A Guardians Angel (19 page)

He saw her dismay, and he forced his sorrow from his face. “I wish I could believe that, for I would gladly own to being wrong. I think I am correct.”

“You are wrong, Justin. Esther tells me that she and Delicia have learned to understand each other.”

“I don’t understand how
you
can put so much faith into what must be just childish play.”

“It is not childish play, but it is quite simple, Justin. Remember how I told you about the school that teaches deaf children to use their hands to speak? It seems that Delicia has already developed a language of her own, and she is teaching it to Esther.”

He stared at her, amazement widening his eyes as he sought something to say.

“Justin, she is your daughter,” she whispered as if she did not dare to speak more loudly. “She must have your intelligence.”

“I had hoped so, but I could never know for certain if anything other than thoughts of her most basic needs were going on within her mind.”

“That is because you have assumed she cannot be reached.” Putting her fingers to his lips, she said, “When Delicia did this to me, you suggested it was just a game she played. It is not. She touches Esther’s lips when she is trying to comprehend what Esther is talking about. Then she touches her own. She wants to speak as we do.”

“I know she wishes to be like us, but I fear that is impossible.”

“It will be impossible as long as you deny her the chance to learn what she can.”

“I will not send her away to school.” He turned away.

“Is that what you are arguing about? Not sending her to school? This has nothing to do with whether you send her to that school in France or another or none at all! You cannot deny that she is trying to communicate with us.”

When she grasped his sleeve so tightly that he heard a thread snap, he looked back at her. “Angela, this is my problem. Mine alone.”

Her eyes grew wide, and her bottom lip trembled. “I understand. I am sorry that I have meddled where I should not have.”

“Angela!” he called as she stepped around him and walked away into the press of guests in the dining room.

She did not answer.

He took one step to follow her, then halted. What could he tell her if he gave chase? The truth? It was too late for that now, he suspected. Far too late.

Thirteen

Shouts rang from every corner of the house, Angela was sure, when she paused in the doorway of Oslington Court. Esther slipped her fingers into one of Angela’s hands, and Seth did the same on the other side. Leonia wore an expression that suggested she wished Angela had saved a hand for her to hold, and even Thomas edged a half-step toward Angela. When he glanced toward the door, his thoughts of fleeing visible, she shook her head. He hunched into himself.

Only the duke walked farther into the foyer. His steps were slow and studied. Their trip from Milborough Manor had been interrupted often as it had been during their journey north. The duke had appeared somewhat hale at the wedding, his coloring better, but now Angela wondered if that was because he was seldom seen without a glass of something. He put his hand on the newel post at the foot of the stairs.

When she saw how his knuckles bleached, Angela suspected he was gripping the carved post because he was struggling again to keep himself on his feet. She was not so sure of that when she saw a woman coming down the stairs, a bevy of servants rushing before her like quail flushed from a thicket.

“Rodney!” called the woman, who was nearly as tall as he. Her gray hair curled perfectly around the face that brought the duke’s instantly to mind. This must be his mother, for her clothes were as flawless as her hair. As she bustled to a stop on the lowest riser, her gown barely swirled around her ankles.

Mayhap it did not dare
. Angela was glad no one else had heard that thought. Her mother had always spoken with the greatest respect about the Duchess of Oslington.

“Mother, this is an unexpected pleasure,” the duke said.

Did anyone else notice how his emphasis had been heavier on “unexpected” than on “pleasure”? Angela remained silent as the duke gave his mother a proper kiss on the cheek.

“I thought,” the duchess replied, “to see how you were doing now that you are settled in here at Oslington Court. I thought. I should judge for myself how you are managing with Colonel Sutton’s poor orphans.”

Those “poor orphans” bristled on either side of Angela. A quick glance at each of them was enough to warn them to be silent, but nothing could diminish the fury in their eyes. What Angela had seen right from the beginning—that the Sutton children had not lost their pride—was something that the duchess must acknowledge straightaway, or there would be trouble. When she saw Esther and Thomas share a quick smile, she frowned. They were already plotting mischief. Somehow, she and the staff would have to block anything they devised without the duchess being aware.

