A Simple Lady (17 page)

He stood, consciously wiping all traces of emotions from his features. He gazed at Elizabeth, his face a cold and rigid mask, his eyes aloof and remote. “I hope you won’t find that the boy is merely using you for his own selfish purposes, madam,” he said. “These street children can be both manipulative and malicious, but then I am sure you would recognize those qualities. Now, if you will excuse me, I have much to do before I return to Oak Groves.”

* * *

Elizabeth watched, stunned, as Kenrick stalked from the room and slammed the door behind him. Gripping her lower lip between her teeth, she stared at that door he had closed between them, wondering what had happened. What had she done to upset him? Why had he suddenly become hostile toward her again? Why had he been so quick to warn her against Billy?

Ten minutes later, she realized that the chances for her being able to answer those questions were remote. Her initial sense of numbness was quickly being supplanted by feelings of confusion, hurt, and a desperate fear that she had somehow failed again. And, as always, she did not understand what she should have done differently.

Forcing herself to stand, Elizabeth thrust her quivering chin into the air and hurried into the hall, determined to bring under control her strong desire to escape to her bedchamber for a nice long cry. She would not give in to such weakness. If her husband held her in distaste, well that was nothing new. She had lived with his displeasure for weeks, and she could do so again.

She had not realized she was standing in the hallway and staring into space until Larkman cleared his throat just inches away, causing her to start violently.

“I beg your pardon, my lady. Is there something I can do for you?”

“No,” Elizabeth responded too quickly. “That is, I mean yes. If you s-s-see the dowager marchioness, please t-t-tell her I shall be in the schoolroom.”

She could feel Larkman staring at her back as she hurried up the stairs and could not help wondering if he regretted having to serve a mistress who succumbed to stuttering every time she became upset.

Chapter Fourteen

Elizabeth made no attempt to hide her pleasure when Gerald arrived early one morning the following week to invite her to join him for a ride in the park. After all, she had spent the last hour wandering from window to window, from library to drawing room, trying to find something to occupy her thoughts until time for Mary to get up.

Since Mary rarely awoke before eleven o’clock and Elizabeth could not stay in bed later than eight, she had grown accustomed to entertaining herself for several hours each morning, a circumstance that had presented no hardships for her until this past week. Now even her books could not keep her from dwelling on Kenrick’s strange behavior the day she had told him about Billy.

After hours of wracking her brain for a reasonable motivation behind her husband’s sudden hostility toward her that afternoon, Elizabeth was no closer to understanding his conduct than she had been when he had first stalked out of the drawing room. They had been laughing together one moment, and the next he had turned cold and distant. Had she unwittingly said something wrong? If so, what?

Gerald’s arrival shortly after Elizabeth had finished breakfast seemed a Godsend that morning. The day had dawned sunny, and the temperatures promised to be mild. Perfect weather for riding, as Gerald quickly pointed out.

“I could not agree more,” Elizabeth responded, smiling. “If you will send word to the stables to have my horse saddled, I shall change into my habit and be ready to accompany you in fifteen minutes.”

“I am pleased to be able to bring such a joyous smile to your face, my dear Elizabeth. I just wish— Never mind.”

Elizabeth frowned at the sudden signs of distress she detected in Gerald’s voice. “Is something amiss, Gerald?” she asked.

“Not at all,” he said quickly—too quickly.

“Are you certain?”

“How perceptive you are, dear Cousin. But I fear you will not appreciate my concerns.”

“Concerns?”

“Merely that I cannot like seeing you so sadly neglected. Surely affairs at Oak Groves are not of such a critical nature that they require all of Kenrick’s time.”

Elizabeth agreed with Gerald in principle but found she did not like hearing him criticize her husband’s activities. Amazed by the vehemence of her reaction, she clenched her teeth tightly, fighting an almost overwhelming urge to give Gerald a severe set-down. All of which made no sense, she admitted to herself. Clearly Gerald’s feelings reflected a sincere interest in her comfort, an interest not shared by her husband.

Although she had tried to hide her flare of irritation, Elizabeth feared her feelings had been reflected in her eyes, for Gerald immediately smiled, a bit sadly and certainly with a suggestion of self-deprecation.

