Never a Mistress, No Longer a Maid (Kellington Book One) Read online

  “I see,” said Lynwood coolly. “And, of course, you didn’t think to pay a visit to Kellington House to let us know ahead of time.”

  “I didn’t think it would be proper.”

  “I see, again,” said Lynwood.

  “To tell you the truth, I’m beginning to have second thoughts about the matter. You see, I always assumed Lord Edward and I would marry because you were promised to someone else. But since that’s not the case, I was hoping you and I could come to an agreement.”

  “I’m not quite sure I understand,” said Lynwood. “Are you suggesting that my brother and I are interchangeable parts?”

  “I don’t know,” said Madeline, as she walked toward him, hips swaying seductively. “I haven’t yet seen your parts.” Then she pounced, wrapping her arms around his neck in a stranglehold, while planting her lips firmly on his.

  The door to the hall burst open and an out-of-breath Rosalind entered.

  “There you are, your grace,” she blurted. “I believe I promised you this dance.”

  Madeleine was so startled that Lynwood was able to easily extract himself from her. Seconds later, the door to the adjoining study burst open and Lady Barrington charged into the room with a quite confused Lady Crenshaw by her side.

  “There you are, Madeleine!” interrupted a very rehearsed Lady Barrington, until she realized she wasn’t interrupting anything at all.

  “What do you mean by dragging me in here?” demanded Lady Crenshaw. “I’m hosting a ball and can talk to my nephew any time I like.”

  “Miss Merriman asked to speak to me in private to tell me she no longer wishes to be engaged to Lord Edward,” said Lynwood to the extreme displeasure of Lady Barrington and her daughter.

  Lady Crenshaw moved closer to the girl and sniffed. “She doesn’t seem foxed.”

  Lady Barrington looked uncertainly at Lynwood. “Are you offering for her, your grace?”

  “I’m afraid we would not suit. Miss Merriman, I trust you will send a note to Lord Edward tomorrow telling him you’re breaking the engagement?”

  While he phrased it as a question, there was no missing the steely command in Lynwood’s voice.

  “If I must,” she sulked.

  “Yes, I rather think you must,” said Lynwood. “Now, if you’ll all excuse me, I promised this dance to Miss Rosalind. Ladies.” He bowed, then exited the room, clutching Rosalind’s elbow as he went. “How did you know?” he asked as soon as they were out of earshot.

  “I noticed Lady Barrington avidly watching you when you entered the library.” Rosalind didn’t add – and prayed he wouldn’t realize – that she, too, had been avidly watching him. “When she grabbed Lady Crenshaw, I put two and two together, then ran for the hall entrance, hoping to get there in time. That is to say, I hope I was the more welcome intruder than Lady Barrington. If not, you have my apologies, your grace.” She smiled at him, quite proud of the fact she’d been able to string so many sentences together in his presence.

  “I owe you my thanks and a dance. I also believe it’s high time you began calling me Lynwood. Or Liam,” he said, as he held out his hand. His cool blue eyes looked into hers.

  Rosalind’s mouth went dry. “As you know, I only invented that as an excuse to barge in on you. You must not feel obligated to dance with me.”

  “Obligation has nothing to do with it,” he said softly. “Will you dance with me, Rosalind?”

  But just as she was about to put her hand in his, Arthur, Hal, Jane and Lizzie ran up to them.

  “Liam, Ned needs us,” said Arthur. “He took off after some villain Jane says is dangerous.”

  Lynwood immediately took charge.

  “Arthur, come with me. Hal, escort the ladies home.”

  “Why does it always have to be me?” complained Hal.

  “I haven’t the time to argue. Go!”

  Lynwood turned back briefly to say “My apologies, Rosalind,” then hurried off.

  * * *

  When Evan Cantwell went into the garden, Ned had expected to be able to catch him easily. What he hadn’t expected was for Cantwell to slip out through the back into the mews. Then Ned realized following the man would likely yield more answers than simply pummeling him. Although pummeling had definite appeal.

  Ned followed him for several blocks, as Cantwell walked up and down streets, while doubling back every few blocks. Ned kept pace, but far enough behind that he wouldn’t be spotted. It gave him time to think about Jane and how much damage the announcement of his engagement had wrought.

