Scandal at Greystone Manor Read online

  ‘I must go back to Jane,’ Mark said.

  ‘Not tonight, Mark,’ Lady Wyndham said. ‘You can go to Greystone together tomorrow.’ She rang a bell at her side to summon a servant to conduct Drew to a bedroom. As soon as he had gone, she turned to Mark. ‘Whichever way you look at it, this is going to cause a huge scandal.’

  ‘I know, Mama, but nothing like the one that might have ensued had I run off with Jane, or if Drew had run off with Isabel.’

  ‘I sincerely hope that you have not been entertaining that idea.’

  ‘I could never have done it, even if Jane agreed, which I am sure she would not.’

  ‘Then, let us hope Sir Edward is amenable.’

  * * *

  The next morning saw the two men, both of them nervous, set off for Greystone Manor. Mark was in a long-tailed coat in blue superfine and pantaloon trousers and Drew in a frockcoat and nankeen breeches buckled below the knee. Both had spent an unconscionable time tying their cravats and adjusting the sleeves of their shirts. For such a formal visit, they chose to ride in the Wyndham coach, driven by Jeremy.

  ‘Shall we go and frighten Bolsover out of his bed?’ Mark suggested as they approached the Fox and Hounds. ‘I have a mind to make him crawl.’

  ‘Nothing would give me greater pleasure.’

  Mark called out to Jeremy to pull up at the inn and the two young men entered the inn and enquired for Lord Bolsover’s room. Two minutes later they flung open the door to see the startled man sitting up in bed with a breakfast tray on his lap.

  ‘What the devil—?’ he began, but was cut short when Drew removed the tray and put it on a nearby table. ‘Breakfast is over, my lord,’ he said. ‘It is time to say goodbye. The game is over and we hold all the trumps.’

  ‘I do not know what you are talking about.’

  ‘We are talking about a little matter of attempted bigamy,’ Mark said. ‘Very much against the law, that is. I know the Prince Regent got away with it, but you are not the Prince Regent.’

  ‘You are talking rubbish.’ He was clearly agitated, but with the two men standing over him, one each side of the bed, he could not move.

  ‘The lady’s name is Juanita,’ Drew said. ‘Juanita Estaban as was. I have a copy of the registry entry of the marriage made in the cathedral in Lisbon. Would you care to see it, to refresh your memory?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘No, of course not. You know exactly what it says. You left her for dead and fled back to this country. But are you safe? Did you know your wife’s kin are searching for you? Yes, of course you do, that is why you are hiding here. I fancy they would like to know where you are. I would not like to be in your shoes if they find you.’

  ‘You are talking rubbish.’ He was clearly agitated.

  ‘Is it bigamy or murder?’ Mark queried, addressing Drew. ‘Whichever it is, our man is in trouble.’

  ‘He certainly is,’ Drew agreed. ‘Shall we lock him up until we can take him before the Justice?’

  Mark laughed. ‘I am the Justice.’

  ‘I had forgot. Is there a lock-up in the village?’

  ‘Yes, close by the church. He will be safe enough there while we send for his wife’s relations. Or we could tell his mother. I wonder why he has never told her himself, since she wants him married.’

  ‘Perhaps she does not like Portuguese ladies,’ Drew said. ‘Some of these old aristocrats are like that, they want good English blood in their line.’

  ‘No, I beg you, no.’ Bolsover was shaking with terror.

  ‘Then you have only one course open to you,’ Mark said. ‘Leave Hadlea, abandon your torment of Miss Cavenhurst and take yourself off where the law cannot find you. I will not answer for the consequences, if you do not. Be on the afternoon stage.’

  ‘If I do not?’

  ‘It is up to you, of course,’ Mark said. ‘But I should not like to be in your shoes when Estaban finds you.’ He turned to Drew. ‘Shall we leave him to think about it?’

  ‘You are too lenient, my friend, but as I am anxious to be on my way, let us give him the same chance we would give the fox. Run or suffer the consequences.’

  Mark was thoughtful as they returned to the carriage. ‘There is a man called Estaban working at Witherington House,’ he said. ‘It cannot be a coincidence, can it?’

