Heirs and Graces Read online

  ‘You will be safe here,’ Fergus assured her.

  ‘It is so very kind of Olivia to take me in. No one has ever shown me kindness, or any particular attention, before now. I am so very dull, you see.’

  Fergus chuckled. ‘There is more of your grandmother in you than you realise.’

  She opened her eyes wide and regarded him with frank astonishment. ‘How could you possibly know that?’ she asked.

  ‘That is what we told her,’ Eva said, breaking off from her conversation with Jake to smile at Miss Armitage.

  ‘Here we are,’ Olivia said, returning to the room with Mabel at her side.

  ‘Mabel!’ Miss Armitage jumped to her feet, knocking over a footstool in the process, her shocked expression giving way to one of total confusion when she observed Mabel’s condition.

  ‘Miss Armitage!’ Mabel cried at the same time, eyeing that lady warily. ‘Have you brought news of my father?’

  ‘You father?’ Miss Armitage asked, bewildered.

  ‘Sit down, ladies,’ Jake said calmly, having risen to his feet himself when Olivia re-joined them.

  ‘The time has come to be frank with you, Miss Armitage. Olivia and Mabel can tell you all the particulars later but, in a nutshell, Mabel is carrying your brother’s child.’

  ‘Oh!’ Miss Armitage’s mouth fell open and she clapped a hand over it.

  Mabel hung her head.

  ‘My brother helped you with your reading?’ Miss Armitage asked, recovering from her shock and looking at Mabel. ‘I recall now that he borrowed some of my books for that reason.’

  Mabel’s head remained bowed. She addressed her response to the floor. ‘Yes, ma’am, he did. That’s how it all started.’

  ‘That explains a great deal.’

  Interesting, Fergus thought. Miss Armitage has accepted Mabel’s word for her baby’s parentage almost immediately. Perhaps Henry Armitage made a habit out of compromising vulnerable young women.

  ‘Papa’s anger directed at Henry; it makes sense now. And Henry’s recent moods…I thought they were the result of arguments with Edith. She is enough to overset anyone but…Sorry, I am rambling. I always ramble when I am surprised.’ Mabel looked up, and Miss Armitage smiled at her. ‘I am very sorry that you have suffered at my brother’s hands, Mabel.’

  Fresh tears ran down Mabel’s cheeks. Miss Armitage stepped forward and took her arm, guiding her towards a chair. ‘I didn’t suffer, Miss Armitage.’ Mabel sat down and immediately fixed her gaze on her fingers, then took a deep breath and looked up at Miss Armitage with defiance in her expression. ‘I love him.’ She sighed. ‘I thought he loved me, otherwise I never would have…but well, I was wrong.’

  ‘Mabel left Limehouse because her father has disappeared and she now fears for her own safety,’ Jake explained.

  ‘Disappeared?’ Miss Armitage’s mouth fell open for a second time. ‘Disappeared how? I mean, I understand what disappeared means, of course I do. But how can your father have disappeared, Mabel, and what is being done to find him?’

  Jake explained about the contract that Mabel’s father had insisted upon.

  ‘I should think so too!’ Miss Armitage smiled at Mabel. ‘You deserve to be looked after.’

  ‘Thank you, miss, but some of the blame must be mine. Still, my father is all I care about now. I need to find him. I couldn’t live with myself if something’s happened to him and it’s all my fault.’

  ‘I can see that I shall have to return home and demand some answers from my own father,’ Miss Armitage said, resolution in her tone.

  ‘Absolutely not!’ Fergus cried, jumping to his feet. ‘That is not why we brought Mabel’s plight to your attention.’

  ‘It won’t serve,’ Jake added in a placating tone. ‘My friend is right about that. Even if your father or brother know what has happened to Lloyd, they will not tell you and you would not escape so easily from your father’s house for a second time.’

  ‘No, I suppose I would not.’ She looked at Jake. ‘What do you want me to do instead? I presume there must be something.’

  ‘We are unsure if Lloyd’s disappearance has anything to do with his dispute with your father.’

  ‘It would be a coincidence if the two events are unconnected,’ Miss Armitage replied. ‘Besides, if Edith’s father heard of it there would be hell to pay. He is very protective of his daughter’s interests and would take a dim view of her husband behaving indiscreetly so early in the marriage, regardless of her own behaviour.’

