Page 19 of A Deal with the Rebellious Marquess
She completed the thought for him. ‘While the mamas circle and wait to pounce and bring your carcass home for their daughters.’
‘Yes. Am I terrible to think that? Nobody puts that in their love poems.’
‘No, they don’t. It’s all roses and blushes. Virgins and unicorns. No one seems to understand that the unicorn horn in the virgin’s lap is a symbolic penis.’
‘Is it?’ He looked astonished. ‘I didn’t realise...’ He cleared his throat. ‘Well, that certainly puts a different take on things.’ He furrowed his brow. ‘I studied Classics at Oxford and I don’t think that’s quite right. The unicorn is a symbol of purity in Raphael’sThe Virgin and the Unicornand I am sure the unicorn was used in the Renaissance to depict chastity.’ He paused. ‘Are you laughing at me?’
‘Laughingwithyou. I was quite enjoying the lecture, Professor.’ Fleur came around the desk. ‘I like my version better. It took your mind off things, didn’t it?’
‘Yes. My apologies. I was being maudlin.’ They made their way to the divan and sat, but Fleur had not entirely forgotten the roots of their quarrel.
She hesitated to revisit the topic of that disagreement after such a nice moment. It had been quietly intoxicating to listen to his story, to know he was sharing something deeply personal and simultaneously troubling to him. But she needed her answers. Perhaps she’d do better with sugar than vinegar. She’d been bold and confrontational earlier and that had resulted in a quarrel. Maybe if she was less direct she’d get a better response. Part of her was very much aware that on at least two occasions they’d meant to talk business and had ended up not discussing anything resembling business. She could not keep letting those opportunities slip away or it would be August and another summer would have come and gone with nothing done.
‘If I ring for tea, will you let me show you something? And will you listen with an open mind? I want to share with you the case I have against Lord Orion Bexley.’ It would be the ultimate litmus test for him. It was time for him to prove his worthiness.
He did not want to hear it. His damned brother had messed up a lot in his life and now he was going to mess this up, too, whatever ‘this’ was that sparked between him and Fleur Griffiths.
‘Fleur, you know how I feel about that,’ he reminded her in an attempt to dissuade her from showing him.
‘Yes, I know exactly how you feel and because of that, is it any wonder Ifeelderailed any time the subject comes up? I want legislation but I also want this: justice for those who died.’
Coward!His inner voice snapped.Let her show you. This was your whole plan all along, to earn her trust enough to learn what she has on Orion. This is what you came for, what you’d started this whole association for. You ought to be thrilled. You will finally have your answers, finally know how to protect Orion.
Yet, the only thought that came to the fore as Fleur called for tea and retrieved a file was that he ought to stand up and walk out of the office, that he didn’t want to know. Didn’t want her to tell him. He didn’t want to be reminded that this was business, and she was the enemy. That he’d shielded his identity from her in order to gain access to her world, that he’d misled her about the motives for his interest in her project.
If she knew, she would hate him for it. From her perspective, these were not the behaviours of a man of honour. Yet he could argue from his perspective—the perspective of a man who must protect his family and name—these behaviours were warranted. They were omissions only, none of them outright lies. He could hear his father in his head alongside his own inner voice.
Family first. Your mother, your brother, will need you when I’m gone. You will have hard choices to make.
She spread the papers from the file out on the low table. ‘The troubles begin in 1846 when the Holmes Reservoir Commissioners were found to be in a state of insolvency, having spent Parliament’s allotment for the reservoir project, but also owing several outstanding debts.’ She passed him a sheaf of papers. ‘This is the testimony of Charles Batty, who was the drawer for the commissioners, and these are copies of outstanding bills the commission owed. The Huddersfield Banking Company was owed two thousand pounds, money was owed to clerks who worked for the commission and monies were owed to companies who worked on the dam. These are no small sums and the fact that one of these bills ended up in Chancery speaks to the depth of dysfunction in the commission.’
Jasper fished his eyeglasses out of his inner coat pocket and studied the papers. ‘If I may play the devil’s advocate?’ he said after a careful perusal. ‘I feel as if this only affirms the original findings that no one person was culpable. There was unfortunate disarray up and down the line when it came to the Holmfirth Reservoirs Act. This notes only that Lord Orion Bexley was on the commission at the time.’
‘The debt is curious, is it not? Where did all the money go if the dam was never repaired? What this establishes is the insolvency and that the money set aside for repairs was gone. It allows us to ask—where did the money go? I propose it went into Lord Orion Bexley’s pockets by way of a very careful, very expert sleight of hand.’ She handed him another sheet of paper.
‘What is this?’
‘This was issued by the commission on August 26, 1846. It’s an order to improve the waste pit so that water could be safely processed and filtered through the dam.’ She summarised as he scanned the paper.
An opening should be made in the waste pit of the Bilberry Dam reservoir at the height of eighteen feet above the clough or shuttle and Mr Littlewood authorised to see the same forthwith carried into effect.
He looked up to meet her gaze, waiting for the blow to fall.
‘That repair was never made. In fact, although it was authorised, Mr Littlewood testified that he did not know about the request and, in fact, no engineer or construction manager on the project after that date reported knowing about the request or any later requests to carry out that work.’ She reached for another stack of papers. ‘This is the testimony of those men: Mr Littlewood, Mr Leather, Jonathon Crowther...the list goes on.’
Jasper scrubbed a hand over his face. ‘Why would the blame for this, the pocketing of the money, be laid at Lord Orion’s feet? Why not one of the other commission members?’
‘Two reasons. Because he was one of three men assigned specifically to the Bilberry Dam Reservoir. It was the commission’s practice that those members residing nearest a dam took over supervision of that dam. He was one of three who submitted the order.’ She paused and said with emphasis, ‘It was Bexley’s job to ensure that order was carried out.’
‘His job and that of the other two men with a particular interest in the Bilberry Dam.’ Jasper racked his brain to remember who those other two might have been.
She shook her head. ‘Those positions are reappointed every year. Those men left and new men took their places. Bexley is the only returning figure, the only one who could provide continuity. The only one who had knowledge of the order to work on the waste pit and heneveracknowledges that it wasn’t acted on. He never calls attention to the fact that the work order—his work order—was placed and nothing occurred.
‘That waste pit and its inefficiencies were the cause of the fatal accident. Listen to Mr Leather’s testimony.’ She proceeded to read slowly and carefully aloud.‘“My opinion as to the cause of the breaking of the embankment on the fifth of February is that it arose from overflowing and washing away the outer slope...if the waste pit had been seven or eight feet below the embankment, the inference is that the embankment would have stood...if the order of the Commissioners in 1846 had been carried out and a hole made... I think it very likely it would have prevented the accident. Had I been consulted I should have recommended such a course of action.”’
Jasper listened intently. He saw the argument she was making in his mind. Orion had submitted an order for repairs, pocketed the money for himself and the repair had never materialised. The lack of that particular repair bore full responsibility for the accident. Had Orion seen the work carried out, the accident would have been prevented despite all the other mismanagement by the commissioners. Fleur’s was not an implausible argument, and his worries began to rise. What had Orion done?
Fleur set aside her folder. ‘I know what you’re going to say—that I don’t have proof he siphoned the money. If I had access to his bank accounts, it would be the proof I need.’ She gave a little lift of her shoulders, a smile playing at her lips. ‘Adam always said to follow the money. Money never lies.’
