Page 85 of A Duchess to Unravel
“He is right, you know,” Dominic acknowledged. “At least about Theo’s absence. Normally when you send for us we are elbows deep in paperwork and planning, yet this visit you have us constantly in the ring. What is going on?”
Alistair chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment. Normally he was a man who was not afraid of the truth but on this particular subject he was struggling. However, these men had come to his aid whenever he’d asked. In just the few months he’d known them they had become his friends. Whether it was painful for him or not, they deserved to know the truth.
“There is not much work left to be done because I am signing the businesses and accounts of Caldermere over to the two of you, Hugo, and Tristan,” he finally confessed. “That will take but a minute. Then I am going back to Scotland.”
Dominic’s wounded brow perked at the same time as Everett stopped pouring his next glass.
“You mean in another month and a half you will be leaving for Scotland,” Dominic clarified.
Alistair shook his head, his heart heavy.
“Nay, I am leaving in three days. And I dinnae think I will be coming back.”
“Oh, balderdash,” Everett sighed, setting the bottle down. “Tristan is going to kill you for taking Theo away.”
“No, he is not,” Alistair answered somberly, “Because she is not coming with me.”
The stretch of silence was palpable but short-lived.
“No,” Dominic stated, standing up. “You cannot just abandon Theo here. You did not know her before. You do not understand how much she has changed since your marriage. She is getting so much better. If you leave her here she will flounder, Alistair.”
On some level Alistair was flattered by the news. He was aware of Theo’s struggles and it felt good to know that a positive change in her had been noticed. Still, it did not change the present. In fact, it only made Alistair’s pain grow more intense.
“She has left me,” he admitted, then coughed as he felt that annoying lump in his throat once again. “I have sent her a letter, requesting to see her one more time before I depart, but I doubt that I will hear back. She was … she was quite sure of her decision when she left for the country.”
Another tense silence settled over the three men as the news was shared, and Alistair turned his focus to his hands. Flashes of memory came back to him. Of Theo, of the way she reacted so sensitively to his touch. Whether it was the brush of his fingertips or the spanking of his hand. He clenched his fists as he felt pain soar through his chest, and he shook his head.
“You are in love with her.” Dominic said. It wasn’t a question.
Alistair slowly raised his head to look at the man across from him, then gave a subtle nod.
“I did not handle the realization well,” he begrudgingly admitted. “I distanced myself from her the moment I discovered what was happening to me … Theo did not fare much better than I.”
“Well that just means she is in love with you too,” Everett piped up. “Trust me, I’ve seen enough of these fools fall in love to understand the pattern.”
“Even if she does,” Alistair said, ignoring Everett’s attempt at humor, “She is far more hurt than she is in love. And I do not believe she will allow me to fix it. So, I did the only thing I could do. The thing I promised to do. I gave her her freedom.”
“Alistair,” Dominic said, coming around the table, “You cannot just--”
The doors to the makeshift gymnasium burst open, slamming into the walls with a foreboding echo that had all three men standing tall and on alert. Mr. Mackenzie, who had not done so much more than a brisk walk in over two decades, was running toward them, his breath puffing out in uncomfortable wheezes.
“Mr. Mackenzie, what in God’s name--” Alistair began to say as he hurried toward the old man.
“Your Grace,” Mr. Mackenzie wheezed, “The Duchess of Caldermere, she … she ….”
Mr. Mackenzie erupted into a coughing fit as he stopped and doubled over. Fear skittered through Alistair’s veins and he wrapped his hands around the old man’s shoulders.
“Breathe, Mr. Mackenzie, and tell me what has happened,” he commanded.
“She’s gone,” Mr. Mackenzie huffed, trying to talk and catch his breath at the same time. “Someone … someone broke into the Caldermere house … took her … shot her maid ….”
Alistair’s world began to spin. His heart dropped into his gut like a heavy stone. He screwed his eyes shut, took a steadying breath to fight his sudden nausea and asked, “What?”
“One of the kitchen boys managed to escape the attack. He was simply knocked out. He’d tried to stop the man, but when he woke up, he was too late. The rest of the staff have injuries. Norma has been shot, and Her Grace is missing!”
The heavy sadness Alistair had been fighting through the last several days suddenly transformed into an adamant rage. It caused the hairs over his body to stand on end, and it felt like a lightning bolt had hit him in the spine.
Gone.Theo was gone. He had told her he had taken care of her stalker, and he had failed. Pure, unfiltered vengeance surged through his veins, and he let go of Mr. Mackenzie before his grip became bruising.
