The Secret Christmas Ciphers (6 page)

“I think—I hope—that we both want the same thing, my dear,” he said, praying he wasn’t misinterpreting what she’d said.

She scooted over in the bed. “Will you join me?”

He breathed a silent sigh of relief. “Shall I remove my clothes?”

She nodded her head and gave him a wobbly smile. He smiled back. This was foolishness. He’d vowed to keep Abigail at arm’s length until this damned war was over. But a man could only resist so much temptation, and he’d been resisting Abigail’s charms for more years than he could count.

He shrugged out of his coat, then flung it into a chair sitting beside the table. He’d started to tug his shirt out of his trousers when a tap came on the door.

“What in Hades?” he muttered. He glanced toward Abigail and saw her pulling the covers up around her shoulders. Her eyes were wide.

The tap sounded again, then the door was pushed open. His father stood in the doorway, grasping a bundle of papers in his right hand. His expression managed to convey both an apology and a degree of urgency. “More have arrived. I’ll await you in the library.” He pulled the door closed behind him.

Silently cursing his luck, Derek turned back to face Abigail, who still sat straight up in bed with the coverlet pulled around her shoulders.

“I’m sorry, my dear,” he said. “I’d ask you to wait up for me but I’m not sure how long this will take. Why don’t you go back to sleep?”

She didn’t speak, just nodded, but a slight frown had formed on her brow, as though she was trying to puzzle something out. He hoped she understood that this interruption was not to his liking.

He began stuffing his shirt back into his trousers. “I may be tied up the rest of the night, and I’ll probably have to leave in the morning. I’m not sure when I’ll return.”

“I understand,” she said. “Do what you have to do. But you will say goodbye before you leave, I hope.”

“I…” She’d surprised him. Wanting sex was one thing. Wanting to be apprised of his comings and goings was quite another, and he didn’t want to promise something he couldn’t deliver.

“Never mind,” she said, correctly interpreting the reason for his hesitation. At least he hoped she understood.

“I’ll see you when I can,” he murmured. He could promise that much at least. “Farewell.”

If she spoke again, he didn’t hear her. He had already stepped out in the corridor and headed downstairs. Sex, sleep, and Abigail would have to wait.

* * *

As soon as the door shut behind Derek, Abigail lay back on the pillow and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she opened them again. Her nap in the chair had apparently fulfilled her need for sleep, that along with the frustration of having practically succeeded in seducing Derek, only to have him called away by duty again.

What was going on? What could his father have meant about more arriving? And why would they be meeting in the library?

Abigail sat up in bed. The fire was low and the room was growing chillier by the minute. If she was wise, she’d lie back down and scrunch up under the covers, but her mind wouldn’t slow down enough to let her sleep. Something—some bit of information that she suspected was important—kept tickling the edges of her thoughts, trying to gain her attention.

She threw the covers back, thrust her feet into her slippers, and hurried over to the hearth. After tossing a small limb on the fire, she stood back and watched while flames licked around its sides until the bark ignited and the fire mushroomed.

Sighing, she dropped back into the chair where she’d waited for Derek earlier that evening. She didn’t intend to go to sleep this time.

Still, there was a good chance he wouldn’t be returning to their chamber. He’d told her farewell after agreeing to meet his father in the library. Which probably meant he’d leave without seeing her again. Indeed, he might leave town thinking she wanted him in the same way his stepsisters wanted men, merely to assuage whatever sexual urges she might be experiencing.

She couldn’t very well blame him if his thoughts led him down that path. After all, she’d rarely said a kind word to him, and tonight had been no different. She’d told him she wanted him to make love to her. She hadn’t said she admired him. She hadn’t told him that she’d been attracted to him for most of her life. She hadn’t told him that she was really quite fond of him.

And she didn’t want him to go back to his regiment, to continue risking his life, without her having the chance to confide in him about her true feelings.

