A Fine Caprice - A Regency Romance (26 page)

But the inner warmth persisted, his closeness amplifying emotions that were both unfamiliar and enchanting. Caprice had wondered for many years what it would feel like to truly fall in love. And while she was unwilling to acknowledge that she might be on the verge of such a cataclysmic occurrence now, she knew that she had never felt such a delicious feeling of… of warmth before. Inner warmth.
The kind that infused every part of her being and left her with a curious, haunting need, like an itch that had manifested in a hard to reach place.
She wanted to scratch it but she had no idea how to go about it.
Wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him presented itself to her as a sensible way to start, however.

He thinks I am a boy. He has no idea that he has been keeping company with a girl for the past twenty-four hours and even if he did, there is no chance that a man like him is going to be va
guely interested in
me
even if he did happen to see me in my petticoats
…
Caprice knew she was pretty enough, in her female form, for she had been t
old
as much frequently
. But men like Cassius Merridew were probably inundated with beautiful women wanting to fix his interest. Surely pretty would not suffice. And while her family were of good stock and her dowry was generous, it was in no way exceptional.

Such speculation
was demoralizing but she refused to give in to unhappiness, not now. Not when she could spend time in his company, listen to him, watch his face
for a little while longer, safe in the knowledge that he would
not
think her forward
. And perhaps it was merely a passing fancy on her part and she would not think of him more than fleeti
ngly once they had said goodbye?

Lord Merridew turned his head and smiled at he
r and suddenly it felt as if her
heart
had
stopped in her chest.
Reality crashed around her ears like cold surf on a desol
ate winter’s beach. Who was she shamming, thinking that he would be easily forgotten? A moment of cold fear engulfed her for she realized that she had probably been foolish in more ways than one. One look at Lord Cassius Merridew and she should have
had the sense to turn
around and run!

This increasingly gloomy musings were interrupted by the sound of the door leading into the kitchen corridor opening. Both Caprice and his lordship looked upwards quickly and saw the ridiculously upturned toe of a
familiar
satin slipper appear
, peeping out from beneath a satin robe
. It was followed by another and within moments, Mr. Ravener was standing before them, once again attired in his sumptuous night attire. They stared at him in silence. He raised one thin
, questioning
eyebrow.

‘Cousin? May I ask what it is that you are doing down here? Once again I have been awoken
in the middle of the night by an unseemly cacophony. That creature that you have installed to run the house said that you were down here. What on earth is going on?’

Caprice’s thoughts were racing. Clearly both Mr. Ravener and the Grand Duchess, realizing that something had happened, had somehow managed to get themselv
es back into the house and
up to their bedchambers where they would
undoubtedly
pretend to have been all along. Of all the dreadful luck!

‘What a nuisance for you, my dear cousin,’ his lordship responded pleasantly. ‘Were you upstairs?’

Something flickered in those pale blue eyes but was gone almost immediately. ‘What do you mean
was
I upstairs? Where else would I be?’

‘I merely wondered. I knocked no more an hour ago and put my head around the door and you did not seem to be in the bed.’

Caprice listened to this blatant fabrication with admiration. Of course Lord Merridew had done nothing of the kind but, as
Mr. Ravener had not been in his
bed, he had no way of knowing that.

There was a small beat of sile
nce, before Mr. Ravener gave a careless shrug. ‘Isn’t it obvious?
I was in a different bed, my dear cousin.
That is why you did not find me in my own.
’

‘A different bed?’ His lordship sounded bemused. 

‘Oh come now,’ Hadley murmured, ‘surely I don’t have to elucidate this to
you
of all people,
Merridew?’

Lord Merridew seemed to ponder
this
for a moment
then
nodded slowly
. ‘Ah. I see.’

‘A little
discretion would be
welcome under the circumstances
, don’t you think?’

‘Assuredly. And m
ay I felicitate you once again? I had not realized that the Grand Duchess had had such a profound effect on you.’

Hadley’s eyes narrowed. ‘Why whatever do you mean
?’

‘I
t warms my heart
,’ Merridew continued on easily, ‘w
hen love makes a
man forget the tedious conventions of Society
.’

It was such a ridiculous sentiment – especially when applied to Mr. Ravener – that Caprice gave a small snort of
laughter, unable to stop the sound from escaping
.
If Maria was Hadley Ravener’s great love, then he was marvellous at dissembling.

‘Her highness is
indeed
the love of my life,’ Mr. Ravener said coldly.
‘Although I fail to see
why my romantic adventures
should concern anybody.
Or why you should have come looking for me at all
in the middle of the night
, for that matter
.
Did you want something?
’

‘Most certainly
.
Why else would I have visited you? U
nfortunately we…
or should I say Jem, here…
made a very alarming discovery
which I felt I should apprise you of immediately
.’

Once again there was that flash of some
thing in Hadley Ravener’s eyes. Even in the mild light of lantern and candle, Caprice could see him tense.
‘Discovery? What do you mean?’

‘I mean that we have
finally
discovered the whereabouts of Priss.’

‘Priss?’ Ravener repeated blankly. ‘
Uncle’s valet?’

‘You
do
recall how he was missing?’

