Always Have Hope (Emerson Book 3) (20 page)

There was a collective breath in the room as the two families
took in what had happened. Finally, the duke spoke.

“Through the years I heard the occasional rumor that
father had been in a duel,” said Liam. “But every time I brought it up he
changed the subject. I wish he would have told me so I could have thanked him.
Not that he did it for the appreciation. It was second nature to him to do
what was right. It’s who he was.”

“Thank heavens he was successful – for many reasons,”
said Lizzie. “Including the fact I wouldn’t be here today if he’d been killed.
But most of all because Mariah was safe.”

“But here’s the thing,” said Prue quietly. “I found
out later she was always going to be safe, regardless of whether your father
had survived. Finish your story, Henry.”

The butler looked quite uncomfortable to be the focus
of so much attention. “If his grace had died, I was going to kill Stevens in
cold blood. That is why his grace scheduled the duel in forty-eight hours
instead of the next morning, as was usual. He wanted to make preparations to
get me out of the country in the event of his death. He wasn’t going to allow
Stevens to harm Mariah or any other woman. If he was unable to stop him, he
wanted me to, instead.

“I would have gladly done it. Not just for Miss Mariah,”
here he nodded to her. “But to avenge his grace’s death. I owed him
everything. We met one night near the docks. His grace had just come out of
a….an establishment and two men had tried to rob him. I was living on the
streets at the time and came to his aid. I was wounded and he brought me
home. He saved my life and then when he made me his valet, he gave me purpose.

“I had no qualms whatsoever about ending Stevens’s
life if it came to it. We were also afraid that if I didn’t follow through her
grace would, instead. Or, years later, one of the children. We couldn’t allow
that. But his grace was an excellent marksman, so my role was minimal. I
simply had to tend to his wounds.

“I will say her grace was livid – with both of us.
She’d known about the plan, of course. But she couldn’t stand seeing his grace
injured. On the way back from the duel, he was trying to convince me we could
keep his injuries a secret. But I saw to it that he had proper medical care
and her grace was with him every minute until the danger had passed.”

“Yes,” said Prue with a wicked grin. “I seem to
remember they remained in their bedchamber most of three days, other than time
spent with the children. She must have been ‘giving him proper medical care.’”

Heskiss, once again the proper butler, only said “I
would not know about that, Miss Prue. But I can attest I was never as proud to
be his servant or – if I may be so bold – his friend, as on that tense
morning.”

There was silence at the end of Heskiss’s recitation.
Then Liam rose and walked over to him. The duke bowed, then shook his butler’s
hand.

One by one, the male members of the Kellington family did
the same. The ladies hugged him. They were followed by the Emersons.

Then, finally, Prue and Mariah did the same. There
was a long embrace between Heskiss and the shy Mariah.

Prue continued. “When Hal was born, Anne insisted
that they name him after Henry Heskiss, but Henry wouldn’t allow it. He was
afraid it would raise too many questions. They compromised and said he was named
after Henry VIII, hoping the heroic side of the former king would be the bigger
influence than the monarch’s dissipated youth.”

“Turns out our Hal was both,” said Arthur with a
grin. “But I’m not sure anyone could live up to the heroism of Henry Heskiss.
Hal, pour us all a drink so we can toast.”

“Why do I always have to pour the drinks?”

“Tradition,” said his brother.

“Well, Win,” said Lynwood, as he waited for Hal to
fill his glass. “I hope this means you’ll allow us to help you, the way our father
helped Mariah. You wouldn’t deny us the opportunity to live up to his
standards, would you?”

“I shall consider it,” said Win, carefully. She
couldn’t continue to refuse in this room filled with friends.

Then everyone raised a glass to the bravery and loyalty
of Henry Heskiss.

As Alex walked through the dark corridors of chambers,
he thought back to the half dozen years he’d been in residence there. At
first, he’d been thankful to have not only a profession – and a respected one at
that – but also a home. His beloved mother had died while he’d been at
university, so he’d had no home to return to when he finished school. Had he
not been accepted as a barrister at this chambers, he wasn’t sure what he would
have done.

