Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Two
After having lunch at Whites and riding horses down Rotten Row in Hyde Park, Benedict, and Charles were playing cards with a few other gentlemen at The Lair when Sam walked over to the gaming table.
“There is a man here to see you, your grace.”
Benedict looked across the table at Charles. “Gentlemen, I think I will have to bow out of this hand. Please do not wait for me, Avanley here is more than willing to take your money.”
The gentlemen laughed as Benedict walked away from the table. “Who is here, Sam?”
“It’s the runner you hired. He says he has information you will want to hear.”
Benedict nodded. “See if you can extract Avanley from the game without causing suspicion among the gentlemen at the table. I assume you have the man waiting for me outside my office.”
Sam nodded and walked back to where Avanley was still sitting at the gaming table. Benedict walked up the stairs toward his office to find Mr. Phillips dutifully waiting for him. “Mr. Phillips, I hope you have information for me.”
Mr. Phillips immediately rose to his feet. “I do, your grace.”
Benedict opened the door to his office and Mr. Phillips followed him inside. “Have you found the man I am looking for?”
“No, your grace, but we are closer. I did find the name of Sebastian Bradford on a ship’s manifest. According to the ship’s passenger list, Bradford arrived in Dover three months ago.”
Benedict leaned back against this desk. “That gives him time to be the one responsible for my accidents. Do you know where he can be found now?”
“No, your grace, not for certain. We have a lead that says he might have traveled from Dover to Hertfordshire and may have met with two men while there.”
The man turned as Charles walked into the room.
“I’m not sure if you have met or not, but this is my friend the Duke of Avanley, he will be assisting me. He also has worked for Thomas Harrison in the past.”
“Your grace.”
Charles stepped further into the room. “Hertfordshire? Isn’t that where Lord Pettigrew’s ancestral estate is located, the one he lost playing here at the Lair?”
Benedict narrowed his eyes. “Yes, it is. If that is the case, perhaps Bradford and Pettigrew knew each other before. Pettigrew could be one of the men Bradford is meeting with.”
He looked to Mr. Phillips. “Thank you for the information. If you or your men discover anything new, please bring the information to me here at the Lair right away. If I am not here, my associate, Sam, will be in charge and will know where to find me.”
“Yes, your grace.”
“Sam will show you out.”
Mr. Phillips bowed deeply before turning to leave the room. Once they were alone, Charles turned to Benedict. “It looks as if a trip to Hertfordshire is in our imminent future.”
“I will have Sam make the arrangements. We will leave first thing in the morning.”
Brighton
“I would be remiss if I didn’t exclaim once again how lovely you look today, Sophie.” Lord Warrick said as he took her hand to assist her into his landau.
Sophie gave him a sweet smile. “Your flattery is going to increase my vanity, Lord Warrick.”
“I thought we were past the formalities, Sophie. Please call me Ambrose.”
Sophie lowered her head slightly. “Of course, we are friends after all, Ambrose.” She tried not to notice the way his eyes darkened just a bit at her words.
She opened her parasol as he clicked to the horse and the carriage began moving down the street out of the town. “You have been so kind to me the past few weeks. I would not want to be a burden. I’m sure you have other responsibilities calling to you. Your brother and sisters must be anxious for your return.”
“I have been giving some thought to returning to my country estate. It is in Kent, not very far from London. The house is most impressive surrounded by massive gardens and a lake that has a bridge that leads out to an island. You would find it very lovely.” He gave her a sideways glance, and Sophie felt uneasy.
“It sounds very beautiful. I’m certain you are very proud of it and long to be there again.”
He sighed heavily and reached for her hand. “I would be honored to show it to you.”
Sophie gave him a sweet smile but slowly pulled her hand from his grip and shifted in her seat. “Perhaps one day.”
Lord Warrick abruptly pulled the carriage from the road and parked beneath a tree. Sophie’s breathing increased and her hands began to tremble slightly. Bella had warned her that Lord Warrick’s attentions were leaning toward something more than friendship. She had dismissed the warnings.
“I have something I want to say to you, Sophie.”
Sophie took a deep breath. “Ambrose…”
“Please, let me finish.”
Sophie nodded as she pulled her bottom lip between her lips.
“From the moment I first saw you, I thought that you were the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You are smart, funny, and when you smile your eyes twinkle with light.”
Sophie looked away embarrassed by his words.
“But that light has been gone from your eyes since your husband left for London. I have not asked you about the circumstances behind his departure. That is for you, and you alone. But if you ever wish to discuss it with me, I will listen. Until that time, I will not push for answers. I had hoped that time would drive him from your mind and your heart, but after six weeks, you still seem as heartbroken as ever.”