  ‘Unlikely, I should say.’

  ‘He must know where Bolsover is or why would he be here?’

  ‘Not our problem, my friend.’ The carriage drew up at the Manor. ‘I will leave you to tell Sir Edward the good news. I intend to spirit Isabel away somewhere where we can be alone.’

  The door was opened by Sophie, who squealed at the sight of Drew and raced back to the drawing room. ‘Papa, Mama, Issie. Lord Wyndham is here and he has Mr Ashton with him.’

  Isabel rushed out to the hall and stopped to stare at Drew. ‘Is it really you?’

  He smiled. ‘If it is not, I do not know who else it might be.’ He took her hand and bowed over it. ‘How are you, sweetheart?’

  She looked from him to Mark. ‘Mark?’

  ‘Do not mind me,’ he said. ‘I will go and speak to your parents and Jane.’

  ‘Jane is not here, she has gone to Witherington. She spends all her time there these days.’

  He would have liked to have turned round and gone straight to her, but courtesy demanded he speak to Sir Edward and Lady Cavenhurst first. He went into the drawing room and bowed to them both. ‘Good morning, Sir Edward. My lady. I hope you will forgive me for arriving so early, but I have good tidings and could not wait to tell you.’

  ‘Sophie said Mr Ashton was with you.’

  ‘So he is. He is talking to Isabel. No doubt they will join us shortly.’

  Sir Edward rose angrily. ‘You mean you have left them alone together?’

  ‘Yes, but please allow them a few minutes while I explain.’

  Sir Edward blustered, but subsided.

  ‘The first thing I have to tell you is that you no longer have anything to fear from Lord Bolsover. His dastardly past has been uncovered and he has been discredited. He will not be bothering you again. You are out of debt and Greystone is safe.’

  ‘Merciful Lord,’ her ladyship said.

  ‘That is indeed good news,’ Sir Edward added. ‘But how has that come about?’

  ‘Through the good offices of my friend, Mr Ashton. It is he you have to thank.’

  ‘Oh. You had better tell us the whole.’

  ‘I will leave that to Drew, he knows the details. I intend to go to Witherington House to speak to Jane, if you will excuse me.’

  ‘Yes, of course,’ Lady Cavenhurst said. ‘She will be much relieved.’

  He bowed and left, passing Drew and Isabel in the hall. They had their arms round each other and were kissing. ‘All yours,’ he said, laughing, and went out to the carriage with a lighter heart than he had had for a very long time.

  * * *

  Paolo Estaban was proving an asset. He was young and strong and made himself useful in all manner of ways. He had already identified what needed doing before Jane could ask him. Wobbly shelves, window catches, vegetables to brought in from the garden, Bonny to be groomed, all dealt with as if by magic. And the name Witherington House would soon be painted on the side of the trap. He had talked to Jane of his home and hinted of a terrible wrong, but most of the time he kept his thoughts to himself.

  ‘Tell me about your family,’ she asked him one day when they were working together in the garden. ‘Do you miss them?’

  ‘Yes, senhora, I do.’

  ‘Tell me about them.’

  ‘I have a father and mother and two sisters and a cousin who lives with us. She is married to an Englishman.’

  ‘The officer who brought you to England?’<
br />
  ‘No. This man is not an officer. He calls himself a gentleman, but he is no gentleman. He treated Juanita cruelly and when she confronted him about his gambling and his mistresses he beat her so badly she nearly died. I found her and took her home to my parents. When we went looking for him we discovered he had gone back to England, taking her fortune with him. Is it any wonder we want vengeance?’

  ‘Do you know where he is?’

  ‘Oh, yes, I know where he is. It will not be long now.’

  ‘What do you mean to do?’

  ‘I have not made up my mind. I might put a sword through his evil heart, or I might shoot him, but I have to have the money first.’

  ‘You must not take the law into your own hands, Mr Estaban,’ she said, thoroughly alarmed. ‘Tell the authorities. Have him tried.’

  ‘And do you think they will believe me? They will say the man has a right to beat his wife and abscond with her money and jewels. Perhaps he will have an accident. Or perhaps I will challenge him to a duel.’