“Children,” the duke said, “this is my mother. Mother, Leonia, Thomas, Esther, and Seth Sutton.” His voice suggested he was deeply tired.

The children did not move until Angela gave Leonia a shove with her elbow. Docilely, the other children followed as she went to greet the duchess. Making a good first impression was impossible because their clothing was stained and dusty from their long journey. She was pleased to see that their manners were the best she had ever witnessed. Mayhap they understood—at last—how important this encounter could be.

The duchess looked past the children, and Angela understood what no one had to say. Coming forward, she dipped her head to the duchess. “Good afternoon, Your Grace. I am Angela Needham.”

“So you are Agatha’s daughter.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The duchess stepped past the children. She eyed Angela up and down. “I see you favor your father’s family. Any resemblance to your mother, other than your coloring, is slight.”

“So I have been told, Your Grace.”

“That is regrettable, because your mother was a very handsome woman.” She gave Angela no chance to reply before turning again to the children, who had not been able to hide their expressions that
this
was not the homecoming they had imagined. She shook her head and made a “tsk-tsk” sound. “Rodney, I must say that Colonel Sutton asked too much of you to leave you the duty of saddling yourself with four children. You are a young man who should be thinking of other things than raising a dead man’s offspring.”

Knowing that she was risking a rebuke, Angela edged toward the children again. They swarmed forward, the younger two again grasping her hands in a near death-grip. She winced as they crushed her fingers, but did not release their hands.

“If you will excuse me, Your Grace,” she said, looking at the duke rather than his mother, “the children are fatigued from their sojourn in Scotland. I believe it would be best if they retired now.”

“Yes,” he began, “that might be—”

“Nonsense,” the duchess said, tapping her foot. “Children do not like to take naps.”

Angela lowered her eyes as she heard Seth murmur an agreement. Mayhap the duchess was not so cold-hearted as her words had made her appear.

“
You
, Rodney,” the duchess continued, “look as if you could use several good nights’ sleep. I assume you enjoyed yourself in Scotland.”

“We attended Milborough’s wedding.” His answer sounded as guilty and naughty as when Angela had caught Thomas with Justin.

“Go and rest. If you drank so much that you are still gray with a headache days later, you should rest in your rooms.”

“Mother—”

“Do not fret about me, Rodney. I have been looking forward to returning to Oslington Court, and I can entertain myself quite well.” Without a pause, she turned, jabbed a finger in the direction of the children, and said, “You.”

Leonia pointed to herself. “Are you speaking to me, Your Grace?”

“Who else, girl? Step forward. Stop lurking in the shadows.”

The duke cleared his throat. “Mother, Angela was correct. The children are tired after our long journey, as I am. I trust any questions you have for them can wait until later.”

“I have urged you to go and rest, son,” the duchess cooed, patting his cheek. “Angela, take the three younger children upstairs to where I am sure their governess is waiting for them.” She put out her hand as Leonia turned to follow her grateful siblings. “I will speak with you now, Leonia.”

The young woman gave Angela a desperate glance. Wishing she could help Leonia, Angela gave her the only answer she could—a bolstering smile.

For once, the children did not complain as Angela herded them up the stairs. Behind them, servants followed with the bags they had taken to Milborough Manor. Everyone, it seemed, was eager to avoid the notice of the duchess. Leaving the children with Mrs. Meyer, the governess, Angela went to Leonia’s room to wait.

That was a mistake, she realized when she went to look out the windows. They gave her a remarkable view of Harrington Grange. Had Justin returned there? After their conversation on the terrace during the wedding breakfast, she had seen him only once—when he was riding away from Milborough Manor. She had not been sure if he was leaving for home or going somewhere else. What would she have said if she had had a chance to speak with him? That he could keep hiding from whatever he could not face in his past, but by doing so he was risking his daughter’s future? She had said that … more than once, but she also knew that she had been honest when she said she should not have meddled.

