Rapturous Rakes Bundle (26 page)

is a rare enigma.’

Lucas smiled ruefully. He had already observed

how much detail of her childhood and upbringing Re-

becca had chosen not to tell him.

‘I was watching her at dinner,’ he said. ‘Such as-

surance comes only with a privileged background.’

‘I doubt that your scrutiny was as objective as

mine,’ Justin said drily, ‘but I agree with your conclu-

sions. What did she tell you of her family?’

‘Very little,’ Lucas said. ‘Apparently she grew up

in Somerset. Her father was an army man who died in

India and after that her mother fell into a decline.

There was no money, so Rebecca went to live with

relatives who had a trade.’

Justin was frowning. ‘It is a curious story.’ He broke

off, deep in thought, then turned his head sharply to

look at his brother. ‘What do you think, Luc?’

Lucas sighed. ‘I think,’ he said carefully, ‘that ev-

erything that Rebecca has told me is true but that for

reasons of her own she has omitted some of the facts.’

‘And the reason for that omission?’

‘The same reason that prompted her nervousness

this morning,’ Lucas said. ‘She is protecting her

brother.’

‘The mysterious Daniel Raleigh,’ Justin said, as

there was a quiet knock at the door. ‘When you told

me about him this morning, I instructed Bradshaw to

make a few enquiries. Unless I miss my guess, that

will be him now.’

Sure enough, it was Tom Bradshaw who slipped

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into the room. Both Justin and Lucas looked at him

expectantly.

‘There is no Daniel Raleigh on the Navy List, your

Grace,’ Bradshaw said.

Justin looked expressively at Lucas. Lucas sighed.

‘Somehow I did not expect that there would be.’

‘He could be a merchant sailor,’ Justin pointed out,

toying with his brandy glass. ‘Which ship did Miss

Raleigh say that her brother sailed on?’

‘She claimed not to know,’ Lucas said.

‘And you do not believe her.’

Lucas shifted. He disliked speaking of Rebecca like

this when all his instincts told him that she was fun-

damentally honest. Her silence spoke of family loyalty

rather than treachery, but even so it frustrated him that

she would not tell him the truth. He drained his brandy

glass, acknowledging to himself that it was in fact a

miracle that Rebecca told him anything at all when he

had treated her so badly.

‘I trust everything that Rebecca has told us, with the

exception of the information about her brother,’ he

said tentatively. ‘I do not believe her to have been in

the confidence of the Midwinter spies, I do not think

her uncle was aware of the nature of the work he was

undertaking and I trust Rebecca to do everything in

her power to assist us. But in this...’ He shook his

head. ‘She is keeping secrets. She knows which ship

her brother sails on, but she is trying to safeguard

him.’

Justin tilted his head thoughtfully. ‘Why would she

do that?’

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‘I have no notion. Or rather,’ Lucas corrected him-

self, ‘I have an idea but no proof.’

Justin looked at him. ‘Construe.’

‘I think,’ Lucas said slowly, ‘that Daniel Raleigh is

involved in something illegal. His sister knows it and

wishes to keep the truth from us.’

‘Something to do with the engravings and the spy?’

‘I doubt it. On that score I think Rebecca is all she

seems.’ Lucas stared into the fire. ‘When I was ques-

tioning her this morning, she was very cool and com-

posed, because she knew she was innocent and was

telling the entire truth. But when I found the letter

from her brother she became very agitated. It was the

only time during the interview that she appeared

shaken. She also pretended to know nothing of his

whereabouts.’ Lucas smiled with betraying tenderness.

‘She is a poor liar, for she is not practised at it. She

gave herself away many times over.’

‘Perhaps he is a petty criminal and Miss Raleigh is

simply worried that we will find him,’ Justin sug-

gested.

Lucas shook his head. ‘He is definitely at sea. That

much is true. The sea features prominently in many of

Rebecca’s engravings—anchors, seagulls, sailing

ships... There is a most beautiful vase on the win-

dowsill of her studio with a picture of a privateer ship.

It is exquisite—’ He broke off as Tom Bradshaw gave

an exclamation. ‘What is it, Bradshaw?’

‘A privateer, my lord,’ Bradshaw said excitedly. He

grabbed his pencil and scribbled a few names. ‘Ra-

leigh, Drake, Hawkins...’

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‘Is this some kind of guessing game?’ Justin en-

quired drily.

‘No, your Grace.’ Bradshaw pointed his pencil at

Lucas. ‘Lord Lucas mentioned privateers and I thought

of Raleigh and Drake.’

‘A little harsh,’ Lucas said. ‘I am sure our brother

Richard would defend them as great, patriotic sailors

rather than pirates.’

‘Indeed, my lord,’ Bradshaw said. ‘The point that I

was trying to make was that Daniel Raleigh does not

exist amongst the ranks of his Majesty’s Navy, but he

may well exist as a different sort of sailor—a priva-

teer—and one who may not even be called Raleigh...’

There was a silence.

‘That is very ingenious, Bradshaw,’ Justin admitted.

‘I can see why Lord Newlyn values your code-

breaking skills so highly. You think outside the normal

span of things.’

Bradshaw shrugged self-deprecatingly. ‘It is merely

a thought, my lord, and one that could be quite mis-

taken, but I can explore the possibility. I will start with

Miss Raleigh’s uncle, George Provost, and see if I may

discover more about the family.’

‘How long will it take you to find out?’ Lucas

asked.

