The Black Widow (26 page)

“He can say what he likes,” Lady Anne replied, “but it has been my experience that people do not change in any fundamental way. The kindhearted remain compassionate, the self-centered continue to be greedy and grasping, and the busybodies never leave off meddling in other people’s lives. If your sister was kind to you when you were growing up, then doubtless she is still basically a good person, even if she has been led astray by London society, which is full of incredibly shallow people, like Mr. Rudd, who fail to understand that the world does not particularly revolve around them. But as to your sister, if she willingly shared her toys with you when you were children, then I cannot accept that she is now conspiring to cheat you out of your inheritance.”

There was much truth in what Lady Anne was saying, Meribe realized. Rack her brain though she might, she could not think of a single person she knew who had changed his or her personality in any significant way. “Oh, how I wish my father had simply divided his estate equally between us,” she said crossly. “Because Demetrius says that the idiotic trust my father arranged gives Hester the best motive—indeed the only motive—for keeping me from marrying anyone before my birthday, which is only a week away.”

“Men do have a tendency to believe what is obvious,” Lady Anne said calmly. “But so often when one looks below the surface, the situation can become quite murky. Demetrius is undoubtedly looking for a good logical motive, but as Bronson and I learned before we were married, villains often have quite strange and irrational reasons for doing what they do.”

“But Demetrius says—”

Lady Anne’s laugh interrupted Meribe. “My dear child, once you are married, you must not, under any circumstances, allow your husband to do all your thinking for you. As much as I admire Demetrius, God did not provide you with a perfectly good brain if he did not expect you to use it.”

At the mention of marriage, Meribe had to bite her lower lip to keep from bursting into tears once again. She knew she should not allow Demetrius to sacrifice his happiness for her, but on the other hand, she wanted so badly to be his wife.

Misunderstanding her silence, Lady Anne apologized. “My dear Miss Prestwich, I did not mean to cause offense by my remark. I am afraid my husband encourages me to speak my thoughts quite plainly, and I therefore sometimes forget that being too frank can cause unintentional offense.”

Meribe took a shuddering breath, then said, “I have taken no offense. It is only ...” The words caught in her throat. How could she explain to this woman, who knew everything, who could do anything, and whose husband clearly adored her, that she, Meribe, would not be an adequate wife for Demetrius? But on the other hand, how could she go on this way, with no one to share her misery, with no one to give her support and understanding? Oh, if only she could confide in Hester!

“Does it concern your wedding tomorrow?” Lady Anne asked, and there was so much compassion in her voice, Meribe blurted out her greatest fear.

“I am persuaded that Demetrius is marrying me only because he promised to help me, and he is too much a gentleman to do anything else. But I am afraid that after the ceremony he will soon regret what he has so nobly done and wish he were free again. I am not at all the sort of wife he needs since I am woefully ignorant of horses and can neither ride nor drive a team. He really needs a wife more like Lady Delilah ... or like you,” she concluded miserably.

Lady Anne laughed softly. “But, my dear Miss Prestwich ... may I call you Meribe, for I am sure we will become the best of friends ...?”

Meribe nodded, and Lady Anne continued, “As I was saying, my dear Meribe, if Demetrius needs someone who understands about horses, then he has to go no farther than his own stable, which is filled with trainers and grooms and stableboys who are most knowledgeable, and he also has his cousin, Lawrence Mallory, whom I believe you have met, who is also quite capable where horses are concerned. So you see, he has no real need for his wife to be a noted horsewoman. In addition, might I point out that although you may think Demetrius would prefer a wife like me, in point of fact he actually met me before Bronson did, and although Demetrius was quick to ask my advice about equine matters, he at no time made the slightest effort to court me or even to flirt with me.

“Moreover, it has been my experience,” Lady Anne went on, “that people can fall deeply in love with the most inappropriate people and at the most inopportune times and still be quite happy together.’’

“But you see,” Meribe confessed, “he has never said he loves me. I am afraid his motives for wishing to marry me are strictly practical.”