Hadn’t she learned that she could not make everything go as she wanted simply because she wished it to be so? She had tried all she could to help her mother. She had struggled to make herself useful at her brother’s house. She had ignored her heart’s yearning to be close to Justin, but she had failed at all of those. Mayhap she should learn her lesson and stop trying to persuade Justin to be sensible.

Hearing the door open behind her, Angela whirled. It was a maid bringing in clean linens for the bed. Giving the woman a tentative smile, Angela turned back to look out the window. She must try to be patient. Someone would know when Justin arrived home to Harrington Grange. Thomas surely would be looking for Justin as well, because their planned outing to find butterflies at Milborough Manor had been halted when the duke had insisted that Thomas join him for a ride.

This time when the door opened, Leonia rushed into the room. She halted and scanned the chamber. When she saw Angela, she ran toward her, then froze when another maid entered the room.

Angela took Leonia’s hand and led her into the bedchamber. Asking the maid who was remaking the bed to leave, Angela closed the door and leaned back against it. She must wait for Leonia to speak first.

As she had feared, Leonia began to weep. “That woman is simply awful.” Leonia threw herself on her bed. “By all that’s blue—”

“You should not use such cant, Leonia.”

Sitting, Leonia crossed her arms over her chest, then wiped away more tears. “I swear that I shall give voice to curses far more horrific than that mild oath, Angela, if I have to spend even a moment longer with that woman.”

“The duchess is—” Angela was not certain if Leonia even heard her as the young woman jumped down from her bed and prowled the room as if looking for an escape hatch. Trying again, she began, “Leonia, I believe that the duchess is—”

“Mad! She seems to think I must already know every detail of a complete litany of the lives of every member of the
ton
. By all that’s …” Leonia flashed Angela a guilty glance. “Sweet heavens, Angela, I have not even met anyone yet. Even when we were in Scotland, I had to remain at the edges of the room, save when I danced with Rodney.” More tears washed down her face.

Angela handed her a handkerchief and said, “I think it would be best if we dealt with one problem at a time.”

“Rodney is not the problem.
She
is! You and I have chatted about how I should greet those who can welcome one into the Polite World or blackball one for being gauche, but even if you have tried to instill in me information about all their names and how they are related to each other, how can I possibly keep track of that?”

“I shall be glad to talk with her on your behalf.” Angela quelled her shudder at the thought. Already she had failed to meet the duchess’s expectations of being the mirror image of her late mother.

“She was furious that I did not know the name of the family that has the house next to hers on Berkeley Square. I know the house belongs to Lord Hillings, but I was so flustered I swear my brain was as empty as the day I was born.”

“When I speak with her, I shall reassure her that you were unsettled.”

Leonia grasped Angela’s hands. “No! She will see that as a sign that I am not yet ready to be fired-off. Rodney promised me that we would go to London in the spring. I do not want to wait longer.”

Picking up a hairbrush, Angela sat next to Leonia and began to brush the young woman’s hair. The auburn strands were unfashionably long and straight, but a competent abigail could arrange it beautifully. “Do not fret,” she said. “Just be grateful that Rodney is your guardian instead of his mother.”

“That is true!” Leonia gave her a watery smile. “I keep telling myself that she is wise in the way of the Polite World, and I should respect her opinion.”

“That will help.”

“She does seem eager to do what, as she said more than once, is the right thing for us.” She took the brush from Angela and, rising, set it on the dressing table. “She believes Thomas and Esther should be sent away to school.”

“That would be the customary course at their ages.”

“That would make them miserable, and I think how sad the rest of us would be if they were sent to school.”

“You must think of them—especially Thomas, who will soon be regarded as an adult, too. He should learn the skills an Englishman needs.”

“What skills do you think he needs?”

Angela was lost for an answer. She had seen that Thomas rode with the ease of someone who has been in the saddle since his earliest memories. Leonia often mentioned one of her brother’s
bon mots
, so Angela was assured that the young man had a keen wit which he could use in the quick conversation of Town. The truth was that he needed the same polishing his sister required.