Page 4 of Dominating the Duke

His brother gave the untidy heap of books now strewn on his office floor a cursory glance before taking a seat behind his desk and leaning back in his chair. "Now what do you want?" Daedalus seemed genuinely puzzled at his brother's unexpected appearance.

"That's not a very warm welcome for your closest relative."

Daedalus continued his questioning stare. "You never come here unless you want to bully and question me about my business." And then a smile so warm came over his brother's face that Percy was afraid he might break out laughing. "As for your being my closest relative, that might not remain the case for long."

"I know you're planning to wed Cordelia, but a wife is a very different sort of relative than a brother. Wouldn't you agree?"

Percy stared up at the ceiling as if considering his brother's contention, and then he did break into laughter. "But not a son or daughter. Cordelia's increasing. We're going to marry as soon as possible with a special license, and then..."

Percy interrupted him. "She's increasing? How could you?"

"Well...," Daedalus started, and then Percy waved his hand frantically.

"Please--. I really don't need to know the details. Of course I'm happy for you, but don't you see?" With that, Percy leaned forward intently. "Becoming a father is all the more reason for you to abandon...this." Percy waved his arm around the detritus comprising the bookstore and publishing office. "Surely you don't want your son to inherit this filthy business?"

"My son? What if I have a daughter?"

Percy was tempted to tear at his hair. "Inheriting an erotic bookstore and publishing business would be the utter ruin of a well-bred young lady."

"Please tell me you're not saying my future wife is ruined beyond redemption." The previous happy, childlike look on his brother's face had shattered only to be replaced with something he'd rarely experienced from Daedalus - rage.

Percy took a deep breath and started over. This time, he raised his hand in peace. "Never mind what I said. Whatever I said, please let me take it all back. I have something more important to impart about your business partner, Mrs., er, Captain Goodrum."

For the first time in a long time, he saw a strange combination of expressions on his brother's face - sadness, perhaps, mixed with a pinch of pity. Most of their exchanges since Daedalus had reached his majority seemed to have ranged from shuttered looks on his brother's part to outright hostility.

Daedalus abandoned the scattered books and picked his way around the desk to put his hand on Percy's shoulder. "Why can you not leave well enough alone? This quest of yours to change my profession and run off Captain Goodrum will bring you nothing but heartache."

Percy scrambled to pick through his thoughts and try to figure out what had brought out the maudlin tone in his brother's voice. "I'm afraid you don't realize with whom you're dealing. She's a purveyor of the most scandalous entertainments to be had behind closed doors in London, and Aikers has discovered something so damning, I'm going to have to investigate personally. I fear she's corrupting both adults and children in her pursuit of ultimate pleasure. And of course there's the mountains of secrets she keeps to hand to keep the members of her so-called club in her debt, who..."

Daedalus interrupted Percy mid-rant. "What else did Aikers tell you??"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...did he not tell you where she came from?"

3

LATE MAY, 1826

OFFICES OF FORBIDDEN PLEASURES, LONDON

Percy's head reeled. His mind kept skipping back and forth between what Daedalus had just revealed and what he'd already decided he thought he knew about Captain Eleanor Goodrum. Somehow, he was finding it impossible to to reconcile the two identities.

It now seemed Aikers had possibly concealed some of the truth about the woman to soothe his sensibilities.

His brother slanted him a pitying look.

"Aikers told me she'd fallen in with a now deceased French privateer who'd ended up leaving her both his ship, and his lucrative smuggling empire. Beyond that, he claimed no one know anything about her true past and identity, except perhaps that she'd come out of the West Country somewhere near Bristol."

Percy paced to the lone, dusty window in his brother's office and peered out at the alleyway below. He studied the cobblestones just a tad too long, deep in thought. When he turned back, all he could choke out was, "Combe Down. She's the same Eleanor Goodrum we tried to save from Combe Down."

Daedalus nodded his head in assent.

Percy shook his head slowly. "Tell me what I should do. Should I pretend I don't know what she's up to, simply because I know what a wretched childhood she escaped? Or...should I try to expose what she's doing and try to redeem some part of her that may as yet not be fully corrupted?"

His brother finally spoke, resignation in his voice. "I think you know nothing of either the woman she's become...or all of what her business empire entails. I think you should leave her be and walk away from Aikers's snooping and scheming."

He pursed his lips and tilted up his chin. "I do know she's involved in the highest levels of the Home Office's spy schemes which never seem to end well for anyone. All I can hope for is she's loyal to the crown and not trying to play a double game."