Chapter 17
Jonathan’s heart lurched as he caught sight of Lady Susanna entering Hyde Park.
They had parted outside the solicitor’s chambers only hours ago, but he had not been able to settle since.
The revelations about Mr. Graves, about Lord Blackwood’s seal, about the borrowed letters — all of it churned through his mind, demanding further consideration.
When Susanna had suggested they meet in the park that afternoon to speak more freely, he had agreed at once, arriving early and waiting close to the entrance for some time now.
The park was busy this afternoon — the fashionable hour was approaching, and carriages were beginning to fill Rotten Row, their occupants craning forward to see and be seen.
A breeze carried the scent of damp earth and fresh-cut grass from the lawns, and somewhere nearby, a child’s laughter rang out brightly against the subdued murmur of adult conversation.
Reminding himself that, even if he was so very eager to see her, he could not simply rush towards her as he desired, Jonathan took in a steadying breath and set back his shoulders, glancing up at the cloud-covered sky.
They were still pretending that there was only an acquaintance between them and nothing more.
But quite how long I shall be able to keep up this pretense without giving myself away, I do not know.
“Goodness, Lord Lancashire, you are gazing with a good deal of intensity at something; I must know what it is!”
Jonathan dragged his gaze quickly away from Lady Susanna and tried to smile into Lady Theresa’s eyes.
“Good afternoon, Lady Theresa.” He looked to the lady near her, his stomach dipping.
“I would greet your mother also, but she is a little distracted at present.” The truth was, he had not yet greeted Lady Moncrieff whilst being present in London, and given that he was sure she would know of his connection to her husband, Jonathan was less than inclined to do so.
“I hope I do not appear rude, but I should not like to interrupt.”
Lady Theresa trilled a laugh, breaking through his thoughts, and put her own hand on his arm in such a bold manner that Jonathan’s eyebrows shot towards his hairline.
“Indeed not, Lord Lancashire, you could never appear rude!” The sound of her laughter had one or two heads turning in his direction, and this, Jonathan considered, was more than enough.
He did not want anyone to think that he had any interest whatsoever in Lady Theresa – and he certainly did not want Lady Susanna to be in any way concerned!
His eyes caught on another face he recognized, his stomach dropping as he saw Lady Maude turn her attention towards him for only a brief moment before returning her eyes to the gentleman she was standing with, clearly dismissing him.
That sat well enough with him. He did not want to have to engage with Lady Maude again.
“Forgive me, Lady Theresa,” he said, his urge to leave her company growing steadily with every second that passed, “but I think I must be a little impolite at this present moment! There is someone that I must speak with, do excuse me.”
“Who is it?”
The way her hand caught his arm for the second time, holding him back from his intended path, made Jonathan frown.
“Is it the same lady that you danced the waltz with?” she asked, her expression darkening as if somehow, this was a cause of anger. “You cannot think that she is –”
“My interests are my own, Lady Theresa, and I would kindly ask you not to interject into matters that do not concern you,” Jonathan interrupted, knowing full well that he was being very rude indeed now as he shrugged off her hand. “Good afternoon.”
His heart clamored as he walked away, fully expecting to hear a loud and upset exclamation coming from behind him. There came nothing, however, and, letting out a breath of relief, Jonathan fixed his eyes upon his quarry and hurried towards her.
“Susanna.” He bowed quickly, then looked straight into her eyes. “How are you?”
“I am very well, I thank you.” Lady Ellen, a smile rushing across her expression, tilted her head, her eyes twinkling. “Thank you for acknowledging my presence, Lord Lancashire.”
Jonathan winced and was about to apologize, only for the two ladies to laugh together, forcing a smile across his lips.
“We are both very well,” Lady Susanna told him. “Thank you for coming to find me so quickly.”
With a twist of his lips, Jonathan darted a glance over his shoulder but did not see any sign of Lady Theresa.
“Lady Theresa was eager to speak with me, but I would not be delayed. I confess that I was perhaps a trifle rude to her, but I am very disinclined towards her bold manner and her attempts to prevent me from making my way to you.”
Lady Susanna looked past him but, evidently seeing no sign of Lady Theresa, only smiled. “I am glad to see you, too.”
