Page 68 of Taken By the Dangerous Duke

“I wish that I could say that your predicament was an easy one to get out of, but it is not. If you are holding onto trauma that has been within you for years, that can be hard to shake, and the elders in your life are the ones who shape who you become. You might never shake this feeling.”

“That is what I am worried about,” admitted Arthur. “What good is it if I go through life like this. For the first time in years, I can finally see a different future for myself, but the past is tugging me back. I wish I could shed my fears and inhibitions, but I can’t.”

“And what does Margaret think about all of this? You must have talked about what will happen when you get back to York,” said Parker.

“We have not. Since the news about her pregnancy, I… I don’t like to admit this, but I have been avoiding her. I have become weak. I am not a man any longer.”

“Don’t talk like that, Arthur. You are more of a man than anyone I know, and part of that is down to you dealing with your inner turmoil instead of keeping it bottled up until it explodes in an unexpected way. But you must know how she feels about you. You told me that she confessed her love for you.”

“She said that she loved me, but it was caught up in the moment of her friend being freed from prison. It was a moment charged with emotion, so I can’t read too much into it. I know that she likes me, but I don’t know how deep those feelings run, and I don’t want to find out that she does not want what I think I want.”

“But you could have a future together, and she is a pretty good whist partner too!” said Parker.

“She is that,” agreed Arthur. “She is a fine woman, there is no doubt about that, but she agreed to give me a child, and she was happy to do so—you saw that. If she was thinking the same way I am, she would have been saddened by the news. We both know that the news of a child is news of our parting. She could have kept the news secret for longer if she wanted more time with me, and she would not be so happy if she had feelings for me and we were to be split.”

“Women are mysterious creatures, and you can’t always rely on outward appearances to know what is going on inside their heads. The very same could be said about you. You have not told nor shown Margaret exactly how you feel. I, for one, think that you two make a great couple, and knowing a couple like the two of you in York would be a big draw when Elspeth and I are married.”

“Don’t do this to me,” complained Arthur. “I am already having a hard enough time with my feelings without my best friend threatening to live far from me if I can’t sort out my own mess.”

“Hey, I’ll still come to visit,” said Parker.

“I know that I have to figure this out soon,” said Arthur. “I can’t avoid Margaret forever, but I can throw myself into this trial. I still have hope that the situation will magically resolve itself, and until then, I can concentrate on helping Cynthia stay out of prison. That way, Margaret can’t blame me for being distant, right?”

“I feel as if you are digging your own grave,” said Parker. “You are right about one thing, though.”

“And what is that?”

“You have to figure out what your own feelings and fears are before you know what you want with Margaret. If you can’t commit yourself to her, you can’t lead her on with the promise of a relationship that is not going to be there.”

“And that is if she wants a relationship at all. Perhaps it would be better if I let Margaret go her own way. I can’t keep her caged in a marriage that is not what she wants. That would be as bad as what she was promised by her parents.”

“You have some time,” said Parker. “But not a lot. If you can’t figure out what you are willing to let go of, then you have to accept that your marriage is over.”

CHAPTER33

Trials and Tribulations

“We have talked to five separate witnesses, who all place Miss Lancaster away from the crime scene when the alleged theft took place,” said Mr. Bessel, one of the two lawyers sitting on the other side of the desk. “The prosecution is relying only on the word of Mr. and Mrs. Wellington and one other witness. And, the testimony of Mr. and Mrs. Wellington will be subject to a lot of scrutiny.”

“And, not only that,” said Mr. Rickard, the second of the two lawyers, “but we can find no record of money being moved from Mr. Swanson’s accounts. Now, this does not mean that money was not taken from somewhere, but a man as meticulous as Mr. Swanson always has a paper trail, so we can cast more suspicion.”

“Unless he had the money lying around his home,” chimed in Mr. Bessel. “Which would be irregular at best. We need to investigate the finances some more, but it does not seem that Mr. Swanson is the kind of man to keep his money at home and not in a financial institution.”

“And there is the small matter of where the money disappeared to. A sizable amount is not easy to hide, but with our communication with the constabulary, we have discovered that no money has been found anywhere at Miss Lancaster’s house, nor has Miss. Lancaster used any money out with her usual spending.”

“So, what does that mean?” asked Margaret.

She sat to the side of the desk, listening intently to the two lawyers as they took them through the case so far. Cynthia sat on the other side of the desk and was equally enraptured. Arthur sat on the other side of the desk from the two lawyers.

“It means that either Miss. Lancaster is very good at hiding money or she is innocent,” said Mr. Bessel.

The two lawyers could have been twins. They both wore matching suits, even though there were from different law houses. They wore bowler hats too and were of the same complexion. The only main difference between the two was that Mr. Bessel wore eyeglasses.

“Do you believe that Mr. and Mrs. Wellington will back down from this?” asked Arthur.

“We do not know that yet,” admitted Mr. Rickard. “Their friend, Mr. Swanson is paying for a high-end lawyer, but only on a part-time basis. So, either they believe they have a strong case and don’t need full representation to proceed, or they are keeping up pretenses in the hope that we go to them with a deal.”

“No deal,” stated Cynthia. “We have talked about this at length, and we are going to fight this through until the end.”

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