Page 20 of A Botanist and A Betrothal (Gentleman Scholars #4)
H ow could her stepfather have so betrayed her?
Vesta was preoccupied by the thought that wouldn’t stop circulating through her mind. She was trying valiantly not to burst into tears.
She shouldn’t have been so shocked; it wasn’t as though Mr. Caldwell had ever displayed any sort of loyalty toward her since the day she arrived on his doorstep with her mother. But still, she had always kept alive the hope that he would one day care about her and wish for her best.
Yet here he was, using her as a pawn in some sort of scheme.
She couldn’t even ascertain what exactly the scheme might be, which only made it worse.
Why would he allow two competing scientists to think they had access to his property? Or was this Doctor Horace lying? Mr. Caldwell had denied any knowledge of Mr. Green, and it was likely he would deny any knowledge of Doctor Horace as well.
Did this new botanist have any proof of an agreement with her stepfather? They should have asked before they kicked him off the property, but what else were they supposed to do? Obviously neither she nor Lincoln had a great deal of experience dealing with tricksters.
“You seem terribly preoccupied,” Sir Edmund remarked as he sipped his tea daintily.
Vesta flushed as she heard Lincoln snort beside her. It was odd to her how very different the two gentlemen were. No one could ever accuse Lincoln of being dainty. Not to say he was overlarge or lumbering. He was just rugged and manly.
She dragged her attention back to the various matters at hand, surprised to note how offtrack her thoughts had gone.
Of course, they were preoccupied, but it was terribly rude of her to take that out on Sir Edmund, whether she was interested in his attentions or not. Since she had allowed him to visit, even offering him tea, she shouldn’t ignore him.
“My apologies, Sir Edmund. There has been a lot going on around here. Tell me of your news. How is your mother? And your sisters? Are they well?”
That set the gentleman off on a long speech that she didn’t really need to pay much attention to, and Vesta allowed her mind to return to the troubling thoughts that were chasing each other through her head.
What did she really know about her stepfather? Did her mother know he was using her so falsely? She didn’t think her mother would ever betray her in such a way, but she also didn’t know to what extent the couple communicated.
It was entirely possible her mother knew nothing. She had seemed genuinely surprised when they had announced their betrothal after all.
On the other hand, it was possible Mrs. Caldwell suspected there were backward reasons behind the betrothal with Lincoln, but she considered it to be in Vesta’s best interest. Perhaps it was, but that was for Vesta to decide. It was her own future at stake, not theirs.
Vesta wasn’t even going to begin to consider the aspect of Mr. Caldwell’s scheme for the benefit of Kimberley and Nancy. She owed those girls nothing. Whether she married Lincoln or not, Vesta refused to be coerced into trying to arrange matches for her stepsisters.
They had agreed that she had a choice. She would be allowed to pursue an education for herself—an unheard-of thing, but something that she hungered for. Vesta wasn’t certain how Lincoln would even be able to grant her request and considering how betrayed she was by her own supposed family, she wondered if she could trust that Lincoln would honour the agreements they had made.
With a start that almost spilled her tea, Vesta brought her focus back to Sir Edmund. Thankfully he was still talking.
“And that’s how the tenants all ended up with their sheep shorn so well.”
Vesta blinked. She hadn’t realized he had been going on about his tenants. Hopefully she had smiled and nodded in all the right places. Finally, the obtuse man stood to take his leave.
“Thank you for the tea,” he said, bowing over Vesta’s hand with an overly dramatic flourish. Vesta just managed not to roll her eyes.
“Thank you for not overstaying,” Lincoln replied with a dry tone. It didn’t seem Sir Edmund even noticed.
Vesta was certain Lincoln had done more of the work of playing host to what was surely an unwanted guest, and she appreciated that, but still, she couldn’t find it within herself to be content or happy about her circumstances.
When they finally saw the back of Sir Edmund, Vesta turned to Lincoln with a smile that felt false even to her own face.
“Why don’t you go back to your instruments while I return to the salon and continue examining that book I found? Besides the missing pages, there might be other mysteries contained within.”
Lincoln didn’t appear pleased with her suggestion, so she added further explanation.
“You suspected there were references to the poem in that book as well. Is it possible Doctor Horace is somehow involved in the publication of that book?”
Lincoln frowned at her as though she had offended him, and she almost laughed in return. Of all the things to cause offense, the fact that the other gentleman might have published a book wasn’t one of them, in her opinion. But of course, she wasn’t in the scientific community, so what did she know?
She didn’t bother waiting for Lincoln’s agreement or disagreement; she merely left the room after ringing for a footman to take the tea tray away.
The time she had by herself in the salon helped her regain her usual steady disposition on the one hand, but unfortunately, she was reasonably certain she had discovered hidden messages in the manuscript that suggested Mr. Caldwell had been involved in the scholars' treasure hunt. As it turns out, it wasn’t just their hunt—which they should have known, really, considering that they found their clues in papers belonging to someone else.
Vesta wondered how Lady Evangeline’s first husband got his hands on the documents that had sent them on their search in the first place. How complicated it was all becoming!
Still, Vesta was now all the more suspicious of Mr. Caldwell and his offer of an engagement between her and Lincoln in exchange for access to the plants. It all seemed so nefarious and crooked, making Vesta feel that she couldn’t trust anyone.
The notes she found weren’t so very hidden as they were written in a code she couldn’t fathom. They were written in by hand, obviously after the book’s publication. She wondered if their location in the book had anything to do with the interpretation.
She also wondered if she ought to tell Lincoln.
Should she continue involving herself in the search for whatever treasure it might be if Mr. Caldwell was involved?
Vesta’s suspicion was that it couldn’t possibly be a lost library they were searching for, which would surely be of great disappointment to Lincoln. Unless it was of great intrinsic value, Mr. Caldwell would have no interest in a library. Whatever the case, though, Vesta knew she had to confront the man directly rather than trying to guess at his thoughts or intentions.
She had been a passive passenger in the journey of her life up until now; it was time for her to take back control and determine what her future would be.