“I have not been able to stop thinking about what was said outside the solicitor’s chambers,” Jonathan began, as they walked together, Lady Ellen and Lord Kettering falling into step beside them.
He offered Lady Susanna his arm, and the warmth that flooded him when her hand settled upon it was so great that it felt as if the sunshine had burst from behind the clouds and settled its light solely upon him.
“If the seal was borrowed and not stolen — used by someone close enough to Lord Blackwood to enter his study without raising suspicion — then the question is no longer what was done, but who would do such a thing, and why.”
Lady Ellen nodded. “And for what purpose? That is what troubles me most. The letters were crafted to separate you from any possibility of a future with Susanna — but who would benefit from that?”
Jonathan ran one hand over his forehead. “It is not as if I have any enemies, not as if I am aware of those who desperately want to seek revenge upon me.”
Lady Susanna’s fingers tightened lightly on Jonathan’s arm.
“You think that the letter writer did not think they could falsify his signature well enough for it to be believed,” she said, as Jonathan’s eyebrows lifted a little.
“If it was not Lord Blackwood, which I also believe, then the seal must have been stolen, yes? Someone else must be using it.”
“Ah, but it is a rare thing for a gentleman to lose his seal,” Lord Kettering stated, frowning. “Indeed, it would be most concerning if I were to lose my own. Such things are protected, kept very safe indeed and –”
“But it would not have to be lost or stolen.”
Jonathan turned his attention to Lady Susanna, who came instantly and unexpectedly to a stop, her eyes rounding as she stared at him. “What do you mean?”
She blinked. “I mean that very thing: his seal would not have had to be stolen, only borrowed.”
He frowned. “Borrowed?”
“By someone able to step into Lord Blackwood’s study and use his seal without being noticed,” she continued, speaking rapidly now.
“The letter to you and the letter to Mr. Graves supposedly came from Lord Blackwood when he was here in London. That means that someone here in London, someone close to him, someone he would not suspect, could easily have been able to make their way to his study and used his seal for their letters, both to you and to Mr. Graves. They use his name and his seal to hide themselves.”
A sudden dizziness swept over him, and Jonathan was forced to close his eyes, his heart thumping.
“That is a strong possibility, Susanna,” he breathed, opening his eyes to see her searching his face.
“But it does open up the perpetrator to be any number of persons. It could be family, friends, or even acquaintances who might have come to his house and stepped away for a moment.”
“It is someone who saw you standing together – perhaps more than that –” Lady Ellen said, without even a hint of embarrassment in her voice, “and they then decided they wanted to separate you from any possibility of a future together.”
Jonathan ran one hand over his forehead. “But why?” he asked, looking back at Lady Ellen. “For what purpose? It is not as if I have any enemies, not as if I am aware of those who desperately want to seek revenge upon me.”
Lady Susanna bit her lip. “Might it be to do with me? Is there someone who does not want my happiness?” Her eyes found his. “There is none that I can think of, just as you cannot. So where do we go from here?”
Jonathan was about to answer when something caught his eye — a flash of movement among the elms some forty yards distant.
He turned his head, just enough to follow it without drawing attention, and saw two figures standing very close together in the dappled shade near the Serpentine.
They were not walking, not taking the air, not doing any of the things that young ladies did in Hyde Park during the fashionable hour.
They were talking — quickly, intensely, their heads bent close.
Lady Maude. And Lady Evelina.
“Susanna,” he murmured, angling his body so the two could not see his face. “Your sister. Beyond the second elm.”
She turned, her fingers tightening on his arm.
He felt the tremor that ran through her.
From this distance, they could not hear a word, but they did not need to.
Everything about the scene was wrong — the urgency of Maude’s gestures, the way Evelina kept glancing over her own shoulder, the stiffness in their postures.
This was not the easy gossip of two acquaintances enjoying the afternoon. This was a council of war.
“They are very serious in their conversation,” Lady Ellen observed quietly. “That is not the manner of two women discussing bonnets.”
“No,” Jonathan agreed, his mind turning the scene over like a hand of cards laid face-down. “It is not.”