‘Was he? I just thought he’
d left the place after the old man
died.
Why should he stay, after all.
’

‘Because he lived here
for nearly thirty years?
Under the circumstances he might reasonably have remained to see if Uncle Abel had left him some small bequest. It is not uncommon to remember a servant of such long standing in one’s will.
’

Mr. Ravener gave an impatient shrug. ‘
I suppose so, especially as you say you’ve found him.
Where is the wretched fellow?’

‘Over the
re,’ his lordship said, swinging
the lantern
to one side to illuminate
the corner occupied by the body of Priss.

Caprice did not look again. Once seen, always remembered as far as she was concerned. Instead she kept her eyes on Mr. Ravener, the better to gauge his reaction. It was singularly impressive for he gave a small, high-pitched squeal of surprise, mouth dropping open
while he danced back several steps in shock
. Caprice was inclined to believe the reaction to be genuine,
for Mr. Ravener looked singularly shaken. W
hich meant that somebody else must have murdered the valet. It was hardly a comforting thought for it meant that there was another miscreant hiding about the place.
Unless it was Bessant?
Had he killed Priss for some reason but had neglected to tell his master?
She knew she mustn’t let her imagine run away with her.
Caprice did not like the man but she thought that perhaps
putting him into the role of murderer might be a little harsh.

‘By God, what
happened
to him? Did he… did he fall?’

‘After somebody put a bal
l of shot in his head
.
After that
then yes,
he would have fallen
rather heavily.’

‘A ball off… No, surely not! You must be mistaken. I mean, it’s far more likely that the man got drunk or some such thing and stumbled and...
and
hit his head It must have been an accident.’

‘The ball of lead was still lodged behind his skull,’ his lordship replied gently. ‘And there was no pistol so we cannot even pretend that it was some bizarre attempt at suicide, allowing for the fact that the man had worked out a way to shoot himself in the back of the head.’

Mr. Ravener moistened his lips. ‘This is all most distressing.’

‘Indeed. I have sent for the magistrate.’

Hadley Ravener dragged his eyes from the prone figure in the corner at this, fixing them
with painful intensity
on his cousin’s face.
‘The magistrate?
Why?’

‘I would have thought that the presence of a murdered man in the house would have been explanation enough.’

‘But you cannot possibly think the murderer would be around
now
. Why, the man has probably been laying there for days.’

‘He wasn’t there yesterday
morning
,’ Caprice piped up.

Mr. Ravener shot her a malevolent look. ‘And how would you know that?’

‘Because we were down here yesterday,’ she returned, lifting her chin a little. She refused to be cowed by a man in such a ridiculous outfit. ‘And he wasn’t here.’

‘So you’re saying that he was murdered.
Down here?
And that he has been lurking around the place all this time?’ Ravener glanced around him, shuddering elaborately. ‘What an alarming thought! Really, Merridew, you must
promise to
ensure the safety of my fiancée
. This seems to be a very
unsafe
environment.’

‘Doesn’t it?’ his lordship agreed quietly. ‘If I were you my dear Hadley, I would remain in my bedchamber as much as possible
and lock the door. You may reassure the Grand Duchess that it is very unlikely anybody will be getting much sleep tonight so she is perfectly safe.’

‘Yes,’ Ravener moistened his lips, his gaze flicking towards the corner where Priss lay again. ‘Yes, I shall tell her. In fact, I will go to her right now. You will let me know if you discover anything else?’

‘Any more bodies, you mean?’

Mr. Ravener blanched. ‘Really, Merridew! Your sense of humor leaves a great deal to be desired.’ And he turned, hurrying back to the steps and climbing them swiftly, his habitual languor entirely absent.

‘Well,’ his lordship said, when they heard the door at the top of the stairs slam shut, ‘what do you think? Was he shamming?’

‘Not at all.
He looked scared to death.’

‘Yes, it’s all a bit too messy for poor Hadley. Right now he’s gone to tell Maria what’s taken place. She will ask him twenty questions, most of which he will not be able to answer. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she puts in an appearance next.’

‘Not down here,’ Caprice said with some certainty. ‘She will wait upstairs.’

‘I can’t believe our duchess has a horror of blood.’

‘Neither can I, but she’ll pretend she has. She’ll be all swoony, throwing herself down on a chaise lounge and requesting hartshorn in a faint voice.’ Caprice could almost see it happen. Maria would play the delicate flower, begging for reassurance from the big, strong men while she learned everything she
could about what was going on, especially as Mr. Ravener was clearly not up to the task.

‘I suspect you’re right.’

‘She’ll
throw herself on
you
,’ she added waspishly. ‘Oh my Lord Merridew, whatever is happening? You’ll protect me, won’t you?’ The ex
aggerated voice, accompanied by a wicked facsimile of Maria von Kassel’s accent made her companion grin.

‘You little horror! The woman is qu
ite likely to be genuinely perturbed
, what with the authorities about the place. God knows what she’s done with her spy, if they managed to meet up with him. I’m perfectly certain that my cousin had nothing to do with Priss’ death -’

‘That doesn’t mean the Grand Duchess is innocent. I can imagine her sticking a knife into somebody.’

‘But can you imagine her shooting them? Why would she, anyway?’