Regency Mischief (38 page)

She was thoughtful as she turned and walked back
to the house. It was as she reached the rose arbour that someone came up behind her. She turned and saw Lily, her instincts telling her immediately that the seamstress was in some distress.

‘Lily—did you wish to speak to me?’

Lily hesitated, then, ‘Yes, my lady. Forgive me—I was wondering if you would help me? I need some money…’ She glanced over her shoulder, as if frightened of being overheard. ‘It is for Sam…he needs to get away, Miss Lottie. They have put a price on his head. I’ve seen the posters up everywhere. His price is fifty guineas. People will give him away. It is a fortune to most folk.’

‘Yes, of course, it must be,’ Lottie said. ‘He is hiding at the moment?’

‘Yes…’ Lily glanced back towards the lake and Lottie understood what she had seen earlier. Sam must be hiding out at the old summerhouse. He was in a very dangerous situation, because he could be discovered at any moment. ‘There’s someone who would help him get away to the coast. If he could find a ship and go to France he might be safe there.’

‘What about you?’

‘I shall stay here until he finds work and can send for me. I’ll work for you for nothing until I have paid back anything you give me.’

‘That would not be necessary…’ Lottie thought quickly. If she gave Lily money knowing that it was intended for a fugitive, she would be breaking the law—but Sam Blake had been unfortunate. She did not think he deserved a price on his head for what he had done. ‘Come to the house with me now, Lily. How much do you need?’

‘Would twenty guineas be too much?’ Lily looked doubtful. ‘I know it is a lot to ask…’

‘No, I can give you that quite easily,’ Lottie said. ‘You need not worry about paying me back, Lily. I had intended to make you a present for making my wedding gown so beautifully—and that will do very well. You may continue to work for me if you wish, but I had thought of helping you to set up a small establishment in Northampton, if you should like it?’

‘You are so generous. If things had been otherwise it is just what I should have liked—but Sam will send for me soon. I shall take the children and follow him to France just as soon as he is settled there.’

‘Then I can only wish you good luck. I am glad we returned in time to help you.’

Lily looked over her shoulder once more. ‘I know I shouldn’t have asked, but Sam is desperate. He says if they catch him he will hang for sure this time.’

‘Yes, I know. I am so sorry, Lily. It isn’t fair that he should be treated so harshly. I do not think his crime so very terrible.’

‘You are a good woman, my lady. There’s not many as care about folk like us. His lordship…’ She shook her head. ‘No, I shouldn’t say, but Sam says he’s a fool to trust that Larkin…’

‘What makes you say that, Lily?’

‘He’s the one been selling game to the inn, my lady. My Sam only did it the once when he were desperate. He needed medicine for me when I had the last babe—but mostly it was just a rabbit for the pot.’

‘Larkin is cheating my husband? Are you sure, Lily? And Sam can prove this?’

‘It’s only his word, miss. No one would listen to a convicted fugitive, would they?’

‘No, they wouldn’t. I am so sorry, Lily.’ Lottie felt pity for the woman and her husband, but there was little she could do other than to give her some money. ‘Come up to my room now and I shall give you the twenty guineas…’

A
unt Beth had gone to bed and Lottie was sitting in her favourite parlour reading when she heard the ring of hurried feet and then the door was flung open and Nicolas strode into the room. Raising her head to look at him, she saw that he was angry. She rose to her feet apprehensively.

‘Is something wrong?’

‘Do you know anything about this?’ He threw down a purse of something that clinked. It landed on the floor at her feet with a little thud. ‘Blake claims that you gave him the money—is it true?’

Lottie swallowed hard. ‘Has he been caught? Why couldn’t you have just let him go, Nicolas? He doesn’t deserve to be hung for stealing a few rabbits.’

‘It wasn’t just my rabbits. Bertie has lost deer and the game birds have been disappearing too fast to be the work of just one man. There is a gang of the rascals at work in the area.’

