Miss Huntsbury is— click —apprehending the magistrate— grunt-grunt —and everyone else is below— grunt —stairs guarding our prisoner.”
“The magistrate!” Maria’s brows rose, and shock rippled through her.
“Indeed,” Jasper began. “After receiving another quote from Francis, I went directly to Bow Street…” He swiftly detailed the letter from her acquaintance in the magistrate’s office, and the resulting actions taken.
“ ’Struth ,” she breathed. “How long was I unconscious?”
“The doctor left only moments before you awoke. It has been but an hour, no more.”
She nodded, the muscles in her back straining at the movement. Lord, but she must find a way to explain this to her parents. And her apartments! Her heart squeezed and her breath caught on a sob. That loss was devastating.
“Thomas,” she rasped, “I’m afraid that our home?—”
He clasped her hand in his, his eyes growing glossy and the tip of his nose pinkening. “I know. That was where— click, grunt —Jasper and I found Francis’ last n-n— click —note. Oh!” He rose and strode to the other side of the room and retrieved a parcel from atop a chest of drawers. “This arrived for you while we were there.” He handed it to her. “I brought it with me and knew you would wish to see it upon awakening.”
His gaze slid sideways toward Jasper as she accepted it. Nerves buzzed through her abdomen. The first copy of her newest novel; it was a moment to be celebrated but, at the moment, she didn’t feel quite like celebrating.
Their curious and sympathetic gazes notwithstanding, she hugged the parcel to her chest and closed her eyes. It was all that she had left of any of her writing. Her other first copies, manuscripts, contracts, and her current works had all burned in the fire that Francis had set. This parcel was pain. It was hope. It was the end of something, and yet the possible beginning of another.
Her stories would never leave, however; they could never be burned, for they were all in her head. Every story, every idea, every edit and rewrite were all a part of her.
* * *
The colour was high on her cheeks, her eyes glittering with unshed tears as she traced the parcel with her fingertips. Suspicion whispered at the back of Jasper’s mind, but it wasn’t the time for him to inquire about the parcel meant for “Mr. M” and what it meant to Maria. Clearly it meant something .
Three sets of footsteps sounded belowstairs, growing nearer as the people ascended the staircase. Maria blinked rapidly, then set the parcel aside with a wince, just in time to admit a footman.
“Your Grace, Mr. and Mrs.—”
Jasper stood.
“Let us through , you fool! We’re her parents!” The stringent voice of Mrs. Roberts filled the room.
All at once, Maria’s eyes flared wide, Thomas’ skin grew ashen, and the ostentatious couple burst into Jasper’s master bedchamber, colour high and hands flapping.
“Oh Maria, what have they done to you?” Mrs. Roberts fluttered to Maria’s bedside and put a palm to her forehead, though her gaze was fixed on Jasper. “Aren’t you fortunate to have the duke here to dote on you. I daresay his staff will provide anything you desire, if it should make you comfortable. I… What in the bloody hell is he doing here?”
The woman turned to eye Thomas with hateful scrutiny, as the man’s face contorted with spasms.
Damn . Jasper marvelled at the woman’s ability to sound achingly sweet in one moment, and in the next, spit such vitriol.
Mr. Roberts blustered, his chest puffing up and his face reddening as he caught sight of Thomas. “Wh-wh- what ? How dare you deign to sully the duke’s home with your presence! You belong in Bethlem Roy?—”
“He most certainly does not,” Maria protested, her mien impassive, though determined. “Thomas is brilliant”—Maria listed the items on her fingers, ignoring her mother’s protests—“talented, wickedly amusing, and tender-hearted. He speaks and moves differently than you and I, but he is far more indefatigable in creating a decent life and name for himself.”
“That man has a madness , you stupid, headstrong girl!” Mrs. Roberts gestured wildly, her eyes bulging with the force of her words. “You’ve unquestionably lost the duke’s favour now! Not to mention ruining any chance your sisters have of a decent match!”
