Page 56 of Alone with a Scarred Earl
James exhaled, steady but firm.
“I would not pull you away if it weren’t urgent,” he said.
Gabriel finally met his gaze, expression tight. James spoke without preamble.
“A man from Ravencroft's household has come,” he said. “He claims he has vital information.”
Gabriel’s posture stiffened. Sophia glanced between them, sensing the shift. James kept his tone level.
“I have taken precautions,” he said. “You will hear him, but only under security measures.”
Gabriel exhaled slowly, releasing Genevieve’s hand with reluctant care.
“Lead the way,” he said.
***
Gabriel sat stiffly in the parlor, exhaustion momentarily eclipsed by cold, simmering fury as he registered the identity of the man before him. John Smite shifted uneasily in his chair, his fingers twisting his cap with nervous energy. He kept his gaze lowered, avoiding direct eye contact, but the palpable fear radiating from him was undeniable.
James stood nearby, his posture rigid, his assessing gaze sharp as he observed the trembling servant.
“Tell him everything you told me, Smite,” he said gruffly.
Gabriel forced himself to remain still, controlling the impulse to demand answers with unchecked rage.
Smite’s breath was uneven, his voice halting as he began.
“I was blackmailed,” said John Smite. “Charles threatened my mother. She is ill, and she depends on my wages.”
Gabriel’s jaw tightened.
Smite swallowed hard, gathering his thoughts before continuing. “I overheard Charles and Richard,” he said. “Numerous times. They never noticed mewhen I was serving brandy, tending the fire. They spoke freely, believing me insignificant.”
Gabriel remained motionless, absorbing every word. Smite inhaled shakily.
“They orchestrated the carriage accident,” Smite said. “It was no misfortune. It was planned.”
The admission struck like a blow, but Gabriel did not react outwardly.
“They hired men,” he said. “I heard Charles give explicit instructions to make it look natural, ensuring the Countess was either killed or gravely injured.”
Gabriel exhaled slowly, forcing his hands to unclench. Most shocking, however, was Smite’s next revelation.
“Victoria’s illness was induced,” he said.
Gabriel’s pulse surged.
“Are you certain?” he asked.
Smite’s voice trembled.
“I heard Richard boasting,” he said. “He gave her small, cumulative doses of poison derived from foxglove hidden in her nightly tonic.”
The sheer calculated cruelty tightened like a vice around Gabriel’s ribs.
Smite hesitated before adding,
“Richard wanted his inheritance,” he said. “He also wanted Charles’s favor. And he wanted Genevieve distressed, so you would falter.”
