Page 43 of The Jewels of Halstead Manor (Ladies of Devon 1)

Chapter 15

Giulia took advantage of Jack’s offer to relieve her from Nick’s bedside and spent the morning exploring the castle. Wandering the empty halls of the west wing, she considered her outburst the previous evening at the earl’s dinner table. She had half-expected a servant to come to her in the night and escort her off of the property, but no one ever came. She had waited up so long that her missed dinner and scattered nerves forced her down to the kitchen to relieve her empty stomach.

She hadn’t expected a visitor. She’d gone down to the kitchen at night often and never once had she run into another soul—not after being caught by the cook, at least.

Shaking her head, she sighed. Nick was a tease. He relied on his handsome smile to ease tensions. And it worked very well. Only, she could not let him see that. It took all of her strength to remain unaffected when Nick released the full effect of his charisma on her. She did her best to conjure Ames’s countenance in her mind, but his distance—literally and figuratively, she had still yet to receive a letter—was making that increasingly difficult.

Why hadn’t he written her? It was easy to be cross at him for not reaching out to her when she really needed support. It was equally difficult to remind herself that Ames could not read her mind, and therefore had no idea how much she felt like she needed him. But really, how hard could it be to write a letter, particularly when one said they would?

Giulia traced her finger along a tapestry covering the length of the corridor. More mail arrived every day from Patrick Pepper’s adoring fans offering their condolences and sorrow over losing the famed adventurist; the letters included many, many inquiries on whether Jules was going to continue in his stead. She had gotten rather adept at quick, gracious responses that snuffed that flame before it could get out of hand. Never in a hundred lifetimes would she continue to write her father’s adventure stories.

Her responses to the fans’ inquiries were quick, but the letters were arriving with increasing speed and she was getting behind. But what could she do? Giulia owed these fans her livelihood. They deserved a response for their support and kindness, no matter how little the letters did to alleviate Ames’s absence.

She reached the end of the corridor and an alcove appeared before her with a curved, wooden door. Out of all of the thick, oak doors that littered the castle, this one was unique. It looked to be original to the building, which had to be hundreds of years old, with its splintering wood and iron supports. The iron lock appeared broken, and anticipation skittered through her veins. Regardless of her disdain for the adventures that took precedence in her lifetime, the thrill of a mystery was ingrained deep in her blood—whether or not she cared to admit it.

Giulia wrapped her fingers around the cold, iron ring that stood in place of a doorknob and pulled. The heavy hinges creaked from years of neglect as the door came forward a fraction before halting.

It appeared unlocked, only stuck. Giulia furrowed her brows and braced both of her hands on the ring, getting a good grip before pulling with all of her strength. The door inched forward. Light poured from the crack and cold air snaked through, running up her arms and driving chills down her flesh.

Giulia paused, leaning her hands on her knees and waiting for her breathing to slow before trying again. But it was to no avail. The door simply would not budge another inch. She peeked her head through the gap to find stairs that led up and turned out of sight. A spiral staircase could only mean one thing; this was the entrance to one of the four towers dotting the castle’s corners. Excitement coursed through her body and she took hold of the iron ring, rallied her strength, and yanked one more time; slowly the door inched open until finally, a space opened up wide enough for Giulia to slip through.

A chill permeated her bones. She shuddered but did not hesitate to ascend the stairs; they seemed to go on forever, confirming her suspicion that she was climbing to the top of one of the towers that squared the castle.

Disappointment filled her when she reached the top of the stairs to find another heavy door with a large padlock in place.

Giulia deflated. “Well, drat.”

Now she really missed Ames and his ability to pick a lock. Oh, who was she kidding? She missed all of him. She let out a sigh and yanked on the door for good measure. Naturally, the lock did not evaporate, and the door did not budge.

Putting her hands on her hips, she glared at the offending object before spinning on her heel and bouncing down the stairs. Well, that adventure had been a dead end. For now.

Once she got to the end of the hallway, she hesitated. Turning right would lead her directly to her bedroom and the mound of unanswered letters that begged for her attention. She could picture the steadily growing mountain of correspondence piling up on her desk, and her shoulders fell a little.

But her outburst with her uncle still haunted her mind; she would respond to the letters, but first, she needed to apologize.

Making her way to the earl’s study, Giulia swallowed the lump that gathered in her throat. She closed her eyes for a moment, tilting her face toward the ceiling and trying to figure out what she would say. She pulled out her elephant and kissed it before slipping it back into her gown and knocking on the door.

A moment went by and nothing happened. She knocked again, but the silence endured. Turning, Giulia huffed. Was everything destined to be a dead end this morning?

Wells turned the corner and stopped short, his white eyebrows hitching in surprise. “Is there something I can do for you, Miss Pepper?”

“No, thank you, Wells.” Giulia darted a glance behind the older man, but the earl did not appear. She let out a frustrated breath. “I was only looking for Lord Hart.”

“He can be found in the stables, Miss Pepper.”

“Oh,” she said in surprise. “I did not know he rides.” She shook her head; of course he did. He was a gentleman, after all.

Wells’s mouth twitched in a suppressed smile. “Yes, Miss Pepper, he quite enjoys it as well.”

“It is only that I have never seen him outside. The only place I thought he ventured beyond the dining room was his study.”

“Of late, yes, that seems to be the case.” Wells leaned in and lowered his voice. “Of course, when he has trouble working through a problem he tends to do his best thinking on horseback.”

“I see. And…” Giulia appraised the older man for a moment before proceeding. “Do I happen to be today’s problem?”

“That, I cannot say.” Wells straightened and returned to his formal role, loyalty keeping him silent. But his knowing look gave her all of the information she needed.

“Thank you, Wells,” Giulia said over her shoulder as she slipped past him toward the front door. The biting cold hit her like a wall, and she sucked in a fortifying breath before continuing on around the back of the castle. She needed to speak to the earl before she lost her nerve. The autumn air was crisp and reviving. She pulled in a deep breath and let it cleanse her. A glance at the sky told her that rain was on its way. If the earl was not back from his ride already then surely he would be soon. The clouds looked menacing and far too close.

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