Page 50 of Masquerading with the Duke
Sighing, Jared and Thor made their way out to the stables. Jared needed to clear the cobwebs from his brain. He had a lively stallion to pit his wits against and did his best thinking out of doors. Jared barely acknowledged John’s deferential greeting and curtly told him to saddle Equinox.
He swung into the saddle as soon as the horse was brought out of his stall, prancing at the end of his lead rope. He ignored the horse’s bad manners as he swivelled his quarters and pawed at the ground, whistled to Thor and left the yard at a trot. Equinox was full of himself and it took all of Jared’s concentration and ingenuity to stay on his back. Jared swore at his antics but also enjoyed his independent spirit, which helped to lift his mood. The stallion pranced sideways, shying at anything and nothing, alternately bucking and attempting to rear up. Only after Jared had given him his head and allowed the horse to eat up the ground in his lower acres with an impressive turn of speed did Equinox’s temperament improve.
Jared had won this first battle of wills, but didn’t delude himself into supposing that he would necessarily win them all. Nor would he want to break the horse’s spirit by taking too firm a hand with him. Still a diplomat at heart, he would prefer to bond with Equinox and win his trust slowly.
‘You just wanted some freedom, didn’t you, lad,’ Jared said as he drew rein, patted Equinox’s sweaty neck and waited for Thor to catch them up, his long tongue lolling from the side of his mouth.
Jared enjoyed the view and the absolute serenity, taking satisfaction from the fact that most of the land that he could see belonged to him. He was glad to be settled back in England despite all the problems he had brought with him. This time next year his pasture would be filled with livestock, his fields under cultivation, always supposing he could get the better of Redrow and remove the cloud of suspicion that hovered over his name. He guided horse and dog to the river, still little more than a trickle, and allowed them both to drink as he glanced up at the sky, pleased to see that clouds were gathering at last. They’d have some much needed rain soon, demarcating a change of seasons that would herald a new start for Jared.
He turned Equinox in the direction of home, returning through a different part of his estate. He noticed Harker directing a couple of men he’d taken on to clear the fallen branches in his woodland. He acknowledged his steward but didn’t pause to address him. Back in the stable yard, he surrendered the stallion to John’s care without a word and strode back into the house, where Ramsay awaited him in Jared’s library.
‘Quite the spirited one, your Miss Martina,’ he said by way of greeting.
Jared gave him a sharp look. ‘What the devil are you talking about?’ he asked.
‘Just met her, eavesdropping on your brother’s conversation with Redrow, bold as you please.’
‘The devil you did!’ Jared threw himself into a chair. Sensing his dire mood, no doubt, Thor whined and settled on the rug, his large head resting on his outstretched front legs as he sent Jared frequent doe-eyed looks. ‘The irresponsible, headstrong, foolish chit! She shouldn’t be within ten miles of Redrow. What in tarnation’s name does she think she’s playing it?’
Ramsay lifted one shoulder. ‘Helping you, I shouldn’t wonder.’
‘How the blazes did you let her get that close? You went into the village ahead of Arthur. You should have stopped her being so impetuous.’
‘My horse cast a shoe midway between here and the village,’ Ramsay replied ruefully. ‘Had to lead him the rest of the way. Only just managed to hide behind a stand of trees when I heard Arthur’s carriage approaching. Anyway, by the time I’d left the horse at the smithy and discovered where Arthur was meeting Redrow, your enterprising Miss Martina had got there ahead of me.’
Jared grunted, wondering how Ramsay could remain so impassively calm when the female who occupied far too many of his waking thoughts had taken it upon herself to behave so recklessly. ‘Tell me everything,’ he said curtly, wondering if it was too early to break out the whisky.
Jared listened, his mood growing steadily more sombre, as he learned the full extent of Arthur’s involvement with Redrow. When Ramsay ran out of words, Jared stood and paced the length of the room, too agitated to think matters through rationally. He was watched by Ramsay and Thor, but other than a tentative flap of Thor’s tail, neither did anything to break his train of thought.
‘Redrow must have realised that he was in danger of being exposed,’ Jared eventually said in a pensive tone. ‘Which has made him behave rashly. This is an ill-considered ploy, and we can use it to expose his treachery.’
‘You have no doubt that he’s the traitor?’
‘I was almost sure before I settled here. Now there can be no doubt, especially if he has enough blunt to purchase Arthur’s debts, which I am sure must be substantial.’ Jared tapped his index finger against his teeth. ‘He used the suspicion that existed about the pater’s loyalties to deflect guilt in my direction. People are gullible and would easily believe the like-father-like-son whispering campaign he probably instigated. I had been getting some odd looks, which makes me suspect that the campaign in question was under way before I resigned from my post.’
‘What will you do?’
‘I’m still not sure.’ He pinched the bridge of his nose, momentarily lost in thought. ‘But time is no longer on my side, for any number of reasons, and I need to reach a decision quickly. It would help if I knew what the documents Redrow gave to Arthur actually contain. Although I can make an educated guess.’ Jared let rip with a string of imprecations that turned the air blue. ‘They will be communications, probably in some sort of code that’s easy to break. Forgeries, of course, from one or more of the Frenchmen who are known to cultivate disloyalty among the English delegation.’
‘Which will prove nothing,’ Ramsay pointed out briskly. ‘If you really are a traitor and have survived at it for so long, you’d hardly be careless enough to leave such documents in your brother’s house. A house that you seldom visit and never stay for long when you can’t avoid doing so.’
Jared conceded the point with a weary sigh. ‘True enough, but rational thought will play no part in the schemes of those wishing to see me brought down.’
‘That presumably is where Arthur will say that he found the documents and he felt honour bound to pass them to someone in authority. Lord Romsey perhaps.’
‘No, not Romsey. Redrow is aware that I mix socially with the duke. Romsey is married to the duke’s sister, so Redrow will assume that I enjoy his confidence. The documents will more likely find their way into the hands of the foreign secretary’s senior clerk and…’
‘And the Whitehall rumour mill will go into overdrive.’ Ramsay nodded, grim-faced. ‘Very clever but not enough to see you accused of anything, especially now that you have such powerful friends here in Hampshire.’
‘I shall not apply to the duke, or tell him what we now know, if that’s what you mean to imply. It wouldn’t be fair to him; especially if Romsey suspects me. It would be like asking the duke to choose between his family and his new neighbour. In his situation, I know whose side I would come down on. After all, he is barely acquainted with me.’ Jared shook his head, resolute. ‘No, I must fight my own battles.’
‘I could go after Arthur and forcibly relieve him of those papers.’
‘It’s not Arthur I want to stop, it’s bloody Redrow,’ Jared replied, slapping his thigh in frustration as he resumed his chair. ‘Redrow is right to imagine that people will wonder where my wealth came from and a number will be quick to condemn me on the flimsiest of evidence, if for no other reason than jealousy.’
‘You could tell the truth.’
‘I could, but I don’t see why I damned well should.’ Jared scowled at nothing in particular. ‘It’s nobody’s business other than my own. Besides, I gave my word to keep it confidential.’
