An Inconvenient Trilogy Part 28

A week into this and the pain had subsided into a bitter case of self-pity, another emotion that Stephen was unused to feeling. He was withdrawing into himself and he did not know what to do to return to his former self. He questioned himself time and again, how could such a girl get under his skin so much? She was barely out of the schoolroom, he should have run in the opposite direction as soon as he had discovered that, but instead, he had been drawn to her, had found could not leave her, or forget her. Every time he closed his eyes, she was there, pulling those faces that showed each emotion she was thinking, or coming out with a comment that would surprise him and set him rocking on his heels, unsure of what to say in return.

Walter entered the study quietly; any slight noise gained an abusive outburst these days. He suppressed his frown as he approached Lord Halkyn, who was slumped in the chair, looking barely conscious.

"My Lord, a letter has arrived," Walter said gently.

"Put it on the fire when you light it, it will have more use there," Stephen slurred, not opening his eyes.

"I think it may be important, my Lord," Walter persisted.

"Have you a hidden talent Walter?" Stephen asked, still slurring, but the sarcasm was clear. "Have you started being able to see through parchment, or do you just read my letters?"

"Neither, my Lord," Walter responded calmly.

"Well then, throw the b.l.o.o.d.y thing away!" Stephen muttered angrily.

Walter decided to take another approach. "The letter has Lord Dunham's seal."

Stephen froze, opened his eyes slightly, but then shrugged. "There is no reason why Dunham would be contacting me."

"Perhaps Lady Dunham is ill," Walter suggested, purposely not mentioning the name both men were thinking about.

"She's as strong as a horse, that one!" Stephen responded, but he had sat up in the chair and run his hands through his hair.

Walter decided to use the information that Stephen had muttered in one of his drunken rants about love, marriage and children. "Ladies who are in a delicate condition can sometimes ail more than they normally would. I do hope she is well. By all accounts she is a fine lady, but not to worry, I shall destroy the letter as you have requested, my Lord."

"Has anyone ever told you that you could not be devious if your life depended on it?" Stephen muttered, but there was the ghost of a smile on his lips.

"I believe that Napoleon did not fear for his country's defeat when I offered to help with our nation's defence," replied Walter seriously.

"And instead I've been cursed with you," Stephen muttered. "Give me the letter."

Walter handed over the letter and waited while Stephen opened it and read its contents. He saw Stephen sit up further and grip the letter with more force. When he had read and reread, he crumpled the paper as he slammed his fist down. "d.a.m.n the man for being so b.l.o.o.d.y n.o.ble!" He cursed.

"My Lord?" Walter asked gently, almost regretting forcing the letter onto his employer.

"b.l.o.o.d.y Dunham! Why couldn't he be like the rest of us and want to see the people that wrong us hang for their crimes?" Stephen growled. "I need tea, Walter! I need to be able to think. Bring lots of tea!"

Walter left the room with a sense of relief. He was not sure of the contents, but its initial impact had been for his master to want to be sober, which was a step in the right direction.

Far too much tea later, along with some ham and bread, and though Stephen did not feel completely sober, his head was clearer than it had been for days. He pondered over what Michael's letter had said.

There is no one else we would trust and with your recent involvement with Bow Street I hope it will give you an insight into how best to use them. Elizabeth is in real danger, this man has nothing to lose, he has lost everything and has no family left alive to my knowledge. For the first time in my life I am afraid of the consequences. If he should reach Elizabeth before we track him down..., these thoughts and worse have kept me sitting awake at her bedside since I received the news. Please find out what you can and send a reply at the earliest opportunity. He would not have initially known where Dunham Park was located, so I am presuming that his first approach would have been to the London house. Act quickly Halkyn, please.

Michael had enclosed full particulars of the dates that everything had happened, the trial and the sentence. He had finished by giving a full description of George.

Stephen had at first ranted at Michael's stupidity. This is exactly why he did not want to tie himself to someone whom he loved; if they were ill or worse, how did one continue afterwards? His thoughts were that of someone defensive and still in denial. When he again looked over the letter, his concern for Elizabeth grew. Dunham had been a hit with the ladies in his prime, but one of his attractions was that he was confident about his abilities. He was not one to show fear or uncertainty in public.

