In the Garden of Deceit (Book 4) (33 page)

Uncle
Simon had said he would provide able-bodied men and, by Jove, he
certainly had. She suspected he was unaware, however, of her plan to
be part of the entourage this evening. Actually, she
knew
he
was unaware since she had gone to great lengths not to tell him. If
anything should go wrong, the last thing she wanted was for Uncle
Simon to be blamed.
And
she wanted to make certain he didn’t
do something to stop her. There was no chance of her being willing to
sit at home waiting for this evening to play out.

Leaving
the house had not been easy. James had wanted her to keep him
company. He was finally allowed to sit in a chair, and with that came
his demand that the nurse be released from her duties. Dr. Chilcott
had reluctantly agreed. Amanda knew why James wanted the nurse gone.
Whatever intimacy they could achieve was important to him. She smiled
a secret smile. Even laid low by a beating, her husband was consumed
by the earthier aspects of their marriage. Amanda had to admit
lovemaking had been on her mind also.

She’d
had to lie to James about where she was going. It had been an awkward
lie, for a woman going abroad during her mourning period was frowned
upon. Amanda knew James thought it odd that she had decided to leave
the house, so she said she’d promised Great Uncle Simon. James
had acquiesced but reluctantly.

She
was also aware of the hypocrisy of her lack of honesty. She had made
James suffer for his untruthfulness. She told herself that her deceit
was for his own good. In all fairness to him, she assumed he had told
himself the same thing when he had misled her.

Amanda
turned her attention to Alfie and Liam. “You’re certain
Viscount Lindley is not at home?”

“Yes,
m’lady.” The one called Liam said. “The bloke
watching the house will let us know if that’s changed.”

“Can
you manage the servant who answers the door?”

“Alfie
and Liam looked at one another and then at her. “Yes ma’am,”
Alfie said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Of
course,” she muttered.

Minutes
later they pulled to a stop at the front walk of Derrick’s city
abode.

Liam
opened the carriage door and leapt down to the street.

Alfie
turned to her. “Give us time to secure the house, ma’am.
We’ll let you know when it’s safe to come inside.”
He followed Liam from the carriage.

Amanda’s
nervous gaze tracked the two henchmen as they approached the front
door. A third man joined them, and they stopped briefly to converse.

“Are
you certain about this?” came a voice to her left.

Amanda
turned to Betty. The maid looked decidedly uneasy, her eyes round and
shiny in the darkened carriage.

“The
viscount tried to kill my husband. If I don’t do something, I’m
convinced he will try again. I cannot live with that uncertainty. And
frankly, I believe Cousin Derrick deserves a little of his own
medicine.”

Amanda
looked back up the walk. A servant had appeared at the entrance in
answer to the chime, and Liam and Alfie pushed their way inside, the
door closing immediately. The third man remained on the step for a
moment, appraising his surroundings, then melted into the shrubbery.
She felt her stomach drop anxiously. She meant what she’d said
to Betty. But she had to admit she was feeling some uncertainty.

Ten
minutes passed before the front door opened again. Liam came down the
walk at a brisk pace toward the carriage. He nodded at the driver
before helping Amanda and Betty disembark.

He
leaned down to speak in Amanda’s ear. “Please move
quickly, m’lady. We don’t want to draw attention to
ourselves.”

Inside
Amanda and Betty were escorted to the parlor. She left her veil in
place temporarily, wanting to assess the situation before revealing
herself. Two male servants, one significantly older than the other,
occupied the small sofa. They looked frightened, and that caused her
to pause. She looked to Alfie who stood next to the sofa, his
intimidating presence presumably keeping them from bolting.

“Has
either of you been hurt in any way?” she asked the men.

Both
servants shook their heads.

She
made a decision then, unplanned. She pulled her veil up and looked
each man in the face. “My husband Lord Lonsdale is your
employer. You know that, correct?”

They
both nodded.

“If
you wish employment when this evening is ended, I will expect you
both to cooperate with these gentlemen here,” she indicated
Liam and Alfie, “and keep whatever you witness tonight in
strictest confidence. Are we agreed?”