“I am not heartbroken, my lord. I assure you it is for the best.” Sophie said hoping she sounded stronger than she felt.
Lord Warrick gave her a sympathetic smile that almost angered her.
“My apologies if I am wrong in my assertions. I have simply noticed that you have not been yourself, and while I know eight weeks is not a great deal of time, I had hoped to see you become more lighthearted.”
Sophie sighed, hating that the people surrounding her, the people who were trying so hard to make her life better, and more tolerable, felt her sadness. “I am sorry. If my company is not to your liking, why are you so attentive to me?”
“Because I think I might have fallen in love with you.”
Sophie’s mouth dropped open at his declaration. “Ambrose, while I value your friendship…I…. I… am still a married woman.”
“I know that, and it is because of your marital state that I did some investigating into the reason your husband left for London, and what he is doing there.” He held up a hand at her shocked expression. “Mind you, I did this for purely selfish reasons. I had hoped that I would discover that he had left for London in order to return to a mistress, or perhaps this life was not appealing to him, and he had returned to the debauchery of London and The Devil’s Lair. I’m sure you know of your husband’s wicked reputation before your marriage. I very much wanted to discover some unsavory details that would somehow ease my guilt.”
Sophie narrowed her eyes. “Guilt, what do you have to be guilty of, Ambrose?”
He leaned closer. “For this.” Without warning he leaned closer and placed a soft kiss on her lips. He immediately moved away. “Forgive me.” He lowered his head. “I had to do that before I tell you what I discovered.”
Sophie’s hand immediately flew to her lips.
“I know why your husband left for London, and it was not for the nefarious reasons I had built up in my head.” He looked back at her.
Sophie’s heart was beating faster. “Why? Why did he leave me?”
“There have been accidents that occurred, and your husband discovered that someone was trying to kill him.”
Sophie gasped and reached for his hands. “Is he alright? Please tell me he is unhurt.”
Warrick smiled and squeezed her hand gently. “He is unhurt to my knowledge. He returned to London in order to keep you safe. He did it to protect you. If you had known the reasons for his departure, you might have followed and put yourself in danger. He is presently searching desperately for the person behind the threats. He didn’t leave you to escape your marriage, he left because he loves you.”
The shock of his words made her body grow weak, her breathing increased, and she knew from the look of concern on Warrick’s face that her color had also fled from her cheeks. “Why? Why are you telling me this?”
“Because as much as I would love to hear you say for me to keep driving, to drive all the way to my estate in Kent. As much as I would love for you to be with me, to want to belong to me, I can’t in good conscience hide this information from you. If it were untrue, I would take you to Warrick Manor where we would hide from the gossips of the ton, I would do that for you, but you don’t love me, Sophie. As much time as we have spent together these past weeks, the sparkle in your eyes has not returned, and I fear it will not until you are once again in the arms of your husband.”
Sophie’s eyes filled with tears and soon they were freely flowing down her cheeks. “Ambrose, you are such a good and kind man. I will value your friendship for the remainder of my life, but you deserve so much more than I could ever give. There will one day be a woman who can wholly give you her heart, and one that you will love with all your heart and soul, a woman you can’t live without. I am not that woman for I have already lost my heart.” She wiped the tears away from her cheeks as they began falling in earnest.
He lifted her hand to his lips. “I know that. I will be leaving Brighton in the morning for Kent. If there is ever anything I can do for you, all you have to do is ask.”
Sophie could no longer speak, but she nodded in agreement.
Lord Warrick picked up the reins and snapped them to get the horses moving once again. “Let’s get back to town, I’m sure you have plans to make as well. Shall I take you directly to your home or would you like to visit with Avanley’s duchess?”
“Please take me to see, Bella.”
A million thoughts and scenarios went through Sophie’s head as they drove back to Brighton. Benedict had left her to keep her safe. That thought alone lifted a weight from her chest, and it seemed to make breathing easier. But then anger began to set in. He left her! He left her heartbroken, believing that he wanted to be done with their marriage and that he wanted them to abide by their original agreement. He left her to cry and rage, to feel empty and alone, not knowing what she had done to cause such a drastic change in his character. He left her to live a life on her own. Well, maybe that was easy for him to do when she wasn’t in his sight when he wasn’t subjected to seeing her about town. Perhaps he needed to be taught a lesson on what it would feel like to see her living a life without him.
By the time they reached Avanley’s residence, she was more angry than relieved. Lord Warrick assisted her from the carriage and seemed reluctant to release her hand.