Stephen realised the letter must have cost Michael a great deal of pride to write. His panic came through the words as clearly as if he was standing before Stephen and that was what caused the frown on Stephen's face. Elizabeth was in danger and she was one of the most genuine people that he knew. He considered her a friend, her more than Dunham, and for that reason he would help all he could.

Charlotte had not been mentioned in the letter and it had frustrated Stephen, but he should not have expected it. A man almost out of his mind with worry over his wife and unborn child would not think of mentioning his house guest. Even if she was the last person that Stephen actually wanted to know about. She could even be engaged by now; Elizabeth had said that she was going to introduce her to Society. Well they would be welcome to her. He'd like to see what the gentlemen of Somerset thought of a Miss who was determined on romance, without a dowry to encourage it!

Stephen almost reached for the brandy bottle, but stilled as his hand touched it. If he started again he would be no help to Elizabeth. He owed her friendship enough to stay sober. He rang the bell and while waiting for Walter, scribbled out a note.

Walter entered the room and Stephen handed him the sealed letter.

"I need this delivering to Mr Peters tonight. Into his hand, and only into his hand, no matter where he is. Pay whoever or whatever you have to in order that he receives it. I am at home to Peters at whatever time he calls, day or night, and tell Lowe that I need to bathe, to have a change of clothes, and a shave!" Stephen commanded, rubbing his hand over his chin that had the evidence of almost a week worth of stubble.

"Yes my Lord," Walter replied and left the room. He was going to brighten the day of Lowe the Valet, who had been in a decline since Lord Halkyn had refused to dress.

Peters had been shown into Stephen's drawing room as the clock struck midnight. He had been hard to track down, but had been finally caught up with near the docks, not usually a place to be alone on a dark London night.

Stephen stood when the gentleman entered. "Thank you for coming," he said, reaching out his hand in greeting. "I did not expect to be seeing you quite so soon again."

"No my Lord," Peters said. "I take it from your letter that this has nothing to do with the Kersal case?"

"No, although I hope that that matter will be drawing to a conclusion soon?" Stephen asked.

"It will, but we are waiting for the right moment before we act," Peters replied, giving nothing away.

"Good," came the quiet response. "You'd better sit down; I have a job that I hope you can help with," Stephen said, and proceeded to tell Peters all of the details that had been in the letter. He did not show Peters the doc.u.ment, he felt that Dunham's emotions were exposed in that letter and he did not want a stranger to see that.

Peters listened in his usual quiet way, interjecting questions when he needed clarification. At the end of Stephen's tale, he thought for a moment. "I think Lord Dunham is correct, he will have gone to the house in London first. It is the easiest to reach, he must have escaped from the docks and he could just disappear into the crowds in London, whereas it would be far harder to do that in the country."

"Do you think he will still be in London?" Stephen asked, knowing it was only a faint hope.

"It depends how long he decided to hide after he escaped from the ship. He wouldn't want to hide for too long, especially if he has no money. I will start in the morning."

"Will you question the staff?" Stephen asked.

"Not necessarily," Peters replied with a hint of amus.e.m.e.nt in his eyes, but it did not quite reach his mouth. "He may not have approached the staff, but there are many other ways to find out if he has been near the house."

Stephen nodded his head and the men parted. There was nothing else that Stephen could do but send out a short letter to let Dunham know that the search was in hand.

Peters returned to visit Stephen after two days. It had actually been a relatively easy task, but one that gave him no pleasure. He knew his news would increase concern, rather than rea.s.sure.

Stephen was in the study, it looked like he had been pacing when Mr Peters entered. He nodded to the gentleman to sit down and offered him refreshments. Mr Peters declined and took out his notebook, ready to relay the information he had gathered.

"George Watson, or a man very closely matching his description was seen in the area of Lord Dunham's London house over three weeks ago," Mr Peters said calmly.

Stephen took a long breath. "Three weeks? That must mean that he's in Somerset by now," he said grimly.

