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Younge was impressed with the three men who had been kicked off the ship.

They were big and strong, which is always a bonus, and they had been dedicated to their tasks during the search for the álvarez whelp.

It was a pity that he had no openings in his crew, but occasionally men would take off without letting anyone know so it could be that a spot or spots would open up. One never knew.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

It was midday of the second day of travelling from Liverpool when the carriage conveying Tony to the Duke of Hertfordshire turned off the road and passed through the gates of an estate.

The young man surmised that the estate must be very grand as it took them close to an hour to arrive at the biggest house that he had ever seen.

Waiting for him were a group of serious looking men in very high-quality clothing, far better than worn by anyone that he had known up to that point.

He noticed that all of the men wore black arm-bands similar to the one that he wore for his father.

Once the conveyance halted, a footman placed the steps and young álvarez climbed out feeling rather stiff after so many hours sitting in the same position.

He was approached by the men who were led by an older gentleman who had sandy blonde hair with streaks of grey in it. “You must be young Tony álvarez,” Lord Thomas Bennet stated.

“Y-yes, sir, I am,” Tony answered nervously.

“I am Lord Thomas Bennet, the Duke of Hertfordshire,” Bennet informed the young man.

“Your Grace,” Tony said as he bowed to the Duke.

“This tall fellow is Lord Fitzwilliam Darcy, the Duke of Derbyshire. Next to him is Lord Reginald Fitzwilliam, the Earl of Matlock. These two,” he pointed at the Fitzwilliam brothers, “are Lords Richard and Andrew Fitzwilliam, the Earl of Brookfield and Viscount Hilldale. This,” Lord Thomas indicated to his right, “is my son Lord James Bennet, Marquess of Netherfield, and behind him is Lord Maxwell Ashby, Earl of Ashbury.” Tony was cowed like he had never been before; he had never met a knight of the realm never mind dukes, earls, or a viscount, which is exactly what Bennet had intended.

“When last did you eat, Mr. álvarez?” the master of the estate asked.

“Some hours ago, your Grace.” Tony managed to answer, remembering just in time that he was being addressed by the other duke.

Darcy indicated for Douglas, who had been standing in the background, to approach.

“This is my butler, Mr. Douglas. He will show you to your bedchamber and have a footman bring up some sandwiches and something to drink. Would you like ale?” Darcy asked.

“Yes, thank you, your Grace, that would be most welcome,” Tony answered quietly.

Lord William inclined his head, and his butler indicated that the young man follow him, the peers amused when the lad’s mouth fell open wide as he was led into the mansion, the signs of obvious wealth stunning his senses.

“He did not do too badly, considering everything that boy has been through and then to be confronted by all of us,” Richard said with amusement.

“I will request that Douglas show him to your study in an hour, if that meets with your approval William, Father Bennet?” Both men nodded.

The men decided that in order to help put young Tony at ease, he would initially only meet with Lords Thomas, William, and Richard.

Before he arrived, the plan was to put the young man in a servant’s room, but Lady Elizabeth wisely suggested that he be assigned a guest chamber.

From the little that the Captain of the Coastal Trader had written, the boy had broken with his only family to follow his conviction that there was a better way.

Thanks to the mistress of the estate, Tony was shown into a single guest chamber.

It had a bedchamber, bathing-changing room, and a large walk-in closet.

Comparatively, the rooms were on the smaller side, but they were the biggest, and nicest Tony had ever stayed in.

A footman deposited his meagre belongings on a dresser and left.

Not long after, another brought him a plate with cold meat and cheese sandwiches and a tankard of ale.

Until he took the first bite, he had not realised how hungry he was, and it was not long before there was nought, but crumbs left on the plate.

Tony sat in a very comfortable armchair looking out over the back gardens and the forested hill beyond them as he drank his ale.

He started when there was a knock at the door and the butler informed him that he was to follow him to the master’s study.

Not many minutes later Tony was shown within where two dukes, a duchess, and an earl were waiting for him.

Before Douglas went to summon the young man, Lady Elizabeth had strenuously requested as the target of the plot being hatched, she wanted to be in the meeting.

After half-hearted argument from the three men, they had acquiesced.

Subsequently she was sitting next to her husband on the settee below the windows while her father and brother Richard were sitting on the one opposite.

Darcy pointed to a chair between the two settees for Tony to sit.

“This,” Darcy inclined his head toward his Elizabeth, “is my wife, Lady Elizabeth, Duchess of Derbyshire.”

“The one that first Wickham, and now it seems the Younges, are determined to kidnap and worse,” said Lady Elizabeth said.

“My mother too, your Grace,” Tony admitted with shame.

“I think you had better tell us all, Mr. álvarez,” Lord Thomas instructed.

