Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
Johanna
Lady Chesterham greeted Lady Stark, Johanna, and Rose with warmth and a wide smile as they congratulated her on her granddaughter’s marital match.
“We owe it all to Lady Hu,” Lady Chesterham enthused.
“It was her keen insights that made my daughter aware of the marquess’ interest in my granddaughter.
He was too shy to put himself forward, but once they were formally introduced…
well, they’ve been nigh inseparable ever since. It looks to be a very happy union.”
“How lovely,” Lady Stark said, patting Lady Chesterham’s hand. “I am so glad to hear Lady Hu was able to help.”
“Oh, yes, and she is here today with her granddaughter.” Lady Chesterham beamed.
“Do go on and say hello, they’re a bit further into the garden.
We are being a tad informal today. There are tables and sitting areas set out all throughout the space.
I wanted to be a bit frivolous.” She giggled, blushing, looking quite girlish despite her years, as the joy for her granddaughter filled her face.
They thanked her and went onward, down the stairs from the porch where she had met them and into the gardens.
“Ah, I see some of my friends over there. You two go on and find yours,” Lady Stark said, nodding her head in the direction of a group of older ladies seated around a small table, which was piled high with various nibbles. She waved her hand at Johanna and Rose. “Enjoy yourselves.”
“Thank you, Lady Stark,” they chorused, grinning at each other. Rose linked her arm through Johanna’s as they began walking down the pathway, heading deeper into the gardens, looking for ladies of the younger set.
“So.” Rose eyed Johanna.
She sighed.
“I did not know how Matthew would take Mother’s actions,” Johanna explained, keeping her voice low even though they were on the move and she could not see anyone.
The hedges made their conversation feel private, but it did not actually ensure such.
“It was all too possible that he might blame her for his father’s death and me for keeping it from him. ”
“You did not need to protect me.” Rose shook her head.
“But I did. Because if something happened to Mother and me…” She let her voice trail off. Rose would be the one to take care of Micah, Bridget, and Charlotte, and she knew it. “I knew I could trust you to keep them safe but only if you were kept out of it.”
Rose made a derogatory noise, though she did not answer right away, obviously thinking about Johanna’s point. After a moment, she gave herself a little shake.
“Well. Do not do it again.”
“Hopefully, I will never have cause to. I do not think it is very often that someone will approach anyone in our family with an offer that will make them an accessory to… something like that.” At least she certainly hoped not. Once was more than enough.
A rustle of leaves was the only warning they got before Tiffany came through an opening in the bushes that Johanna had not immediately noticed, making both her and Rose jump.
“There you two are!” Tiffany beamed at them. “We saw you arrive, and I came to fetch you, as you would not likely find the way otherwise.”
“We would not have,” Johanna admitted as Tiffany turned, leading them through the cleverly hidden opening.
There was more than enough space to walk through, but it was set at a diagonal to the pathways, so that it was very difficult to see while walking along.
If Tiffany had not come out of it, Johanna would not have seen it at all.
“How did you see us?” Rose inquired.
“Oh, we have the perfect view of every arrival,” Tiffany said cheerfully. “And you two do stand out in your purple and red today. Johanna is like a lily, and Rose is… well, like a rose.”
“Too true,” Johanna replied, glancing down at her lavender-and-white-striped dress. Rose’s gown was a deep red, though a brighter hue than she had been wearing before Lady Stark helped revamp her wardrobe. “Does that make you a bluebell?”
As usual, Tiffany was garbed in a pretty shade of blue, which brought out the highlights in her hair and the color in her cheeks.
She laughed as they broke through to the next opening in the hedges, and Johanna marveled at the surrounds.
It was a square space, between all the bushes, and it did indeed have a splendid view of Lady Chesterham greeting her guests if one looked up in that direction.
Rather than a table, there was an array of blankets and cushions set out for a picnic, complete with baskets of refreshments.
Lady Astrid sat in the middle, Mei on one side of her and Delilah on the other, while Kalina waited opposite them.
If they were describing the ladies by flowers, Lady Astrid was a bright orange tulip with red tips, Delilah a stunning sunflower, and Kalina a pink rose.
