Page 4 of Wicked Again
“Did something happen to Petra?” Marissa shouldn’t have said such a thing in front of Haddon, but she was flustered. And Petra was the only thing she could think of which would bring Brendan to her room at such an hour.
“No. She’s fine. Sleeping,” Brendan said, wincing as he realized what he’d given away.
Marissa’s eyebrows shot up, and a knowing half-smile tugged at Haddon’s lips.
Brendan flexed his hands, his gaze shifting from his mother to Haddon. “I’ll thank you to be discreet.”
“Morning, Morwick.” Haddon crossed his arms in no hurry to exit the room despite Brendan’s obvious desire to pummel him. “Did you sleep well? You look tired. As if you were up most of the night. I didn’t get much rest last night either, as it turns out.”
Marissa blinked.Must he be so blatant?
Brendan made a guttural sound and took a menacing step in Haddon’s direction. “Get the f—”
“Good morning, Lord Haddon,” Marissa said sharply, cutting off Brendan’s string of vulgarities.
If the two men came to blows in her room, everyone would wonder why Haddon was here, defeating the purpose of her dismissing him. Besides, there was a much larger scandal brewing, one which would rescind her welcome at Brushbriar. Unless she was very much mistaken, Brendan had just admitted to ruining Petra.
Haddon didn’t move, the grip on his boots so tight his knuckles whitened. He didn’t care to be dismissed—Marissa could tell. In fact, he was bloody furious about it. “We will talk later.”
“Please excuse yourself, Lord Haddon.” She tipped her chin toward the door, commanding Haddon with her eyes to leave. Didn’t he understand the situation?
From the absolutelychillinglook he gave her, Haddon didnotunderstand Marissa’s plea for him to leave. He seemed about to comment but must have thought better of it. Instead his lean form bent smoothly into a mocking bow. “Good day, Lady Cupps-Foster.”
Marissa held her ground. She hadn’t wanted them to part in such a way, but maybe it was for the best. There was nothing to be gained by continuing their association beyond this house party. Even so, she took hold of the bedpost in an effort to keep herself from running to him.
He was only a dalliance.
He had to be.
Haddon shot her another frosty look.
She lowered her eyes. Marissa told herself he was only annoyed at being dismissed, his ego bruised at having been asked to leave a woman’s bed. She doubted it had ever happened to him before.
Marissa didn’t look up again until she heard the door close.
Brendan stared at the door for a moment before turning to face her. She expected a barrage of questions or even an angry rant from her son, but his pained expression immediately put her on guard.
“What is it?” A slow spill of dread crawled up her spine.
“You’ve got to pack and leave for Somerton immediately, Mother. I’ve ruined Petra.”
Marissa wasn’t shocked by her son’s confession. Brendan and Petra belonged together. Anyone could see it. You’d have to be blind not to. “I assumed as much, but—”
“Mother, I’ve found Reggie.”
“Reggie?” Marissa’s knees buckled at the unexpected news.HerReggie? Brendan’s father, the previous Earl of Morwick had disappeared so long ago, leaving no trace, she’d finally come to terms with the possibility that he would never be found. There were even rumors,horribleones, that Reggie had run off with another woman, but Marissa had never believed such a thing. He’d loved her. Reggie had left one day to hike and collect the fossils he loved and never returned. “But, how?”
“His remains were found in a cave, less than an hour’s walk from Brushbriar.”
“That isn’t possible.” She shook her head. “He wasn’t headed toward Brushbriar that day, but up toward the tree line. And John led dozens of men to look for him.” Indeed, the entire countryside had searched for days as John, the current Viscount Pendleton’s father, had become increasingly distraught looking for his friend. Lydia had sat with Marissa for hours waiting for news of Reggie. But he’d never been found. Things had soured with her neighbors soon after. Pendleton had found a large vein of Blue John on his property and Lydia, absorbed with her newfound wealth, had had little time or inclination to tend to Marissa in her grief. The house party was the first time Marissa had been to Brushbriar in years.
“There’s more, Mother.” Brendan gently took her fingers, guiding her to sit on the bed. A stricken look had come over his features as if he couldn’t bear to impart anything further.
“It’s all right, Brendan. I won’t fall to pieces. I’m only surprised.” The news had taken her unawares, but just knowing that finally her beloved Reggie had been found would give Marissa some closure to that chapter of her life. She’d worried for years he hadn’t had a proper burial, his soul trapped forever in limbo. “Did you find him?” Her voice caught. “At the bottom of a ravine? Lodged in a crevice? I was always afraid he’d fall and break his neck. He did so love to roam about and—”
“He wasmurdered, Mother.” Brendan’s voice shook. “Father was shot.”
“But—”Murdered?Reggie had no enemies.None. He’d been kind. Loving. Absentminded. It was why she’d always thought he’d simply tripped into one of the holes in the limestone while out walking. Flashes and bits of her life with Reggie flew before her eyes in such a fury, she became dizzy.
