Chapter 30
Ewan had slept deeply for the first time in what felt like weeks.
As Cassandra watched him, his breathing gentle and his eyes unmoving behind their lids, she calculated he had been asleep for at least fourteen hours.
Ever since Christopher had been arrested the night before, he had immediately fallen into a slumber so deep that she was loath to wake him.
He needed the rest, after all.
She was sitting in her rocking chair, trying to read but really watching him, as the sun slanted in through the windows, casting a golden glow over the floorboards.
The gentle twitter of birds calling to one another floated in through the open window, along with a breeze, bringing with it the fresh smell of grass.
Everything felt at peace.
It was hard to imagine that several miles away, Christopher was sitting in a prison, facing punishment for his crimes. But she couldn’t think of that. Not right now.
There was a soft knock on the door, and she looked up to see Dr. Ludley standing in the doorway. He gave her a small wave, and she stood and joined him out in the corridor, shutting the door so that they would not wake Ewan.
“How is he doing?” Dr. Ludley asked.
“I think well,” she said. “I have not seen him sleep this much or this deeply in a long time.”
“I can confirm that he is going to make a full recovery,” the doctor said.
“I have been examining other case studies, and it seems that with the level of illness he had, I can approximate just how much arsenic was given to him. And when I compare that to other cases, it is clear that if the arsenic is fully stopped, it will lead to a full recovery with no lasting damage.”
Relief flooded Cassandra, and she actually had to put out a hand to steady herself. She hadn’t realized how much she had been living in dread of a different outcome.
“We were lucky, though,” the doctor said grimly. “Any more, and he might not have made a full recovery. There would have been trouble walking and breathing possibly for the rest of his life.”
“Were you able to examine the tea that Christopher brought for him last night?” Cassandra asked. “Did it contain an amount that would have killed him?”
The doctor hesitated, but Cassandra laid a hand on his arm.
“You can tell me,” she said. “The danger has passed.”
Dr. Ludley looked down at the ground, then nodded.
“I fear that the amount in the tea last night would have killed him within a few hours. Christopher must have known that either the arsenic wasn’t enough, or we were thwarting him, and he put significantly more into this brew.
We are very lucky that he did not force it down the duke’s throat.
I must admit I do feel some regret that I allowed the plan to go forward…
Although we caught Lord Christopher, the outcome could have been very different. ”
“You have nothing to feel regret about,” Cassandra assured him. “It was my idea, and the duke was willing to take on the risk in order to catch his brother and put an end to this. You have played your part extraordinarily well. In fact, the duke owes you his life”
Dr. Ludley gave her a small, grateful smile. “Anything I can do to help my liege laird. The duke has always treated the people of Calder very well. I am only glad I was able to repay him for all the years that he has brought prosperity to these lands.”
There was a movement at the end of the corridor, and she looked up to see Lillian walking toward them holding Annabelle’s hand.
“She wanted to check on her father,” Lillian said. “And give him another drawing.”
Annabelle came forward and took Cassandra’s hand. “Is he better?” she murmured, and Cassandra nodded.
“He was sleeping when I left him, but let us check if he is awake yet.”
Back inside Ewan’s room, Cassandra was glad to see that her husband was awake. His eyes were just blinking open as she and Annabelle came into the room.
“Was that the doctor I heard you speaking to?” he murmured.
“Yes.” She smiled warmly down at him. “He says that you will make a full recovery.”
His own smile was slow but happy. “I am very grateful to hear that.”
“We shall have to send him a large pheasant,” Cassandra said. “Or a rack of lamb. Something to thank him for his service.”
Ewan nodded, then turned his attention to his daughter. She clambered up onto the bed next to him, handing her drawing to him shyly.
“I made this for you, Papa.”
The drawing showed a man in bed. Next to him was a young girl and a woman in a rocking chair. It was not hard to see where Annabelle had gotten her inspiration, and Ewan laughed as he took it.
“It is brilliant,” he said. “A very accurate depiction of the last few days, is it not?”
Her lip quivered, and she looked down. “Will you be well soon, Papa?”
“I will,” he promised. “The doctor has assured me of it.”
She examined the deep hollows under her father’s eyes, touching them curiously with her pointer fingers.