Sophie stepped closer to him and then lifted up on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you, Ambrose. Thank you for being my friend and thank you for being an honorable man. I will always think of you as such.”
He lifted both of her hands to his lips. “If only I had returned to England a year sooner. I will live with that regret for the remainder of my life.” He gave her a quick wink before climbing back into his carriage and driving off.
Sophie stood on the steps and watched as the carriage drew out of sight, then hurriedly ran up the stairs and threw open the door to Avanley’s house. Bella was coming down the stairs and rushed toward her upon seeing her face.
“Sophie! What has happened?”
Sophie was breathing heavily, and her hands were trembling. “Do you know why Benedict left for London?”
“No, what has happened? You look as if someone has been chasing you.”
“I thought he left because he had grown tired of our marriage, but that is not the case.”
Bella’s concern grew. “Come with me, let’s have a seat in the parlor and you can tell me everything.”
Sophie followed her and after recanting everything she had just learned from Lord Warrick she could tell that Bella was just as shocked as she had been.
Bella’s eyes narrowed. “I knew Charles was hiding something from me, but I never imagined this.”
“I’m leaving for London in the morning. I just wanted you to know.”
Bella stood quickly. “Well, you are not going alone. I will travel with you. The children will be fine here with their nurses.”
“Are you certain?”
“Quite certain. I have a feeling you have every intention of paying Kingston back tenfold for the misery he put you through, and I would not want to miss the look on his face when he sees what you have planned.”
Sophie nodded. “Make no mistake, I am relieved to know that the reason behind his sudden departure and change in behavior is not because of that ridiculous agreement we decided upon when we first married, I am still incredibly angry at what he did, but also frightened. Who could possibly want to kill him?”
“I don’t know. Hopefully, they will know who is behind the accidents by the time we reach London.”
London
“While the trip to Hertfordshire didn’t allow us to physically find Pettigrew and Bradford, we at least know the two are connected and have been meeting in secret,” Charles said as they dismounted their horses in front of The Lair.
Benedict handed his horse off to the boy who worked in the stables. “Yes, Harrison was right, Pettigrew was not smart enough to concoct a plot of his own, but he was easily manipulated into doing the dirty work by Bradford. I will relay what we learned to Harrison. The runners will be on the lookout for both men, and hopefully, someone will spot them soon.” He removed his coat and shook the dirt that had accumulated from their travels from it before throwing it over his shoulder. “It is rather odd to be hated so by a relative who I have never met.”
Charles twisted his neck from side to side. “The promise of money and power can drive some men to do reprehensible things. The runners did say that Bradford’s investments in the colonies had all failed and their reports indicate that he is near disaster. I imagine when word reached him that he only had one soul separating him from the wealth and privilege your uncle had amassed, it was too much of a temptation to be rid of you. Pettigrew merely seeks revenge. He would have accepted any deal Bradford offered him in order to receive some sort of retribution for the wrongs he believes you have set upon him.”
“I still find it hard to imagine that my uncle did not mention Bradford’s existence to me. When he told me I was to inherit, I was under the assumption that the line stopped with me, that the dukedom would have reverted back to the Crown had I refused.”
“Your uncle knew who he wanted to be his successor, he knew that you were man enough to step into his shoes and fulfill the role. If you had known about Bradford, would you have readily accepted the responsibility he thrust upon you?”
Benedict smiled wryly as he contemplated the thought. “My uncle was a wise man. I do wish he had lived long enough that I could have learned more about him.”
“What plans do you have for the evening?”
“After a long soak in my tub, I plan on watching the tables tonight. I don’t know what else to do to occupy my time. Perhaps if I return to my normal routine, Pettigrew will grow reckless and make a move against me.”
“A long soak and a glass full of brandy sounds perfect. I am going back to Avanley House, but I will join you later.”
Benedict nodded and made his way through the back door to his personal apartment. Sam wasn’t there so he called out to one of the younger men that worked there and ordered for the tub in his bedchamber to be filled. He walked over to the decanter of brandy and poured a small glass. As he stared down into the dark amber liquid his mind drifted to Sophie. He had not wanted to be away from her for this long. He thought of her every day, every minute. He closed his eyes and took a long drink letting the liquor burn as it slid down his throat. Perhaps he had been too hasty in his decision to leave her behind. Could he have taken extra precautions and kept her with him?
He poured another drink and then moved into his bedchamber where the tub was waiting for him. The weight of the decision he had made lay heavy on his heart and the thought that he might never be able to earn her forgiveness was the nightmare that kept him awake at night.