Authors: Wendy Soliman
“Very well.” Bevan glanced anxiously at Abbey. “Are you all right, my dear?”
“Yes, uncle. Just take care of yourself. Lord Denver will care for me.”
“He had better,” Harold said, touching her face.
“What are you doing here, Harold?” she asked, looking bewildered as Harold followed his father from the room.
‘I’ll explain later,” Sebastian said. “There is no time now.”
The sound of a conveyance being driven at speed reached their ears. A stark birdcall, made by Hodges, confirmed they had company. Looking towards the door Sebastian was grieved, but not surprised, when Mary Bevan entered. He was astonished when not Charlie, but his father, Lord Wilsden, followed close on her heels.
In a blinding flash it all started to make sense. It was so ridiculously obvious he should have made the connection before now.
“Ah, hello there,” Sebastian said with a sardonic smile. “You’re here at last. We had almost given up on you.”
Chapter Seventeen
Abbey gasped. Mary was the last person she would ever have suspected.
“You!” Presumably Sebastian had guessed at her involvement and deemed it wise to warn Harold.
Mary’s eyes rolled back in her head, darted nervously from face to face and came to rest on Lord Wilsden.
“I told you this was a trap,” she snarled. “You should have listened to me.”
Her partner appeared perfectly unconcerned about their anticipated arrival. With a placatory wave in Mary’s direction, Wilsden strode into the centre of the room. He looked down at Sebastian and Abbey and offered them a polite smile that wouldn’t have been out of place in a fashionable salon.
“Calm yourself, Mrs. Bevan. They think they have outwitted us but haven’t stopped to consider they are here alone and completely at our mercy.”
“Why?” Abbey asked in a tone of wounded bewilderment as her eyes swivelled between the two of them. “What have I ever done to either of you to make you bear me such murderous ill will?”
“Oh, don’t take offence, my dear, it’s nothing personal,” Wilsden replied affably. “It is just that you are in the unfortunate position of standing between me and something that I have long looked upon as mine.”
“That something being the Duchy of Penrith,” Sebastian suggested.
Wilsden inclined his head. “Exactly so.”
“But, if I die the title becomes extant.” Abbey’s head pounded as she struggled to come to terms with the defection of two people whom she greatly esteemed.
“Indeed, which means the Crown will once more have the gift of the duchy within its power. The prince can’t risk leaving our corner of the West County without a duke to keep the populace in order. He will require someone whose loyalty is beyond question. Someone whom he can depend upon to keep control of affairs in that part of his realm. Someone who has successfully kept the duchy profitable and the local populace in order since the demise of your dear father.”
Sebastian curled his upper lip as he looked disdainfully at Lord Wilsden. “And he need look no further than you.”
“Precisely.”
“You’re already respectably established in the area and have demonstrated the extent of your loyalty on several occasions by making substantial loans to the prince by borrowing from the estate.”
Abbey blinked. “You did what?”
Wilsden’s languid smile faltered very slightly. “You appear to have made a thorough study of my affairs, Denver.”
“I’ll confess you had me confused for a while.” Sebastian squeezed Abbey’s waist with the arm that surrounded it, presumably because he could sense her fulminating anger. “For a while I thought it was Charlie behind the attempts on Lady Abigail’s life but, of course, that’s what you intended me to think.”
Wilsden snorted. “That Johnny raw doesn’t have the backbone for such rum capers.”
“You wanted us to believe it was your dearest wish to see him married to Lady Abigail. But you also made sure it was easy for anyone with a curious disposition to discover his affections were engaged elsewhere, leading to the obvious conclusion that Lady Abigail stood between him and his heart’s desire.”
“I was well aware she would never seriously consider him as a husband, especially if Bevan didn’t endorse his candidature.” He shrugged. “Still, it suited my purpose for people to suppose otherwise, especially when our rather inventive methods for doing away with her failed. We knew it would become obvious eventually, even to one as trusting as she is, that not all of her recent accidents were actually accidents. It was simply a matter of time before she realised she was in danger. When that happened we had no idea whom she might turn to, but didn’t expect her to look outside the family.”