Johanna could not think of a flower that was the shade of green as Mei’s outfit, but she was put in mind of a holly bush, as there were tiny red embroidered accents dotted over the fabric.
“Ladies, welcome to the cabal,” Lady Astrid said, lifting a champagne flute. Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “We have escaped the constraints of Society and are doing as we please.”
“How have we escaped when we are still at the tea party?” Rose asked, amused, as she and Johanna joined the group. The cushions were very comfortable, though it was a bit odd to be sitting on the ground. It reminded Johanna of the happier times in her childhood, which felt so very far away now.
“According to Lady Astrid, no one knows we are here, and it is very difficult to be overheard from this particular spot if we keep our voices low,” Kalina explained with a smile. “Indeed, any conversations we have heard from passersby have been very muffled.”
“Which means we can talk about whatever we wish,” Lady Astrid said wickedly. “As I am soon to be a married woman, I am endeavoring for Tiffany, Kalina, and Delilah to explain the delights of the marital bedroom.” She waved the champagne flute in the air as Delilah shook her head.
“You are terrible,” Delilah said to Lady Astrid with a throaty laugh.
She had the most amazing voice, sultry and beguiling even when she was scolding her friend.
As the eldest of them, and the only widow, she was likely the only one who would dare say such a thing to Lady Astrid. “As if you do not know enough already.”
Lady Astrid smiled and took a sip of her champagne. “Well, what is good for the gander is good for the goose.”
“I believe it is the other way round,” Delilah murmured.
“But what do you mean?” Tiffany paused as she reached for a crumpet, her hand hovering in midair as her attention was arrested by Lady Astrid’s statement.
“Oh, do not look at me like that.” Lady Astrid threw a napkin at Tiffany, though the air caught the thin linen, and it did not make it even halfway, falling atop a plate of scones instead.
“My all-important virginity is still intact. I am just saying, there are ways to enjoy oneself that do not require the loss of it.”
“There are, but I think you are still not supposed to be indulging in them,” Kalina replied, clearly amused and not quite as scandalized as Tiffany. She glanced over at Rose and Mei. “Besides, I believe this topic is not at all appropriate for everyone here.”
“I do not mind,” Rose said immediately, taking the glass of tea that Tiffany offered her. “I know far more about the pitfalls than the pleasures of such engagements, I will admit.”
“Who are you indulging with?” Delilah asked Lady Astrid, but she just smiled enigmatically.
“Drake is sowing his wild oats,” she replied, bypassing the question entirely. “Why should I not? I have to know about his exploits, and what he does not know will not hurt him.”
“I am not certain of that,” Delilah muttered, shaking her head. She turned to Johanna and Rose. “How go things with St. Albans? I always thought he was the sweetest of the group. Good husband material, if you can tolerate his need to flip that blasted coin for everything.”
“He really flips it for everything?” Mei asked, appearing intrigued, before Johanna could answer. “I thought it was a gimmick.”
“No gimmick,” Johanna said, shaking her head. “There are some small decisions he makes, but for most things… yes, he did.”
“Did?” Tiffany asked, her hazel eyes widening.
“Did. He lost it the other day.”
Delilah and Lady Astrid both sat up with gasps, which made Mei’s interest even more acute. She was the only one still smiling; even Kalina looked somewhat alarmed, and she did not know Matthew very well at all.
“Lost it?” Delilah said, clearly aghast. “My goodness… is he well?”
“Is he shut up in the house and refusing to come out?” Lady Astrid asked.
“No, he is dealing with it remarkably well, I think,” Johanna said, immediately feeling defensive of her husband, though she internally acknowledged that their reactions were not unwarranted. “In fact, he called a meeting with the other dukes today.”
“He did? Without flipping his coin for it?” Delilah’s usually low voice had gone rather higher than usual with her surprise.
“He did,” Johanna said firmly, then took a deep breath. “My mother was able to give him a clue in regard to their investigation.”
There was no need to say exactly which investigation; all the ladies immediately knew what she was talking about, of course.
Tiffany scowled.