This
time the nods were decidedly more enthusiastic.

Liam
smiled, tipping his head at her in respect. “Better than
force.”

“Just
so.” Amanda sat in a parlor chair, adjusting her skirts. “Now
we wait.”

***

Amanda
was drifting off when the door chime rang out through the house,
which immediately galvanized everyone in the parlor. Liam and Alfie
were already moving across the room when she looked up.

The
older of Derrick’s two servants raised his hand from where he
sat on the sofa, stopping them. “Lord Lindley will expect me to
answer the door.”

She
shared a look with both big men, and then Alfie escorted the servant
from the room. Amanda could hear the front door as it opened, quickly
followed by a scuffle. Yelling filled the small entry and a moment
later Derrick was forcibly thrust into the room. He stumbled, falling
to one knee.

“What
the hell is going on?” he bellowed, standing up. Even as he
spoke, his gaze fell on Amanda. “Why are you here?”

She
stared at him, unable to speak momentarily, shocked by the revulsion
she felt. “I’m here to right a wrong,” she said at
last.

“What
are you talking about?” His belligerence did not hide the
sudden uneasiness that entered his peculiar eyes.

Every
person in the room was now standing, including the servants. Amanda
motioned them all to hang back, especially Liam and Alfie. Both men
clearly understood what they must do if Derrick posed a problem, but
she did not want them hovering too closely. When all was said and
done, Derrick was a coward, and she assumed any threat he posed was
minor.

The
limelight now belonged to Amanda, and she intended to use it to its
fullest. “You’re going on a little journey, Lord
Lindley.”

“That’s
ridiculous. I’m not going anywhere,” he snarled, although
there was fear in his gaze now.

“Actually,
you are.”

“Why?”
he asked, although his expression suggested that he was already
beginning to understand why.

“All
right, we’ll have it your way. Apparently, you need to be
reminded of an event that took place about ten days ago. James and I
were taking an evening stroll through our garden. We were set upon by
two ruffians—”

“Very
unfortunate, I’m sure, but what does that have to do with me?”

“Why,
my lord,” she waved a hand at him, “it has everything to
do with you. Those ruffians are your friends, you see, and you hired
them to kill James and me.”

The
younger servant gasped aloud, and all eyes turned to him briefly.

Amanda
addressed the servant. “Shocking, isn’t it?” She
returned her attention to James’s cousin.

“I
never tried to kill anyone! How can you be so certain they are my
friends?”

“Truth
is, like you, they’re not very bright. During our attack a
large man, who we deduced was George, spoke to a small man, calling
him by name.
Freddie.
”

Derrick’s
complexion drained of color. “I don’t know a George or a
Freddie.”

“That’s
odd. According to James you do. He says he met both men at an inn not
far from Lonsdale. Apparently, you were having quite the fine time
with them, drinking, causing a disturbance.”

“Those
are common names.” He was sounding less and less certain of
himself.

“True.
However, we feel confident that we’ve come to the right
conclusion.”

“Because
a random person is called Freddie!” Derrick’s face had
gone from white to red as he spoke, and spittle formed on his lips.

Amanda
kept her own voice calm, in fact infusing it with a touch of humor.
“Not entirely, no.”

“What
are you trying to say?” He was yelling now.

“With
the help of my two associates here,” she indicated Liam and
Alfie, “we located Freddie and George. They’re a rather
well known duo in the lower echelons of society as it turns out.
Inseparable, apparently. With a bit of persuasion those miscreants
admitted attacking James and me. However, they are unwilling to take
the blame alone and are accusing you of being the mastermind of their
little operation. We are currently holding them in a safe place
before handing them over to the authorities.”

Derrick
started backing up toward the parlor door, but Alfie moved into
position, blocking his exit.

“This
has nothing to do with me. They’re liars! How could you believe
scum like that?”

Amanda
shrugged. “We can bring them here, and you can discuss their
lack of integrity with them in person. We certainly don’t want
to accuse you of something you didn’t do.”

