Regency 03 - Deception (32 page)

They had reached the door and after a quick knock,
they entered to see Derringer holding Rhiannon in his lap. He gave
them a cynical look. “Thank you for trying to spare my
embarrassment, my very dear friends,” he told them with heavy
sarcasm. “It was, however, unnecessary.”

Levi just shrugged and sat on the edge of the bed.
Rhiannon crawled away from the duke to sit in her new daddy’s lap,
staring silently at the three adults in turn.

“
Aurora has brought a problem to
my attention, Hart.”

Derringer very carefully drew his long black hair
away from his face, holding it with one hand behind him. He made a
slight gesture to Aurora, who correctly interpreted it and handed
him a ribbon from her own hair. He frowned at the dark blue ribbon,
frowned at her, but tied it in his hair anyway.

“
Do you realize I have not worn
any color other than black since I was in short coats?” he said to
no one in particular.

“
I would think you would be more
comfortable with your hair left down,” commented Lady Greville. “I
know I am.”

Derringer lifted one brow ironically and said, “How
long do you suppose you have until your past love comes racing back
into your life?”

“
I wondered if you had kept up
with things. How long have you known there was a chance?” inquired
Levi mildly.

“
I have only been awake for a day
or so, Vi. I cannot have known for long.”

Aurora sat down in a chair by the bed. “How do you
feel, Hart?”

“
I am fine, Lady Greville. In
fact, I am leaving today.”

“
You cannot! You have only just
regained consciousness. How can you even consider
leaving?”

The duke’s black brows drew downward. “How can I
even think of staying, Rory? I vowed to get rid of Forester and I
failed in that. I will not fail again.”

“
Aurora, take Rhiannon to her
nurse, please.”

Aurora’s expression told her husband how surprising
she found his order, but to her credit, she did not argue. Her eyes
full of questions, she took her daughter’s hand and left the
gentlemen alone.

“
Don’t bother telling me not to,
Vi,” murmured Derringer.

Levi said nothing, just silently watched his friend.
He had no intention of telling the duke not to do something. It
would do no good anyway. He had every intention, however, of taking
care of Forester himself before Derringer ever had the chance.

So, he smiled and assured the duke that if he
wanted, Forester was his.

Derringer eyed the earl suspiciously. “Why are you
giving in, Vi? Hoping the bastard will finish me off?”

“
Good God, no. What a waste…of
energy.”

*

Derringer left that day, as promised. Levi waited
until he was gone, then left himself. He wished Adam had lingered
in Town but with Bri’s recent delivery of their first child, he was
willing to forgive his cousin’s husband for deserting him.
Thankfully, Lord Connor Northwicke was still resident in his
mansion in Grosvenor Square.

After being shown into a well-stocked library, Levi
wondered exactly what he was going to ask. While having spent time
in the company of Lord Connor off and on for more than a year, he
actually knew very little about the enigmatic gentleman. Levi was
actually closer to Northwicke’s father, the Duke of Denbigh.

Northwicke entered the library and held out his
hand. “How is the patient? I meant to visit earlier today and see
for myself but certain matters detained me.”

The earl shook his hand briefly and frowned. “The
nodcock left today. He woke up, said he was leaving, and…” He
shrugged. “You have been around him enough to know he cannot be
stopped when he is determined.”

“
I suppose I will pay him a call
at his home then. I cannot leave Town without seeing for myself
that he is completely out of danger.”

They sat down across from each other and Levi
decided to start with the heart of the problem facing him. “Rory
assures me that Forester is still in England. I need to find
him.”

Northwicke’s brows rose slightly. “Indeed? She has
seen him, then?”

“
No, but no one saw him set foot
on a sailing ship, either. She says he hates America and would die
before going among what he calls uncouth barbarians.”

“
I see. It seems to me that
Derringer would be able to find him quicker than I can. Have you
asked him?”

Levi raised a hand in stunned disbelief. “He just
came out of a stupor and you think I should ask for his help?”

Northwicke said nothing, his unblinking gaze trained
steadily on the earl.

Levi shook his head then stood. “He is going to look
for him anyway. I suppose I could ride on his coattails and just
knock him out later if I have to.”

Lord Connor laughed at this remark and wished the
other man luck. “I will look into it and let you know what I find,
Greville. But I do think Derringer will beat me to it. In fact, I
would bet my entire income that he already has.”

~~~~~~

The earl returned home and went directly to his
study. Upon his desk was a sealed note, Derringer’s illegible
scrawl gracing the top.

Breaking the seal, his eyes quickly scanned the
contents. A mirthless smile tugged at his lips and Levi felt for
the first time the sort of cold ruthlessness that the duke must
have felt with stunning regularity.

The silent house crept in on him. Where was Aurora?
He had not seen her since he returned, a circumstance he found
exceedingly odd. It was unusual that she was not in the house.

He went in search of her. Mary, her maid, was not in
the house either. He shrugged, assuming the two had simply gone for
a stroll in the park.

The footman standing near the door shuffled his
feet, cleared his throat, and then paled when his lordship turned a
questioning look on him.

Brows drawing together in a frown, the earl asked,
“Do you know where Lady Greville has gone?”

“
Yes, that is, no, milord. I only
know her ladyship left right after you, milord. Her ladyship took
Mary with her and so I saw as how there’d be no
impropriety.”

Levi made to turn away but was stopped short by the
servant’s next words. “The note might tell where her ladyship’s
bound, milord.”

“
What note?”

With wide eyes, the man explained that a note had
arrived just prior to Lady Greville’s departure and she had hurried
from the house in a state of urgency, pausing only long enough for
Mary to fetch a cloak. Then he held out his hand and dropped a
crumpled piece of paper into the earl’s outstretched hand.

“
Her ladyship dropped the note,
milord.”

“
Where is Miss Rhiannon?” he asked
as he smoothed out the message.

“
In the nursery,
milord.”

“
Very good. Send round for Pride
immediately.” He turned away from the footman to read the note,
every word causing a shiver of fear. It was a forgery, not even a
very good one, but where had Aurora ever seen Lord Connor
Northwicke’s hand before? Levi was sure she never had. Of course
she would believe this message to be legitimate.

She had no reason to think otherwise. He had told
her he was going to see Connor; he hadn’t mentioned what for. Why
should she think it odd that they would go somewhere together?

Pride was ready to go, thank God, when Levi stepped
back through the door.