  ‘Your think she does not take her marriage vows seriously?’ Olivia asked.

  ‘It wouldn’t surprise me. She is an inveterate flirt and disappears from the house for hours at a time some afternoons without saying where she is going. I told Henry once because I thought he should know but he didn’t seem interested.’ Miss Armitage glanced at Mabel and sent her a sympathetic smile. ‘Perhaps now I understand why.’

  ‘Miss Armitage,’ Jake said. ‘We believe that Lloyd knew something to your father’s detriment, something that compelled him to agree to sign the document Lloyd drew up.’

  She frowned. ‘Something he overheard at the glassworks, perhaps?’

  ‘That is what we hoped you might know. More to the point, we hoped he would have entertained visitors at your home and you could identify them for us, but no matter.’

  ‘I am sorry, my lord. If I could help you then I would. It is a wicked thing to say but I feel no duty towards my father. What you have told me this morning about his conduct towards Mabel and Mr Lloyd relieves me of any guilt I might otherwise have felt about absconding.’

  ‘You have no occasion to apologise, Miss Armitage,’ Jake assured her. ‘What do you know of your father’s political opinions?’

  ‘I know he agrees with Mr Cartwright’s views and feels men in his position should have a greater say in the future direction of the country. But I cannot persuade myself that he does anything more than complain about the system, the way most people do.’

  ‘Perhaps his distrust for his government has spurred him into taking more direct action.’

  ‘Do you think my father is involved with politics?’ Miss Armitage asked, frowning.

  ‘It is a possibility we are considering.’ Jake turned towards Mabel. ‘Mabel, what can you tell us about your friend John Travis? What time does he finish his duties at the glassworks and what are his habits when he leaves work?’

  Mabel sniffed, looking as though she was fighting tears. ‘John Travis has no further interest in me, your lordship,’ she said. ‘I don’t think he would look upon me kindly again. But that is my own fault. He leaves work at six if he is on the day shift.’

  ‘There is more than one shift?’ Olivia asked.

  ‘Oh yes,’ Amelia replied. ‘Six until six and then sometimes, if there is a rush on, another shift overlaps with them from four in the afternoon until midnight or later. As it is, the fires are kept burning the entire time and there is always someone on hand to keep them stoked.’ Amelia paused, a look of confusion on her face. ‘Although, now I come to think about it, I heard Papa give orders that no night shifts should be worked for the next week or two. Henry queried the decision, pointing out that the order books are full, but Papa insisted without giving a reason. I overheard that conversation, just a few days ago.’

  ‘Interesting…’ Jake contemplated for a moment. ‘About Travis’s habits after his shift, Mabel. Does he stop at a tavern to wash the dust from his throat?’

  ‘Most of ’em do, sir. They are regulars at The Grapes in Narrow Street. You can be sure to find Armitage workers in there every night at ten past six on the dot.’

  ‘Thank you, Mabel. That is helpful. I shall have someone look for him there.’

  Before anyone could ask why, a commotion in the hallway heralded a burst of energy as Tom and Gracie charged into the room.

  ‘Mama!’ Grace reached out her hands to Eva and was swept from her feet by her doting mother. ‘We are going to the park to feed the duck
s.’

  ‘How exciting.’

  Grace’s response was lost beneath the racket that Tom made as he ran around the room, knocking into furniture and not appearing to notice.

  ‘Tabitha, there you are.’ He dived for the cat who, until that point, had been stretched out on a window seat, basking in the sunshine. The cat avoided having its tailed pulled by diving under the nearest couch. ‘Come back, Tabitha! Come back at once.’

  ‘She won’t come out if you are rough with her, darling,’ Olivia told her son.

  Jake watched mother and child with an indulgent expression, before rising to his feet.

  ‘Can you stand to invite us to dine again this evening, Olivia?’ he asked. ‘You are, naturally, welcome at Grosvenor Square, but it would probably be better if Miss Armitage remained here and did not risk being seen anywhere outside for the time being. We need to consult with Isaac about his discoveries and I doubt that I could entice him away from Eva even if I had the courage to attempt it, which I most emphatically do not.’

  ‘I will readily spare him, Jake, for the greater good of your cause.’

  ‘No need, my dear,’ Olivia replied. ‘You are welcome to dine with us, gentlemen, but will have to take pot luck with whatever my cook has prepared.’