"It is a fair a.s.sumption my Lord," Mr Peters responded. "He was seen watching the house and then fell in with a group of tramps that frequent the area. Their mornings are spent knocking on the bas.e.m.e.nt doors asking for sc.r.a.ps of food. He spoke to some of the junior staff in the house. They did tell him about the family, and about Dunham Park."

"Stupid idiots!" Stephen exploded. "Why on earth did they think that he was asking after the family? So he could call on them when they returned to town?"

"They are young girls of twelve, first time away from home and living in a large house. They are proud of the family they serve. It's not an unusual question in any respects; the tramps would want to know if the families were at home or not."

"What possible benefit would that information be to them?" Stephen asked.

"If the family are at home, there are more parties, which means more food, meaning more waste. They eat better when a family is in residence."

"Oh." Stephen was generous to charitable causes, but he had never thought of the practicality of needing to gather food on a day to day basis. "Did he give anything away?"

"Not really," Mr Peters replied. "He mentioned that he had worked for Lady Dunham's family in the north and was hoping that she would give him a job on her estate. He came across as a man down on his luck; he gave no other information, which is no surprise."

"So, that was three weeks ago," Stephen mused. "How long would it have taken him to reach Dunham Park?"

"Probably well over a week, he would have likely walked and probably at night. Let's not forget he is a man on the run. If he was caught and his true ident.i.ty discovered, he would be hanged."

"Let's hope that happened," Stephen said gruffly.

"We would have heard," Mr Peters said reasonably.

"He must be in the Somerset area," Stephen said, a sinking feeling developing at the thought that Elizabeth was truly in danger. There was another niggle that would not subside, however he tried to ignore it. Charlotte was in that area, as was a man who was on the run and determined to damage the family in residence. Elizabeth was in danger, but Charlotte was also at risk because of her residence there.

Stephen rang for Walter. "I need to send a letter to Lord Dunham. He needs to know that they are at risk. Would you take it and act as protector for Lady Dunham?"

"Me?" Mr Peters asked in disbelief. "I am working on other cases my Lord."

Stephen sighed. "I do not wish to appear overbearing, but one, no two of my friends could be in danger, I trust your ability. I will pay whatever it takes for this to be your top priority."

"It isn't about the money," Mr Peters scowled at Stephen. The aristocracy always thought it came down to money.

"I apologise, I did not mean to offend, but I need your help," Stephen said quietly. He had seen the fire in Mr Peter's eyes and had withdrawn his overbearing manner.

A small cough came from the door of the study. Stephen raised his eyes at Walter. "Yes Walter?"

"My Lord, I beg pardon in overhearing some of your conversation, but if I could offer a suggestion?" The calm butler asked.

Stephen looked at Mr Peters. "He's only asking permission because you are in the room, normally he just offers the suggestion whether I want to hear it or not."

Mr Peters looked slightly amused, but refrained from saying anything. Walter coughed again, Stephen was sure it was to hide a laugh, but the butler's face remained impa.s.sive. "Your flattery overwhelms me my Lord, but as I was saying. I feel Lord Dunham may appreciate if both of you gentlemen could go to the estate."

"Both of us?" Stephen asked in disbelief, but his heart had started to pound at the thought.

"Yes, my Lord. Trusted friends are hard to find and the more people in the house surrounding her Ladyship, the safer she will be. Staff cannot be present all the time."

Stephen thought for a moment. He wanted to go. He had wanted to go as soon as Walter had suggested it, but it would put him in Charlotte's company again. He dismissed his pounding heart. He was a grown man, one who could respond to the needs of a friend without having to be afraid of the effects a seventeen year old chit would have on him.

Stephen turned to Mr Peters. "Will you accompany me please? I realise you have other work, but is there any possibility you could accompany me? My friend is in danger."

Mr Peters nodded; he would have to pa.s.s over his work to a colleague. He would owe Corless an unlimited amount of drink for the favour, but he wanted to help Lord Halkyn. The appeal in his request damped down the previous inappropriate comments he had made. Peters responded quietly, "Yes, give me two hours and I will be ready."

Stephen nodded and turned to Walter. "Arrange the carriage Walter and let it be clear, we will be travelling as fast as it can bear."

"Yes my Lord."

Chapter 17.

