Page 55 of Alone with a Scarred Earl
The physician looked as though he wanted to argue, but with time of such essence, he did not. Throughout the grim, necessary medical procedures, including the cleaning of her wound, and the painful setting of her broken arm, Gabriel refused to leave her side. His grip tightened around her cold fingers, his whispered pleas falling into the stillness. He had heard the physician’s grim prediction, but he refused to give up. He loved his wife, and now that he realized that, he could not consider her lost. Not until her heart had beat its very last.
“Stay with me, my darling,” he said. “Please, I beg of you, stay with me.”
***
The household had settled into uneasy silence by the time the unexpected visitor arrived. Genevieve remained unconscious, hovering precariously between life and death, her condition casting a heavy pall over Mountwood. The staff moved with subdued efficiency, their quiet urgency reflecting the growing fear thatsurrounded her chambers. Outside, the evening deepened, shadows stretching long across the estate as the candlelit corridors echoed with murmured conversations and hurried footsteps.
James had stationed himself near the entrance hall, overseeing security measures with methodical precision. Every order was executed without hesitation. No unexpected visitors were to be permitted inside. Every gate was monitored, every guard alert. With Genevieve’s life hanging in the balance, there was no room for carelessness.
When the urgent request came, the initial response was swift resistance.
“Certainly not,” he said.
The messenger, a thin man with pale features and wide, fearful eyes, shifted nervously under the weight of scrutiny.
“I must speak with the Earl,” he said. “Immediately. My names is John Smite, and I have important information.”
James narrowed his gaze, assessing the man. Smite’s terror seemed genuine. His face was drawn, his expression taut with urgency, which was not the air of a man attempting manipulation, but one driven by sheer necessity. Still, James did not relent easily.
“The Earl is indisposed,” he said. “I will stand in his stead. State your business.”
Smite inhaled sharply, lowering his voice to a hushed whisper.
“I serve Charles Ravencroft,” he said
The name snapped James’s full attention into place.
Smite must have noticed, because his voice trembled.
“I have vital information,” he said again. “You must listen, please.”
A pause stretched between them, weighted with consideration.
James did not make decisions lightly, but experience told him when a man was driven by genuine fear, and Smite’s terror was unmistakable. Whatever had brought him here was grave enough to push him past caution, past self-preservation.
James exhaled, making his choice.
“You will not speak to the Earl directly,” he said. “Not yet.”
He led Smite into a small anteroom, taking every precaution to prevent immediate access to Gabriel. Emotionally compromised, Gabriel would be susceptible to misplaced trust—something James could not allow.
Two armed estate guards were stationed discreetly outside the parlor door.
James seated himself opposite Smite, posture rigid, expression unreadable.
“Speak,” he said.
Smite did not hesitate.
“The carriage accident,” he said with apparent anxiety. “Lady Mountwood’s condition. It was all intentional. And I can prove everything I say.”
James nodded. He was rattled, but not out of surprise of the news. He was only surprised that Mr. Smite was confessing to the truth. However, his fragmented story spilled forth, coherently and believably enough to warrant the interruption of Gabriel’s vigil over his wife.
“Come,” James said, interrupting the man. “I shall take you to the earl.”
Moments later, he stood, issuing sharp orders to secure the estate further before moving toward Genevieve’s chambers. Gabriel needed to be told. James stepped inside quietly, eyes landing on the man seated beside Genevieve, his hand still clasping hers. Sophia remained nearby, watching over her.
Gabriel did not look up immediately, his focus still locked on Genevieve’s fragile form.