His heart drumming a tattoo against his ribs and anger flaring hot along his skin, Jasper opened his mouth to give the woman a set-down. But Maria spoke first.
“How dare you?” she seethed at her mother. “Thomas stands just there, and you dishonour him with your pitiful, spiteful lies and ignorance. I am proud to call him family, but I’m afraid that I cannot say the same for you.”
Jasper’s chest swelled with pride as the Roberts’ gasped and spluttered. Maria was utterly glorious. She needed him for nothing, and yet he was desperate to be partnered with her in life…and hoped she felt the same.
“Mayhap we ought to seek privacy for this discussion,” Mr. Roberts put in hopefully, casting sidelong glances at Jasper.
“The duke stays,” Maria returned, her gaze locking with Jasper’s for a brief moment before returning to her parents. “I daresay he wouldn’t pay you a shilling if we married— I certainly wouldn’t.”
“Indeed,” Jasper agreed, though the word if made his stomach wobble.
“ Maria !” Mrs. Roberts shrieked. Her face was all but tomato-red, and a vein was bulging from her temple. “Well, I never.”
“How dare you speak to your mother that way?” Mr. Roberts raged, his hands fisted at his sides. “Apologize this instant!”
“I will not. It is far past time that I told you what I think about your imprisonment of my dear brother.” She reached out to Thomas, and he rounded the bed to clasp her hand in both of his.
* * *
Maria’s heart clattered around in her chest, her pulse racing with indignation and protectiveness. How could her parents be so… vile ? It baffled her entirely.
Her mother turned from red to green. “How long has this been going on?”
“You— grunt —say that a-a-a-a— click —as though— grunt, click, grunt —she-she?—”
Maria rubbed the back of Thomas’ hand with the pad of her thumb. The poor man was so nervous that he could scarcely get a word out. “Shh, shh, brother,” she whispered. “It will be well.”
He gave her a returning squeeze, his shoulders twitching upward and his face scrunching in a grimace.
Their parents cringed in disgust, and Maria’s heart ached even more deeply for the man beside her.
Thomas stiffened his spine and cleared his throat. “I do not need your— grunt —approval. I h-h— click —have a wealth of love and friendship, as well as— grunt, click —funds enough to give me a happy life. I?—”
“You’ll have none of my funds, boy,” their father said, his face reddened with rage.
Notching his chin higher, Thomas gave him a mocking smirk. “I have no n-n-n— click —need of your funds. I’m fully capable of— grunt —providing for myself.”
“How could you do this to us?” Their mother spun on Maria with an accusatory glare. “How could you have released him? And where have you been hiding him, for pity’s sake? The hospital will receive a shocking letter from me, I daresay. Shocking ! They owe me my sodding money back, by God!”
How could I ? Maria mused. Pain prickled in her chest, but she felt a new sense of detachment from her parents. She’d known that they were monstrous for locking Thomas away without giving him even an opportunity to fit in with society, and for not thinking twice about their decision. But now, faced with evidence of his success, they remained unmoved and unchanged in their opinion.
“I have done nothing to you. I have merely provided someone whom I love with a chance at a life greater than you deigned to offer. And I will not stop for anyone, most particularly two people as cruel and ungracious as you. Please leave.”
Her mother’s face was blotched red, and her father’s had very nearly become purple.
“You’ll regret this!” her mother spat. “When the news of the duke jilting you has reached the ton , we shan’t take you in! You’ll see that we were right. Your sisters will not suffer for your sins.”
With one last glare at her and Thomas, her parents huffed out of the room.
Maria’s pulse thudded in her ears, and her empty stomach threatened to heave. She’d done it, then. She had severed whatever affable ties there had been with her parents.
A weight that had settled around her heart for years began to lift, and hope began to replace it.
Her hand reflexively squeezed Thomas’, and he returned it with one of his own. The loss of her parents wouldn’t prove difficult when she was on the side of love.
Fists and jaw clenched, Jasper resumed his seat at her bedside. “Are you both well?”