Tony told them about his life at home and how his mother had run some of his father’s houses of ill repute.

He related how, after his father was arrested and all of his assets seized by the crown, he and his mother had left London for Fowey as Wickham had told his father about Clay Younge.

His mother had a few thousand pounds that were hidden in their home and that was all that she managed to leave with from all of the money that his father had amassed.

He described how angry she was when she tried to enter the house where the bulk of the funds were hidden, only to witness soldiers and runners exiting the house with all of the chests.

Young álvarez believed that it was the loss of the fortune that was driving his mother’s quest for revenge, rather than the hanging of his father.

He told them how McLamb and his helpers had boasted about taking care of the spy in Fowey as they sailed away.

He was honest and admitted that there was a time when he was committed to vengeance for his father, then detailed how his opinion changed because of his father’s single gift of worth, learning to think for himself.

Tony gave them a detailed account of the plans to kidnap and ransom Lady Elizabeth by the criminals she now had focused on her.

The listeners were chilled when they learned what he had heard Karen Younge had planned, how she would slowly kill her victim as payback for her lover being killed.

He began to tell them about Wickham’s plans for Mrs. Younge, but Lord Thomas informed him that they knew that piece from Withers.

After Tony was done with his recitation, there was quiet for a few minutes as each assessed what they had learned. “Do you know why they are obsessed with me? What have I ever done to any of them? I have no idea who your mother or the Younges are,” Lady Elizabeth asked with no little exasperation.

“It all stems from George Wickham targeting you, your Grace…” Tony was cut off as Lord William cut in.

“Wickham!” he spat the name out, “from beyond the grave he is a thorn in our side!”

“If he were not dead already, I would do the deed myself,” Lord Richard growled. No one who knew him doubted that he would have done exactly what he said.

“Once my father and mother were fixated on the ransom, they started to believe it was due to them, just like Wickham had,” Tony continued.

“You already know that my father was planning to dispatch both Wickham and Karen Younge, notwithstanding Wickham’s plans for his paramour.

” The three men nodded. “I am convinced that Mrs. Younge is insane. I have heard her blame her Grace for Wickham’s death a multitude of times, completely ignoring that he brought it all on himself. ” Tony concluded.

“All of them must be insane to place the blame on the intended victim,” Lord Thomas opined and none in the room disagreed with him.

“I hope I am right and that you are having them watched as we speak, your Graces, and your Lordship,” the young man stated.

“What makes you think we may be watching them, Tony?” Lord Thomas asked.

“The three that were dismissed, I overheard Mr. Clements’s men talking one night as we sailed home.

I did not mean to eavesdrop,” he assured them, “but from what I heard, the casting out of the three was theatre for Younge to see or hear about.” He organised his thoughts and then added, “If it was me, I would find a way to get them into the crew of the Stealthy Runner .”

“You are a very smart young man,” the Duke of Hertfordshire noted then changed the subject “Have you thought about what you want to do with your life, Tony?”

“If I could get the required education, I think that I would like to read the law, your Grace.” Tony blushed.

“We will just have to see what happens,” Lord Thomas said with a half-smile. It was the first time that he had almost smiled since his big brother had passed.

“Your Graces, your Lordship, I have one request regarding my mother,” Tony asked with some trepidation.

“What is it, lad?” Lord Thomas asked.

“Will you allow me to write to my mother so I can try one more time to divert her from her path and beseech her to give up this madness. I will not mention anything about any of you, your knowledge, or plans. In fact,” he added to assure them, “once I have written my letter you will be free to read it to make sure that I have not written anything that you would not desire me to write.” After looking to his sons and daughter, Lord Thomas agreed.

“There will be no direction on the letter. It will be sent to Liverpool to be placed in Captain Beauclerk’s hands. When they dock in Bundoran next month, he will deliver it to the inn. What did you say its name was, Tony?” Lord Thomas asked.

“The Happy Leprechaun, your Grace.” Tony was relieved they had accepted his request.

“Yes, well, he will deliver the letter telling the landlord that he can claim that a boy handed it to him in Portrush, Ballycastle, or even Belfast to avoid anyone knowing your real location,” Lord Thomas said, thus laying out a way that Tony could communicate with his mother safely.

“If she chooses to write back to whichever location that the captain says he was given the letter, which is doubtful as she will have no direction but the town, we will have the Dennington agent at the location he chooses have the postmaster direct any letters addressed to you to be held and passed onto our agent.” Lord Thomas offered the kindness of hope with the tempering of his expectations.

The meeting then concluded. Tony returned to his spacious chambers to bathe and change into the one halfway decent suit that he owned for dinner. Lord Thomas and the three who had been in the meeting repaired to the drawing room to relay what they had learnt to the rest of the family.