  Since Fergus knew that Olivia kept a first rate cook, he doubted whether a great deal of gastronomic sacrifice would be necessary.

  He and Jake took their leave of the ladies. Then children danced around their legs like eager puppies with energy to spare. Olivia herded them into their nanny’s capable hands and accompanied Fergus and Jack back into the vestibule.

  ‘Are you satisfied that we can rely on Amelia?’ she asked Jake.

  ‘Yes. She was horrified when she saw Mabel’s condition, which is what I was hoping for when I had you bring her in. She is taking great delight in defying a father.’

  ‘And I suppose you will have Parker set someone to look for Travis now in the hope that you can recruit him.’

  Jake’s expression turned grim. ‘I cannot think of any other way to gain inside information. If Armitage, who is so keen on profit, is prepared to turn away orders to avoid having workers in the factory at night, then it only increases my suspicions. We need to know what is going on. We know the Radicals meet there. The glassworks have a lot of subterranean hideaways, ideal for secret meetings, just so long as no one has any business going into that part of the works.’

  ‘Do you think they might be holding Lloyd in one of them?’ Fergus asked.

  ‘It is a distinct possibility but it would need to be out of bounds to the workforce.’

  ‘Amelia probably knows her way around them,’ Olivia suggested.

  ‘Too dangerous for her,’ Fergus replied firmly.

  ‘I agree,’ Jake said. ‘It is no business for a woman.’

  ‘You would send me,’ Olivia replied playfully.

  Jake rolled his eyes. ‘If you set your mind to it, I would be unable to stop you.’

  ‘Ha! I am glad we have established that fact.’

  Fergus grinned as he turned to accept his hat and gloves from Green.

  ‘Wear your stays,’ he heard Jake whisper to Olivia before turning to accept his own hat. ‘I have enough distractions without you adding to them.’

  Chapter Nine

  After luncheon, Eva invited Amelia to join her in her chamber. Olivia went along too.

  ‘You need a gown to wear at dinner this evening,’ Eva explained in response to Amelia’s confused expression, ‘and I am closer to your height than Olivia is. I am sure I will have something that suits you.’

  ‘I couldn’t wear one of your gowns, Eva!’ Amelia had been too preoccupied to give any thought to her lack of personal apparel. ‘Nor will I intrude upon your meal. I can eat in the kitchen. It did not even occur to me that I would dine at table with you when you have such influential guests. It is not as though I am one of you.’

  ‘Nonsense,’ Olivia replied briskly, perching herself on the edge of Eva’s bed whilst Eva delved into her armoire. ‘I dare say Jake will have more questions for you, which means you must be there. You will feel better about it if you are suitably attired.’

  ‘I have dozens of questions for him. I am full of curiosity but was too taken aback to ask all the things I wanted to know upon first meeting him.’ She bit her lip anxiously. ‘Lord Torbay is rather imposing.’

  ‘Oh, he is certainly that,’ Olivia agreed. ‘But do not allow him to force you into situations you would prefer not to embrace. I never do.’

  ‘I would not presume to…well to—’

  ‘To play Jake at his own game?’ Eva asked with a mischievous smile. ‘No, I dare say you would not. No more would I. And even if we tried to, I suspect we would not get away with challenging his views. Olivia is the only one who ever does.’

  ‘That is because he needs me,’ Olivia replied airily. ‘To the best of my knowledge, I am the only lady he allows anywhere near his precious investigations. And he only grudgingly does so because sometimes there are situations that require the delicate touch of a female.’

  ‘Ah, that would explain it,’ Eva said, grinning.

  Olivia rolled her eyes but said nothing.

  ‘How about this?’ Eva asked, extracting a sapphire blue silk gown from the back of the wardrobe. ‘The colour will suit you, Amelia.’

  ‘It’s beautiful!’ Amelia’s mouth fell open. ‘I have never worn anything half so lovely, or so exquisitely made. Papa did not approve of spending too much money on gowns.’

  ‘I am perfectly sure that he did not,’ Olivia replied, scrunching up her nose. ‘Which is another reason to celebrate your escape.’

  ‘There is a more compelling reason for you to look your best,’ Eva said, glancing at Olivia. She helped Amelia from her gown and Olivia held out the blue one ready for her to step into. ‘Steady now. Don’t stand on that flounce. It is delicate.’

