The Captain (21 page)

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Authors: Lynn Collum

BOOK: The Captain
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With one last angry glance at the others, Giles departed for the kitchens. Mr. Blanchett arched a questioning brow at the solicitor, who reluctantly put down his glass and joined the gentleman at the door. “Captain, if you would put my niece in the hands of her maid, we could use your help.” The gentlemen disappeared out the door, pulling up their collars as the misting rain began.
Reluctant to leave, Drew pulled Jacinda into his arms. “It's over, my love. You're safe at last. You can finally get on with your life.” Mutual adoration reflected in their eyes.
She blushed and stammered, “I-I cannot thank you enough for all your help.”
His grin widened as he kissed her lips. “I can think of a way.”
Wonder and hope filled her face. “Whatever can I do?”
“You can marry me, my dearest love.”
Jacinda's heart soared. He wanted to marry her out of love, not duty. No matter how dreadful the night had been, she couldn't contain her joy.
A gasp sounded behind them. They'd been so taken with one another they'd forgotten they were not alone. “Do you mean to tell me that you aren't truly married?” Cousin Millie marched up beside them a martial light in her eyes.
Jacinda grinned sheepishly at her cousin. “It was a ruse. Mr. Wilkins and the captain thought a husband would—”
Cousin Millie raised her hands to her cheeks in dismay. “You have been in adjoining rooms for weeks now, do you not understand what that means? You are ruined, Jacinda.” The lady paced back and forth. “I have failed your mother—”
“Miss Markham!” Drew put out a hand to halt her progress on one of her pacing passes. “If you will so kindly calm down, I was in the process of asking your niece to make it official. I love her to distraction and so I told her earlier.”
The lady glared at him, then at Jacinda, who had eyes only for the captain. “That still doesn't keep everyone in the neighborhood from knowing that you two have been ... well, living scandalously. After all, Captain, your reputation in Somerset is such as to make people—”
Jacinda slipped an arm round Millie's shoulders. “If you won't tell anyone, we won't. After this unfortunate business with Aunt Devere is straightened out, the captain and I”—she gazed at him with such passion it was all the gentleman could do not to take her in his arms right there in front of Millie—“will make it legal.”
“A Special License is what is needed.” Millie's chin settled into a stubborn jut.
The captain nodded. “Then a Special License it shall be. I shall leave as soon as possible and we will marry immediately on my return, if you, dear Cousin Millie, will discreetly acquire the services of a vicar.”
The spinster's eyes brightened. “Leave everything to me.”
Drew smiled at Jacinda, and nothing seemed to matter but the feel of his hand in hers. After a moment of silence, Cousin Millie looked from one face to the other then harrumphed. “You”—she took Jacinda's arm—“need a bath and treatment for that nasty burn. And you, sir”—she gestured for the captain to head for the door—“need to go help with the search and not stand in here mooning over my dear cousin.”
Drew reached out and captured Jacinda's chin before Miss Markham was able to pull her away. He gave her a kiss that held a promise of more to come. “I shall see you later, my dear Jack.”
Jacinda watched him step into the darkness while Millie chattered about having the parlor maids clean the tiny chapel for the wedding at Chettwood. It had never been used since the Blanchett family had come to the estate, but it would be perfect. The woman insisted it wouldn't do wed in Westbury and have all the neighbors learn about the
faux
marriage. Jacinda scarcely heard one word in three.
 
