Page 56 of Lady Controversial
‘Course not.’ Barker sneered, opening up a cut on his lip when the gesture pulled it taut. ‘I didn’t come down in the last shower.’
‘My name was not mentioned?’
‘The less the lass knew, the easier it was to keep her in line. Right inquisitive, is that one.’
Marcus looked at him for a long time, trying to decide if he was telling the truth. He was tough but suffering and Marcus knew he couldn’t take much more punishment. He was the type to know when he’d met his match and would likely have spoken up and cut his losses, or else used what he knew to feather his own nest. The fact that he hadn’t attempted to extract money from Marcus told its own story.
He jerked his head to indicate that Barker should be set free. It wasn’t as if he could lock him anywhere securely in this cottage and he’d not willingly take him to the cellars in Crawley Place. Too much was going on there in absolute secrecy. Giving the impression that the property was uninhabited while the works continued was vital to his plans. If Finchdean heard so much as a whisper…
Well, it didn’t bear thinking about.
Marcus knew exactly where to find the irksome Miss Crawley, and when he got his hands on her she would rue the day she’d been born. He’d exercised considerable patience in the face of her stubborn intransigence and treated her like a lady, despite the overwhelming desire he struggled to overcome whenever in her company. It now transpired that she was little better than a whore and Marcus no longer felt that any restraint on his part was called for.
‘Here, about my blunt.’ Barker clenched bloodied fists and glowered at Marcus, who felt intimidated despite the man’s debilitations.
‘Just go, and consider yourself lucky that you’re still breathing,’ Marcus replied absently, watching as his men opened the door, letting in a gust of wind. They unceremoniously kicked Barker’s backside and sent him sprawling face down in the mud outside the cottage door.
Chapter Eighteen
Ellery whistled as he dressed with excessive care for the evening to come. For once there would be single females seated at his table whose company he would not seek to avoid. Well, one single female in particular. Felix had not stopped singing the praises of the acknowledged beauty in the Crawley family and could be depended upon to occupy Jane, leaving Ellery free to lavish the attention she so richly deserved upon Isolda.
He wondered what she might wear, knowing that she would rise to the challenge. He almost relished the clash between his mother and Isolda, aware that the latter would hold her own and refuse to be intimidated by a lady who used her status to ensure that lesser individuals never forgot their place.
All well and good, he thought, sighing as his valet held out his coat for Ellery to slip his arms into the sleeves. Admiring the chit and enjoying her engaging company was one thing but her portraying herself as a young swordsman and performing for thehoi polloiwould make any lasting connection between them an impossibility if it became public knowledge. Even he would not dare to denigrate his family name to that extent.
Not that his thoughts had consciously drifted in that direction. Had they?
Such a juicyen dit—a slip of a girl fooling the masses for so long—could not remain a secret indefinitely, Ellery accepted. Barker knew who she was, and presumably others did too. Now that she no longer fought for them—and Ellery would make it his business to ensure that she did not—then Barker would likely attempt to exploit the connection for financial gain.
His type always did.
‘Foolish child,’ he muttered, aware that by attempting to secure her sister’s future in such an unorthodox manner, she could just as easily have scuppered her chances of making a good marriage. Worse, even Ellery could see why his mother might raise legitimate objections to her means of retaining her independence, especially when she had an aunt who would publicly claim to have offered her nieces a roof over their heads.
Ellery adjusted the hem of his silk embroidered waistcoat and took a final glance at his appearance in the long mirror. Satisfied with his reflection, he made his way downstairs and entered his drawing room to find only Felix in occupation of it, restlessly pacing up and down.
‘Mother is quite determined to be impolite to the girls,’ he said. ‘I have not been able to avoid hearing her going on about it all afternoon long. She is shocked beyond her wildest imaginings, in case you were not aware.’
Ellery rolled his eyes and laughed. ‘I dare say she is,’ he said.
‘It’s all right for you. You’d shut yourself away in the estate office out of earshot.’
It was true, Ellery had been with his steward. Not because he needed to be but because he wanted a reason to avoid visiting Isolda, a temptation that became harder to resist with every hour that passed. There was no reason in the world why he should not check that they had everything they needed, but he knew he would be making excuses to spend time in her company.
He also knew that she would quiz him on his intentions regarding Brooke and insist upon being involved in whatever strategy he came up with. Despite the fact that he had yet to decide how to handle the wretched man, Ellery was equally determined to protect her from his tenacious evil. It was beyond time that someone looked out for her interests, but he knew she would never agree to such an idea. Better to get a handle on Brooke’s intentions and then present Isolda with an account of his actions after the event.
‘Well, little brother, you and I had best see what we can do to counter our mother’s spite, had we not?’
Ellery slapped Felix’s shoulder and then turned to the sideboard to pour measures of whisky for them both.
‘What if Mother discovers Miss Crawley’s true vocation?’ Felix asked, his smile fading.
‘As things stand there is no possible way that she can,’ Ellery replied with confidence, pursing his lips. ‘Only you, Lawson and I know what she has been reduced to and that is the way that I intend things to remain.’
‘Of course!’ Felix waved his agreement. ‘Stands to reason. I say, she is something else with a sword though. Quite remarkable! I have never seen the like,andno one there guessed that she was a woman.’
‘That’s because everyone arrived with a preconceived notion that only men are capable of fighting with a sword.’
‘We do have more physical strength.’