“No,” Maria whispered, turning to smile up at Thomas. “But I daresay we will be.”
“I can’t believe you did that, Maria,” Thomas breathed, his eyes welling. “You’ve just d-d— click —defied them for me— again .”
“And I would do so again.” In fact, it didn’t hurt as much as she thought it would.
He nodded, sitting on the bed’s edge and adjusting his grip on her hand. “If you— grunt— require it, I should be glad to remake— click, grunt— your wardrobe. The payment from the latest batch of c-c-c— click— costumes is due to come in, and with your new— grunt— book set to print, I’m certain we shall have enough— grunt, grunt— funds for a strong beginning.” He shuffled closer, his eyes hopeful. “Perhaps I could pick up your assignments— grunt— from The Morning Herald and you could write them at home.”
“That’s very thoughtful, Thomas. I?—”
“ I will pay for the fabric,” Jasper offered. “According to my steward, soon the dukedom will no longer be in arrears. I would be pleased to provide you with whatever you desire.”
A delightful fluttering filled her chest and abdomen, but fear quashed it.
She cleared her throat. “Thomas, would you please give us a moment?”
“I daresay you’ve— click, click —had more than enough moments alone. But very well.” He bussed Maria on the forehead, gave Jasper a long glance, and hastily left the room.
This moment was inevitable, Maria knew; it had been planned from the beginning. Though, now that it was here, she detested it far more than she’d thought possible. The happy nerves that had, just moments ago, thrilled her insides, turned to stones that plummeted in her abdomen.
“We have Francis and his accomplice, at last,” she began. “Our task is complete. And…my parents’ hold on me appears to have been severed.” Her hands twisted in the counterpane of their own accord. “I no longer require an engagement to satisfy my parents’ demands or to allow me the freedom to continue my work.”
* * *
“I beg your pardon?” Jasper asked, tingles of unease racing up the backs of his legs.
Maria’s eyes watered, and she took a quavering breath that gave Jasper the slightest bit of hope.
“I am not an ordinary woman,” she whispered. “And while, in the throes of passion, you’ve stated that you enjoy the more masculine part of me, I am fearful that you would come to regret that.”
His chest squeezed. “ No , Maria. You?—”
“I have no wish to bore you, Jasper.”
“Bore me! I can safely guarantee that with you I shall never be bored.” Shifting closer, he clasped her hand in his and took a deep breath. Now was his moment to put voice to what was in his heart. “I confess, when I proposed marriage, we both were taken by surprise.” He rubbed the pad of his thumb over the smooth skin on the back of her hand. Even after her ordeal, she still smelled like parchment, ink, and soap. “And yet, the moment I uttered the words, I knew in my heart—my very soul—just how greatly I desired it.”
As he spoke, Maria’s grey eyes grew wider, and Jasper’s stomach began a tumbling act.
“I’ve no desire for a fashionable marriage,” she blurted. “If we marry, I would require faithfulness.”
“That, I can provide.” His heart leapt and he moved to sit next to her on the bed, careful not to jostle or bump her arm. “While I cannot say that I have enjoyed Francis’ machinations, I must admit that it has taught me more about you, Mr. Mystery .” He let his assumption hang there between them, waiting for her to refute it. She remained silent, so he continued. “And the more I’ve come to learn, the more I cannot deny my feelings. I love you, Maria.”
Tears spilled over the edge of her eyelids and, with a sniff, she wiped them away with her free hand. “I love you, too, Jasper.”
The tightness in his chest abruptly released, and his heart soared. Christ, but those words on her tongue! He beamed, and swept forward to press his lips hard against hers. She gasped into his mouth and touched her tongue to his, and his cock twitched. He was utterly enraptured by this woman, but now was certainly not the time to show her just how much.
“Will you marry me, Mr. Mystery, Mr. Duncan Robertson, née Miss Maria Roberts?”
She huffed a laugh. “Yes, I will marry you, Jasper.”