  ‘Oh, no,’ she exclaimed. ‘Duels are illegal in this country and you could be killed. Your life is much too valuable to be thrown away like that. Tell Lord Wyndham your story. I am sure he will see justice done.’

  He smiled slowly. ‘No, senhora, I must do what I must do. Now I go and put these brambles on the bonfire.’

  She watched him as he piled up the bonfire, took a tinder box from his coat pocket and set light to the heap. Some of it had been lying there for weeks and was dry and brittle. There was soon a good blaze going. She turned to go back to the house, wondering what to do for the best. She ought to try to stop him from doing whatever it was he had in mind. One or other of them would be wounded, if not killed, and though she had no sympathy for the Englishman, whoever he was, she could not stand by and let him be killed. Was this emergency enough to send for Mark? But Paolo had so far done nothing wrong and might even deny his conversation with her. She would just have to watch him and try to persuade him not to do anything rash.

  She looked up to see Mrs Butler coming towards her. ‘You have a visitor, Miss Cavenhurst. I left him in your parlour pacing about like a caged animal.’

  ‘Did he say his name?’

  ‘No. But I’ve seen him about Hadlea village a time or two.’

  It could not be Mark, Mrs Butler knew Mark, nor her father, for he would not have withheld his name. There was Mark’s friend, Jonathan Smythe, but what would he want with her? Had something happened to Mark? She hurried indoors.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The last person she expected to see was Lord Bolsover, but that was who confronted her when she made her way to the parlour. ‘What are you doing here?’ she demanded.

  ‘That is hardly a civil greeting.’ He looked a little dishevelled, as if he had dressed in a hurry. His hair was not as carefully combed as it usually was and his cravat was askew.

  ‘I am very busy,’ she said. ‘Please state your business and be on your way.’

  ‘My business is with you.’

  ‘You have no business with me until after my sister’s wedding, and not then if I could think of a way out of it without ruining my family.’

  ‘I am not disposed to wait that long. I must marry and the sooner the better if I am to please my mother. Pleasing my mother is paramount, you see. I do not think we can have the nuptials at Hadlea church, the reverend there is bound to want to call banns or have the bishop’s blessing and we don’t want all that nonsense delaying us, do we? A simple statement and a consummation will suffice.’

  ‘If you think I will behave in that disgraceful manner, you may think again, my lord. You must wait until my sister is married. I made an undertaking to give you an answer then. Now, please go.’

  ‘The trouble is,’ he said, making no move to do as she asked, ‘I do not think Lord Wyndham will marry your sister after all, which is a pity. It means I have had to change my plans.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I think Miss Isabel has other ideas. I fear she is about to elope with Mr Ashton.’

  ‘I do not believe you.’

  He shrugged. ‘That is up to you. There will be a terrible scandal, of course. As for Lord Wyndham...’ He gave a cracked laugh. ‘He will lose both bride and mistress.’

  ‘Do not be ridiculous. You are drunk.’ She was terrified, but trying not to show it. If she shouted for help, would someone come to her aid? She opened her mouth to scream, but he clapped his hand over her face, pushing her head hard against the wall.

  ‘I told my mother I had found a suitable bride and she naturally wishes to meet you.’ He grabbed her arm. ‘My carriage is waiting.’

  ‘Let me go.’ Her head was spinning from the impact with the wall. ‘I am not going anywhere with you.’

  ‘Unfortunately, my dear, you have no choice.’ He began dragging her towards the outer door. She opened her mouth to scream, but he had anticipated that and put one hand over her mouth and with the other thrust her arm up behind her back. She struggled, but he simply gave another tug on her arm. It was excruciatingly painful and forced her to move ahead of him. He propelled her out on to the garden path and round the side of the house towards his carriage. His driver was standing by it and opened the door. She felt herself being lifted bodily and dumped on the seat. Free of his hand over her mouth, she screamed and went on screaming. He lifted his hand to strike her. Then she saw another hand come up behind him, a hand brandishing a firebrand.

