Page 54 of An Earl to Save the Diamond
“How did you know she was with child?” Andrew asked after some moments of silence. “As far as I know, you have not been to Conolly Manor in some time.”
“She wrote to me,” Ellen replied, “and she begged me to keep it a secret. She was going to inform you in her own time when she had decided what to do with it.”
Andrew suddenly tensed up. “What to do with it? What does that mean? What do you mean what to do with it, Ellen?”
“Is it not obvious, Brother? She is an unmarried lady with child who would rather die than watch you marry her against your will. It goes against everything she stands for.”
“Are you telling me that Marjorie intends to… to… I cannot even utter the words!”
“She has not come to a decision yet. As I said, she is still contemplating the matter. There are many institutions that—”
“No, not if I have anything to do with it.”
“I always knew you would do the right thing, Brother. It’s one of the things I always liked about you.”
“I wish, I could say the same for you, Sister.”
Ellen laughed. “I must confess, I have not made any of you proud of my actions or decisions lately.”
“And that is saying the least.”
Ellen nodded. “I know. But we truly did not do anything of that sort.”
“We will come back to this matter once Mother gets better.”
Ellen looked over at her mother’s stoic expression. “You do not think she is faking it, do you? That this is some kind of trick to make you change your mind about your decision?”
Andrew paused and looked at his mother’s still face. “Mother might be one for theatrics, but I do not think she would take it quite this far.”
Ellen scoffed, but before she could answer, Doctor Phillips, the short, thick family doctor entered the room. Andrew and Ellen stood up gratefully.
“Your Grace, I came as soon as I could. Now, tell me what happened,” the doctor said, briefly glancing at Emily and Andrew as he opened his medicine bag.
“Well, we were having an argument over a personal family matter.” Andrew stalled, but the doctor scoffed.
“You know how long I have been your family doctor. I have seen and heard many things about this family. Now, you have to tell me the truth, so I know what happened. “
“Andrew, it is okay. We should tell him, we can trust him.”
Andrew nodded. “There was a scandal regarding Ellen which we are currently handling.”
“I see,” the man merely said.
Andrew coughed lightly. “And my mistress is with child.”
The doctor stopped, looked at both of them in shock, and then turned to their mother. “No wonder! Two of you at the same time? Of course, this is what I asked her to stay clear of.”
Andrew was confused. “I do not understand.”
Doctor Phillip sighed. “The Dowager made me swear not to tell you both, stating that she wanted to see you married before she broke the news.”
Ellen was frightened. “What do you mean?”
Doctor Phillips sat next to his patient and looked at her sadly. “Your mother, the Dowager, was diagnosed with a rare heart condition. As it stands, she only has a few months to live.”
ChapterFourteen
Ellen, shocked, stared at the family doctor in disbelief. “This is a jest taken too far, Doctor Phillips. If Mama had been unwell, we would have known; she would have told us. Tell him, Andrew!” She turned away so they would not see her cry.