“Oh, so that was the message that came in. Gregory said he was going to White’s while I am at tea.” She huffed. “I wish they would stop leaving us out of things.”
“Drake’s doing, I’ll warrant.” Lady Astrid sniffed. “Lucifer does not want us involved. It’s not ladylike.”
“Well, I have no reason to be involved, but I find I am too curious about what your mother told Matthew to not ask,” Delilah said. “Whatever it was, it must have been quite important for him to decide to call a meeting, especially without his coin.”
“It is.” Johanna took a deep breath and deliberately did not look at Tiffany as she relayed her mother’s possible part in the death of Tiffany’s father.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kalina reach over to hold Tiffany’s hand as she spoke, but she did not dare look up to see the duchess’ expression.
If she did, she might never be able to get through it.
She told them about her mother’s part, about Matthew questioning her this morning, and the revelation that he recognized the description her mother gave.
“Wait.” Tiffany’s voice was sorrowful but did not hold the anger Johanna had feared. “A scar through his beard? Here?”
Johanna had to face her now to see where Tiffany was indicating. But, like her voice, there was no anger in Tiffany’s expression. Grief, yes, but nothing of blame or vengefulness.
“Yes, I believe so.” Johanna glanced at Rose, who nodded. “We have only what Matthew had to say about it.”
“You recognize the description as well?” Lady Astrid asked sharply. She had put down her champagne glass, and all the easygoing mischief was gone from her demeanor, her focus entirely on Johanna’s story.
“I believe so. It might not be the same man, but… there is a man who now works in the stables on the estate who does fit that description. My father hired him the year before… the year before. I do not know if I ever got his name; we were not introduced or any such thing.” Tiffany scraped her teeth across her lower lip.
“You said the old St. Albans threw him and his wife out of their home?”
“Yes. That is what Matthew said.”
Tiffany shook her head, her eyes filling with tears as her face paled. “The man we have does not have a wife. He is a widower.”
“Which would give him even more of a reason to hate Matthew’s father and be willing to act in revenge,” Lady Astrid murmured. “Bold to find employment and assist in murdering your new employer, though.”
“Unless he did not know what he was getting into,” Kalina pointed out. She looked at Tiffany. “That is what happened with Gregory’s steward, is it not? He said he did not know the full breadth of what he had become involved in.”
“That is true.” Tiffany took a deep breath and shook her head. “I do not know very much about him. It might not be the same man.”
But what a coincidence if it was not.
“We need to tell our husbands,” Kalina said.
“Why?” Lady Astrid asked. “They are leaving us out of everything.”
“Drake might be leaving you out, but Nathanial tells me everything afterward, even when we are not invited to the discussion.” Kalina glanced at Tiffany, who nodded.
“As does Gregory,” Tiffany added. “Besides, at the very least, we’ll need to tell my brother. He’s the best one to go and question the man. It is not as though any of us can just hie off to Bolton Manor and question the staff.”
Lady Astrid sighed. “There is that, I suppose. But I think we should come up with some kind of plan to ensure they cannot continue to cut us out of the investigation.”
The discussion continued, though Johanna stayed quiet for most of it. Her only concern had been whether Tiffany would be upset with her mother, but it did not seem to have even crossed the other duchess’ mind. Which was a huge relief.
They kept having to lower their voices as they heard passersby coming along the paths beside their hidden spot to ensure privacy.
Eventually, Kalina suggested they decamp to the home Nathanial had rented for the Season to continue their discussion, but Tiffany pointed out that she had too many nosy sisters-in-law and suggested they come to Clarence House instead.
Lady Stark seemed pleased that Johanna had become friends with the other duchesses and immediately waved her and Rose off, while she remained with her friends.
Despite protesting that they needed no such involvement in the investigation, Lady Astrid persuaded Delilah and Mei to come as well, pointing out that an outside perspective could be handy, as well as their keen minds.
All in all, Johanna’s confession had gone rather well. The rush of relief she felt as she sat in the Duchess of Clarence’s carriage, Tiffany as friendly as ever to her, was acute.
She had been worried over nothing.