The Light in the Duke's Shadow: A Historical Regency Romance Book Page 16

  Leander followed Jules, and when they reached the study, Jules ushered the man inside. Leander had been his conspirator in the wee dark hours after his parents’ murder. The man had been the surest voice in Jules’ mind for so long that the guilt he felt at the man’s words still weighed him down.

  Jules closed the door to the study and sat down at his desk. He pulled out a piece of stationery and began writing out the note for Daniel. Leander, who had taken a seat in one of the high-backed leather chairs asked, “Is it so necessary, this hat of yours, Your Grace?”

  With a chuckle, Jules nodded. “It is indeed. You see, it is a thing of normalcy. A hat is just a hat, but to them, it is a sign that I have nothing more to worry about than such a trifle thing.”

  “Very clever, Your Grace,” Leander said with a smile. “And that is why you are the Duke and me just a footman.”

  Jules clucked his tongue as he wrote. He looked up at Leander. “You are ever so much more than just a footman. Why your family has been alongside mine for so long, I should think we are brothers by now. Besides, you have not done the job of a footman in a long while. No, you are more likened to a valet than any common sort.”

  “That is very kind of you.” Leander’s head dipped in an embarrassed way. The man’s normally neat blond strands brushed just above his eyes, making him look uncharacteristically ruffled.

  Jules finished writing the note and set it aside to dry. “It is actually quite practical. I need a valet now more than ever with my condition and footmen are easily enough to come by. It is a job for a less experienced man.”

  “Of course, Your Grace,” Leander said. Jules caught the smile on the man’s face. It did his heart good to know that he had at least made Leander happy.

  There was a crisp knock on the door, and Jules told whoever it was to come in. Daniel’s head appeared in the door as the man peered in. “That did not take you long,” Jules said. Jules warmed the letter over a candle on his desk for a moment before he folded it and put it into an envelope. “The letter might still be a bit wet, so careful not to smudge it.”

  “Yes, Your Grace,” Daniel said with a nod of his head as he took the envelope from Jules.

  After Daniel left the room, Jules looked over at Leander. “I know that you do not think my giving up the search is a good idea, but does it not put Daniel and the others in more danger if I continue?”

  Leander frowned. “Truthfully, I do not know. There’s something I did not want to tell you.”

  Jules looked at Leander in surprise. “What could be so horrible that you would seek to keep it to yourself?”

  “A letter. It arrived this morning,” Leander spoke slowly, his voice low to keep it from carrying. “It seemed to threaten you. I did not want to alarm the others …”

  Jules leaned back in his chair. “You read a letter of mine? Why?”

  “I was worried,” Leander said as he wrung his hands together. “When you failed to return, I opened the letter, and what I read chilled me. I did not know what else to do. I set out myself to see if I could find you, but I did not. When I returned, I could do nothing more than wait.”

  Jules frowned and sighed. “Where is this letter?”

  “I put it up to keep the maids from stumbling on it. I thought it better at the time,” Leander explained.

  He could not really fault Leander for his logic, and Jules nodded. “Yes, it would have done little good to get them worked up. I should like to see this letter.”

  “Of course, Your Grace,” Leander said then added, “But do you not think you should bathe and change your bandages? Shall I call your doctor to see to you?”

  Jules pursed out his lips. “You can alert him to what happened. The doctor who saw to me at the Marquis’ residence did a splendid job, though. I completely forgot to alert the man that I had changed residences.”

  “Surely the Lady Winchester did so, Your Grace,” Leander said.

  Jules had to admit that his former hostess did seem the sort to remember such things. “Yes, she probably did. That bath does sound passing well, though. I think I shall go up and get myself into something not ripped and torn before I take on any further developments.”

  “I shall send the maids up to run the bath,” Leander said as he stood up. “Then I shall go straight to fetch the letter.”

  Jules nodded. “Very good,” he said with a sigh. It was good to be home. Jules stood up and braced himself on the cane. “I think breakfast shall be in order as well. I feel quite hungry after missing the morning meal before our departure.”

  “I had not even thought of that, Your Grace. Forgive me.” Leander frowned, but Jules waved off the man’s apology.

  Jules laughed. “I am glad to be home, Leander. Just have the cook put on a kettle of tea, and I shall have whatever is left in the kitchen.”

  “Nonsense. You need your strength. I shall ensure that she makes you a full breakfast.” Leander looked absolutely indignant at the very idea of Jules eating leftovers, and Jules could not stop his smile. He simply nodded as he knew that Leander would not stand for anything else, and it would save time to simply agree.

