Page 28 of The Wise Daughter

Nora stiffened in her saddle and fidgeted with her gloves, loosening them only to tug them tight again, but it kept her from spurring Locket into a restless gallop. No matter how much Nora tried, she couldn’t relax into the easy rhythm of Locket’s canter.

“I still think we should have insisted on seeing the inside of the manor.”

“You heard Carver’s explanation. There were too many repairs underway. The house was unfit.”

Nora scoffed. “I’m sure it was.”

“Did you not believe him?”

“I don’t know.” She pressed her lips together in frustration.

“I don’t know because I didn’t go inside and see the state of things myself.

If Mr. Vander is one of our thieves, it would be an easy business for him to steal from Raven Manor, easier than stealing from the castle.

And it makes a convenient stop for him before he or anyone in league with him can leave for London with the things they’ve stolen. ”

“It sounds like you’ve really thought this through.” Aaron kept pace with her, staring ahead. “I’m sure Carver would have told me if anything had been stolen.”

She wasn’t going to leave her arguments behind so easily. “Well, what have you to say about Mr. Vander and his parcel?”

“You heard their explanations as well as I did. He was carrying tools. Nora, they had reasonable explanations.”

“Of course they did!” She reeled Locket to face him. “And this is why you have not yet discovered the thieves. You trust Ruthers. You trust Carver, and you trust Vander. Little wonder the thieves have managed to go unnoticed for so long.”

Aaron grew still and silent. She could tell she had injured his feelings, which she instantly regretted, but she had only spoken truth. It was especially vexing to see him ignoring so many possibilities.

“I’m sorry, Aaron.”

He took his time before speaking again. “I’m sorry you’re disappointed, Nora, but I’m the duke.

I represent law and order, power and privilege.

Those are burdens I take very seriously.

I cannot parade through the village accusing people simply because their actions and motives are not immediately obvious to me.

I must be careful. The people of Ravenglass are meeting me for the first time.

My servants are finally forming opinions based on their own experiences with me.

I can’t let my first moments with them be filled with accusations against them.

I almost made a terrible mistake with our chimney sweep.

I don’t want anything like that to happen again. Please understand, Nora.”

She released a slow, audible sigh. Sunlight shone against his strong frame, emphasizing the wave in his hair, the pleasing structure in his cheek and jaw, the focus in his eyes, and the earnestness in those perfect, asymmetrical lips.

“I do understand, Aaron, but unless you catch a man in the act of stealing, I doubt you’ll ever discover the thieves.”

“Perhaps not, but if your strategy is to always watch for reasons to mistrust a person, I’m sure you will find them.

You told me that there are many types of thieves, and I believe you are right.

Doubt is one of the worst. It steals our faith and ruins our chance at happiness.

If you cannot ever trust me, Nora, I don’t know how to help you. ”

Their horses knickered and bobbed their heads as if they agreed with him. Nora blinked several times, her eyes beginning to sting. She rubbed Locket’s neck while Aaron’s words, sharp yet true, fought for space in her thoughts.

“I want to trust you, Aaron. I don’t want to always doubt, but if I am to help you, I need to question everything and everyone.

Our chimney sweep is free today because I was careful with my doubts.

I realize you have responsibilities as the duke, but I don’t bear the same burdens of authority.

I won’t remain impartial in matters concerning the thieves. ”

“But Nora,” he spoke low and tentatively, “you are now stepping into a role of responsibility as the duchess, as my wife.”

Shivers ran through her as wind blew across her neck.

Aaron had used those words before, but it struck her differently this time.

Wife. Duchess. Responsibility. Each word was an impertinent bird, flitting above her head to see if she would catch it.

Aaron’s gaze burning as she floundered was too much just then.

She didn’t remember kicking Locket’s flanks, but Locket was now bounding in a full gallop back the way they had come.

Nora was glad. The wind cooled her, and in the freedom of escape, she could wring out the fears and worries she had been soaking up for so long.

She needed to be bounding just then, outrunning life’s changes until she knew which ones she wanted.