‘Sam Blake wasn’t one of them. He sold game only once when Lily was ill.’

‘I suppose she told you that?’ Nicolas glared at her. ‘And you believed her—and you gave her twenty guineas for Sam?’

‘Yes, I did.’ Lottie raised her head defiantly, meeting his furious gaze. ‘She told me something else, too—but I dare say you would not listen if I told you who was behind this outbreak of poaching?’

‘I would not believe anything Blake said—and you are a fool to believe his wife.’

‘I gave Lily the money as a present, but I knew she intended it for her husband. He was going to France and she was to join him once he had found work there.’

‘Very likely. The man was a lazy good-for-nothing and would never have done an honest day’s work.’

‘Was…’ Lottie shivered. She felt sick as she looked at her husband’s face. ‘Are you saying…what happened to him? You didn’t…?’

‘Larkin shot him. He was searched, questioned and told he was being taken to prison—he knocked a man down and ran off,’ Nicolas grated. A pulse flicked in his throat. ‘I am sorry, Lottie. I know you like his wife and you had sympathy for the man—but he would have hanged had we caught him. He was seen leaving the area of the lake and some of the keepers went after him. He was warned several times, but he continued to run and he was shot. I am afraid he was killed outright.’

‘No! How could you allow that?’ Lottie stared at him in horror. ‘I thought you had some compassion in you—how could you let your keeper murder a man just like that?’

‘I was not present or I would have stopped it. However, Larkin acted within the law. Blake had a price on his head, which meant he could be shot on sight. Larkin says he intended to wing him, but…the shot killed him instantly. He couldn’t have suffered.’

‘Lily and their children will suffer terribly,’ Lottie said. Her eyes stung with tears. ‘Larkin is the man who is taking your game, Nicolas. Sam Blake knew the truth. Larkin killed him to cover his crimes.’

‘That is ridiculous,’ Nicolas said, his mouth set in a harsh line. ‘You do not expect me to believe my own keeper is stealing from my neighbours and me?’

‘No, Rothsay, I do not expect you to believe it,’ Lottie said and raised her head proudly. ‘Yet I believe it—and in time you may, too. I just hope that nothing happens that makes you wish you had listened.’ She glanced down at the purse on the floor. ‘That money belongs to Lily Blake. She will need it if her children are not to starve.’

Leaving it lying on the floor, she walked past him and from the room, going upstairs to her room. Once alone, she sat on the bed, trying not to give way to her emotions.

How could Nicolas have allowed his keeper to kill a man just for the crime of stealing a few rabbits? If he thought that justice, then he was not the man she had thought she loved.

‘Damn you, Lottie.’ Nicolas caught her as she reached her bedroom door, following her inside. ‘I will not leave this there—nor shall I be made to feel in the wrong over this business with Blake. The man was a fool to fall in
with hardened rogues—and Larkin was within the law to shoot him.’

‘Be damned to the law,’ Lottie said, rounding on him furiously. All caution was gone as her feelings reached boiling point. ‘Have you no compassion at all? I believed you a man of honour, but now I begin to think I was mistaken. You are not the man I thought I was marrying.’

‘Indeed?’ Nicolas looked at her, his expression frosty. ‘I hardly think you are in a position to preach to me of morals, Lottie. You were ready to deceive me—to allow me to think you your sister. You are as much a schemer as she—perhaps worse, for at least she refused to be part of the deal.’

‘You forced me to keep the bargain.’ Lottie’s cheeks flamed with heat. She felt as if he had slapped her. ‘I confessed and begged you to let me go.’

‘You had chances enough to break it off. You need not have signed the contract. You knew I would have let you go then. Do not pretend otherwise.’

‘I thought I liked you,’ Lottie said. ‘I knew it would never be a love match—but at least I thought you would deal fairly with me. Now I am not sure that I like you at all.’