  Bolsover abandoned her to deal with this new threat. The only weapon Paolo had was the burning stick and he was faced with two adversaries. He held them off with it, waving it from one to the other and shouting in Portuguese, poking it at them. They were all too close to the carriage for her to leave it. Then the hammer cloth caught fire. In the blinking of an eye, flames licked along the body work and caught the curtains.

  The horses panicked and began rearing up, threatening to overtopple the carriage. Pandemonium ensued as other people arrived and tried to beat out the flames. Jane could not see them for the smoke, but she felt sure it was Mark’s voice she heard giving instructions. Then someone reached in and pulled her out. She felt herself being carried away from the heat and gently put on the grass some distance away.

  She coughed. ‘Mark, is it you?’

  He sat down beside her. ‘Yes, my love. You are safe now,’

  ‘Lord Bolsover?’

  ‘Overcome by smoke. He will recover to stand trial.’

  ‘And Paolo?’

  ‘His hands are burned and his hair singed, but Mrs Butler is looking after him. Are you hurt?’

  ‘No, only a little. I am thirsty.’

  ‘A drink you shall have.’

  He picked her up and carried her into the house. ‘Bring Miss Cavenhurst a tisane and a drink,’ he instructed Mrs Godfrey as he passed through the kitchen to the parlour. He put his burden on the sofa and sat down beside her, putting his arm about her shoulders. ‘I only just arrived in time. Estaban could not have held them off much longer and the coach was well alight.’

  ‘He is a brave man. I think he knew Lord Bolsover. He had a score to settle and talked of revenge, but it wasn’t revenge after all, he did it to save me.’

  ‘He did indeed.’

  Mrs Godfrey arrived with a cordial and a dose of tisane. He thanked her and helped Jane to drink.

  ‘It was dreadful, Mark. Lord Bolsover said he was going to take me to meet his mother and we would not trouble with a church wedding.’

  ‘It is all over, my love. Everything. He cannot harm you now.’

  ‘He has a wife. Paolo told me about his cousin’s English husband, but I didn’t know he was talking about Lord Bolsover.’

  ‘His lordship was under the impression he had killed her. He fled to England to escape Portuguese justice
, but she recovered.’

  ‘He said Issie was going to elope with Mr Ashton.’

  He laughed. ‘No, I do not think they will do that. Unless I miss my guess they will obtain the full consent of Sir Edward.’ He paused to kiss the tip of her nose. ‘We are free to marry, Jane, my darling. That is, if you will have me.’

  ‘Of course I will, but the scandal...’

  ‘There are to be no buts, Jane.’

  ‘Oh, Mark.’ Her head lolled on his shoulder as the tisane took effect. He smiled and kissed the top of her head and held her close. They would have plenty of time to talk when she woke. For the moment he was happy to sit with her sleeping body in his arms and contemplate a rosy future at home with the woman he loved.

  * * *

  Everything had been explained and mulled over at Greystone Manor as everyone gave their own version of events. Lord Bolsover, his face badly scarred by the fire, had retreated to live with his mother, hidden from society, and Paolo Estaban had gone back to Portugal satisfied with his vengeance. Even the scandal was reduced to a simple murmur. It had been made known that Lord Wyndham and Miss Isabel Cavenhurst had agreed to end their engagement by mutual consent and that was followed a few weeks later by an announcement of the betrothal of Miss Isabel Cavenhurst and Mr Andrew Ashton and that of Baron Wyndham of Broadacres to Miss Jane Cavenhurst, eldest daughter of Sir Edward and Lady Cavenhurst of Greystone Manor.

  The announcement had been made at a musical recital given at Broadacres by Lady Wyndham. All her aristocratic friends had been invited and it was made clear to them that the evening was in aid of the Hadlea Children’s Home and that they were expected to donate generously. It was a glittering affair, with everyone dressed in their finery to listen to the best musicians and soloists in the country. They had not been forewarned of the announcement and it was greeted with delighted surprise and congratulations all round. Several hundred pounds were raised for the orphans, who now numbered fifteen. The master and housekeeper had arrived at Witherington House, and so had a teacher, an enthusiastic young graduate Mark had found.