Chapter 2 #2
“Champagne can be an acquired taste,” Eliza pointed out.
The room grew quiet, and Emma saw Luke standing in the middle of the dance floor. “It will now be my honor to dance the opening set with my ward, Miss Emma Pearson.”
“Oh, bother,” Emma muttered under her breath as Kate took the glass from her hands.
She saw the crowds parting as Luke approached her and bowed. “Miss Pearson,” he said, extending his hand towards her, “may I have this dance?”
“I would be honored, Lord Downshire,” she replied with a curtsy.
As he started leading her towards the dance floor, she started feeling light-headed.
It must just be nerves, she thought to herself.
The room was filled with people, and they were all watching her.
Luke gave her a reassuring smile as they stepped into the middle of the dance floor and the music began.
At first, Emma and Luke executed the minuet flawlessly. Their steps were in sync, and they were achieving an air of unaffected ease and nonchalance. They approached and withdrew from each other with grace, and she was grateful that Rachel had made them spend hours practicing together.
However, as the dance progressed, Emma found it increasingly difficult to focus on the intricate steps. Now, as they approached each other, she had to strain her eyes to focus on Luke. Something was wrong. She felt odd, weak. The room felt overly warm, and her steps began to falter.
“Are you all right, Emma?” Luke’s concerned voice asked from somewhere far away.
“Yes,” she managed to force the word out as she continued to dance.
The music began to change, indicating that the first set was over, and she would now choose another partner to finish the dance. It had already been decided that Luke’s younger brother, Lord Jonathon Beckett, would dance with her.
Emma began searching the crowd for Lord Jonathon, but all the faces were blurry and unrecognizable.
She closed her eyes tightly and opened them again.
Only this time, she felt the sudden urge to fall into a deep sleep.
Just as she felt herself falling to the ground, she was scooped up into Luke’s arms. Then, everything went black.
Emma returned to the conscious world in a cloud of pain. Her head ached something fierce, and the bright light in her room was making her regret the decision to open her eyes. What’s happened, she wondered, as she brought her hand up to her forehead.
“You’re awake,” her lady’s maid said in a cheerful voice next to the bed.
“Do I have to be?” she questioned, closing her eyes again. “Would you mind closing the drapes?”
Peggy immediately jumped up to do her bidding and closed the two sets of drapes, darkening the room. “How are you feeling?”
“Awful,” she remarked. “What happened?”
Coming to stand next to the bed, Peggy gave her a curious look. “You don’t remember?”
She winced as she attempted to conjure up the memory. “I remember being at the ball, but the events are hazy after I drank the champagne.”
“You fainted during the minuet with Lord Downshire,” Peggy revealed.
“I fainted?” she asked, knowing that sounded nothing like her. She had never fainted before.
Reaching behind her, Peggy adjusted the pillows under her head. “Fortunately, Lord Downshire saw you were going to faint and caught you up in his arms. He immediately brought you to your room and called for a doctor.”
The pain in her head was starting to subside when she went to sit up. “I need to go speak to Lord Downshire.”
“Lord and Lady Downshire specifically requested that you remain in bed until the doctor returns later this evening,” Peggy informed her.
Emma moved her feet over the side of the bed and rose. “I’m not an invalid. Where are Lord and Lady Downshire now?”
“In the study,” Peggy revealed. “But—”
“No buts, Peggy,” she insisted. “Will you help me dress or shall I wear my nightgown?”
Her lady’s maid frowned before reluctantly walking over to the wardrobe and removing a simple white cotton gown. “I daresay Lord Downshire will be angry with you for being out of your bed,” she muttered.
Once Emma was dressed, and her hair was pulled back into a loose chignon, she headed towards the study on the first floor.
She was within a few feet when she heard male voices drifting out of the opened door.
She stopped at the door and peered in. Luke was pacing near the window, and Rachel was sitting on the settee holding Matthew.
Lord Camden, Lord Jonathon, and Lord Lansdowne were sitting on armchairs, each with a snifter in their hands.
She knocked on the door and everyone turned towards her. The men quickly rose and were watching her with stern expressions.
“Emma,” Rachel exclaimed in a relieved tone. “You’re finally awake.”
Taking a few tentative steps into the room, Emma stopped and diverted her gaze. “I am,” she replied, hesitantly. “I wanted to apologize for my behavior last evening…”
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Luke declared as he stopped pacing. “There’s no easy way to say this, so I will just tell you.” He paused, looking over at Rachel. “Last night, your champagne was spiked with laudanum.”
“Laudanum,” she repeated. “I don’t understand. Who would do such a thing?”
Walking over to the drink cart, Luke poured himself a drink before answering.
“After you fainted, we summoned the doctor, and he explained you had digested a large dose of laudanum. He cited your irregular heartbeat and your dilated pupils as proof.” He brought the drink to his lips.
“And based upon the timing of your fainting, we traced it back to the glass of champagne.”
Benedict spoke up. “You spoke of the champagne being bitter, and at the time, none of us recognized that as a perceived threat. Champagne can be considered sour to some but never bitter. Whereas laudanum is inherently bitter.”
Emma couldn’t seem to wrap her brain around what they were telling her. “I don’t understand. Why would someone want to poison me?” she asked as she walked over to Rachel and sat down.