The first few years had been a blur. He’d been
consumed by work, intent on showing he was any man’s equal. Hard work and
skill had seen him rise to the rank of King’s Counsel. He hadn’t cared about
how small his suite was or how devoid of human warmth it was. He’d viewed his
austere surroundings as befitting the seriousness of his work. Now he simply
saw dark hallways adorned with portraits of long-dead legal scholars,
bedchambers that were freezing in winter and sweltering in summer, and
everything being in need of a good cleaning.

As one of the senior members of chambers, Sir
Wilfred’s personal quarters were on a floor with only three other occupants.
Alex had never been invited to partake of a drink there, as other barristers
had been. He’d tried to tell himself he hadn’t felt the slight, when in fact
it had hurt. He worked harder than just about anyone else, but at the end of
the day your station in life was still more important than one’s
accomplishments.

Well, the good thing was that after tonight none of it
would matter.

As he approached Sir Wilfred’s door, he steeled
himself for what was about to happen. He finalized his strategy, then knocked.
There was no light coming from the room and for a moment he feared the older
man was out. He knocked again. Just as he was about to give up, there was a
noise from within.

“Who is it?” asked Sir Wilfred from the other side of
the door.

“Lewis. Pardon the intrusion, Sir Wilfred, but we
need to talk.”

There was a brief hesitation, but then the door
opened, revealing Sir Wilfred in his dressing gown and night clothes. He
looked like he’d been awakened, but a strong smell of spirits made Alex wonder
whether the man had been asleep or passed out from drink.

“What the devil is this about, Lewis?” Sir Wilfred was
clearly irritated, but motioned for Alex to enter.

The room was a combination den and library. One wall
of shelves reached from floor to ceiling and was filled with various legal
tomes, as might be expected. But there were other books that were more unusual.
A Shakespeare folio that appeared to be quite old. A book of Chaucer behind
glass. There were book ends that looked to be made of jade and a painting on
the wall wouldn’t have been out of place at the Louvre.

“Well, what is it, man?” asked Sir Wilfred.

“I have come to ask you to drop all charges against
Lady Winifred.”

The request left the older man momentarily
speechless. But then he became indignant. “Have you gone mad? Or are you
simply foxed?”

“Neither. There has never been any evidence indicating
Lady Winifred’s guilt.”

“She was caught bending over his dead body, covered in
blood.”

“She was also so badly beaten she was barely able to
walk. No one in a weakened condition such as that would be able to carry out
the murder. Yet no other suspects were presented, despite the fact Pierce was
a ruthless businessman with scores of enemies.”

“Yet none of them was seen in the house.”

“I didn’t finish. Pierce had scores of enemies and a
ledger detailing his many bribes to government officials.” He tossed a ledger
onto a table.

Even in the dim light, he could see Sir Wilfred go
pale. “I don’t know what you’re implying, but before you go making any
accusations, I would remind you of the penalties for slander, not the least of
which would result in your expulsion from the bar.”

“I’m not implying anything, although it’s good to know
you’re exceedingly nervous about the contents of that ledger. And while I am
well aware of the penalties for slander, I also know truth is a defense. And
it is that very truth which could get any number of officials expelled from
their positions and thrown in Newgate. What a lovely copy of the Canterbury
tales. However did you afford it?”

Sir Wilfred turned to pour himself a drink with
shaking hands. “I cannot imagine how this pertains to the case at hand,” he
said. “It’s not like Pierce bribed people to find his wife guilty in his own
death.”

“No,” said Alex carefully. “But he was meticulous in
his payments, recording who was paid what for which actions. I believe it was
his way of ensuring he would never be prosecuted for any of his crimes. And he
wasn’t, despite a long record of questionable dealings.”

“What do you want, Lewis?” snapped Sir Wilfred as he
downed a glass of whisky, then poured another.

“I told you. I want the charges against Lady Winifred
dropped.”

“For what purpose?”

“To find the real killer.”

“And how do you propose to do that?”

“You do not need to know the particulars. All I need
you to do is exonerate her and announce to the world that she is no longer a
suspect, but we are close to making an arrest.”

“You can’t order me around.”

“Actually,” said Alex, picking up the ledger, “I can.”