“And you couldn’t afford to continually fail, not now she’s being pursued by so many gentlemen,” Sebastian said. “She could marry at any time and all your efforts to obtain the duchy would have been for naught. Her new husband would assume the title of second creation duke and doubtless sire a nursery full of heirs to make the succession secure. More to the point, the management of the duchy’s affairs would then fall to his lot and your lucrative stewardship would come to an end.”
“Quite so. That would be exceedingly inconvenient.”
Wilsden paced the room with agitated strides, appearing like one of the caged tigers Abbey had seen in Vauxhall Gardens and felt such sympathy for. Sympathy was the last emotion she entertained towards her godfather and she looked upon him now with an expression of intense disappointment.
“I’d come too far to risk her disobeying her uncle and marrying before the end of her season. Even girls as obedient as Abbey are wont to act with spontaneity when they think they are in love. And so we had to do something to prevent her immediately.” He slammed his clenched fist into the palm of his other hand. “The duchy should have been in my family from the very first but we were gulled into backing the wrong horse. In ’66 my father was for The Duke of Grafton, whereas Carstairs supported Rockingham. As luck would have it, Rockingham was made head of the treasury that year. He persuaded the king a dukedom should be created in Penrith and bestowed upon a deserving subject. Someone of integrity needed to be appointed to quell the dissatisfaction being openly expressed by the tin miners. And so, using his influence, Rockingham ensured it was conferred upon his ally, Carstairs. My father was devastated, never quite got over his disappointment, and never forgave Carstairs for fulfilling the role that should have been his.”
“And never forgot,” Sebastian said, shaking his head. “It really isn’t healthy to bear grudges for so long, Wilsden.”
“Bah, you don’t know the half of it!”
“No, but you are about to tell us.”
“For what it’s worth, Abbey’s great-grandmother was a formidable political hostess, who was as beautiful as she was ruthless. She wielded considerable power behind the scenes, and no one is precisely sure what lengths she went to with Rockingham to further her husband’s ambitions. It is a subject to which I have devoted many hours of conjecture but the answer must be obvious to a man of your ilk, Denver.”
Sebastian shrugged. “Sorry, Wilsden, you’ve lost me.”
“The whore!” he roared, colour invading an expression both pained and furious. “Suffice it to say we had no similar weapon with which to fight back. Matters were made worse when Rockingham only lasted two years at the treasury before being replaced with our man, Grafton.” Wilsden’s booming laugh bore no traces of humour. “How was that for poor timing?”
“Rather than besmirching the good name of Abbey’s great-grandmother,” Sebastian replied, “has it not occurred to you Carstairs was considered the better man for the job for reasons of greater gravitas?”
Wilsden glowered at Sebastian. “What bag of moonshine are you implying now?”
“I’m merely reminding myself of the facts,” Sebastian replied, calm in the face of Wilsden’s growing anger. “It is common knowledge the ingression of water into the shafts of the tin mines was the worst problem the miners faced in Cornwall at the time. Steam engine driven pumps were proving to be the answer, but they were expensive and their introduction was slow to come about. Carstairs was something of an authority on the subject, doing much to educate the mine owners as to their benefits. He championed their introduction and avoided further unnecessary loss of life.”
“How do you know that?” Abbey asked. “I had absolutely no idea.”
Sebastian winked at her. “I made it my business to find out.”
“Anyone could have gained the knowledge he supposedly possessed,” said Wilsden, sneering.
“Perhaps, but Carstairs understood its importance, and not simply because he wished to be rewarded by the Crown.” Sebastian stretched his long legs, looking bored, but Abbey could sense he was alert and ready to act in her defence. “But we digress. Do continue with your story, Wilsden. You were keeping Abbey and me royally entertained.” He grinned. “No pun intended, of course.”
Wilsden looked at Sebastian with dislike but couldn’t resist the opportunity for further boasting. “My father, on his deathbed, made me promise to one day see the duchy conferred upon our family, where it should have been in the first place.”
“And you are willing to resort to murder in order to achieve your end?”
“It is necessary,” Wilsden replied with an indifferent shrug. “One can’t fight a war without incurring casualties, Denver. As a war veteran yourself you ought to be the first to appreciate that fact. My father was adamant about remaining on congenial terms with the Carstairs family, much as we privately disliked them. It was by paying heed to that advice I became Abbey’s godfather and finally got my hands on the duchy’s wealth when her parents departed this world.”
