Page 66 of With Good Grace
Parker joined them almost as soon as Lady Marchant had left. ‘They’re locked in the cellar,’ Parker said. ‘And I found a lot of cash, presumably from the sale of those paintings, hidden beneath the floorboards.’
‘What do you want done about them, Olivia?’
‘Hubert admitted that he set up the robberies that killed Marcus and that poor night watchman, but it would be his word against mine and no one would believe I was not involved. You know very well that some still suspect me. Molly is so besotted with Hubert that she will take his side and if Lady Marchant was forced to testify to what she heard, it would mean the end of her marriage. She has been foolish, but still, I could not do that to her.’
‘What about the men he hired; the ones who killed the night watchman?’ Jake asked. ‘They ought to be brought to account.’
Parker shrugged. ‘I doubt if he knows who they are. He was, shall we say, persuaded to give me the name of the man whom he paid to make the arrangements. We could pass that on anonymously to Chief Inspector Drake and let him take it from there. I doubt whether the man will be found, though.’
Jake doubted it too. ‘Well then,’ he said. ‘Why do we not give all that money to Lady Grantley so she can at least pay for her boys’ education and have something left to live on? We will put Grantley and Molly on a ship to America with the clothes they stand up in and let them make of their new life what they may. That will save you from further scandal and give them their just desserts.’
Olivia nodded. ‘That will serve very well. I gave Molly every opportunity to switch sides whilst we were in that cottage but she stuck by Hubert, even after he punched her, so she has no one but herself to blame.’
‘Then we are agreed.’ Jake stood and extended a hand to Olivia. ‘Come along, my sweet. You look exhausted. Besides,’ he added in an undertone that Parker could not hear. ‘You are in need of a lady’s maid and I am offering my services.’
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Olivia smiled to herself as Jake’s carriage returned her to Grosvenor Square the afternoon after her ordeal. She had been to visit Margaret; aware that that delicate task could not be delayed or delegated, even though she would have much preferred to remain with Tom. Jake had assured her that he would actin loco parentis, setting her mind at rest, and he greeted her now with a squealing Tom thrown over his shoulder.
‘There you are,’ he said, sending her a somnolent smile. ‘We missed you.’
‘Not too much by the looks of things,’ she replied, smiling at her upside down son and ruffling his hair.
‘Mama, we have been building a fort,’ Tom cried enthusiastically.
‘So I see,’ Olivia replied, having surrendered her outer garments to the maid who stepped forward to take them and smiling as she saw an assortment of building bricks spread across the rug in front of the fire in Jake’s library. The makings of the promised fort emerged triumphant from the chaos. She idly wondered which of the budding architects had enjoyed himself more. ‘Very impressive.’
Olivia spent ten minutes with Tom, admiring his handiwork and listening to his endless chatter, glad to see him restored to his normal inquisitive and talkative self. He did not seem to recall anything about the previous day and Olivia was grateful for that. Jane appeared to take him up to the nursery and Olivia reluctantly let him go.
‘Now, tell me how it went with Lady Grantley,’ Jake said when they were finally alone.
Olivia planned to visit her sister-in-law alone. Jake’s idea of alone was to send her in one of his carriages, with two footmen up behind. She allowed him to take such excessive precautions, even though she knew they were no longer necessary, just so that he would know peace of mind.
‘I told her everything…well, almost everything. I did not mention that her husband tried to rape me. What would be the point of inflicting unnecessary pain? Anyway, she accepted what I did tell her with remarkably good grace,’ Olivia replied. ‘I expected her to blame me somehow, or to make excuses for Hubert.’
‘I suspect she already had a good idea that he was behaving rashly, even if she was not prepared to admit it to herself, much less anyone else. How did she respond to the knowledge that her husband and the girl he foolishly caught in his web of deceit are about to leave these shores permanently?’
‘You know, I think she was relieved; especially when I gave her all that money. I dare say she will tell everyone that Hubert is dead, thereby retaining her dignity and society’s sympathy. Either way, at least now she knows his fate and will not spend her days wondering what has become of him.’
‘What does she plan to do now? The money will not be sufficient to restore that barn of a house.’
‘She had been thinking of moving into the dower house. She has taken control of things in Hubert’s absence and is already accepting her estate manager’s suggestions for improved productivity on the farm. She will try to find someone to take over the house for a peppercorn rent, in return for their doing the repairs. She does not wish to sell it if it can be avoided, since she looks upon it as her eldest son’s inheritance.’
‘Well then, we no longer need concern ourselves with Lady Grantley. Let us think of ourselves for a change.’
Olivia permitted her surprise to show. ‘Whatever do you mean? The danger is past. I can go back to Chelsea and leave you in peace.’
Jake fixed her with a look of fierce protectiveness. ‘You know precisely what I mean, and it has nothing to do with Chelsea.’ He canted his head and smiled at her with his eyes, his lips, his entire face. ‘But then again, perhaps it does.’
‘If you are about to scold me for leaving here with Molly yesterday then you can save your breath. My son’s life hung in the balance and given the same circumstances, I would do so again without a second thought. You are not a mother so cannot be expected to understand what primal forces influenced me.’
‘Actually, I was thinking of our future.’
‘What future?’ Olivia flapped a hand. ‘I have agreed to come to Torbay this summer and we were to speak of it then.’
‘That was before you put yourself in danger. Again.’ Jake clasped one of her hands in both of his own. ‘There is no help for it, my sweet, you will just have to marry me.’
Olivia’s mouth fell open. ‘Marry you?’
