Romancing the Earl (9 page)

“Oh, stop.” Cate made a noise of disgust. “You’re as bad as Miranda. She was trying to pair us off. It was appalling.”

Cassie pursed her lips. “Because he’s a woman-bashing cretin.”

“Maybe,” Andy said judiciously. “Cate barely knows him. And they have to work together. You never know what might happen. Not all men are philandering, woman-denigrating cretins like Selina’s husband.”

As they went in to dinner a quarter hour later, Cate couldn’t help but wonder what sort of man Norris really was. Could he be trusted? Time would tell. Unfortunately, Cate had never been a very patient person.

Chapter Five

E
lijah glanced up at the cloudy sky as he stepped out of the coach before his mother’s house in Bath. Yesterday had been clear and pleasant, perfect for their journey from Cosgrove, but today looked as though it would storm. It seemed an appropriate herald to seeing his mother after so many years away. It also went hand in glove with their acrimonious history.

Within an hour of his and Wade’s arrival last night, he’d received a note from Miss Bowen requesting a meeting at his earliest convenience. Occupied with steeling himself—which had taken a larger than average course of whisky—in order to visit his mother, he had not yet responded to Miss Bowen.

Reluctantly, he made his way to the front door and rapped sharply on the wood. After several moments, the door opened. Elijah didn’t recognize the butler. He was rather young, maybe not even as old as Elijah’s twenty-nine years.

“Yes?” What the butler lacked in age, he made up for in haughtiness. He somehow managed to look down his nose at Elijah, despite being far shorter.
 

“I’m here to see Mrs. Hollister.”

The retainer gave Elijah a thorough perusal, but didn’t reflect any judgment as to what he saw. “I’m afraid she doesn’t receive visitors until noon.”

Elijah offered a humorless smile. “Please inform her that her son is here.” He strode forward, giving the butler no choice but to open the door wider and move out of the way.

Time hadn’t changed the interior of the house, which they’d moved into after the death of his father thirteen years before. Elijah noted the landscape painting of the Somerset Levels, the area from where his mother hailed, its vibrant colors somewhat overshadowed by the bright blue paint with which she’d insisted on having the walls of the entry hall painted.
 

“This way,” the butler said, gesturing Elijah into the front sitting room. Much of the furnishings were familiar, but there was a new carpet—vivid yellow and bronze. Elijah’s eye was drawn to the portrait of him and his brother hanging over the fireplace. Matthew’s mischievous ten-year-old face stared back at him, while Elijah, just eight and wearing a timid look, stood somewhat behind him, as Mother had arranged them.

Timid? Yes, he’d grown up in his brother’s shadow and under the brunt of his mother’s displeasure, but his years in the army had completely changed him. Would she even notice?

The butler interrupted his thoughts. “I’ll see if Mrs. Hollister is able to receive you.”

Elijah didn’t think she’d turn him away. That her son was an earl had to give her endless satisfaction—even if it was Elijah and not Matthew—and he couldn’t imagine her ignoring his call. Would she, however, be forthcoming with any information she might have regarding his search for the tapestry and with any information about Matthew’s death?

After a good quarter hour, she finally came into the sitting room. She wore a glaring fuschia morning gown. Her dark blond hair was swept simply but tidily atop her head. Elijah detected a few more strands of gray since he’d seen her last, but she wore it well. Her dark blue eyes pierced him with curiosity. “I must own I’m surprised to see you, Elijah.”

Because the last time he’d left, he said he’d never return. And at the time, he’d meant it. Elijah fingered his hat, which he’d removed while he’d been waiting. “I’m surprised as well, but then there have been many surprises, haven’t there? I never imagined I’d be back in England as an earl.”

Mother moved into the room and sat in a chair the color of the Australian sun in midsummer. She arranged her skirts and gestured for him to sit. “Yes, it was unexpected enough for Matthew to inherit, but then for him to die so suddenly . . .” She looked up at the portrait and blinked.

Elijah knew her grief was real and was sorry for it. He might not like her, but he didn’t wish for her to suffer. He also wasn’t comfortable discussing it. “Matthew visited you just before he died.”

“Yes.” She returned her gaze to his. “Aren’t you going to sit down? I’m getting a neck ache looking up at you. I’d almost forgotten how unnaturally tall you are.”

Unnatural, yes. She’d always found so many traits and behaviors to criticize about him. He dropped onto the settee, setting his hat down beside him, but didn’t relax. “Did he bring anything with him?”

She looked at him blankly. “Such as his valet?”

That she mentioned the valet piqued Elijah’s interest, but he’d discuss that in a moment. “I’m looking for a tapestry that he may have brought here for safekeeping.”

Mother shook her head. “No, he didn’t bring anything like that. Is that why you’re here? You’re looking for some tapestry? I suppose just paying your mother a visit didn’t occur to you.”

Elijah stared at her, dumbfounded she would say such a thing. “Are you going to pretend we have that sort of relationship?”

Her answering look was cool. “That was a long time ago, Elijah. I expected the army to have eased your frustration.”

“It did.” But he’d never forget the way she’d abused—not physically, but with words and demeanor—him and his father. She’d hated everything Jerome Hollister had done—the way he’d dressed, the manner in which he’d eaten, the amount of time he’d spent with his horses. That Elijah had taken after him, particularly in his love of animals, had ensured she’d all but hated him too. “Do I not seem changed to you?”

She perused him at great length. “Yes, you do. You’re quite handsome, more so than I would’ve thought.”

