Page 23 of A Duke to Restore her Memory

“Please, Your Grace,” stammered the butler, following Sebastian and Daniel as they strode down the long hallway in the Hester’s manor house. “Mr Hester is indisposed and is not receiving callers.”

“The deuce he is not,” growled Sebastian. “He is going to see me whether he wants to or not.” He took a deep breath, gathering his breath. “Walter Hester! Show your face!”

Servants were gathering now, staring at him with mouths gaping like fish as he marched down the hallway, pushing doors open, looking for Hester. His blood was boiling.

The ride from Newquay Hall to the Hesters’ home hadn’t soothed him – if anything, his indignation and anger, the enormous sense of betrayal over what Hester had done to him, had increased.

“Steady,” said Daniel, his eyes flickering. “You do not want to lose your head completely, Newquay.”

“Someone is going to lose their head,” he snapped. “But it will not be me.”

A door opened. Walter Hester stood there, glaring at him. “What is the meaning of this, Newquay? You cannot just barge into my house like this.”

“I already have,” snarled Sebastian, approaching the man and pushing past him into the room Hester had just emerged from. He gazed around. It was the parlour. “You would be best to hear me out, Hester.”

Hester sighed dramatically, turning and following him into the room. Daniel had entered as well, standing behind Sebastian, flanking him like a soldier flanking a general on the battlefield.

This is a battlefield. I am battling for my business and my reputation. And the man before me is my enemy.

“I know what you are doing, Hester,” he said in a low voice, turning to face the man. “I know about your treachery. I know that you were responsible for making that abandoned mine unsafe. And I know you were also responsible for the explosion in my other mine.”

Hester gave a bark of laughter. “You are being absurd!”

Sebastian shook his head in disgust, trying to control his anger, his hands balling into fists at his sides. He wanted to hit the man square in the face, to feel his fist connect with his nose, to release the anger.

“How could you? Sixteen men died that day!” Sebastian took a step closer to the man, grabbing him by the collar. “Have you no morals at all? How could you do such an evil thing?”

Hester didn’t reply. His piggy eyes were shining with anger, though. The tense silence was broken only by the men’s heavy breathing.

“You have no proof of it,” flung back Hester in a scornful voice. “Where is your evidence, Newquay?”

“I am gathering it,” growled Sebastian. “I know that my tenant, Abraham Barstow, is your henchman. I know that you paid him to sabotage my mines.”

Hester’s eyes widened. He looked shocked. Clearly, he didn’t like that piece of news.

“I have confronted Barstow,” said Sebastian quickly. “He admitted everything to me. Your treachery has been revealed, Hester. You may as well admit it, too.”

Sebastian’s eyes flickered to Daniel, who didn’t react to the lie, retaining a straight face. They hadn’t confronted Barstow at all. But Hester didn’t know that – and telling him they had secured Barstow’s confession might just flush the rat out once and for all.

“Very well,” said Hester, in a voice filled with contempt. “I admit it! I paid Barstow to sabotage your mines so that your reputation would be diminished, and you would sell to me.” He glared at Sebastian. “Your way of doing business is doomed, Newquay. My way is the way of the future. You are too sentimental about your workers. It is all about profit.”

A wave of rage swept over Sebastian. This time, he didn’t even try to control it. The man had just admitted his treachery.

He swung his arm back, hitting Hester square on the nose. The man gasped, reeling back and falling onto the floor, clutching his nose, still glaring at Sebastian. Daniel stepped forward as if to restrain Sebastian from attacking the man again, but Sebastian shook his head at his friend.

“Do not worry, I will not hit him again,” he growled, his chest heaving. “The worm deserves to be beaten to a pulp, but I will not stoop so low.”

He shook his head in disgust, staring at Hester, who was squirming on the floor. Blood was pouring from his nose, and he was trying to catch it with his hands. It was spilling through his fingers, all over the man’s pristine white shirt.

“I would rather die than sell to the likes of you,” spat Sebastian. “You have blood all over your hands, Hester, and I vow to you that you will never own my mines. Not in a million years.” He took a deep breath, turning to Daniel. “Come on. We have more work to do.”

He strode out of the parlour and down the hallway, Daniel following in his wake. They mounted their horses, heading to Abraham Barstow’s house.

It was silent when they arrived at Barstow’s small stone cottage. The only sound was washing, flapping in the wind. Sebastian rapped on the door. It seemed an eternity before there was a response. To his relief, Barstow answered the door himself.

The man knew something was wrong immediately. Sebastian saw the fear in his eyes.

“I know what you have done, Barstow,” he snarled, grabbing the man by the neck. “Your paymaster Hester has admitted everything … so you may as well admit it too.”

The man crumpled immediately, starting to babble.

“I know I did the wrong thing,” he cried. “But I was desperate, Your Grace! My youngest child needs special care in hospital that I could not afford, and I have so many mouths to feed …!”

“Save your breath, Barstow,” growled Sebastian. “You can tell your story to the constabulary.” He shook his head incredulously. “If it were true about your youngest child, you could have come to me, and I would have assisted you. You know that. But you did not do it. Instead, you accepted a Judas’s coin and killed good men. Your neighbours and friends. How could you do it, man?”