  Every time he thought he was closing in on his ultimate goal, something or someone got in the way. He’d been adamantly against marriage just a few weeks earlier. But it was amazing what the right woman could do to change a man, not to mention a little sprite who enchanted him. His future was clear. He just needed a way to get there. He wouldn’t accept anything less.

  Then he cursed himself, because while he’d been filling his mind with thoughts of Jane, Cantwell had increased the distance between them. Ned turned a corner in pursuit, only to find himself in a dead end, with Cantwell nowhere in sight. And now he was stuck in an alley where the walls on three sides were solid brick with no doors or windows within reach. Where in blazes had Cantwell gone?

  But only as Ned turned to retrace his steps, did he recognize the peril he’d placed himself in. Nearly a dozen men blocked his escape. They were armed with knives and clubs.

  Ned pulled a knife from his boot. He’d killed men in hand-to-hand combat before, but never when the odds had been this bad.

  “Stand aside,” he said, hoping they might be thieves looking for an easy purse .

  That made the men laugh.

  “Stand aside ‘e says, like ‘e’s the one to give orders,” said the first brigand. “Ye’ll learn soon enough who’s in charge. Ye won’t be sayin’ much a anyfink other than beggin’ for mercy.”

  “I said stand aside or be killed,” said Ned, only partly bluffing. He knew he could dispatch one, possibly two of the men before the rest of them overpowered him. But he wouldn’t give up. He needed to stay alive to protect his family.

  This made the men laugh even more. He used that to catch them off guard, charging at them until he reached the first man. With a deep downward slash of the blade, he cut the man’s tendons in the hand holding his knife. At the same time, he kicked the man’s kneecap out, sending him crumpled to the ground in agony.

  The other men descended on him en masse. He caught a second man with an elbow to the throat, while he ducked a slashing blade. Unfortunately, he couldn’t avoid a club to the back that sent him to the ground. He barely rolled out of the way of another brute who was about to stomp his head. It became increasingly clear this was no random attack. These men had been hired not to scare him, but to kill him.

  He swung out a leg and hit a man’s ankles, bringing him down. He barely avoided a blade to the chest, when the man he was fighting suddenly reared back. When he fell over with a knife in his kidney, Ned looked up to see Inspector Stapleton.

  Two men jumped on Stapleton, beating him with clubs. Ned tried to get to him, but was jumped by two other men, one of whom slashed his arm. He heard someone running to the alley and prayed it was a bystander coming to help, rather than more men sent by Cantwell, because he had no doubt who was at the heart of this. He heard wood cracking and another man went down. He glanced over, hoping Stapleton hadn’t been hurt, then saw one of the villains on the ground bleeding profusely from the head, having been felled by the newly arrived Ambrose Fisk’s crutch, which was now broken in two.

  Despite the loss of his crutch, Fisk gripped his knife and held it at the ready for the next wave of attack. Stapleton’s shirt was soaked in blood, but he was still fighting off his attackers. One of them lunged for Stapleton, knocking him over. The man was about to bring a club down on his head as Ned watched helplessly while fighting off his own attacker, when the brigand with the club fell over, revealing Lynwood with fists clenched in r
age, and Arthur close behind.

  The battle then quickly turned in their favor. There was one tense moment when Arthur almost attacked Fisk, but Ned was able to call him off in time. When the villains realized they were about to lose, they limped off. Ned wanted to follow, but Stapleton and Fisk had what looked to be serious injuries and needed help.

  “What happened?” asked Lynwood, as he examined Stapleton’s wounds.

  “I followed Cantwell when he left,” said Ned as he checked Fisk.

  “As did I,” said Stapleton, grimacing as Lynwood pressed his cravat on the wound. “I’m glad the rest of you happened upon us.”

  “Hal will just be sorry he missed all the fun,” said Arthur. “Who’s the other gentleman among us?”

  Ned introduced them all to Fisk, who couldn’t quite believe so many noblemen had been that good in a fight. He’d been following up a lead when he heard the commotion in the alley and joined in.

  Arthur approached them. “I just hailed two hacks. Shall we go back to Lynwood House?”

