Page 23 of Code Name Duchess
He got up and walked across the room toward a small oak desk and pulled open a drawer. Her heart dropped when she saw what he retrieved. It was a letter. Folded in half just like the one she had found in her brother’s chamber.
When he turned, he did not make his way back to her side right away. Instead, he stood with his back leaning against the chair, his eyes fixed on the floor.
“I will have you know, I have engaged the assistance of a private investigator. Mr. Murray. He came highly recommended by one of my neighbors.”
She could no longer remain in her seat. She stood and walked toward him as her legs shook beneath her.
“Uncle Ezekiel, what is it? What are you keeping from me? What is in that letter?”
“You need to know that I did not mean for any of this to happen. I was trying to… I just had to try and get out of trouble.”
Out of trouble? What in the world was he talking about? And what was in that letter? Why couldn’t he just hand it over?
“I do not know what you mean, Uncle.”
“I fear it is my fault. What happened to Leo. As you know, I enjoy a good gamble, and I placed a few wagers… Which is why I wanted to borrow money from your brother. When he couldn’t, I took out a bit of a loan from… certain gentlemen … They were keen on getting it back, and well, I couldn’t pay.”
Winnifred narrowed her eyes. “And how, pray, were you planning on paying back the people you took a loan from?”
He shrugged as a sound of despair escaped his lips. “The only way I know how to make money. I went to the horse races. And I lost again.”
Winnifred took in a significant lungful of air and closed her eyes. “So you made a considerable amount of debt through gambling, then borrowed money from questionable resources to pay back those gambling debts, and attempted to pay those loans back by making money gambling.”
Simply thinking of it made her head hurt, for there was no logic to it. Then again, her uncle was not known to be a logical person. That was how he ran into trouble to begin with.
“That’s about the long and the short of it, yes. I know how it sounds. Your aunt already gave me an earful about it. But there was nothing else I could do.”
She bent her head back until she cast her eyes at the ceiling.
How can this man be related to my father? My father, who was sensible, careful, and prudent with his funds? How could he have come to have a brother like this who is so reckless and foolish?
When she stood up straight again, she glared at her uncle, who looked mortified. All the color drained out of his face, and he stood slumped over, a sad imitation of the hunchback of Notre Dame.
“How does this all involve my brother?”
“Well, the gentleman I borrowed money from… He still wants it back….”
She swallowed hard, terrified of just what this meant. Uncle Ezekiel sighed deeply, and without another word, handed her the missive. As she took it, he did not release the sheet right away, instead, he held onto it and raised his eyes.
“I am sorry, Winnie, for any part I might’ve played in this.”
The anticipation made her sick, and she took several steps back until she landed on the chaise again. With trembling hands, she unfolded the letter, and when she saw the handwriting, she gasped. It was the same penmanship as the letter she had found in her brother’s chamber—the one summoning him to St. Giles.
Keating, we have your nephew… if you want to see him again deliver the sum of 10,000 pounds to us. Place the money in a sack and leave it on the Chinese Pavilion steps at Vauxhall Gardens this Saturday at two in the afternoon. Do not involve the authorities. If we so much as smell one of the Bow Street Runners, your nephew is dead.
Her hands flew to her mouth, and the letter sailed to the floor, where it came to a stop right beside the chaise lounge.
“Faith… No… Uncle. What are we going to do? Are they going to kill him? It is already Thursday. We only have two days. When did you receive this?”
“Day before yesterday. I was going to send it to you, but I was hoping to develop a plan to pay for it myself. But as you can imagine, I do not have 10,000 pounds. I scarcely have 100 pounds. Not that it’s any of your concern.”
Winnie looked out of the window at the carriage when a thought came to her.
How does this fit in with the disappearance of Rose? If her uncle received a ransom demand because he took a loan from the wrong people, how did it result in Lady Rose also being kidnapped? She had nothing whatsoever to do with any of this. It did not make sense.
The sudden urge to leave overcame her. She had to speak to Seth. There was nothing more her uncle could tell her, nothing more she wanted to ask of him. Least of all did she want to be in his company. She got up, but before she did, she picked up the letter, folded it up, and slid it into her reticule.
“My letter…” He said with surprise.