“I feared you would not appreciate my cousinly concerns. You are really a very self-sufficient young woman, are you not, Elizabeth?”

Elizabeth let her breath out in a quick sigh. “Don’t be silly, Gerald. Of course I appreciate your concern. It is merely misplaced in this instance. I quite approve of my husband’s conscientious care of his bailiff and of his estate.”

Gerald casually shrugged his shoulders, even as a slightly mischievous smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “In that case, I must beg you first to pardon me for my misconceptions and then to make haste in changing for our ride. I am most anxious to introduce you to my latest acquisition from Tattersall’s—a handsome fellow named Beau who, considering your love for horses, will likely steal your heart.”

“How exciting,” Elizabeth said, her irritation with Gerald completely gone. “I shall certainly hurry now, in the delightful anticipation of meeting a new Beau.”

Gerald appreciative laughter followed her as she hurried up the stairs toward her bedchamber.

Beau, a chestnut stallion, was indeed handsome, and, if Elizabeth was any judge of horseflesh—which she believed herself to be—the animal had cost Gerald a very handsome sum of money. She also noted that Gerald was sporting a new coat this morning, its exquisite fit proclaiming it to be from no less than the hands of Weston. His boots, too, were new and gleamed so brightly the leaves of the trees lining the park trails were reflected in the highly polished leather. Elizabeth did hope that Gerald was not sinking too deeply into dun territory.

After all, as Mary had once explained, Gerald’s father had gambled away his holdings and bequeathed Gerald nothing but debts. Mary had also mentioned that as Jeremy’s heir presumptive, Gerald drew an allowance from the Kenrick estate, but Elizabeth feared it was not generous enough to satisfy Gerald’s obviously expensive tastes.

Yet, as she was quick to admit to herself, she really had no reason to concern herself with the state of Gerald’s finances. He was a grown man who had been on the town for a number of years, and he was no doubt quite capable of handling his own affairs.

Glancing toward her riding companion, Elizabeth realized Gerald was watching her, an enigmatic smile on his face, as though he had been aware of the direction of her thoughts. Flushing slightly, she rushed into speech. “Billy appreciated the cup and ball you brought him last week.”

“And how is our little friend progressing?” Gerald asked. The park was not at all crowded so early in the morning, and he and Elizabeth were riding side by side down one of the trails.

“Billy is doing very well, thank you,” Elizabeth replied solemnly. “He is not yet talking, but I still have hopes that he will learn someday. I am positive his intellect is not impaired. Just yesterday I found him using some sort of hand motions to communicate with a lad who had come to visit him.”

“Billy had a visitor?” Gerald turned to stare at Elizabeth, a slight frown touching his forehead. “Surely not one of the boys who tried to commit him to Bedlam?”

“No, Johnny is much younger than any of those boys. He appeared at the kitchen door one day asking to see Billy. The cook, not being in the habit of dealing with visitors, sent for Larkman who sent for me. The boy soon convinced me that he was an old friend of Billy’s, and he was determined to assure himself of Billy’s well-being.”

“But Elizabeth, this makes no sense,” Gerald protested, his frown deepening. “Surely if the lad were indeed Billy’s friend, he would have rescued him from those ruffians who threatened to drown him.”

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. “You need not suppose that the same consideration did not occur to me, Gerald. I questioned Johnny on that very question. He says he was unaware that Billy was being taken away. Later, when he learned what had happened, he set out to find Billy.”

“But how did he locate him at Kenrick House? The boys from whom we rescued Billy could not have divulged your location, for I was careful not to refer to you by name that day in front of Bethlem Hospital.”

“I wonder about that myself,” Elizabeth admitted. “I’ll try to remember to ask Johnny about how he managed to find me. He appears to be coming by the house quite frequently. Or perhaps I can soon ask Billy, for I am teaching him to read and write so we can someday communicate by writing notes to each other.”

A small smile replaced Gerald’s frown. “One must admire you, my dear Elizabeth. Most women in your position would not waste their time teaching a little urchin from the streets. But the boy will not remain young forever, you know. Have you considered what will become of him when he grows up?”