  “I’ll want to speak with you in the morning, Lord Edward, but for now I’m off to find a surgeon,” said the Inspector.

  “You’re in luck, because we have a resident surgeon at Lynwood House,” said Ned. “Inspector Stapleton, Sergeant Fisk, you must come with us and have your wounds tended.”

  After a moment’s hesitation, both Stapleton and Fisk agreed to go.

  Lynwood House was as close to chaotic as it ever got within half an hour of the men arriving. Jane issued orders for water to be boiled and the necessary supplies to be sent up to her, including multiple bottles of Scots whiskey.

  Heskiss escorted Stapleton and Fisk to guest chambers after they’d been informed in no uncertain terms by Jane that neither would be leaving the house until their wounds had been tended and checked for infection, which would take at least 24 hours. A footman was dispatched to take Stapleton’s report to his superiors.

  Fisk seemed fascinated by the entire process. It occurred to Ned this may have been the man’s first experience above stairs in a house like Lynwood.

  “I’m sure you have room for me in the servants’ quarters, do ye not?” he asked Heskiss. “I’m not cut out for such finery.”

  “I’ll let you in on a little secret, Fisk,” said Rigg, who’d come to check on his old comrade and was now helping the limping man into bed. “The Lynwood House servants’ quarters are almost as nice as this. So I’m afraid avoiding finery will be an impossibility. Miss Wetherby will be here directly to tend to you. Is there anything I can get for you in the meantime?”

  “Ye can wake me from this dream I’m having, because I still can’t believe I’m here.”

  “Very good, Sergeant,” said Heskiss as he bowed himself out. “Welcome to Lynwood House.”

  Jane was in Stapleton’s room, bathing his wounds. He had a rather deep slash over his ribcage that would need stitches, as well as cuts all over his arms, but nothing too serious. Lynwood, Ned and Arthur watched her work, while Ned filled Stapleton in on what had happened.

  “Miss Wetherby,” said Stapleton, “did you speak to Cantwell at the ball?”

  “No. I didn’t see him until the very end.”

  Stapleton considered the possibilities. “Your grace, do you know why he would’ve been on Lady Crenshaw’s invitation list?”

  “I can’t imagine he was,” said Lynwood. “Our aunt is rather particular about her guests.”

  Stapleton winced as Jane began stitching. “I think we can assume that he snuck into the party with the sole reason of luring Lord Edward out into the open.”

  “Do you believe he’s the man who killed my grandfather?” asked Jane as she carefully stitched.

  “I can’t say. I’ve been looking into his dealings with the earl, and while I’ve seen plenty to raise my suspicions, I haven’t found any evidence directly implicating him in any wrongdoing.”

  “Until tonight,” said Ned.

  “Perhaps not even then. We can’t prove the man set those brigands upon you, but I do have enough to bring him in for questioning. If he can be found. I have a feeling he won’t be.”

  “I think you should look into Wills Overton,” said Ned.

  “That’s ridiculous,” said Jane.

  “Who is Wills Overton?” asked Stapleton.

  “An old friend from Marston Vale,” said Jane.

  “Who’s all of the sudden come back into your life, now that we discovered you’re an heiress,” said Ned, as if he needed more reason to dislike his rival for Jane’s affection. “It’s quite suspicious really.”

  “He says the same about you.”

  “That’s outrageous! I should’ve blackened his eye when I had the chance.”

  “Ned,” drawled Arthur, amused by his brother’s jealousy, “do you think it’s wise to vent your rather violent spleen in front of the man investigating you for murder?”

  “You can hardly blame Wills for questioning your intentions, Lord Edward, given the announcement at dinner,” said Jane frostily.

  “What announcement?” asked Stapleton.

  “Lord Edward’s betrothal to Miss Madeleine Merriman,” said Jane.

  Stapleton looked confused. “But I thought the two of you…”

  “The announcement was a gross misunderstanding,” said Lynwood. “I spoke to Miss Merriman and she’ll be releasing you from the engagement tomorrow, Ned.”

  “How did you do that?” asked a relieved Ned, watching for any reaction from Jane, who was concentrating on Stapleton’s wounds.