The backhanded compliment didn’t surprise him, but the fact that she’d given him a compliment at all did. It also wasn’t shocking that she noted only his physical appearance. He didn’t expect her to glean a sense of how he’d matured, not within the span of brief minutes since she’d come downstairs, but even if he spent a fortnight in her company, he doubted she would. However, now that he was the earl, perhaps she would treat him differently—maybe try to acquaint herself with the son she’d always disdained. But he didn’t want that. He was content with their mutual disregard.

“Back to my reason for being here,” he said, avoiding her gaze as much as possible. “What was the purpose of Matthew’s visit?”

“Purpose?” She cocked her head to the side as if she were an exotic bird, many of which he’d seen firsthand in Australia. “He came to see me. He was a good son.” She sniffed.

It seemed Matthew hadn’t told her anything about the tapestry. That in itself was curious, since he’d been an overly effusive fellow. If he’d been excited about the prospect of a treasure map, he would have found it difficult to contain his enthusiasm, especially from their mother. That he did spoke volumes about his desire to keep the map secret from those who were desperate to obtain it, perhaps by any means necessary.
 

“You mentioned his valet. He accompanied Matthew?” he asked.

“Of course.” Her mouth puckered. “This is an awfully strange visit, Elijah.”

Would she not call him Norris? He would’ve thought his title would be too alluring for her to resist. But maybe she couldn’t quite accept him as the earl. It was far more than she ever would’ve expected for him. She’d been shocked enough when he’d found success in the army.

He knew the precise way to gain her assistance, if not her interest, which he’d prefer to do without anyway. “I’m troubled by Matthew’s death,” he said, waiting for her reaction. She leaned forward slightly, suddenly engaged in a way she’d hadn’t been since entering the room. “Someone tried to buy this tapestry from him. It’s very valuable. After he declined their offer, someone tried to steal it. He then hid it, and I wondered if it might be here.”

Her manicured hand fluttered to her chest. “What are you saying, that Matthew was involved in something dark? Because I don’t believe it.”

Elijah worked to retain his patience. “No, I’m not saying that. I merely want to find this tapestry before someone else does. It occurred to me that his death might not have been an accident.”

Mother’s sharp intake of breath filled the room. “You don’t think he was killed?”

“I’m not certain. The circumstances are somewhat suspicious. Right now, I’m merely trying to gather as much information as possible.”

She put her fingers to her lips and looked up at the portrait again. When she turned her attention back to Elijah, her mouth was tight, the flesh around her lips pale. She clasped her hands in her lap. “Shortly after . . . he died, there was a robbery here.”

Elijah sat forward, anticipation coursing through him. “What happened? Tell me everything.”

“There isn’t much to tell. It happened while everyone was out, save the cook. She didn’t hear a thing, but Denkins found several pieces of silver missing.”

Elijah frowned. “How do you know it wasn’t one of your retainers?”

Her gaze turned positively frigid. “Because I do. Denkins also found a broken vase in my upstairs sitting room, and the carpet near the back door was wet—it was drizzling that day—and no member of the household had used it.”

“Did you report the theft to the authorities?”

She gave him a supercilious glare. “Of course I did. They determined that it was simply a burglary.”

“Were there any other thefts in the vicinity?”

“No, I recall the constable saying there weren’t.”

It wasn’t much, but it was something. Elijah felt certain it was related to the tapestry. The theft of the silver was puzzling, however; why take that if you were searching for a treasure map? Unless you wanted to cover up what you were really looking for. Ice pricked his spine. He was growing more and more unsettled by the entire bizarre affair.

“Do you think the robbery was somehow related to Matthew’s death?” she asked. “How can that be possible?”

He didn’t want to share more with her. The less she knew, the better, and not only because he didn’t wish to prolong this interview. However, he was still no closer to finding the tapestry. If the villains—and he was beginning to think of them as such—hadn’t found the map here, did that mean Matthew had hidden it elsewhere? Or did it mean they simply hadn’t found it and it was perhaps still somewhere in the house? And if it wasn’t here, Elijah was no closer to where it could be. “You haven’t suffered any other intrusions since then?”

“Not to my knowledge.” Her face bore more lines since he’d last seen her, and now they deepened with alarm. “You don’t think someone has come into the house on more than that occasion?”

“Don’t concern yourself over it.” For more than a year, she’d been safe, and he had no reason to expect circumstances would change. “If you think of anything else, will you let me know?”
 

“I suppose.” She sounded resigned and a little bit callous. But then, she usually did, in his experience. “I’m afraid I must return to my chamber.”

As she stood, he leapt to his feet, eager to be on his way, but disappointed that he was no closer to finding the tapestry. However, there was still the issue of Matthew’s valet. “You said Matthew’s valet was with him. Did they leave together?”

“How odd that you should ask. In fact, they did not. They arrived on a Tuesday and his valet left Wednesday morning. Matthew stayed until Thursday.” Her features softened. “I remember the days because he accompanied me to the Assembly Rooms where I play cards with my friends on Wednesday evenings.”

They’d left separately.
At last, a kernel of helpful information. “Do you know why his valet left alone? Or where he went?”

“I do not. But perhaps Denkins might recall something.” She smoothed her hand over her hip. “I’m afraid I really must return upstairs. If you’d like to call at a more respectable hour, I’ll receive you.”
How kind.
“Or perhaps I’ll see you at the Assembly Rooms this evening.”

“Thank you. I’ll consider it.” Like bloody hell. This short engagement was about all he could endure, and he was quite ready for another seven- or eight-year separation. At the very least.