“You look dreadful, Papa.”
He laughed, and his eyes were shining as they met Cassandra’s. “I do look dreadful,” he admitted. “But in a few weeks, I will be myself again. You will see.”
“And Uncle Christopher?” She sounded almost nervous, as if she knew the answer could not be good.
Cassandra looked at Ewan, then leaned forward and took Annabelle’s hand.
“Uncle Christopher will have to go away for a while,” she said. “He has acted in a way that is not very nice. But now we are all safe, and your father and I will not be going anywhere.” She smiled at the little girl.
“I am glad Uncle Christopher will be going away,” she said. “He has been scaring me. But now he is gone, we will be a real family. A mama and a papa and me.”
Cassandra’s eyes were filled with tears as she hugged Annabelle close. “Being your Mama will be the greatest gift of my life,” she whispered.
After that, Ewan needed to rest again, so Cassandra left Annabelle and him to nap while she made her way downstairs.
Her mother was on the verandah in a wicker rocking chair, drinking tea, and Cassandra joined her.
The verandah overlooked the lawn, which was wet with morning dew, and stretched all the way to a gazebo on the far side.
Lady Pembury raised her eyebrows as her daughter sat down in the chair across from her.
“I see that everything has worked out in your favor,” she said.
“You say that like it is a bad thing,” Cassandra said lightly, reaching for the pot of tea.
“On the contrary,” Lady Pembury said. She leaned back in her chair, her eyes sweeping over her daughter as if trying to find something she had been looking for all along. “I am merely… impressed.”
“Impressed?” It was not a word that Cassandra had often heard her mother use to describe her. “What do you mean?”
“Exactly as I said,” Lady Pembury said. “I am impressed. You have executed yourself very well here. Established yourself as the duchess. Made the duke fall in love with you. Even saved him from a nefarious scheme. Exposed his brother’s lies.
It is… Well, it is more than one would ever have expected from one’s dutiful, rule-abiding daughter. ”
“I think I am not so dutiful or rule-abiding anymore,” Cassandra mused. “Loyal, yes. To my family. But I have found my own strength here.”
“Yes,” Lady Pembury agreed, and a smile flickered across her lips. “I am very proud of you.”
Cassandra actually had to put down her cup of tea. She stared at her mother. “You are proud of me?” she repeated. Never in her life had she heard those words.
Lady Pembury sighed and looked away. “I have always been proud of you,” she murmured.
“Even if I have not always said it, I have always felt it. You have always been strong, stronger than I was. And now I see that in the right environment, with a man who cherishes you and lets you be free, that your strength has calcified. Yes, I am very proud of you. You found a way to be brave, and although it certainly did not come from me, and I am glad that you found it.”
“It did come from you,” Cassandra said, sitting forward and reaching across the table to take her mother’s hand.
“I have seen bravery from you all my life. You have always dealt with the judgments and difficulties of the ton without ever letting them break you. And you showed me how to be resilient. If it were not for you, I think that I would not have been able to rise to the occasion and be strong when I needed to be for Ewan.”
Was it possible that her mother’s eyes were shining? That the indomitable Lady Pembury might actually cry?
Her mother cleared her throat and dabbed at her eye with her handkerchief.
“That is very kind of you to say,” she muttered.
“But I am afraid that I only made your life harder. It was I, after all, who insisted that you marry Lord Christopher. Had he not faked his death to get out of his gambling debts, you would have ended up married to a man who was capable of killing his own brother! I fear that I have only ever led you astray in this life… and I am sorry.”
“You could not have known that Christopher was capable of such things,” Cassandra said, shaking her head.
“Although I do appreciate the apology. I did feel pressure to marry Christopher without getting to know him properly. But, I would also point out that you were one of the main proponents of my marrying the duke. And that has turned out to be far better than I ever could have hoped for.”
Lady Pembury still looked uncertain, however.
“I am glad it has turned out so well,” she said.
“But that is as much luck as anything. And I want you to know, my dear daughter, that I have learned from this situation. Never again would I insist on such a thing. I have learned my lesson about marrying simply for titles or political allyship. And I have learned to trust you, as well. I should have trusted your judgment a long time ago. But now that I see how astute it is, I will never question it again.”