Page 42 of Lusting for the Duke's Kiss
Mr Mitchell, Frank’s solicitor, gazed at her curiously as she stood up. She knew that he had been hoping for a quick verdict this morning. She had already seen him glance impatiently at his fob watch, pulling it out of his pocket, and frowning. He had obviously been expecting that his client’s letter, tended to the court the day before, would stitch up this case quickly, and was put out that it had not. Perhaps he had other pressing appointments to attend.
Her father and mother looked surprised as she stood. She had not informed them of what she was about to do or what she was going to say. The last thing that she needed was them trying to dissuade her from this course of action. Mama, in particular, might be horrified that she was about to share something so personal, and she couldn’t imagine that Papa would be particularly thrilled to hear it, either.
But say it she must. There was no recourse now. Frank had pushed her into a corner, and she was about to fight her way out of it.
“My lords,” she said, addressing all three of the clerics, her gaze slowly drifting from one to the other. “I gave you an account yesterday of my brief marriage. My wedding day, and the aftermath, where my husband and I returned to our new home, to start our married life together. But there was something significant, which I failed to mention, that happened in that space of time.”
The bishop raised his eyebrows. “Well, what is it, Mrs Blackmore?”
Hetty took a deep, ragged breath. Her heart was racing so fast she could almost hear it, like the beat of a drum, filling the room.
“When the time came to retire for the evening,” she continued slowly, “my husband took my hand and informed me that he intended to stay in the guest-chamber, that night. He said that it had been a long, wearying day and that I must be very tired.” She paused. “He said that he would not be claiming his conjugal rights, that night, out of respect and concern for me. I was surprised but did not argue since Iwas, in fact, tired, and quite a bit anxious about my wedding night, and what would be required of me, as I am sure you will all understand …”
There was a shocked silence in the room. Hetty felt her face redden. Despite her resolve, it was still difficult to talk about such things in front of all these people. The judges, who were all high clerical figures, and her parents. Frank’s solicitor, and the scribe, who was furiously writing all that was said. And Louis, who sat in the gallery, almost in shadow. She kept her gaze firmly on the judges.
The bishop leaned forward in his seat, gazing at her keenly, rather like a hawk.
“What exactly are you claiming, Mrs Blackmore?” he asked. “I need you to be rather explicit about it if you please.”
Hetty took another deep breath. “I am claiming, my lord, that my husband did not take his conjugal rights with me that evening or in the morning before he fled the house, and the marriage,” she said, her voice crisp. “I am stillvirgo intacta,my lords. I am a maiden still, and I am willing to undergo an examination to prove it.”
She heard the strangled gasp of horror from her mother. The judges all shifted uneasily in their seats. She didn’t dare turn her head to see the reaction that Louis was having to her declaration, nor did she want to see the face of her father, who surely would be suffering mightily, at hearing his daughter say such a thing.
“You claim that you are still a maiden?” repeated the bishop, his voice harsh. “There are penalties for lying to this court, madam. And do not think that I would not order an examination to make sure of the truth of what you say.”
Hetty raised her chin, staring at him steadily. “I swear, before God Almighty, that I am as I came out of my mother’s womb, untouched by man.” She paused. “I would hardly claim such a thing if I could not prove it. Frank Blackmore never laid with me as a husband. He was never a husband to me, in that way, nor I a wife to him.”
The bishop sighed heavily. “Well, thisdoeschange things, quite significantly …”
“Yes, I believe that it does, my lord,” she said in a stronger voice. “The reason that I did not mention it yesterday, when recounting our brief marriage was my modesty, in that regard. No lady likes to talk about such intimate things.” She paused. “Nor did I fully realise, at that moment, how significantly itdoeschange things, but I have thought about it, now, and wish to change my petition to this court.”
“How so, madam?” asked the bishop.
“I wish to seek an annulment,” she said slowly. “Not a divorce. On the grounds that since the marriage was never consummated, it does not count as a marriage at all. Frank Blackmore was never my husband, and I was never his wife; therefore, the marriage is null and void.”
The judges stared at her, gaping. They were obviously not used to a woman talking so confidently about marital law.
“I believe that this declaration, and my willingness to undergo an examination to prove it, also puts to rest what Frank Blackmore has asserted about my character,” she continued. “I did not lay with any other gentleman while I was engaged to Mr Blackmore. I was a virgin on my wedding day, as I still am now.”
Mr Mitchell, the solicitor, looked pained. “Even if what Mrs Blackmore says is true, my lords, she might still have done other …thingswith those gentlemen,” he declared, rolling his eyes. “We all know that the actual act of intercourse is not the only act that can compromise a lady’s reputation …”
“Enough, Mr Mitchell,” said the bishop, quite sharply. “I think that we have heard quite enough on that count. Your client makes many claims about the lady but cannot prove any of them.” His face was like thunder. “Your client also shows disrespect to this court by not making the effort to attend these proceedings …”
“My clientdidtry, my lord,” interjected the solicitor. “He was unable to book passage …”
“Fiddlesticks,” said the bishop, his voice contemptuous. “He could have been here if he wanted to. He fled the country, with his mistress, and does not even have the decency to face the wife that he abandoned to account for his actions …”
The solicitor swallowed, quite visibly. He didn’t look comfortable at all.
“We shall reconvene in an hour,” said the bishop crisply. “I shall confer with my colleagues about these latest developments.” He paused, pursing his lips. “We shall present our findings, then, on this whole sorry mess.”
***
Louis pulled her aside as they waited in the foyer, while the judges convened. His green eyes were sparkling with joy. It took all of her willpower to stop herself from flinging her arms around him.
“You clever girl,” he breathed, gazing at her with admiration. “I do believe that you have turned the tables quite nicely.” He paused. “How did you think of it?”
She smiled slowly. “Well, itisthe truth,” she replied. “I am still a virgin, and I can prove it if they make me. But I never put two and two together, that it is grounds for an annulment, rather than a divorce until you mentioned Henry the Eighth, last evening.”