The
room went very quiet. Derrick looked around at the occupants, his
strange eyes red-rimmed with unshed tears. Amanda would have found
his lack of bravery when cornered pitiful if she hadn’t been so
disgusted. He had tried to kill James. She would never forgive him
for that.

“Just
let me go. I promise you’ll never see me again.” He was
begging now.

“That’s
one way we could do it. However, I don’t trust you to simply go
away. I believe the motivation that caused you to have us attacked
originally is still there. James nearly died. Under no circumstances
will you ever have the chance to hurt him again.”

“Think
of my mother.”

“Tsk,
tsk, shame on you Derrick. I do think of her—what a disgrace
that you do not.” Amanda paused in dramatic fashion. “Here’s
what we are going to do. You will pack a trunk and be ready to leave
within the hour. I suggest you include anything that is truly
important to you. Then you will accompany Liam to the docks and board
a ship headed for the West Indies.”

“You
can’t make me do that!”

“You
do have a choice, of course. When we turn Freddie and George in to
the authorities, we can turn you in at the same time.”

“I’ll
simply board another ship and return home.”

“And
you will be arrested. We are filing a complaint against you, Derrick,
but we won’t pursue it as long as you never step back on
English soil—ever—or you will stand trial for attempted
murder.”

His
gaze flicked from side to side, now a mindless animal looking for
escape. His breathing was panicked. At once his shoulders drooped as
if he at last understood the futility of his situation. “How
will I survive?”

“One
of my father’s many businesses is in the West Indies. I’ve
already sent a missive to the steward there letting him know to
expect you. You will work for a living, Cousin, and James and I will
pay your wage. And this is how I’m thinking of Aunt Henry.
You’ll be spared the gaol, and she’ll be spared having
your dreadful behavior thrust in her face on a daily basis.”

“You
are banishing me from my home for the rest of my life?”

“Understand,
Derrick, I am doing more for you than you deserve. I suggest for once
you take what is being offered and be grateful. If it were not for
Aunt Henry, you would be going to Newgate.”

Amanda
motioned to Liam. “Please take Lord Lindley upstairs so he can
prepare for his journey. I leave it to you to see that he is on that
ship when it sails.” Liam nodded and she turned to Alfie. “I’m
assuming your friend outside will help you bring Freddie and George
to the authorities.” Again a nod. To both men, she said, “When
your tasks are completed, please return to Lord Sutherfield for
remuneration.” She turned to leave, waving at Betty to join
her.

“Don’t
do this, Amanda, I beg you,” Derrick said. “I suffer from
seasickness.”

Amanda
turned on him a stony gaze. “The knowledge of which gives me
great pleasure.”

He
tried one more time. “I never ordered James to be killed.”

“It
doesn’t matter. Regardless of what you ordered—and I
believe James’s death would have pleased you very much—that
horrible little man Freddie nearly kicked him to death. My husband
was unconscious for days because of your cruelty and spite. You did
not spare James, and I will
not
spare you. Again, I implore
you—be grateful. Your punishment should have been much worse.”

***

“Where
the hell have you been?”

James
was sitting in a wingback chair by the window in his room, having
been helped there sometime earlier by his valet. He wouldn’t
use the bath chair on the prideful notion that it was for invalids,
and he refused to think of himself that way. Besides, he had
demonstrated that he could walk—perhaps not very well on his
own yet—but walk nonetheless. The leap forward in his
rehabilitation was rewarding, and he basked in that momentous
victory.

Amanda
had come into the room at that moment to check on him. She was
probably hoping he was asleep because then he might not discover that
she was late—very late—arriving home.

Startled,
she stopped just inside the door. “Oh! I didn’t expect
you to be awake.”

As
he had suspected. He glared at her. “When my wife says she’s
visiting my great uncle and then doesn't return home until after
midnight, I become worried about what has happened to her.”

“Why
aren’t you sleeping?” Clearly, an evasion.

“Amanda,”
he tried manfully to control his temper, “please don’t
avoid the question. It is two o’clock in the morning, and my
elderly uncle and his equally elderly wife would have gone to bed
hours ago.”