  “With some life saving assistance from Miss Rosalind, which I’ll explain later. But to get us back to the matter at hand, given Evan Cantwell’s likely involvement in tonight’s events, is there any merit in investigating Wills Overton?”

  “It couldn’t hurt to be thorough,” said Stapleton. “I’ll have a man put on him tomorrow.”

  “He should talk to Sergeant Fisk,” said Ned. “He’s already been digging around for information on him.”

  “Ned!” said Jane.

  “I’m not taking any chances regarding the safety of you and Vi,” said Ned. Or his matrimonial chances with the infuriating woman.

  “Evan Cantwell’s name has come up in dozens of the documents I found in Huntington’s home,” said Stapleton. “The earl had been buying up his markers all over town – substantial debts that would’ve likely gotten Cantwell killed if left unpaid. That’s why I was following him tonight. I wanted to see if he was still doing business with moneylenders.”

  “Could they have made a deal?” asked Jane. “Could Cantwell have agreed to marry me in exchange for returning a portion of my inheritance to my grandfather after we were married? If my grandfather was holding his markers, he could’ve controlled Cantwell and demanded much more money than he’d paid out.”

  “And with the earl dead, Cantwell could keep all of the money. That’s a very good theory,” said Lynwood. “What do you think, Inspector?”

  “I think Miss Wetherby would be as fine of an Inspector as she is a surgeon.”

  “Don’t even think about getting up, Sergeant,” said Lizzie, as she sailed into Fisk’s bedchamber where he, Hal and Rigg were playing cards while waiting for Jane to tend to his wounds. “I’ve brought you a cane.”

  She handed him an ebony cane with a silver handle.

  “I believe it’s one of those things where you can hide some type of sword inside. They were very popular in the last century, which is where that thing dates from. I found it in the attic.”

  “Thank ye, milady, but I’ll be heading home soon.”

  “Probably not as soon as you think. I’ll put it by the side of the bed within reach. Are you married?”

  “Pardon me, milady?” asked the Sergeant.

  “Are you married?” she repeated as if it were the most natural question in the world.

  “Lizzie, the Sergeant has been through hell tonight,” said Hal. “Must you increase his suffering with your infernal matchmaking?
”

  “Are you and Rigg volunteering to take his place?”

  “Lud, no,” said her brother.

  “I’d rather return to the battlefield,” said Rigg. “But thank you, my lady.”

  “Actually, milady” said Fisk. “I’d love to find me a wife. Only I’m pretty sure you and me don’t exactly run in the same social circle, not to mention there ain’t a lot of women out there who want a man who’s missing half a leg.”

  “How little you know about women,” said Lizzie, already running through a list of eligible candidates in her head.

  “That’s true enough,” said Fisk.

  “Once you’re feeling a bit better, you and I shall have a talk about what you’re looking for in a wife. Then I’ll help you find one.”

  “That’s one of the best offers I think I’ve ever had,” said Fisk.

  “Good. Then after you’re happily married, you can convince these two to give it a go,” she said. “I want more nieces and a few nephews to go with them.

  “You’ll never get me married,” said Hal. “I plan to remain a bachelor until I’m old and grey.”

  “We shall see about that,” said Lizzie. Or, to Hal’s way of thinking, threatened.

  After ensuring the Inspector’s wounds were sufficiently cleansed, stitched and bandaged, Jane and Ned left Stapleton to tend to Fisk, leaving Lynwood with the Inspector.

  “I’ve never stayed in a nobleman’s house, your grace,” said Stapleton. “I’m not quite sure of the protocol.”

  “We usually have a ball at midnight, but decided to cancel tonight’s festivities,” said Lynwood. Then, after observing Stapleton’s slightly uncomfortable expression, added “That was a jest. But it seems no one ever knows when I’m not in earnest.”

  “I can only assume it’s because most are in awe of your position.”

  “And you are not?”

  Stapleton waited a moment before answering. “At the risk of being thrown into the street, thus doing damage to Miss Wetherby’s excellent work, I’ve found that a person’s status in life has very little to do with his or her worth. I’ve found great courage and grace in the poorest corners of the slums and met individuals of little worth within the highest ranks.”