The family had quickly developed a routine and although Elizabeth hated not being able to wander across the fields, she held to the restriction of staying on the immediate parkland. Edward, John, Michael and the male staff were all happy to accompany her on long walks around the estate. Miss Fairfield, Charlotte and Violet took carriage rides and walks around the formal gardens with staff to accompany them. When she was within the house, there was always someone with her. It was a prison, but a necessary one.

The tension in the household could be felt, but everyone tried to get on with life as best they could. Michael and Elizabeth had talked behind closed doors, their conversation being upsetting to both, but important. They both realised that the threat was serious.

Charlotte did all that she could to make herself useful to Elizabeth. If she had felt that her presence was not welcomed she would have returned to her uncle's home, whatever the consequences, but her presence was needed. She made up a third person on many of Elizabeth's short outings. They had come to the conclusion by being in a pair, there was the likelihood that they were still vulnerable, but that being in a threesome, there was less chance of them being approached. More people therefore helped.

Mr Anderton and the senior staff regularly undertook searches of the property and buildings to ensure that no one was hiding anywhere. Everything was being done to reduce the chance of George being able to get close enough to reach Elizabeth. No one let themselves hope that he was not in the area. If he could avoid deportation, he could certainly find his way to Somerset.

The second Sunday morning felt more normal than the first had. Elizabeth had insisted that she wanted to go to church as normal; it would cause speculation in the local population as to why Lady Dunham was not attending church, which she wanted to avoid. As the church was on the edge of the parkland this did not seem an unreasonable request by Elizabeth. It was agreed that Michael, Edward and Violet would arrive at the church first, to enable the men to search the grounds. Mr Anderton and Mr Dawson, along with the staff, would carry out a thorough search of the house while the group were absent. Elizabeth would travel with Charlotte and Miss Fairfield in the carriage and hopefully every part had been thought through.

Charlotte had stood by Elizabeth as she waved Michael, Violet and Edward off. Elizabeth had sighed as she remained at the entrance of the house, waiting for her own carriage to be brought round.

"Are you feeling unwell?" Charlotte asked. There was no use in asking if everything was fine, it had obviously not been fine since Lord Dunham had received the letter.

"I admit to having my nerves stretched to breaking point," Elizabeth said with a smile that was part smile, part grimace. "I am longing to get on the back of a horse and ride in a straight line until it can run no more. I had thought London could be confining, I never expected the country to be so."

"I am sure he will soon be found," Charlotte sympathised.

"I hope so," Elizabeth replied with a groan. "We should be receiving reinforcements soon," she said more gently. "Lord Halkyn and a Bow Street Officer are on their way here, in fact they should be arriving anytime soon. Michael had a word to say that they were on their way. I hope it will not cause you distress, I will understand if you wish to leave when he arrives."

Charlotte had flushed deeply at Elizabeth's words. Stephen returning to live in the same house? The man she had refused and who had taunted her as he left. How could she face him again? Could she face him again?

She shook herself inwardly. Of course she could face him again; he was the man she thought of every time she had a spare moment. He would be cruel no doubt, dismissive as he had been when they parted, but oh, she would relish being able to see him again. She had missed him so much.

"I do not wish to leave," she said quietly after a moment or two.

Elizabeth squeezed her hand. "I am grateful that you don't, and I hope Stephen appreciates what a gem you are when he sees you this time."

The carriage arrived and Charlotte climbed in, a little distracted. Stephen would not appreciate her still being here; he was obviously coming down to help, not to see her. She had to remember that to keep herself in check.

Charlotte paused; the dishevelled man was pointing a gun at her and had a finger over his lips, in a shushing motion. She froze, she had never been faced with a gun being pointed at her, even Baron Kersal had not used such extreme measures. The man indicated with the barrel of the gun that she should continue into the coach and take a seat.

Charlotte moved slowly, eyeing the door opposite. If she threw herself out of the door behind her, she would surely injure Elizabeth and although they were in danger, she could not risk hurting the baby. The man noticed her looking at the door and smirked.

"It's locked," he hissed in a whisper. "Sit and you may live."

May live. Charlotte started to shake; suddenly the danger she was in was very real.