 
Near ten o'clock that evening, one of the grooms found the missing Mrs. Devere huddled in the carriage house out of the rain. The lady proved to be completely incoherent, babbling nonsense. By the time they got her to the manor, she'd fallen into stony silence, her expression vacant, and she didn't respond to anything or anyone, not even to Prudence, who begged her to speak. The doctor who'd been summoned had remained after treating both Ben and Jacinda's injuries. On seeing the blank-faced stare of the lady, he immediately ordered her to be taken to her room. Some twenty minutes later, he joined those waiting in the drawing room, leaving her in the care of a maid and her daughter.
Jacinda had bathed and was dressed in a simple pink gown, her hand neatly bandaged. Seated beside Drew, they rose when the doctor entered the room. “How is my aunt, sir?”
“Her condition is not good.” He frowned, then sat his medical bag down to take the cup of tea Stritch offered him.
Mr. Blanchett, seated near the fireplace, shoved his own teacup away on the nearby table. “When can we speak with her? She has much to explain about her actions, albeit we've figured most of it out.”
The doctor took a sip of tea, then said, “I don't think you will be able to question her.”
“What do you mean, Doctor?” Drew asked. Like all the others, he wanted Mrs. Devere to confirm her involvement in Jacinda's father's death.
The physician stared into his tea cup a moment. “I fear the lady has gone quite mad. When she does speak, its only to rant incoherently and pull out her hair, then she falls silent again and doesn't respond to anything. It is very sad.”
“Mad?” Mr. Wilkins seemed perplexed for a moment, putting aside the sandwich he had been enjoying, having missed his supper because of the search. “Do you mean she will have to be sent to an asylum?”
Dr. Fleetwood nodded. “It is the safest thing to do.”
Jacinda's heart plummeted. While she agreed with Drew that her aunt had arranged her father's murder, she would have liked to have heard the truth from the lady. “Doctor, would it not be possible to keep her here at Chettwood, where she would be more comfortable?”
He set down his cup and took her hand. “My dear, the lady has shown a tendency to violence. You might still be in danger from her. From what I've observed, this type of madness sometimes leaves them with brief moments of seeming coherency ... which makes them a danger to themselves and others. 'Tis my belief that it's better for the family if such members are put in a safer place, one equipped to deal with people so afflicted.”
Drew slid an arm round Jacinda's waist. “Then Mrs. Devere must go somewhere else. I won't have you in danger. Doctor have you some place in mind?”
Jacinda started to protest when Doctor Fleetwood interrupted. “It's for the best, my dear. There's a physician down in Brighton who runs a very good asylum. He has done very good work helping the afflicted live close to normal lives. And very often when removed from the things that torture them the most, they improve.”
Jacinda's distress was written on her face. At last she seemed to come to a decision. “If Prudence agrees, then so shall I.”
Giles Devere, who'd been sitting sullenly in the corner, asked, “And what is to happen to Prudence and me? We cannot stay here after what Mama has done.” More likely he couldn't stay because he owed money to most of the local gentlemen, but no one pointed that out.
Jacinda was perplexed as to how to handle things. She knew that Prudence would prefer to live near her mother, while Giles would live wherever someone provided him a home. But how could she afford it, now that the foundry had burned? “Mr. Wilkins, have I the money to provide my cousins with a house near Brighton?”
The old gentleman cleared his throat. “Don't fret child. I shall make arrangements for the Deveres to live near their mother.”
The doctor nodded. “You must keep the lady here for several days until I can write to Dr. Camden and make certain he can take her.” He took his bag off the table, but, instead of going to the door, he turned back to Jacinda. “It would be best to keep the lady's door locked. She might have a tendency to wander during her animated moments, especially at night when she is alone.” With that advice, he wished them good day and departed.
There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. Mr. Blanchett, his face etched with fatigue, struggled out of his chair and came to Jacinda. “Don't let this business make you melancholy, child. This was your father's doing and we shall do what we can to make it right.”
“Thank you, Uncle. I fear I have too much to do with the estate to allow myself to be blue deviled. I shall need the funds to provide for my family.”
The gentleman shot a glance at Wilkins who, strangely, gave a nod of assent. “Well, that's not exactly true.”
“What do you mean, sir?” Her gaze followed her uncle to Thomas Wilkins.
The solicitor crossed the room and in a low voice said, “Come to the library, my dear, there are some things we need to discuss in private.”
Drew gave her hand an encouraging squeeze. “Go, I am acquainted with what the gentlemen have to say; they informed me on first arriving and I agreed with the plan. I shall see if Ben has finally gone to sleep.”
Jacinda's nerves were on edge as she follow the two older gentlemen to her library. She'd been through so much that day, she couldn't think what she was about to hear. Once there, Mr. Wilkins got to the point. “The foundry did burn my dear, but only a small portion was ruined. Your uncle should have it fully operational by the winter.”
Seeing the bewildered expression on Jacinda's face, Mr. Blanchett took up the tale. “You see, Mr. Wilkins and I decided to paint a darker picture in the hopes of convincing whoever wanted your fortune there was nothing left worth killing for but the land.”
The solicitor shrugged. “As I said before, we had it all wrong. If I'd have thought this silly plan would make someone attack you, I would never have tried it, my dear. It was intended to do the opposite. I just knew from the captain's letters that you were getting restless and perhaps a little reckless.” He arched a brow at her.
Jacinda didn't want to think about the even more dangerous plan she'd concocted. She blinked in surprise. “I'm not penniless?”
“Not a bit, my dear.” Uncle Matthew looked sheepishly at her. “We only did what we thought would help you.”
“I know. I don't blame you.” She tried to smile at him, but was too dazed and tired to do so properly.
Her uncle came up and hugged her. “If I am forgiven, then I shall return to London in the morning now that you are safe. Unless you want me to stay until your aunt is safely out of the manor.”
“That won't be necessary, Uncle. I know how much you hate to leave the business.”
“As to that, Claude is overseeing things.” The old gentleman made a strangled noise in his throat. It was clear he didn't have much faith in his son's skills. “I shall go to bed so that I can get an early start.” He turned to the solicitor. “Are you returning to London with me, Wilkins?”
“No, I shall stay at Chettwood a few days longer. There are estate matters that I must see to. Miss Blanchett and I must make arrangements for a house in Brighton before the Deveres move. Hopefully the doctor is wrong and we might get more answers from the woman than he thinks.”
Uncle Matthew frowned. “Do you not think she was the one who hired those thugs so long ago?”
“I'm certain she did, but I would like to understand what she was thinking.”
Jacinda sighed. “I'm not certain we shall ever know why.”
Her uncle patted her shoulder. “Put it all behind you. Miss Markham tells me that you and the captain intend to make your marriage legal. Enjoy your life, my dear. Don't dwell on what's past. You deserve it after all you've been put through.” He kissed her cheek and said good night.
After he left, Mr. Wilkins came round the desk and kissed Jacinda's cheek. “I, too, should like to wish you happy. Who would have thought it would all have ended in a love match? Delightful. In the morning I shall write my clerk to engage an agent to look for a property in Brighton once I have Dr. Camden's direction.”
Jacinda smiled, but it slipped from her lips when guilt overcame her. How could she feel so wonderful when Prudence and her family were devastated? “The captain wants to go for a Special License tomorrow and marry at once, but I think it not—”
“Don't delay, my dear child. Don't let anything stop you from being happy. Besides, I should like to be here for the ceremony if it is taking place in the next few days. I do so love a good wedding cake.”
Despite herself, Jacinda laughed. “Then we shall have the wedding as soon as the captain can procure a license. I wouldn't want you to miss the celebration.”
 
 
Mr. Blanchett and the captain left Chettwood some two hours apart the following morning. The elder gentleman departed at dawn, hoping to make London in time for his supper. Drew wanted to spend time with Jacinda, and since Mr. Wilkins had convinced him he only need go as far as Bath, where the bishop could issue the Special License he wanted because both he and Jacinda were from Somerset, he lingered until eight.

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