“Oh, I am sure he truly believes he wants to marry you for the most logical of reasons,” Lady Anne said with a chuckle. “Men have a habit of finding the most implausibly logical reasons to allow them to do exactly what they wish to do.”

“Demetrius said ... he said that he needs someone here to take care of his gardens, which you will have to admit are sorely neglected.”

“Indeed? And did he explain why, after managing successfully all his life to ignore his flowerbeds and lawns, he now feels such a strong compulsion to set them to rights that instead of hiring a gardener to work on them he must take himself a wife?’’

“Logically, it would be much more economical to hire even a half-dozen gardeners,” Meribe said, beginning to feel more cheerful.

“Men will come up with any number of reasons to justify marrying, but the only one I believe is valid is that two people wish to spend the rest of their lives together. ‘‘

Meribe could only be glad the moon did not provide sufficient light for her companion to see her blush. “Do you know, now that I think back on what was said, that was the main reason Demetrius gave when he was trying to persuade me to accept his offer. He said he wished to spend the rest of his life with me.”

“Amazing,” Lady Anne said. “Apparently the boy has more sense than I have been giving him credit for.”

Instantly riled up at the other woman’s denigrating words, Meribe snapped out, “Of course he has sense. And he is not a boy either. He is quite the most mature, responsible, reliable man I have ever met.’’

“Peace, peace,” Lady Anne said, holding up her hands in mock surrender. “I am sure Demetrius will be the best possible husband for you and that you will be the perfect wife for him.”

To her own surprise, Meribe began to think that perhaps Lady Anne knew what she was talking about. Perhaps Demetrius did truly wish to marry her. Looking up at the mostly darkened house, she wondered if he was likewise thinking about her and wondering if she really wished to be his wife.

Unfortunately, she was not likely to have a chance to reassure him.

* * * *

Demetrius finished explaining to Leatham the events in London which had led up to his unexpected announcement that he was getting married the next day.

“I would say the odds are better than even that Meribe’s sister will make one last desperate attempt to prevent the marriage, but I believe we have the situation well in hand.”

“Swinton and I will both spend the night hiding in Thorverton’s room, so we will have no trouble overpowering any intruder,” Hennessey explained, “and none of us will eat any food or drink any beverage that we did not bring with us, so there will be no opportunity to drug us or poison him.’’

“If you wish,” Leatham said, “I can return after I see Anne safely home.”

“I appreciate your offer,” Demetrius said, “but that would doubtless cause talk among the servants. Since we wish to prevent scandal, the fewer people who know of Hester’s infamy, the better. I am sure we are prepared for whatever she may be plotting. If she has any sense of self-preservation, she must realize that if she tries anything, she will only be condemning herself. Yet from her expression at dinner when I announced that I was marrying her sister, I fear that despite the odds against her, she is desperate enough to make one last attempt.”

“It is to our advantage that we have successfully isolated her here,” Uncle Humphrey added. “We have, of course, told the servants to report to us immediately if they see a stranger lurking about, without telling them why we are especially interested.”

Leatham did not look completely convinced. “What worries me is that on too many occasions I have seen the most foolproof plans fall apart.”

* * * *

Jane had helped her into her nightclothes, brushed out her hair, and at last had left her alone, but Hester was feeling too on edge for sleep. Sitting in a chair by the window looking out at the endless moonlit moor, she had never felt such desolation of spirit. It was as if she were trapped in a nightmare, unable to wake up. Except that this was no dream.

A slight movement of air on the back of her neck caused her to turn her head in time to see the door to the hallway closing. Before she could cry out, a black figure rushed at her and a gloved hand covered her mouth.

“Not a sound,” Lionell’s voice hissed in her ear, “else we are betrayed.”

Easily breaking loose from him, for in truth, any muscles he appeared to have were nothing more than tailor’s art, Hester whispered back, “How dare you enter my room this way! Be gone, before I scream the house down!”