The man’s face crumpled. He slumped, almost falling to the ground. Daniel stepped forward, taking the man away. Sebastian ran a shaking hand through his hair.

So much had happened in the space of the day that he was having a hard time dealing with it all. So much betrayal. Treachery was all around him.

Even though he was shocked by what Hester had done, he had always known he was scum, capable of doing anything for money.

The man had no values whatsoever. But it was different with Abraham Barstow – he had thought his tenant was an ally. He had always treated Barstow with respect and kindness.

He swallowed a painful lump in his throat. He was shaken to the core. He felt as if it was him against the world. For if he couldn’t trust a man like Barstow … who could he trust?

***

Christina paced the floor in her room at Newquay Hall, wringing her hands together.

The duke looked so furious and hurt when she told him about the conversation she had overheard between Hester and Barstow. He had looked as if someone had pulled a rug from beneath his feet.

Her heart turned over in her chest as she pictured his devastated face.

She had wanted to rush forward and soothe him, tell him that everything would be well, and wrap her arms around his waist and hug him tightly. She had only just managed to restrain herself.

She blinked back tears. He had also told her, in a quiet voice, that he believed her – that he didn’t think she was defrauding him.

Her heart had surged with joy when he had uttered those words. She hadn’t realized how much she valued his good opinion of her until it was gone.

She took a deep breath. But now, he was confronting Walter Hester about what he had done. Her heart lurched with fear. What was going to happen to him? Was there going to be a fight? Would he get hurt?

Oh, please, God, keep him safe. Make sure he comes home in one piece. Please, let everything be well.

Abruptly, she stopped pacing before turning and walking to the window, sitting in the alcove and gazing out. The duke and Lord Ealing, who had accompanied him, had been gone for hours. A knot of anxiety was resting in the middle of her chest, small and tight. What was happening? Where were they?

She noticed long shadows falling across the lawn. A gardener, pushing a wheelbarrow filled with weeds, slowly walked down a path. There was no sound of birdsong – the birds were heading to their nests. It was late afternoon now. Soon, it would be dusk. The day was almost over.

There was a soft knock on the door. Christina started, jumping up and smoothing her hair with shaking hands. “Come in.”

The door opened. It was Mrs Sollock, holding a pile of fresh towels. Christina took a deep breath, forcing a smile onto her face. The housekeeper had always been kind to her and was still kind when everyone else was treating her with suspicion and distrust.

“I thought I would bring the fresh towels to you myself,” said the housekeeper with an easy smile. “Just so as I can see how you are.” She paused. “I noticed you went for a long ride after your meeting with his grace.”

Christina nodded, gulping. “Yes,” she said in a faltering voice. “I needed to clear my mind. It seemed that his grace had heard the rumours about me and no longer trusted me, believing I was defrauding him.” She took a deep breath. “I was hurt. I did not know what to do. I told him that I would leave Newquay Hall if he wanted.”

The housekeeper’s expression didn’t change. She nodded. “And now? Do you still think you will leave the manor?”

Christina bit her lip. She hadn’t discussed the possibility of her leaving with the duke at all.

He had told her he believed that she wasn’t defrauding him, when she had returned from the ride and was informing him about the conversation between the men, but he hadn’t addressed her leaving Newquay Hall.

She had no idea whether he wanted her to go or not … or, more to the point, whether it would be the best thing all round if she left. The best thing for both of them.

Her eyes filled with helpless tears. Hastily, she turned away so the housekeeper couldn’t see them shimmering in her eyes. She felt shaken to the core as if an earthquake had just shimmied throughout her entire body.

I truly care for the duke. It isn’t just a physical attraction and a strong connection. I think I might actually love him.

Stunned, she tried to catch her breath as the enormity of the revelation swept over her. Quickly, she walked to the window. Her mind was spinning violently and her heart felt so full it was as if it might burst.

She loved him. There was no other reason she was suffering like this, agonizing that he might be hurt, waiting for him to return home safely.

It was as if the knowledge had been hovering at the back of her mind, and now it had rushed to the forefront, overwhelming her completely.

She gazed out the window. At that moment, she saw him riding into the estate. Her heart almost fell to the ground, shattering into a million pieces. Quickly, her eyes raked over him, taking him in.

He was safe. He was well. He wasn’t visibly hurt.

At that moment, he raised his eyes to the window. Their gazes connected. Christina felt a jolt all the way down her spine to the soles of her feet. It was as if a bolt of lightning had just zigzagged through the window, hitting her in the chest.

His last words to her before he had left to confront Hester fell into her mind.

I promise I will return to you … wait for me.

She loved him. So much. But she was destined never to have him, even if he had asked her to wait for him. For how could a woman with no past or position ever hope to win the heart of a duke? Especially when the entire world believed that she was a fraud.

Hastily, she turned away, her heart tightening. She gazed at Mrs Sollock.

“I do not know,” she said slowly, feeling as if every word was being pulled from her throat. “I do not know if I will stay at Newquay Hall or whether I must leave.”