If she was lucky, she’d be able to find him still in the library. She stood, hurried into her robe, and lit a candle from the flames. A few minutes later she had eased down the stairs and was approaching the library. The door was closed.

She paused out in the corridor and held her breath, leaning close to the door to see if she could hear Derek and his father in conversation. She had no desire to enter the library if the earl was still with Derek.

After a couple of minutes had passed and she still had heard nothing, Abigail realized both men could have completed their task, whatever it was, and left. The library might very well be empty. There was no way she could know for sure unless she opened the door.

She very carefully lifted the latch, holding her candle as steady as she could, and then pushed the door open a few inches. Derek, who was seated behind the large desk in front of the fireplace, looked as though he’d been running his fingers through his hair. Usually quite neat, it now stood in peaks in several places. He looked up quickly, then stood and stared at her. Papers were scattered about on the desktop, along with at least half a dozen books.

“Abigail?” He stared at her. “Is something wrong? Are you ill?”

She stepped inside the room and glanced around. There was no sign of the earl. She walked closer to the desk. “I’m fine. I just wanted to say that…”

As she spoke, her gaze paused on one of the books and quickly moved on to one of the papers near the edge of the desk. Both were upside down to her, but she knew what they were. “What are you working on?”

She looked up and watched Derek’s eyes widen in surprise. Then his lips curved into a smile that hinted of an underlying smirk. “You wouldn’t understand, my dear. Besides, you really shouldn’t be here. Go back to bed now.”

She ignored him and stepped closer to the desk. “I should have realized long before now. You’re decoding ciphers and your father has been helping you.” She glanced around the room again. “Where is the earl?”

Derek’s smile faded. “What I’m doing is confidential. However, since you obviously recognize that these are ciphers, I must now depend on your ability to keep our secret. Father and I have already deciphered half a dozen missives and he has gone to take those to our superiors. Unfortunately, the French are growing much more sophisticated and neither of us has been able to break the last one.”

“Let me see,” Abigail said, then stepped around the desk and stared down at the paper in front of Derek.

His mouth dropped open for a second. Then he smiled. “Remember, my dear, that these are ciphers. You’ll not be able to make anything out of them.”

She ignored him and bent to take a closer look. “We’ll need to go Melton Castle.”

“What?” He frowned at her. “What are you talking about?”

Abigail motioned toward the paper in front of him. “That cipher. I’ve seen it explained in one of the books in the library at Melton Castle, but of course I don’t recall the details of how to decipher it. If you don’t have any books here covering that particular method, we’ll need to visit the library there.”

He continued to stare at her. “You’re really familiar with ciphers?”

“Of course. There are dozens of books on ciphers in the library at Melton Castle, and I’ve read all of them. It was an enjoyable way for me to pass the time while your stepsisters were otherwise occupied.”

Derek gave his head a quick shake. “And where was the governess while you were studying ciphers and my stepsisters were
otherwise occupied
?”

“Oh, she was in the library with me, but she preferred reading the romances she’d brought with her. She said there was really nothing else she could teach me anyway and thus she was quite content to let me study on my own.”

“And you chose to study ciphers?”

“Why do you act so surprised? They’re fascinating, just like working a puzzle.” She let her gaze sweep across the various papers on the desk. “Several of these would be simple enough to decipher, but not the one that has you stymied. Fortunately, I remember which book covered that particular method. Are you free to travel to Melton Castle with me?”

Derek smiled tightly. “There’s no need for you to trouble yourself. Just tell me what the title of the book is.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t remember the name. I only remember what the book looks like.”

“Then describe it to me.”

Abigail had no intention of being left behind. “I studied the method. It’s complicated, but I would have the advantage of being familiar with it. I could help you with the deciphering.”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, no doubt trying to illustrate that his patience was growing thin.

“Do you think I can’t be trusted then?” Abigail asked. A slight quiver sounded in her voice.

His eyes popped open and widened. “I didn’t intend to imply that. Don’t get upset.”