‘So, now we have the truth at last.’ His expression was dangerous, his eyes glittering with anger. ‘You married me because you had a fancy to be the marchioness, I suppose. I thought you very different from your sister, but it seems the difference is slight after all.’

‘Damn you!’ Lottie lashed out, striking him across the face with the palm of her hand. ‘Why don’t you go back to your mistress—or your precious Elizabeth? It is she you love, is it not?’

‘Who told you about Elizabeth?’ Nicolas’s face was white apart from the red mark where she had struck him. He reached for her, catching her wrist as she would have turned away, his fingers clasping her like a ring of iron. ‘Answer me, Lottie! Who has been feeding you these tales?’

She lifted her head proudly, refusing to let the tears fall. ‘I know that you could never love me,’ she said. ‘Let me go, Nicolas. You can seek a separation or a divorce if you prefer—but let’s stop this pretence now. You despise me and I—wish I had never met you.’

‘You are my wife whether you wish it or not—and I have no intention of seeking a divorce. You made a bargain and you will stick to it.’

‘You may force me to be your wife—but I shall never love you.’

Nicolas stared at her in silence for a moment, then turned and walked from the room, slamming the door behind him.

Lottie sank to her knees, covering her face with her hands as she wept.

Nicolas woke and groaned as he felt the pain in his head. He looked round and saw that he was the library, where he had gone to get drunk after the bitter quarrel with Lottie. He had said such things to her—but it was Lottie who had delivered the most telling blow.

She wished she had never met him.

Why had he gone after her and forced the quarrel on her?

He had been so angry when he discovered what she had done. Larkin had given him the money and reported
what the man said, though pretending not to believe a word. Nicolas had been furious, though he could do nothing about the man’s impertinence. Lottie was in the wrong. Had Blake told his tale to someone else, Lottie might have been in some trouble for helping a fugitive.

Nicolas regretted that Blake had been shot while trying to run away. He had remonstrated with Larkin, but the other keepers backed up the man’s story. Blake had been warned and he had struck one of them before making his escape. Larkin’s action was within the law. The posters offered the fifty guineas’ reward dead or alive—and Larkin would no doubt share the blood money with the others.

Leaving the library, Nicolas felt the bad taste in his mouth. It was partly down to the drink he had taken after Lottie walked out on him earlier, but also the unpleasant feeling he had that someone was pulling the wool over his eyes.

Could Lottie be right about the keeper? He walked up the stairs into her sitting room and saw her curled up on the daybed, fast asleep. Why was she not in bed? Had she been frightened that he would enter her room and force her to do her duty?

His wicked, wicked temper! She must have thought that he was threatening her, telling her that she must do her duty as his wife and give him an heir. He had behaved in a disgusting manner—and the worst of it was he could not be certain that he would not give in to temptation if he continued to sleep in the next room. He knew that seeing her every day would drive him mad if he could not have her. The memory of her warm body close to his and her sweetness pricked at his heart.

She hated him now.

He must go away, remove his unwanted presence.

Lottie would not miss him. She had shown herself perfectly at home here, and after the way he had spoken to her the previous night, she would be glad to see him go.

‘I am so sorry,’ he said softly. ‘I would beg you to forgive me, but I don’t think I could bear to see the disgust in your eyes. You will be better off without me.’

By forcing her into a marriage she clearly regretted, he had ruined Lottie’s life.

He walked into the dressing room and found some water, dipping his face in its coolness. He would leave as soon as it was light, taking only a few things with him. His town clothes were in London and the sooner he was gone the better. He would write to Lottie from London, tell her she could do pretty much as she pleased here, and he would instruct his agent before he left that Lottie was to have complete control. It was small recompense for what he had done to her, but he must hope she would forgive him in time. He could do little about Sam Blake—but he would make some enquiries about Larkin.

Nicolas’s mouth drew into a thin line. He would send a couple of Bow Street Runners down here to keep an eye on the man—and someone to watch over Lottie. If the man
was
a rogue, he might try to harm her.