  Leander hastily went to open the door for Jules. Jules nodded and walked over to Leander. “Meet me in my room once you have located the letter.”

  “I shall do so, Your Grace.” Leander nodded crisply and followed Jules into the hallway. Jules turned his sights towards the stairs as Leander headed for his own quarters which were in the attached house towards the rear of the property. Leander’s footsteps stalled for a moment behind Jules. “Are you certain you do not need assistance going up the stairs, Your Grace?”

  Jules lifted his hand as he walked away from the man with the aid of his cane. “I can manage just fine. Thank you, Leander.” Jules heard the man’s footfalls moving away down the hall and sighed.

  The warm glow of candles on the wall made Jules notice the golden sparkle in the swirls on the wall covering behind the flickering flame. Jules’ face fell as he remembered how his mother had been so excited on the day the covering had been put into place. Pressing his lips together, Jules moved on towards the stairs seeking to keep both his eyes and his mind on what was directly in front of him.

  Jules’ houses both here and in the country were full of ghosts. Everywhere he looked he heard faint echoes of days long gone. Sometimes he listened intently, eager not to forget the tone and quality of his parents’ voices, and other times Jules could not bear the hollow reminder that they were gone. His hand lay upon the banister that his father had held when telling him to take care, his mother chiding his father to let Jules be.

  With a sigh, Jules shook his head at the ghosts and carried on upstairs. He would feel better after a bath. He would feel more himself in new clothing. Perhaps he would even feel capable of facing another day searching for truth.

  Chapter 9

  When the knock finally came on Jules’ door that afternoon, he whisked it open startling Leander who waited on the other side. Jules ushered the man in. “What took you so long? The afternoon drags by, and I had thought to go looking for you.”

  “Forgive me, Your Grace, but the letter had been moved,” Leander whispered as he shut the door firmly. He turned around and looked Jules in the eye as he spoke. “I fear that forces within this very house may be working against you.”

  Jules frowned as he took the letter from Leander. “Why would they hide it if they sent it to me?”

  “Perhaps they thought the better of it,” Leander said with a shrug. “I know where I left it, Your Grace, and it was moved, I tell you.”

  Jules pulled the letter from its envelope. “Why is the paper so warm?”

  “I found it near a hearth in the kitchen.” Leander paced. “I can only assume they were going to burn it. I fetched it straight out and came here with it.”

  Jules took a deep breath as he read the dire warning. “They must have seen me with Lady Withersfield and her mother. Look here, they warn me to stop the investigation, or the
lady I rode away with will face dire consequences.” Jules shook his head. “It makes no sense.”

  “It makes perfect sense that they should want you to stop your investigation,” Leander said as he hit his fist against his palm as if to drive the point he was making.

  With a wave of his hand, Jules said, “Then they try to burn it?”

  “Perhaps whoever they are working with told them to get rid of it,” Leander suggested.

  Jules thought back to the party. “Lord Portland could have connections within the household. I definitely would not put it past him.”

  “No matter who it is, the fact remains that someone within these walls is laying a trap for you, Your Grace. I know not what the best course of action would be,” Leander said with a frown.

  Jules thought of Penelope. “They knew of Lady Withersfield, so they had to be at the party or in the alley. That only leaves the attacker or perhaps Lord Portland.”

  “I knew nothing of the lady until I received Lady Winchester’s note,” Leander said with a shake of his head. “I am very sorry that they seem inclined to pull her into all of this when it has nothing to do with her.”

  Jules went over and sat down at his desk. “I fear that it was almost inevitable with how these people think.”

  “We can’t let them hurt the young lady,” Leander said with determination.

  Jules laid the letter down on his desk and rubbed his face. “I cannot go back on my word to Lady Withersfield.”

  “If you truly care for the young lady, perhaps you should put her safety first, Your Grace. Surely she would understand,” Leander said with a sigh. “Would it be so horrible to keep away from her just until we finish this? We have to be close.”

  Jules thought about that for a moment. As much as he thought of being away from the young woman was unbearable, the thought of her being hurt because of him was too much for him to stomach. “You make a good point. I shall need to send word to her.”

  “Perhaps you should hold off on that, Your Grace, just until we figure out how we are to entrap this foul trickster in our midst,” Leander suggested.

  Jules leaned back in his chair. Leander looked antsy enough to start pacing at any moment. Jules had to admit that he was as on edge as his friend. “Tell me, Leander, have you any idea how we can go about setting this trap? I know that Lady Withersfield is safer away from me, but I do not intend on letting scum like the people who killed my parents take her from me. We have to act quickly to get this sorted out.”

