Page 40 of The Unwanted Duchess

“Yes, and I also heard him when he said the exact same thing to William. He is considering you because you like him more than the rest of us do, but he will likely receive the money because he is older.”

“So, he is considering both of us…” Nicholas mumbled. “In any case, you are not being considered at all, and as the eldest, you ought to be ashamed of yourself for that. You should far and away be the clear winner, but you are losing to two of your younger brothers. How do you sleep at night?”

“I sleep very well knowing that what’s mine is mine, and thus it cannot be taken away.”

This seemed to ring true when, at only two and twenty, Graham had moved into his own lodgings and was supporting himself entirely without the help of his father. He watched helplessly as his three brothers tore each other apart in the meantime with Andrew being but ten and seven years old and thus not ready for the caliber of which his brothers were determined to fight.

“You know,” Graham told Andrew when he saw him in a street one day, “the quieter life is nothing to be ashamed of. I enjoy it thoroughly, myself.”

“That is easy to say when you are to become a duke. You shall always have that.”

“If I could hand it to you, I would. I do not want our father’s title. Mother says it made him cruel.”

“I wouldn’t know.”

Graham could not be angry with his youngest brother for that feeling. He had never known the late duchess, and their father had not spoken very kindly of her, so it was of no surprise that Andrew did not hold her in too high a regard.

“All I am saying,” he tried once more, “is that Nicholas and William are not the sort of men to back down from a challenge, and they will stop at nothing to destroy you if that is what it takes.”

“And who is to say that I am any different? A good man is one that is not afraid to go after what he wants. You can hide in your lodgings all that you like, but you will never be half of the man that father is.”

Graham hoped that one day his brother would realize the truth, but he doubted it. They were all too far gone for it to ever bea possibility. They would simply have to continue until they ran each other into the ground and one victor remained.

Meanwhile, Graham continued to do the one thing he knew. He stayed in business, only participating in good and fair deals, and ensuring that each step had been calculated. There were no risks, and therefore the rewards were smaller, but it was better that way. He could not destroy what he built and then have to scramble to save it if he did not risk it all in the first place. It was safe, and whilst his brothers hated it, he did not care.

Soon enough, one of them would be so incredibly wealthy that they would never think of him again, and the other two would be driven mad that they had not won and so would chase the victor instead of himself for the first time. Truth be told, he was actually rather looking forward to the day.

Then he was summoned to see his father.

He knew that there could be nothing good come of it; his father never cared to speak with his failure of a son unless it was to chastise him. He had not expected, however, to be confronted by a pale figure lying in bed whilst the doctor beside it wrung his hands over and over.

“It is not looking good, Sir,” he explained, gesturing to Graham’s father “We do not know what the ailment is, exactly, but we can only assume it is fatal. He has asked for your presence immediately.”

“Has he asked for my brothers?”

“In time, he says, but for now his priority must remain his eldest, the one to inherit the title.”

Graham noted that the doctor did not mention the estates in his explanation, but he did not care. It was not money that he would ever want or need.

“My boy,” his father greeted, “how are you?”

“I have been better,” he noted. “Seeing one’s father in a state such as this tends to have that effect.”

“I shall be recovered by morning. It is as I told you — you must be made of strong stuff to be a duke. I am fortunate that you are.”

“What is it that you want?” Graham snapped, alerting the doctor once more. “You have never had a kind word for me, so do not pretend to feel this way now.”

“I wanted to ask you why you never played my game.”

“Because I did not want to.”

“You did not want to protect what is rightfully yours?”

“I did not want to engage in behavior that would lead to me losing all three of my brothers, not that it matters now.”

“Then why don’t you do it now? There is still time.”

“I do not want your money, and I never have. What I have now is my own, and I intend to guard that rather than pretend that I deserve anything more.”

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