The men all sat down as Adrien shared, “Jonathon and I took it upon ourselves to speak to the lead groom, and we confirmed that a burr was found in the blanket under your saddle.”
Emma nodded. That made sense. “That would explain why the gelding upended me.”
“Yes,” Lord Camden answered, “and a man, fitting the general description of the servant from last night, was seen spotted near your gelding yesterday. When the groomsmen confronted him, the man used the vague excuse that he was Lord Brisbane’s groom, and he went ahead to ensure your horse was already saddled. ”
Baby Matthew made a lunge towards her, and Emma eagerly wrapped him up in her arms. “Why would someone go through all the trouble of spiking my drink with laudanum and placing a burr under my horse’s saddle?”
Lord Jonathon sat forward in his seat. “My guess is to ruin your Season.”
“If that’s the case, then they succeeded,” she remarked. “I daresay I won’t be able to show my face amongst the ton anytime soon.”
“Nonsense,” Rachel declared. “We’re already working on a plan to ensure you have a successful Season.”
“How?” Emma asked in disbelief, removing a lock of her hair from Matthew’s fist. “I fell into a muddy hole in the middle of Hyde Park, and I fainted during the opening set of my own ball. I have no doubt that the flibbertigibbets in Society are having a field day with this.”
Adrien rose from his seat and went to refill his drink. “Is there anyone that you can think of who may wish to do you harm?”
“No one,” she replied honestly.
“I can,” Luke stated, placing his drink down on the tray and walking over to his desk. “His name is Peter Lockhart.”
“It couldn’t possibly be Peter,” Emma said with a shake of her head.
Lord Camden glanced between them with a pointed look. “Who is Peter?”
“He was my father’s solicitor, and a friend of the family,” she said, turning Matthew in her arms and sitting him down on her lap.
“He had it in his head that he was going to marry Emma,” Luke revealed, removing a stack of letters from a drawer and placing them on top of the desk. “He has written to her every month for the past two years.”
“He has?” Emma asked in a surprised tone. “But I haven’t received any of his letters.”
Walking over to Adrien, Luke extended him the stack of letters bound by string. “Of course not. I ensured they were intercepted before they reached you.”
“For what purpose?” she inquired, her voice rising in irritation.
Luke’s expression grew serious, and his tone matched it when he spoke. “Peter is a bloody nuisance. He has filed multiple lawsuits to contest my guardianship over you. He even sued me for breach of promise because he claimed your father granted him permission to wed you.”
“My father did no such thing,” Emma argued.
“Exactly,” Luke stated. “We were protecting you.”
Emma turned her gaze towards Rachel. “You knew about Peter?”
Rachel nodded. “I did. He’s not a good man, Emma.”
A terrible feeling of guilt swept over her. What a horrible burden she was to Luke and Rachel. “I am sorry. I had no idea that Peter was harassing you.”
Placing a hand on her shoulder, Rachel regarded her with kindness in her eyes. “And that is why we didn’t tell you. We didn’t want to distress you in any way.”
“But I have been nothing but a burden to you,” Emma replied, attempting to control her growing emotions.
“That is utter nonsense. Get that thought out of your head immediately,” Luke declared. “My solicitors have been handling these trivial matters.”
Emma felt oddly comforted by Luke’s authoritative manner. She had learned that Luke spoke his mind and rarely became sentimental, but now she could hear the emotion fluctuate in his voice.
“For what purpose would Peter want to ruin my Season?” she questioned as Lord Camden distributed some of the notes to Jonathon and Benedict.
“If I had to guess, Peter didn’t have access to you in Scotland, and you are within his grasp here in London,” Jonathon remarked.
“This is ludicrous,” Emma replied. “I grew up with Peter, and he was like a brother to me. He is not capable of what you are accusing him of.”
All the men in the room cast worried glances at each other. Finally, Luke cleared his throat. “If someone intends to harm Emma,” he said, “we need to ensure her protection. It might be best if we brought in the Bow Street Runners.”
Lord Jonathon grunted. “There must be another way. Bow Street Runners are incompetent at best.”
“Do you know where Mr. Lockhart is?” Benedict asked.
“I do not, but I know he maintains an office in the village of Totternhoe,” Luke shared, glancing between the men. “Would Uncle Charles be willing to open an investigation into Peter Lockhart?”
Tucking the stack of letters into his jacket pocket, Jonathon replied, “I’ll see what can be done. Perhaps we can assign an agent to protect Emma.”
A slow, satisfied smile grew on Adrien’s lips. “No need. I can recommend a Bow Street Runner.”
“No. Not him,” Jonathon contended, shooting him a warning look. “Anyone but him.”
“Who?” Luke asked with a lifted brow.
Benedict wore a look of amusement. “He did get shot saving Emmett’s life.”
“He deserved it,” Jonathon muttered under his breath.
Luke crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m afraid I am not following this conversation. Is this Bow Street Runner trustworthy?”
“Yes,” the three men said in unison, but then Jonathon added, “He is just a dunderhead.”
“Well, then,” Luke replied, uncrossing his arms, “how do I get in contact with him?”
Benedict directed his gaze at Jonathon. “You don’t, but we will.”