  ‘Oh lord, I am so clumsy. You had best keep me well away from your finery.’

  ‘Nonsense. There, that’s better. Anyway, as Eva just mentioned—or at least I think intended to—Fergus seemed taken with you.’

  Amelia blushed scarlet. ‘Don’t be ridiculous! Oh, I beg your pardon, I did not mean to speak out of turn but you must own that was an odd remark to make. Lord Willard is a viscount and viscounts do not form attachments to ladies in my situation.’ Amelia closed her eyes to block out the identical knowing smiles being directed her way. ‘I think he noticed how awkward I felt, was kind enough not to sneer and my clumsiness and tried to put me at my ease.’

  ‘Of course he did,’ Olivia said briskly. ‘Now stand still. I am going to tighten your stays before we fasten the gown. We will get a better idea of the effect that way. Breathe in.’

  Amelia did so as she mulled over the events of the most remarkable and exciting morning of her entire life. Lord Torbay had impressed her with his sophistication. He was a natural born leader who had treated her with delicacy and charm, almost as though she was his social equal. And yet she had sensed that he would make a dangerous and formidable enemy if crossed.

  Lord Willard was not nearly so prepossessing and she had felt much more comfortable with him, even before he went out of his way to put her at her ease. A little shorter than Lord Torbay, he had a mop of unruly light brown curls that perpetually fell across his bright hazel eyes. A dormant feeling she couldn’t put a name to had stirred deep within her the moment he fixed her with a lopsided smile and told her how very pleased he was to meet her.

  Foolish child, Amelia privately admonished.

  ‘Exquisite,’ Eva declared.

  ‘What is? Oh my goodness!’ Amelia had been wool-gathering. She examined her reflection now that she was dressed up in Eva’s gown and barely knew herself. Her stays were tighter than she ever wore them but the effect was well worth the discomfort. Her waist looked tiny and she actually had breasts spilling from the bodice. ‘Is that really me?’ She giggled. ‘Papa would have apoplexy if he cou
ld see me displaying myself in such a fashion.’

  ‘All the more reason for you to wear it,’ Olivia replied, pinching her cheek.

  ‘It is a little too long for you,’ Eva said, ‘but I can have my maid adjust that flounce this afternoon and it will be ready for this evening.’

  ‘Are you absolutely sure about this?’ Amelia asked. ‘It feels like such an imposition. I could easily do it myself.’

  ‘Completely sure,’ Olivia and Eva replied together.

  ‘Then thank you,’ Amelia said. ‘I am so very much obliged to you both. I am sure I don’t deserve such kindness.’

  ‘And we are equally sure that you do,’ Olivia said. ‘I will have my maid dress your hair. I mean no offence but that style does not do a great deal for you.’

  Amelia winced at the sight of the tight bun she had pulled her tresses into before knocking at Olivia’s door; ugly but practical. ‘Most of the time I have to look after myself and this is easy to manage.’

  ‘Not whilst you are here, you do not,’ Olivia assured her.

  ‘May I ask you a question?’

  ‘Only one?’ Olivia arched a brow as she pulled the bell cord. ‘Keep that gown on. Mary will need to pin it at the correct length. Then she can do the alteration while we go downstairs for a well-deserved cup of tea and answer your questions.’

  With Amelia dressed again in her own gown, the three ladies returned to the small parlour where they had taken breakfast. The sun caught that side of the house in the afternoon and the room was pleasantly warm. Tabitha had found a patch of sun on the window ledge and was stretched out in it, sound asleep. Her tail twitched occasionally, as though she was dreaming of chasing mice; or perhaps evading tom cats with amorous intentions. Amelia ran a hand down the cat’s sleek body and envied the feline her uncomplicated life.

  ‘I swear that cat is the laziest creature on God’s earth,’ Olivia said, affection in her tone. ‘But still, the children will be brought in soon and that will be the end of her peace, so I suppose we ought not to disturb her.’

  ‘You did not question Mabel when she said your brother fathered her baby,’ Eva remarked when the ladies had seated themselves. She helped herself to a cake from the stand and thanked Olivia when she poured a cup of tea and handed it to her. ‘I do not doubt that Mabel speaks the truth but confess to being surprised that you believed her so readily, Amelia. You did not seem surprised that your brother was capable of taking the virtue of a young girl not in a position to reject him.’