“Ecod, surely you do not think I have any intention of compromising you? No, no, my dear, I want no scandal to attend our marriage. And do not forget that if you do not keep your voice down, we may attract some unwelcome attention. It would indeed be disastrous for our plans if I were caught in your room.”

“Marriage? Plans?” Hester asked, feeling again the chill she had felt at the dinner table when she had seen the glitter of madness in Lionell’s eyes. It had been bad enough when she had been in a well-lighted room, surrounded by family and friends, but now, isolated in her bedchamber with a madman, her terror knew no bounds.

Ignoring her questions, Lionell continued, and his whispers had the intensity of a religious fanatic she had once seen preaching damnation in St. James’s Park. “I have come to warn you not to try to stop the wedding tomorrow. Thorverton knows too much.”

Hester was grateful that she was sitting down, because her legs were trembling so much, she doubted they could hold her. “You may rest easy; I shall not try anything,” she whispered back, hoping if she could just appease him, he would be reassured enough to leave her room, giving her an opportunity to find help.

“They are now plotting together in the billiard room,” Lionell said with such a gloating tone in his voice, Hester was quite nauseated, “and from what I have heard, so far neither Thorverton nor any of those other fools has even begun to suspect me. That is why it is better if I do everything alone this night. All I require from you, my sweet, is that you stay out of the way in your room. I would hate to dispose of Thorverton only to discover that you have done something to make yourself a suspect.”

With a heartfelt cry, Hester leapt out of her chair and made a dash toward the door, but Lionell was too quick for her. She felt a sudden jerk on her nightgown, lost her balance, and went down onto her hands and knees. Before she could scramble to her feet, Lionell was crouching beside her, and the moonlight coming in through the window was adequate for her to see that he had a silver-chased dueling pistol in his hand.

“Oh, no, my sweet, you shall not turn against me now—not when I have expended so much time and money in helping you secure your father’s fortune.”

“You are responsible for the fatal curse—for the accidents that happened to my sister’s suitors!”

He did not make any effort to deny her accusations. Instead, the gun came closer. She tried to back away, but Lionell grabbed her arm. This time she was afraid that if she struggled to free herself, he might—accidentally or on purpose—pull the trigger.

“Do I detect a certain reluctance to fulfill your part of our bargain? Oh, no, my precious, you will not cheat me out of my due when we are so close to winning the prize. We have had an understanding lo these many years, and I shall not lose when it comes down to the wire.”

Without stopping to think about the possible consequences of angering the madman who was beside her, Hester blurted out, “We have had no agreement.”

“But of course we have had an understanding, and we shall be married just as soon as you inherit your father’s fortune. Do not think you can cheat me, either, for if you even try, I shall swear an oath on the Bible that you were with me every step of the way. In fact, by the time I finish, I shall have everyone convinced that I was but your unwitting pawn, cleverly manipulated by you. So keep in mind, my sweet, that if I am hanged for murder, I guarantee I will lay such evidence against you that you will find yourself swinging from the gibbet beside mine. Now that I have done your dirty work, it is too late for you to cast me aside for another bridegroom.”

“But I never even so much as suggested that you ... that you should kill anyone. I never even hinted at such a thing.”

“Bah, even I cannot believe your protestations of innocence, and a jury would laugh in your face. After all, what motive could I have for involving myself in your affairs, other than that you had asked for my help and promised to share your fortune with me?”

“I shall turn all the money over to you—every penny of my father’s fortune—if you will only give up your plans to try to kill Thorverton.”

“But you forget, my love, that if Thorverton lives, you will have no fortune to give me. No, no, I am afraid I have no alternative but to have my assistants dispatch his lordship to his heavenly reward. Do you know, I had been regretting that I was forced to shoot Mr. Brannigan, but I believe the two new men I was able to hire in London will serve my purposes better. They seem much more capable of using finesse. The giant tended to rely on brute force rather than intelligent planning.”

Covering her face with her hands, Hester began to cry. Large sobs racked her body, but for all that she could not stop them, at least she managed to weep silently.

Pulling her hands away, Lionell slapped her across the face, cursing her and calling her the foulest of names.