Wife.

Well, the Duke and Duchess of Ravenglass might have need to be careful, but Nora was not the duchess yet.

She did not have to be careful.

Nora waited until the sky was dark and the castle was still. She had stayed in her room that night reading instead of joining Aaron for dinner. The tray Janie had brought to her room laid half eaten on the table.

Nora sat at the writing table in her room scribbling down notes. She had an entire page filled with everything she knew about the thieves, though most of the page consisted of her questions, resulting in a chaotic jumble of underlines and scratches.

Eventually, thoughts about thieves slowed, and another page of notes took shape, things like Aaron’s generosity, his green eyes, and why would he not play the pianoforte for her?

One page turned into two as she found more qualities to admire and more questions to weigh.

Little things found their way to these notes like what Aaron liked to eat for breakfast. Short phrases like contagious laugh, sharp wit, and handsome jaw were everywhere, written in the order they occurred to her.

More serious questions like why did he want to marry her, and would he truly value her opinions were underlined.

When her hand became so uninhibited as to start describing what being in his arms felt like, she slammed the pen down.

This is stupid!

Nora’s cheeks were now excessively hot. She picked up her notes, crumpled them into a ball, and tossed them in the fire.

Everything with Aaron was happening too quickly.

Engaged within minutes of meeting, using Christian names shortly after, and always wondering what sort of closeness was appropriate.

He had held her hand. He had pulled her to his chest with those sturdy, anchoring arms, but they had never shared a kiss, though they had sometimes come close.

What would happen if she allowed all worries and fears to fly away so she could reach for Aaron and be held again? What if she forgot about dowries and land and thieves and simply let herself love?

Oh, what was the point of dwelling on such things? Thoughts like that only muddled her reasoning, which she needed more than ever. There was a marriage settlement, an entire castle to learn to run, and a lofty title waiting for her if she did not break the engagement

Nora reached for the small chain around her neck and clutched the miniature of her mother.

Her mind went back to a year and a half ago before her mother had grown sick.

They had talked of going to London for a season and had daydreamed of all the diverting ways they could spend their time at soirees and the theater, and somewhere in their laughter and planning, they talked of what would happen when Nora fell in love.

None of those daydreams had ever placed her in a castle full of secrets and thieves.

The longer she stayed, the more she felt the weight of their unseen presence.

How much were their threats interfering with her desire to make choices?

To think that Aaron had been carrying this burden for months after losing his father.

Nora spun the signet ring on her thumb and wished for Aaron’s company. How had he made her care about him so quickly?

From the moment she saw him unconscious on the riverbank, her heart had reached out, eager to see him well, but to be swept up in a current leading toward marriage, urging her to love him now before she thoroughly understood his character, left her gasping for breath.

She wanted to savor the moments of falling in love in her own time.

She wanted to know that she was loved in return, and oh, how she wanted her husband to value her!

Hadn’t Aaron already shown how much he valued her opinions?

He had taken her advice regarding the servants ball and the chimney sweep, but his reminder of the responsibilities that awaited after marriage made her question whether she could live up to the expectations he held for his future duchess.

What if he eventually regretted choosing her?

Doubt is a thief, he had said. He was right about that.

“Tonight is not for sorting through the burdens in my heart,” she whispered, throwing on her robe and sliding her feet into her softest slippers. “Tonight is for making progress.”

She closed her bed curtains so any maid who might come to stoke the fire would not notice her absence. Once she was certain no one prowled outside her corridor, Nora picked up a lit candle and slipped through the door.

Her goal was simple. Stay hidden and learn something useful. Else how was she to unmask the thieves or learn who Aaron truly was? What or where that useful information might be, she had no idea, but she suspected that thieves and family secrets left trails.

She pictured the castle in her mind. She and her father were in the west wing.

She knew her way to the music room, to the great hall, to Aaron’s study, and she had a general idea of where some of the other galleries and sitting rooms were, but there were entire levels and wings she had yet to explore.

With a deep breath, she worked her way through known corridors to the unknown parts.