Bradshaw scratched his head. ‘Two days, three

maybe, my lord, if the information is hard to find.’

‘Then you had best bring your results to us at Mid-

winter,’ Justin said, ‘for we travel there tomorrow.’

‘There is one more thing that you might like to look

into, Bradshaw,’ Lucas said slowly. ‘On the windows-

ill in Miss Raleigh’s workshop is a magnificent vase

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with a family motto engraved on it.
Celer
et
Audax.

Swift and bold.’ He sighed. ‘It may well be that if you

find the family to whom the motto belongs, you have

found Miss Raleigh’s rightful ancestry and the identity

of her brother. I leave it to you.’

Bradshaw bowed and went out and Justin Kestrel

turned his thoughtful, dark gaze upon his brother.

‘A useful piece of information,’ he commented.

‘Tell me, Luc, how stands your current relationship

with Miss Raleigh?’

‘Poorly.’ Lucas was betrayed into a rueful smile.

‘She will have none of my suit.’

‘Hmm.’ Justin moved a chess piece with precision

on its marbled board. ‘And how do you think that our

enquiries into Miss Raleigh’s identity will affect that?’

‘I imagine it will make an already parlous situation

ten times worse,’ Lucas said crisply. ‘However, I

would rather know the whole truth than be left with

any uncertainty. Besides, I shall persuade Rebecca to

accept me in the end.’

‘You sound very certain,’ Justin said, with a twitch

of the lips.

‘I am,’ Lucas agreed. He looked at his brother. ‘She

is my match in every way and now, having found her,

I shall never let her go.’

The journey to Midwinter, in the Duke of Kestrel’s

second-best carriage, the first being out of commission

for repairs to the upholstery, seemed long and arduous

to Rebecca.

The weather had turned colder, with a clinging fog

that made progress slow. Justin Kestrel had elected to

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ride, but Lucas had chosen to accompany her in the

carriage, much to Rebecca’s annoyance. She wished

that he would not persist in speaking to her when she

had made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with

him. Throughout the journey he had been quick and

unobtrusive in attending to her comfort. There had

been rugs and hot bricks to warm her feet, food and

drink at the hostelries. Every so often he would point

out something of interest on the road—a stately home

behind high gates, or a model village, or a curious inn

sign swinging in the breeze. Lucas was knowledgeable

and interesting and, little by little, Rebecca found her-

self unbending towards him and chatting with anima-

tion, only to fall silent when she remembered once

again that she did not like him and was determined

not to fall for his charm a second time. Instead she

fell asleep, waking a little stiff and totally mortified to

find herself with her head on Lucas’s shoulder and his

arm gently holding her to him.

Despite her reticence, when she saw the sea for the

first time in sixteen years, Rebecca could not help but

give a little exclamation of excitement. It was late in

the afternoon by now and the dusk was starting to fall.

The mist that had dogged their journey had lifted and,

beyond the high hedges and lofty pines, she saw the

glimmer of silver on the horizon. The carriage had

slowed now and was trundling down a sandy track.

Rebecca found herself sitting forward and searching

for glimpses of the sea that ran like a pale-blue ribbon

beyond the trees.

‘Oh! It is so beautiful, my lord.’ She turned spon-

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taneously to Lucas. ‘I had no notion that Suffolk was

so pretty a county. I thought it flat and empty...’

‘It is both of those things,’ Lucas said, smiling at

her enthusiasm, ‘but in a very beautiful way. When

you stand on the seashore the sky seems huge, like a

great dome above one’s head. But you must have seen

the sea before,’ he added, ‘for so much of your en-

graving contains the imagery of ships and seabirds.’

Rebecca felt surprised that he had noticed. ‘I... Yes,

we lived near the sea when I was a child,’ she said.

‘In Somerset?’

‘Yes. At Watchet, on the north Somerset coast. But

it is many years now since I have been to the seaside.’

She remembered that it had been part of Lucas’s job

to observe her and to notice things like the images on

her engraving, and her spirits dulled a little. She had

to remember that this was no holiday, but a business

trip with a serious purpose. When she had fulfilled her

part of the bargain she would be away back to Cler-

kenwell. In the meantime she would do well to give

Lucas as little information as possible, not for her own

sake, but for Daniel’s. Never had she been in a posi-

tion to do him more harm than she was at this moment.

‘That road takes you to Midwinter Royal,’ Lucas

said, pointing to a track that peeled away through the

woods. ‘Rachel and Cory will be staying there with

Rachel’s parents. And this...’

The carriage swung through resplendent wrought-

iron gates. ‘This is Kestrel Court,’ Lucas said. ‘Wel-

come to Midwinter, Miss Raleigh.’

The drive was a long one between stands of tall

limes interspersed with the dark green of oak. The

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parkland beyond looked verdant in the dusk. Beyond

the high wall to the east, Rebecca could see the roof

of a smaller building, a miniature manor house.

‘Saltires,’ Lucas said, following her gaze. ‘That is

the dower house to the Court and currently home of

Lady Sally Saltire.’

Rebecca remembered the brief summary that he had

given her of the Midwinter villages and their occu-

pants.

‘Lady Sally, whose husband was a great friend to

your brother the Duke?’

‘That is correct.’ Lucas’s gaze rested on the quaint

beamed exterior of the manor. ‘Justin gave the lease

on the house to Stephen Saltire after he and Lady Sally

were married. She was widowed eight years ago and

Justin has held a candle for her ever since.’

Rebecca was startled. The Duke of Kestrel seemed