“I am not looking quite so far ahead at the moment, Gerald. Billy’s immediate future is my present concern, and I have decided that since he has learned now to obey orders, he will serve as my page until a better solution presents itself.”

Gerald’s smile broadened, even as a mischievous twinkle danced in his eyes. “I fear I cannot envision you with a page, Elizabeth. That seems a bit out of character for you.”

“I would agree under normal circumstances, Gerald,” Elizabeth responded solemnly. “But I must find something for Billy to do, and other attempts to place him in the household have failed. The little fellow is terrified of horses and so cannot help in the stable. At the moment, Cook is giving him chores to do in the kitchen, but I cannot expect Mrs. Blanchard to keep Billy there indefinitely. She complains that she can never be certain he understands what she says and that it is simply too time-consuming to give an order and then watch to see if it is being carried out.”

“What does Kenrick think of Billy?” Gerald asked.

The last thing Elizabeth had intended that morning was to share her worries with Gerald, but when she looked into his eyes and found there a measure of understanding, she could not resist the temptation. After all, she reasoned, Gerald had grown up with her husband. Surely he could help her understand Kenrick’s strange reaction to Billy.

As Gerald listened to Elizabeth’s concerns, his expression grew increasingly solemn. Once or twice he sighed deeply, and by the time Elizabeth had finished telling about Kenrick’s sudden anger toward her following her description of Billy, Gerald was staring straight ahead with a furrowed brow as though he was deep in thought. When he again turned to Elizabeth, there was a look almost of bleakness on his handsome face.

“I can readily understand, my dear Elizabeth, why you are confused by my cousin’s behavior. I, unfortunately, am perhaps the only person in the world who could explain it to you, for I believe no one else has experienced Kenrick’s peculiarities to the extent that I have. Ordinarily, of course, I would never speak of them, but in your case I must, for I could never forgive myself if I did not warn you.”

Despite the warmth of the sun, Elizabeth felt a decided chill creeping up the back of her neck. “Warn me? Warn me of what, Gerald?”

Gerald glanced around. They are ridden almost to the Serpentine, which could be seen through a small grove of trees to their left. “If memory serves me correctly, there is a spot just beyond those trees where we can be private. Would you sit with me for a few minutes?”

After one look into his troubled eyes, Elizabeth nodded.

Five minutes later, their horses tethered nearby, Elizabeth and Gerald sat side by side on a bench beneath a spreading oak, but Gerald now appeared reluctant to continue the conversation he’d initiated. He sat slumped forward, staring at the ground, his hands clasped tightly between his knees.

“What is it, Gerald?” Elizabeth at last prompted. She was growing increasingly uneasy.

He raised his head, turning to look into her eyes. “As I believe you know, your husband and I were raised together at Aston Arbor.”

“Yes, Mary told me.”

“I’ve never complained, but it wasn’t always easy growing up with Jeremy.” He paused and smiled briefly. “I hope you don’t mind that I sometimes privately refer to Kenrick as
Jeremy
. That’s all I ever called him before he came into the title, of course.”

Elizabeth returned his smile. “Of course I don’t mind. I’m accustomed to hearing his mother use his first name on a regular basis, and I must try to get used to doing so myself.”

Gerald nodded. “Yes, you definitely should. In any case, I want to make clear that Aunt Mary was wonderful to me as I was growing up. She treated me almost as though I was her own son, and I never wanted for anything. Except, perhaps, someone my own age to befriend me.”

“But you and Jeremy are very close in age, are you not?” Elizabeth asked, frowning.

“Yes, but Jeremy and I were never friends. I am sure you have noted my cousin’s antipathy toward me. It began when we were boys. Looking back, I think he always resented sharing his mother’s attention with me. But my and Jeremy’s real differences developed the summer I turned ten. Jeremy and I often spent our afternoons playing in the woodland. On one particular day, we first waded in the brook and then decided to climb some of the taller trees lining the banks. I was a good climber and could always go higher than Jeremy, but this day, with my feet still wet from our wading, I slipped and fell several feet, breaking my leg when I hit the ground.”

“Oh dear,” Elizabeth said. “Was it a very bad break?”