Nicolas hesitated. Should he stay here and try to make it up with her?

No. He shook his head. There was no point. She must hate him. To see scorn in her lovely eyes would destroy him. It would be best to end this now before he was in
too deep. He would have Larkin investigated and make sure she was protected—but she need know nothing about it.

Lottie woke feeling stiff and with a neck ache. She sat up and looked about her, wondering why she had been sleeping on the uncomfortable sofa when she had a soft bed. As the memories flooded back, she frowned. She had sat here and cried herself to sleep, too miserable to seek the comfort of her bed.

She had had such a terrible quarrel with Nicolas. They had both said cruel things—and she regretted it bitterly. To argue with the man she loved over something that was not truly his fault was foolish.

Lottie hated the system that allowed men like Larkin to shoot another man with impunity just because he was a wanted fugitive. Sam Blake might have been a poacher, but he was a husband and the father of three children. What must his poor wife be thinking now?

She decided that the first thing she would do this morning was to visit Lily and apologise for what had happened. Lily might resent her because she was the wife of the man whose keeper had shot her husband, but in time perhaps she would forgive and accept Lottie’s help.

She would ride over with one of the young grooms, and on the way back she would take another look at the Hollow. Lottie intended to ask Nicolas again if he would consider cleaning the place up—or at least give the occupants alternative accommodation before he tore down their homes.

She considered speaking to her husband first, but
thought that he might still be angry with her. Dressing in an old riding habit that she had owned long ago, she glanced at herself in the mirror and was satisfied with her appearance. It would be ridiculous to go to a place like the Hollow dressed in something that cost as much as a family might need to live on in a year.

Nicolas had been generous with her allowance. Lottie doubted that she would spend the half of it, which meant she could redirect it in other ways.

She left the house and walked down to the stables, making a brief inspection of the horses until she found one she thought looked a suitable mount.

‘Would you saddle this one for me?’ she asked a young groom who had tipped his cap to her and was watching curiously. ‘And please saddle one for yourself. I want to visit Lily Blake’s cottage—and the Hollow on the way back.’

The lad’s mouth opened in surprise. She thought he was about to protest, but then he merely touched his greasy cap and set about saddling the mare she had selected. Lottie waited until he had his own mount ready, then led hers to a mounting block and mounted without assistance. Once her hands were on the reins she felt the mare’s restiveness and knew she had chosen a spirited beast, which was what she had hoped for.

She glanced at the lad. ‘What is your name, sir?’

‘I be Willis, ma’am, and the mare be Red Ruth,’ he said. ‘That ’un ain’t bin out fer a couple of days. She’ll be a mite fresh.’

‘Thank you, Willis. I can feel she wants her head, but she will have to behave. I have serious business this
morning.’ Lottie smiled at him. ‘Now, can you show me the way to Mrs Blake’s cottage?’

‘Yes, ma’am,’ Willis said and grinned. ‘I reckon I can. I like Lily. She’s a good ’un—too good fer the likes of that Sam Blake. Me pa alus did say it.’

Lottie nodded. The groom moved off and she followed him. They walked the horses until they were clear of the yard and then broke into a trot. She felt her horse pull, as if it wanted to gallop, but she held her reins steady and would not give into the mare’s desire. On another day she might have done so, but she did not wish to take any risks this morning.

Lily was red eyed and had little to say when she saw Lottie at her door that morning. Her manner was angry and resentful and the look in her eyes cut Lottie to the heart.

‘I don’t blame you, miss,’ she said. ‘You’ve been good to me and I know you would have helped Sam if you could—but the rest of them don’t give a damn.’

‘I am sure that isn’t true, Lily. Some people are harsh and poaching is a crime, whether we like it or not, but I am sure a lot of people will think what happened was very wrong. I know you are grieving and angry—but when you are ready, come to me. Let me help you set up your own business in Northampton.’