  “The quicker, the better,” Leander said with a nod. He frowned. “I think I might know how they got in to deliver the letter and perhaps move it, but if they catch wind that I know something is up, then we might lose our chance. Even my moving the letter again might have tipped our hand, Your Grace.”

  Jules hit his hand against the desk. “I cannot fathom that any within these walls would have harmed my parents, let alone be after me now. To harm an innocent girl is just more than I can imagine of any here. These accusations are so dire that we have to be certain before we act, Leander.”

  “I would never have suggested it had I thought there was any other reasoning, Your Grace. It just seems unlikely that anyone from without could have gotten in so easily and been undetected. I shall begin enquiries immediately, but I will still need a full day’s time to enact any plan that I come up with.” Leander dipped his head to Jules and made his way to the door.

  Jules watched his old friend go out into their household with some trepidation. It seemed that not even the home he had always cherished was safe anymore. Now not only did ghosts haunt these halls but also the murderers who sought to kill him.

  The thought that he had been thinking of bringing Lady Withersfield into this very home chilled Jules to the bone. He would keep his distance. If Leander needed a full day, then it was likely he would not be able to attend the party at the home of the Marquis.

  Jules pulled a piece of paper out of his desk and began to write a letter to the young woman and her father. It was not ideal, but he had to do something to assure him that he would not be doing an insult to the young woman and her family when he failed to show up at their home on the appointed date. Jules sighed and decided he would write two letters, one to Lady Withersfield and one to her father.

  The one to the Marquis was far easier to write. He simply had to inform the man that he would be detained and unable to attend the party. The one to Lady Withersfield required a bit more tact than his fatigued mind had the energy for. Jules frowned at the paper. Perhaps it would be best not to address a letter to her at all.

  Jules wagered that no letter might offend the young lady, but if he wrote something in the letter that went against his promise to her, might that enrage her? With the young lady’s delicate balance of uncertainty towards marriage, it could very likely prove that he was not willing to set aside his pursuits for her. That was a valid point, as was he not continuing with what he had sworn to push away?

  Putting pen to paper, Jules forced himself to write the words telling Penelope of the new clues and that he owed it to his household to bring this matter to an end. He begged her to be safe, for he feared that even as Leander and himself moved quietly to make their trap, they may be found out. The last thing Jules could take was to know that somehow he had caused harm to come to her through his own actions.

  When he is done, he set the letters aside. Jules got up and looked at himself in the mirror over his washbowl. “What use is a Duke who has to wallow in his room?” he asked of the reflection, which only stared back at him. Jules sighed. He had to do something, and he decided to start with finding Anne. He wanted to speak to her privately if possible to make sure that she was coping well enough. From what Leander had said, the girl was suffering greatly, and that put Jules’ mind ill at ease for her.

  ***

  Jules went down to the kitchen, his cane clicking along the marble floors. “Hello there, Anne,” Jules said lightly as he spotted the scullery maid leaned against the counter.

  “Your Grace,” Anne said with a smile. “I am happy to see you about this afternoon. If you are hungry, then I am sure the cook has some food put back.”

  Jules waved off the woman’s concern for his appetite. “I am still quite full from earlier,” he assured her. “Actually, I was coming to see you.”

  “Me, Your Grace? Why should that be?” Anne tilted her head to the side and gave him a strange look.

  Jules fought off a wave of suspicion. It seemed as if everyone in the house now was a suspect in his mind, but he had not come down to the kitchen to interrogate a poor maid. “I have come to see how you are holding up. Leander said your nervousness has been ailing you. Is that true?”

  “Oh,” Anne whispered. She gave him a hesitant smile. “Sometimes,” she admitted with a nod. “I try not to be nervous, Your Grace. Shall you let me go then?”

  Jules shook his head and came to sit on a stool near the young woman. His side was aching from all the extra movement he had done, and Jules suspected he really should be resting but could not bring himself to do so. “I would never dismiss you for something like that, Anne. How has your mother been?”

  The look of relief on Anne’s face set Jules’ mind at ease about the girl’s intentions. Anne smiled. “She’s doing a might better. Doc said her leg should heal up nicely. She’s eager to be back working.”

  “And we are eager to have her back. These things happen, but I think from now on she should leave the climbing to yourself or Dorothy,” Jules said with a chuckle.

  Anne giggled despite herself. Jules did not think any worse of the girl for her display of frivolity. She was still after all quite young, and such things were to be expected.

  “I think I shall tell her that you said that, Your Grace,” Anne said with a smile. “She might listen to you better.”