"I'm glad you didn't tell her. It would have been too much for her to bear."
"I have far worse news for you, Lucian," Abelard said reluctantly. "I have just learned of it myself and feel betrayed by a man I thought kind and generous."
"What is it?"
"Elliot had his son move to Brynwood just before you were taken by the pirates. He introduced him as a distant cousin. He appeared well-mannered and personable. He was well received by the gentry. I have sound reason to believe Charles masked his hatred for everyone at the manor while he slowly poisoned your mother and then arranged for the accident that took Elliot's life."
"And how have you come by this information?" Lucian contained his anger, unable to bear the thought that his mother had suffered alone.
"I had an altercation with Charles —"
"Charles Darcmoor is Elliot's son?" he asked startled.
"Yes, I had helped him during the years he lived at Brynwood following your mother's and Elliot's death. He made me believe that he cared for your mother and that her death hurt him terribly. He requested my help in financial matters, being a frequent visitor to my home. I had once considered him a possible candidate as a husband for Catherine."
"But?" Lucian said, anxious for him to continue.
"But when Catherine explained to me who you were, I knew I had to help you in your petition to have your lands and title returned to you."
"Why?"
"You are my son. There was no one else to help you. And I wanted you have those lands. You deserved them."
"And Charles?"
"He grew furious, bursting into my home one day and confronting Catherine."
"She never mentioned this incident to me," he said, annoyed that she hadn't confided in him.
"Catherine tolerated Charles as a friend. He had been quiet and passive in his nature until that day. His unusual behavior troubled me and I made a few inquiries. He had made several purchases of a highly toxic herb from the apothecary. And he had cancelled the carriage ride he was to take with Elliot, sending him on alone to his death."
"All this is speculation."
"Instinct," Abelard corrected.
Lucian's own instincts took hold. "Do you have reason to fear for Catherine's safety? Is that why you attempted to convince her to return to England with you?"
Abelard rubbed his pounding temple. "I heard Charles had hired a ship with a motley crew and had sailed for parts unknown. I was preparing to sail when Catherine's note arrived."
"Why should he want Catherine?"
"He blames me for losing his lands and title. He knows how much I love my daughter, as did you. And he blames you as well, and he knows Catherine is with you."
"There is much for us to discuss, Father," Lucian said, testing the sound and testing Abelard.
"Yes, there is, my son," he answered with a smile.
"Good," he said, easing back in the chair, "then begin by telling me all you can about Charles Darcmoor."
o0o
Catherine yawned and stretched herself awake. The early morning sun flooded the bedroom through the open windows, the morning heat sprawling through the room.
She turned to discover an empty spot beside her and she smiled with a yawn. Lucian and his father still talked. This was a promising sign. Perhaps before the week was out there would be a wedding in Heaven.
“Lying abed all day will do you no good."
Catherine bolted up in bed and stared at Charles Darcmoor lounging casually against the window. A nervous fear gripped her stomach and sent it to fluttering. "What are you doing here?"
"I've come for what is rightfully mine."
"Which is?" she asked, wondering how to notify the house of his unannounced presence without endangering herself.
"Revenge against the man who stole everything that was rightfully mine."
"You're Elliot's son," she stated clearly.
He walked into the room. "And I always thought you a beauty with no brains. Did you know I was born only minutes before Lucian, making me the rightful heir?"
"But you're a bastard, and bastards don't inherit when there is a legitimate son." she said bravely in defense of her Lucian.
Charles stared at her with hate, enraged by her remark. "Then I must dispose of Lucian, and you of course. Now get out of bed. We sail immediately."
o0o
"She's gone! Good Lord, she's gone!" Lilith shouted, stirring the house as she rushed frenzied down the stairs.
Lucian and the marquis burst out of the salon as Bones and Jolly rushed through the front door. Santos, with Zeena close behind, came running from the back of the house, slipping on his shirt as he joined everyone in the entrance hall.