Abbey was convinced the colour must have drained from her face as a repellent thought occurred to her. “Don’t tell me you had anything to do with—”
‘Their accident? No, my dear, I regret I can make no such claim, although when it happened I was sorry not to have thought of the idea myself. Their accident occurred by complete chance but when it did I knew my moment had at last arrived.”
“You waited for long time to put your plan into action,” Sebastian remarked.
Abbey thought he seemed totally unmoved by the tale that spilled with vitriolic spite from Wilsden’s lips. But then, it must be easy for him to remain detached, she supposed. She was having a much harder time of it and how she managed not to spring at her godfather and scratch his eyes out was beyond her understanding.
“As I told you before, we have learned as a family to understand the importance of patience. I knew another accident so soon after the demise of Abbey’s parents would attract unwanted attention. And so I was prepared to wait, secure in the knowledge I would eventually be successful.”
“But you tried very hard to have Abbey live under your roof.”
“Don’t tell him everything!” Mary cried.
“It hardly matters now.”
Yes, because he doesn’t intend to allow us out of here alive
.
“Satisfy my curiosity.” Sebastian said.
“By all means.” Lord Wilsden sneered.
“You’re being foolish.”
Everyone ignored Mary and she subsided into a simmering silence.
“Had I been successful,” Lord Wilsden said, “it would have settled matters most conveniently and no one need have died. Abbey would have been thrown constantly into Charlie’s company when at her most vulnerable. I would have ensured she damn well relied upon him for everything and, if I’d had my way, they would have been married long before now. Charlie would have been the new duke, but in name only. He would never have been able to run the duchy efficiently and I would have had ultimate control.” He slapped his palm against his thigh, the noise unnaturally loud in the otherwise quiet room, causing Abbey to start violently.
“But even then I thought I would have my way. It didn’t matter if Abbey wasn’t living under my roof since I already had the prince’s ear. He wasn’t regent at the time but everyone knew his father was acting more bizarrely by the day and it would only be a matter of time. But Bevan, damn him, was determined to secure the succession through Abbey and spoke to the king’s advisors about it far sooner than I anticipated, leaving me no opportunity to counter his measures. I knew if I tried to influence the decision by asking the prince to intervene, it would immediately go against me. The king and his son weren’t on good terms and His Majesty would be more likely to act against the prince’s advice. And so, once again, my timing was appalling, especially,” he added with a twisted laugh, “as the prince assumed the regency almost immediately thereafter. But by then it was too late and I couldn’t attempt to overturn parliament’s decision in respect of the succession without arousing Bevan’s suspicions.”
“You enjoy manipulating people, Wilsden, and I concede it took me a while to realise what you were about,” Sebastian said.
“How did you find me out?”
“It was something Bevan said about Lady Abigail’s personal fortune not being entailed that first alerted me. Lady Abigail told me when we first met that her great-grandmother had ensured the entail through the female line, but of course that only referred to the Carstairs fortune and not, as she had supposed, the duchy. It wouldn’t have been possible to make advance arrangements in that respect. Only a royal decree and act of parliament could make that provision when circumstances dictated. Therefore it could only have happened after her parents died.”
“You appear to have thought it all through,” Wilsden said grudgingly.
“I knew from your stewardship of the duchy, and willingness to borrow from its coffers whenever the mood took you, that you considered it your personal fiefdom. I couldn’t imagine you taking kindly to handing the reins over to Abbey’s eventual husband.”
Wilson snarled. “The thought was intolerable.”
“Carstairs wasn’t discouraged by the fact that his wife had only produced one child, a girl.” Sebastian touched Abbey’s hand. “Or that his other children didn’t survive their infancy. They were still young and an heir was bound to follow. Indeed, at the time of their demise the duchess was in an advanced condition again. This time she was bound to produce a healthy son, who would survive infancy and inherit the dukedom. That included the Penrith estate with its vast income and extensive lands. Carstairs’ personal fortune, his other estates and town house which are independent of the duchy, would be divided between his other sons, if he had any. A substantial portion was set aside for Lady Abigail and any other daughters’ dowries.”