The Countess (16 page)

“I knew he wasn’t you,” Langley muttered, peering over George’s face when Richard pulled back the blanket for him. “Not at first, or I would have warned Christiana away from him. But then I saw little of him at first. It wasn’t until they were married and living here in London that I began to suspect something was amiss. Christiana was so tense the first time I came to visit, her smile strained, her eyes constantly dancing to him as if afraid she may have said or done something to upset him. Then the next time he had the butler turn me away. The second time that happened I knew something was wrong and waited until I saw Grace come out. I made her tell me what was going on and when she told me how he was treating her . . .” Langley’s mouth tightened and then he sighed and said, “The bastard has treated Christiana like dirt this last year, and from what I recalled of you from school, you just didn’t seem the type. George, on the other hand . . .”

Richard pulled the blanket back up to again cover George’s face. His brother looked worse every time he looked at him and it was becoming obvious they couldn’t keep him around much longer. While the open window was keeping the room cool, he would soon start to smell. They had to resolve the matter of who had poisoned George swiftly so they could lay the man and the matter to rest and get on with life.

“Will you be moving him to the family vault on the way to Gretna Green then?” Langley asked, heading for the bedroom door, apparently eager to escape the room.

“Daniel seems to think we should keep the body here until the situation is resolved, just in case,” Richard admitted as they left the bedroom.

“Well you aren’t going to be able to keep him here much longer,” Langley said dryly as he watched Richard lock the door. “Surely he would be fine in the family vault? At least you needn’t worry a servant or someone else will come across him there.”

“True,” Richard murmured and liked the idea of moving his brother to the family vault. Really it was starting to get a bit disturbing having him here, and it was becoming obvious that their efforts to keep him chilled weren’t working all that well. “I think perhaps you’re right. I will talk to Daniel and see if he can come up with any faults in the plan.”

“Faults in what plan?”

Both men turned to peer at Daniel as he strode toward them. Richard couldn’t help noticing that the man was already halfway up the hall to them and yet the hall had been empty just seconds ago when they’d stepped into it. That realization made his eyes shift instinctively to Suzette’s bedroom door, which was just steps behind Daniel now.

“Where did you come from, Woodrow?” Langley asked abruptly, apparently having noted the same things Richard had. Or perhaps it was the fact that Daniel’s hair was a bit mussed, his jacket was wrinkled, and his cravat missing that put the displeased suspicion in Langley’s eyes, he thought with amusement as he waited for Daniel to explain himself.

“Oh . . . I . . . er . . .” He waved vaguely back the way he’d come, and then paused abruptly as Suzette’s door suddenly opened and she hurried out, headed for the stairs, hissing, “Daniel! Daniel, you forgot your cravat.”

Richard bit his lip to hold back a laugh, and glanced to Daniel to see him rolling his eyes. It was Robert, however, who snapped, “Suzette!”

Coming to a shuddering halt, she glanced back, her already wide eyes growing even wider as she spotted the three men in the hall.

“Oh.” Straightening, she turned to face them, and gestured toward the stairs, but stopped as she noted the cravat waving about, and quickly jerked the hand behind her back as if she hoped they hadn’t noticed it. “I was just going downstairs.”

Richard coughed into his hand to hide the laugh that would not be held back and Suzette scowled at him, and then sighed with exasperation and moved up the hall toward them. She shoved the cravat at Daniel without another word and then simply turned to march silently away up the hall. Daniel put his cravat back on as he watched her go, his eyes locked on her behind, Richard noted. When he’d finished, he turned back, took in Langley’s narrow-eyed gaze and said stiffly, “We are getting married.”

“You’ve decided for certain have you?” Richard asked with amusement.

“I am not certain that is the correct phrasing for it,” he said wryly. “It would be more fitting to say I have bowed to the inevitable. The woman is a force of nature.”

“That she is,” Langley agreed, his tone dry and attitude relaxing now that he knew Suzette’s reputation and future were safe. “So, when is the trip to Gretna Green to occur? I should like to accompany you.”

“The sooner the better,” Daniel said grimly. “If Suzette jumps out and drags me into one more room I cannot guarantee she will reach Gretna as pure as she is now, and she is already less pure today than she was yesterday.”

Richard burst out laughing.

Even Langley smiled, apparently not minding the frankness now that Daniel had assured him he was marrying the girl, but he also raised an eyebrow in Richard’s direction and asked, “What are you laughing about? From what Christiana said to me earlier she is definitely not pure anymore.”

“She told you that?” Richard asked with amazement.

“I was assuring her that we could get the marriage annulled and she had to explain that that wasn’t the case anymore,” he said dryly, and then shrugged. “Since last night at the ball was when we realized it
could
be annulled, I’m guessing last night
after
the ball was when that situation changed.”

“Erm . . . yes, well—” Richard paused and raised his eyebrows as he noted Christiana’s maid, Grace, striding up the hall leading two maids. All three women carried a collection of bedding, blankets and pillows. As she drew abreast of them, he frowned and asked, “What’s all this?”

“I asked Milly and Sally to help me make up a room for you,” Grace said calmly as she opened the door to the guest room across from the master bedroom.

“A room for me?” he asked with surprise as she ushered the younger girls inside.

“Yes. You cannot sleep in the master bedroom until the bed is repaired,” she said sensibly.

“No, but there is no need to go to this trouble, I will just sleep—”

“In the spare room until a certain situation is made legal,” Grace said firmly. She gave him a hard smile and added, “Lady Christiana asked me to see to it, and so I am.”

Richard gaped after the woman as she slipped into the bedroom and closed the door.

“Hmm. I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised,” Daniel said, not hiding his amusement. Langley was no better, chuckling openly without even bothering to try to cover it behind a cough.

Richard scowled at them both. “I think we should head for Gretna Green this afternoon. There is really no need to wait.”