“If you trust me, and considering how much help I could be, why won’t you take me with you?”

He lifted his right hand and rubbed it across his chin, hard. “I’ll consider it,” he said, then blew his breath out in a long sigh. “But first I need to finish and deliver the rest of these ciphers. None of these are particularly complicated.”

“I’d like to help with those.”

Abigail could almost read Derek’s thoughts in his eyes as he gazed at her. If he allowed her to help and she proved incompetent, he’d have a good reason for leaving her in London while he went back to the castle. She waited patiently for him to make up his mind.

“Very well,” he said at last. “I’ll start you on one of the shorter ones. And of course I’ll have to check your work.”

She fought to keep from smiling and instead gave a quick nod. “Of course.”

He sorted the papers on top of his desk into stacks, then flipped through them until he found a short missive. “This one is relatively uncomplicated. Give it a try and if you can handle it, I’ll consider letting you work on others.”

Abigail pulled a chair up to the side of the desk and picked up the paper Derek had selected for her. A quick glance told her all she needed to know. She’d have no trouble with this one.

Derek pushed the brace of candles closer to Abigail and they both started work. Abigail found the chore easy enough and was soon decoding her fourth cipher. Every time she finished one, Derek would give her another, and each additional one was a bit longer and a little more sophisticated. On a couple of occasions, she came close to feeling insulted by Derek’s comments of amazement regarding her abilities, but she hid her irritation. Obviously he didn’t quite understand just how many hours she’d spent in his father’s library while he was away at school.

When each of them finished with their last cipher at the same time, they simultaneously rolled their shoulders, stretched and then laughed. Derek’s laughter faded into a fond smile. “You’ve been a tremendous help, my dear, and I shall certainly welcome your continued company when I travel to Melton Castle. First, of course, I’ll need to take these to my superiors and explain why I need an extra day or two to complete the last one. I’ll order the coach for approximately an hour from now. Can you be ready?”

Abigail bit her lip to keep from laughing aloud. She had adored every minute she’d spent with Derek this evening, and now she could look forward to more time with him during the upcoming journey and during their efforts to decipher the remaining puzzle. ”I’ll be ready,” she said.

“Dawn will be breaking by the time we leave, but the day will still be chilly, so dress warmly.”

“I shall.” Abigail picked up her candle and hurried out of the room, both happy and relieved. He trusted her enough to accept her help. That might not be much to some people, but to her it was enough to allow the beginning of hope. Hope that some day trust in each other would not still be completely out of reach.

Chapter Five

The skies that morning were overcast, and there was a smell in the air that Abigail recognized as a harbinger of snow. Thus, she was not at all surprised when she looked out the coach window some two or three hours after their journey had begun and saw snowflakes drifting languidly through the air.

She scooted forward on her seat and craned her head in an attempt to locate Derek. He’d chosen to ride outside the coach and had instructed Abigail to try to get some rest. She’d managed to sleep for short snatches of time but kept being jostled awake as the coach jolted its way along the winter-roughened roadway.

She didn’t see Derek when she looked out the coach window, but she did locate enough landmarks to realize that they were only a couple of miles from Melton Castle. She leaned back, then retrieved her bonnet from the seat and positioned it on her head as best she could.

She’d just finished tossing off the rug covering her legs when the coachman turned into the castle’s drive. By the time the coach rolled to a stop at the front entrance, the snow was falling in earnest and the bare branches of the elms were changing from ugly brown to lacy white.

Seconds later, Derek opened the coach door and held out his hand to help her alight. She stepped down and looked around. “Isn’t it lovely?” she murmured, gazing at the huge white flakes as they floated quietly down to settle gently on everything below.

“I suppose.” Derek’s tone indicated he was less than pleased with this turn of events. In fact, when she looked at him, she saw that a frown had settled on his brow. Of course he would be worried about their being snowed in, especially when he had a cipher that must be of extreme importance, considering how much more sophisticated it was than the others they had deciphered.