~~~~~~

“
What do you mean you sent no
message?”

Lord Greville stood just inside the duke’s study,
staring at his friend in utter astonishment.

“
I sent no message, Vi. When have
I ever invited you to help?”

The duke’s expression was almost pitying and Levi
was not the least surprised. Had he really considered the matter,
he’d have realized how exceedingly odd it was for the duke to
suddenly allow those around him to help in a matter that he
considered his own problem. It was a waste of breath to attempt to
convince the man of anything if his mind was already set.

“
It was your handwriting, Hart. I
swear it was yours.”

Levi watched Derringer. The duke’s face was creased
in thought and Levi was not sure he actually cared to know what
those thoughts were.

“
There are many forgers out there,
Vi.”

Levi’s brows rose, knowing instinctively that his
friend was hiding something. “You suspect someone.”

Derringer’s Gallic shrug was a very unsatisfying
response. Levi pinched the bridge of his nose and changed the
subject.

“
What of the Millers? They seem to
have disappeared.”

Derringer smiled as he ushered his friend from the
room. “They are regretting their involvement and trying to earn
their bread honestly. I made them see the light.”

“
And they survived? One might
suspect you of growing soft, old man.”

There was no response. The duke was busy ordering
his servants about.

Levi followed him, asking, “Why would someone forge
a message to inform me of Forester’s whereabouts?”

“
Perhaps they require your
presence.” The duke mounted his horse and sat looking down on his
friend. “I suggest you obey.”

Moments later, they were on their way to
Richmond.

~~~~~~

Mary squeaked again and Aurora pinched her. “Hush,
Mary. He is gone for the moment. But if you continue to scream, he
may return just to put you out of his misery. And I cannot say that
I would blame him for it, either.”

The maid dutifully hushed, much to her mistress’s
relief. At first, she had been glad to have the woman with her but
now she wondered if being kidnapped alone might have been a far
easier situation.

Glancing around the small one-room cottage, she
looked for anything useful. She knew the door was locked as well as
the windows. It crossed her mind to wonder why the madman hadn’t
tied them up. She didn’t dwell on this mystery for long, however.
She wanted to escape before Desmond Forester returned.

“
Mary, be a good girl and search
under that mattress for a weapon or something equally
useful.”

The maid obeyed with reluctance but at least she was
suitably employed. Aurora strode quickly over to the only cupboard
in the room and made a quick search of its contents. She couldn’t
reach the top shelf and there was nothing she could move over to
stand on.

She left it for the moment and looked around again.
There really was no other place to look. The room was bare except
for a mattress on the floor in one corner, a cook-stove in another,
and the single cupboard that she had just searched. She looked
inside the stove, found nothing of any use, and returned to stand
before the cupboard.

“
Mary, come here a
moment.”

The maid gratefully ceased groping under the
mattress and joined her mistress. “Yes, my lady?”

“
Kneel down so I can stand on
you.”

“
What?”

Aurora released an exasperated breath and repeated,
“Kneel down so I can stand on you. I cannot reach the top shelf and
I want to search there.”

The maid knelt down, grumbling about unfair
treatment of servants, and Aurora gingerly stepped up using the
bottom shelf for support. She still wasn’t high enough to see what
was up there but she could feel around with her hand. At first, she
was reluctant. Who knew what kind of atrocities she might
inadvertently encounter? But she screwed her courage to the
sticking point and reached up.

“
Hallelujah!” she yelled as her
hand closed over what could only be a large knife.

“
I would not be celebrating so
soon, were I you,” remarked Desmond Forester.

“
Damn,” muttered the much
beleaguered Aurora. She stepped down slowly, carefully releasing
the weapon. Mary rose to her feet, whimpering in fright.

“
Now, ladies, be so kind as to
step over to the bed,” commanded the madman with the
pistol.

“
I hate you,” murmured Aurora
quite audibly. She was rewarded with a blaze of anger before his
face once again became a bland mask.

He shrugged once, the gun never wavering. “I care
not for your good opinion, Lady Greville.”

Aurora glared at him. “Why are you doing this? You
will get none of my money and you obviously don’t have Rhiannon.
What is your goal?”

“
To kill you, of
course.”

Although her facial expression did not change in the
least, Aurora felt like she couldn’t breathe. Why had that
particular outcome not occurred to her? He was obviously quite mad
and hated her for thwarting him on more than one occasion
already.

“
And I do believe your husband
should suffer,” he added conversationally. He moved closer to them,
a smile of complacency stretched across features that Aurora had
once considered extremely handsome.

“
He will kill you,” replied Lady
Greville in matching tones. She had to keep him talking.

Dimly, without, they all heard the sound of
galloping hooves. Desmond Forester smiled hugely, remarking as he
did so, “And that, dear lady, will be your darling husband, come to
rescue his fair damsel.” He grimaced. “Sounds like a cheap Minerva
Press novel, does it not?”

Aurora stared at him in confusion, then dawning
realization. “You lured him here.”

“
But, of course. I want to watch
him as he watches you die, slowly.”

“
You are mad.”