“Er . . .” Daniel glanced to Langley and then urged Richard a few feet away to say quietly, “What about the business with George’s murder? Do you not think we should try to sort out who killed him before we do anything else?”

“Langley knows everything, Daniel,” Richard said quietly. “You can speak in front of him.”

“He does?”

“I do,” Langley assured him closing the distance between them.

“Oh, well,” he frowned and then repeated, “As I was saying, do you not think we should resolve that matter before we—”

“No,” Richard interrupted firmly. “You are the one who pointed out that the killer would now think he’d failed and may try again. I think the most important thing is to ensure Christiana is legally wed to me in case a second attempt is successful.”

“You may be right,” Daniel murmured.

Richard relaxed a little, glad he didn’t have an argument on his hands, and then added, “Langley suggested stopping off at the family vault on the way and dropping off George there. I think that may be a good idea.”

“I suppose it’s better than leaving him here unguarded for days,” Daniel said dryly.

Richard nodded.

“Well then, all we have to do is convince the girls to go,” Langley said dryly.

“Oh, I’m sure that will not be a problem,” Richard assured him, quite certain the women would be as eager to get to Gretna Green and get married as he and Daniel were.

Langley snorted at the suggestion and started toward the stairs commenting, “You have a lot to learn about women, my friend.”

Richard frowned after him and then glanced to Daniel, who shrugged.

“Suzette is definitely eager to be wed, I do not think she will be a problem. However, Christiana may fuss a bit.”

“Nay.” Richard shook his head. Christiana had been like wildfire in his arms last night, she too would be eager to be wedded and bedded. At least he hoped she was. It hadn’t even occurred to him that she might frown on the idea of sleeping together again before they ensured their marriage was all legal and proper. But if that was the case, he wanted it done with quickly so that he could have her in his arms again. Surely she would feel the same way?

“Are you two coming?” Langley asked, pausing at the top of the stairs to glance back at them.

Richard and Daniel started forth at once, Richard marshaling his arguments in his head as he went. They needed to ensure their marriage was legal in case anything happened to him. She could be pregnant after all. The other reason for the rush was that they needed to then get back and look into who could have poisoned George. Of course, he hadn’t yet told her that George had been poisoned, Richard realized and didn’t suppose now was the time to do it. Suzette and Lisa weren’t even aware that the Dicky of the last year had been his brother George who was now dead, and that he himself was the true Richard Fairgrave, newly returned from America.

“Good luck.”

The words, accompanied by a pat on the back from Langley, drew Richard’s attention to the fact that they’d arrived at the parlor door. Glancing to the man, he noted the pitying look he was giving him and frowned, but merely led the way inside the parlor, where Christiana, Suzette and Lisa were all chattering cheerfully away.

Approaching the sofa and chairs around the tea tray, he cleared his throat and started. “Ladies, I—”

“Oh, Richard, Suzette was just telling us that Daniel has agreed to her proposal. They are going to Gretna Green.” Christiana beamed as she made the announcement.

“Yes.” Richard smiled back. “In fact, I thought we might accompany them and—” his gaze slid to Suzette and Lisa before he continued, “—renew our own vows. It could be a fresh start for us.”

“Oh, how romantic,” Lisa breathed and grabbed for Christiana’s hands to squeeze them excitedly. “Isn’t that wonderful, Chrissy? That’s so wonderful,” she hugged her and then pulled back to ask, “When do we leave?”

“Now. This afternoon, as soon as I have—”

“No.” It wasn’t Christiana that said it, but all three sisters together, reacting with the same horror they’d had to his arrival at the ball last night.

“Er . . .” Richard glanced toward Daniel and Langley, but they were both apparently content to stay out of this.

“We cannot possibly pack and prepare for a journey that quickly,” Christiana said reasonably, drawing his attention back to the girls. “Why, we shall be lucky to manage it by morning. It will have to be tomorrow, and then only if we start right away.”

Suzette and Lisa nodded agreement and rose, apparently ready to rush off at once. Richard stopped them by raising a hand.

“Now, wait. There is no need to panic. We can manage it today. You needn’t pack much, just one change of clothes, we—”

“One change of clothes?” Christiana echoed with dismay. “Richard, it is at least a two day ride from here to York by carriage and Gretna Green must be another day or day and a half after that. We cannot manage with one change of clothes.”

“We can make Gretna Green in two days if we ride straight through only stopping to change horses,” he assured her gently. “And since we will not be stopping either way there is no need to don fresh clothes except when we can actually stop and bathe at an inn in Gretna Green. Besides, I want to take only the one carriage. There would be no room for wardrobes for the six of us and—”

“The six of us?” Lisa squawked. “What about our maids?”

“Lisa is right. We need our maids. I intend to look nice at my wedding and my maid Georgina is the only one who knows how I like to wear my hair. No, your plans just will not do,” Suzette said firmly.

“Christiana and Lisa could help you with your hair,” Richard pointed out desperately.

Christiana clucked her tongue impatiently. “Even if we agreed to forgo taking our maids, you cannot expect us to ride for two straight days and nights there and then two more back, the six of us crammed into one tiny carriage. How do you expect us to sleep jostling about in a tiny, cramped carriage with you three large men? No, we shall have to stop each night to rest.”

Lisa and Suzette nodded, and then Lisa added, “We shall need at least two carriages, preferably three if we are taking the maids. And we definitely need more than one change of clothes. Let me see, if we stop each night the journey shall likely take four days and three nights there and the same back . . . We need at least eight outfits each, and then there are night clothes and shoes and— Oh, we really need to get started if we want to get any sleep at all tonight.”

“You are right.” Christiana stood and headed for the door. “You two go on up and start choosing what you wish to take. I shall find our maids and join you directly.”