“Bloody bastard. I never should have hired you. I’ll
put an end to that, of course, as soon as this is over.” He narrowed his
eyes. “Unless you’re of a mind to keep blackmailing me.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll only be staying long enough to
prosecute the real killer. Your dirty secret is safe with me.”

Sir Wilfred looked him over, as if trying to determine
if he could trust him. “Who did kill Pierce? I’m sure there’s no shortage of
men who wanted the blighter dead. More than a few women, as well, though I
doubt the wife had it in her.”

“Who told you to arrest Lady Winifred?”

“If you’ll recall, Lewis, we don’t arrest people
here. I didn’t hear of the case until I was contacted by Bow Street. The only
thing that interested me was Pierce was dead. Didn’t care much who they said
did it. I just didn’t want people looking too closely at the deceased’s
business dealings.”

“Why’d you try to have Lady Winifred remanded to
Newgate?”

“Doing a favor for Simon Chilcott, the next Earl of
Layton.”

“And in the process angering the current Earl of
Layton, the Earl of Ridgeway and the Marquess of Grayson, not to mention the
Kellington family. Not a wise move, Sir Wilfred. You made some powerful
enemies.”

Now Sir Wilfred looked like he was about to be sick.
“I’ll get the charges withdrawn by the end of the week.”

“You’ll do it tomorrow morning because by noon the
broadsheets will either be spreading the news of Lady Winifred’s exoneration or
the evidence of your past misdeeds. It’s up to you.”

Sir Wilfred looked like he wanted to protest, but must
have known the futility of it. Instead, he snorted. “No one will care about a
wrongly accused widow.”

“She’s a young, beautiful, rich widow and I expect
that’ll get some attention.”

“How do I know you’ll keep your word about what’s in
the ledger?”

“I guess you’ll just have to trust me. But know
this….if you go after Lady Win again, this ledger will be laid bare for
everyone’s perusal.”

“I wouldn’t do that. I imagine there are some very
powerful men in there.”

Alex shrugged. “Yet, the only one you need worry
about is you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve had quite enough of your company
tonight.”

He took the ledger with him as Sir Wilfred downed yet
another glass of whisky.

Alex began his journey down the dark corridor when he
suddenly realized he wasn’t alone. He reached for the knife in his boot as he
tried to make out the features of the man who was leaning against the wall near
Sir Wilfred’s door.

“Relax,” said Grayson as he stepped out of the
shadows. “I’m relieved to know you carry a weapon, though I’d keep it closer
at hand, especially if you’re spreading it about you’re in possession of Pierce’s
ledger. How’d you know Sir Wilfred was in it?”

“I didn’t.”

Grayson looked surprised and impressed. “You were
bluffing.”

“Yes. I’ve had quite a bit of experience at it as a
barrister, though I prefer to have the facts whenever possible. Sir Wilfred
assigned his worst barrister to Lady Win’s defense and, if I may be so bold,
his best for the prosecution. That alone told me something was amiss. I
figured he had to be in the ledgers, either as a person being blackmailed or
one being bribed. He had too many items of worth for the former, so I figured
it must be the latter.”

“It could be very dangerous for you if word gets out
the ledger is in your possession. Sir Wilfred might tell.”

“And risk having others know he’s in there? He won’t risk
it. And I don’t care what happens to me. I just want Win to be safe.”

Grayson nodded his head slightly. “You’re in love
with her.” It was a statement, not a question.

“I can’t see how that’s any of your concern,” said
Alex, wishing his feelings weren’t so obvious.

“I’m like a brother to her.”

“As long as it’s just like a brother.”

Grayson laughed. “Don’t underestimate her brothers.
They’re a fearsome lot.”

“And they wouldn’t want a bastard for a
brother-in-law.” He knew he’d be warned off sooner or later.

“I’m quite certain they wouldn’t give a damn about
your parentage. They simply want Win happy, safe and well.”

“I would like to have the chance to make her all those
things.”

“Then we’d best solve this business and find Pierce’s
killer because I suspect whoever it is will be very interested in that ledger.
After all, you can’t marry Win if you’re dead.”