Duplicity Ch. 06

"Mr. Elwood and I were at school together," Henry explained to Ann later. "Lady St. James is my wife's younger sister. You're surprise I see. The older one, meek, plain and sheltered by a convent upbringing really has nothing but her wealth to recommend her. The younger sister, as you see, possessed the good looks and an easy spirit that guaranteed her an advantageous marriage to my friend Elwood's older brother, Lord St. James. And his lordship's fortune is ever increasing as he's a great favorite at court and a close companion of Prince Edward's. Of course we all know Mary through some connection or other, but who cares about that!"

Lady Ann nodded approvingly. "As I've often said, in our circle, we're all connected somehow." So which of you are bedding Lady St. James then? You or her other brother-in-law? "

Henry chuckled. "Neither of us would dare break such familial bonds! But truly, it's not impossible to make her break her marital vows. Like all the low-borne, she's still quite keen to observe the order of precedence and make beneficial connections. I'd say it would take nothing less than an Earl's... or a Marquess' coronet to make her spread her thighs. But, patience my dear, there's a purpose to this little gathering... with the possible exception of poor Mary that is. Soon, all will be revealed to you."

After supper Lady Ann decided to learn all there was to know about the tall, fair-haired Lady St. James, or Bess as she insisted on being called. Bess was a gentlemen's daughter, who raised herself considerably by marrying the young Viscount St. James.

"How difficult it must be for you to be without your husband by your side. And no children to comfort you, you poor dear," Ann said sympathetically. "But to be in service to Prince Edward, it's an incredible honor!"

Bess pressed her pretty lips together as her lovely eyes rolled around to think of an appropriate answer. "Well... His Highness simply couldn't do without my husband's political acumen. Great men are often called to make sacrifices. I've learned to make due with the company of my dear friends like Mary and my family. In fact, after our visit with you we travel to my father's."

"Your childhood home will be different now, after you've been exposed to so much culture," Ann said nonchalantly.

"Luckily our county boasts of several first rate families," Bess replied with another broad infectious smile. "Why my father's land joins the northwest corner of the Marquess of Davenport's country seat. He's often invited to dine at Keswick Hall when Lord Davenport is in residence. I shan't lack for culture or elevated company. "

Lady Ann arched a brow at Henry from across the room in silent salute, then turned her attention once more to Bess. "You are friendly with Lord Davenport! How wonderful!"

"Uhm, good wine, this! And yes, to your question Lady Ann, in a way. Before I was married, Lord Davenport would often ride past our house during the summer months and on occasion he would stop in to call on us. I dare say he's a great favorite with my mother."

"How is it -?" Lady Ann wondered out loud, then intentionally held a hand over her mouth.

"Pardon?"

Ann waved a hand dismissively. "I often let my thoughts get carried away. You must excuse me my dear. I simply wondered if Lord Davenport had a purpose for visiting your father's home so often. He must have felt it keenly when you married. How could he not when he lost his chance with such a beauty as yourself"

Bess modestly shook her ringlets of golden curls, laughed again and took another sip of wine. "I heard he's recently taken a wife" she said instead. "My father says everyone in the country is most eager for a glimpse of her."

"What's this about Lord Davenport?" ask Mr. Elwood as he and Henry joined them with Mary following them closely, as eager as a puppy.

"We were remarking on Lord Davenport's recent marriage-" Ann replied

"My father is thrilled to have a proper lady as his neighbor," Bess added with a little bounce..

Mary chimed in then. "It just so happens Lady Davenport and I are as close as sisters! I'm happy to answer any of your curiosities about her." The last was said with an eager smile at Mr. Elwood, which Mr. Elwood ignored.

A whist was set up and Mary opted to sit and watch, positioned between the two men. Lady St. James cut the cards and passed the stack to Ann who dealt.

"I saw Lord Davenport once," Mr. Elwood was saying with cards cupped in both hands. "Rather a tall fellow, if a bit too grim. Where was it that I saw him- blimey! I can't recall!"

"Elwood here just returned from a long sojourn abroad," Henry explained to the ladies, laying down a card to follow the trick. "He's been away so long he's quite forgotten everything to do with any of us."

"Sojourn?" Mr. Elwood laughed, rocking back in his chair. "Good God man! I wasn't on an extended holiday. I don't think we need to hide the fact that I was forced to leave."

"I don't believe I was aware of that," Lady Ann replied.

"Chalk it up to a misspent youth but yes, quite the black sheep of the family, me!"

"Did you do something horrid?" Mary asked eagerly.

"Absolutely!". Henry answered for Mr. Elwood to Mary's shriek of delight. "Now he's forced to return after some devilry with an Italian belladonna was it not? I can proudly say my dear chap here hasn't learned at all from his exile."

"We really shouldn't speak of such things," Bess said nervously.

Mr. Elwood's sparkling eyes glittered with good humor at his sister-in-law's discomfort. "What things?" he asked wiggling his brows at her.

"Oh don't stop on my account!" Mary cried.

"Let's just say, Henry and I share a common predilection that plagues all younger sons. Too much time on our hands and not enough interests to fill the void. While Henry took it on the chin and married- well, ugh-hm! I went another route."

Henry played his highest card. He leaned towards Ann. "Elwood's father, unlike mine, is quite keen to fund his debaucheries. I really ought to increase my wagers on this game!"

The conversation soon turned to marriage again.

"Why haven't you remarried, Lady Ann?" asked Mr. Elwood. "It's such a waste for a woman of your beauty, grace and intelligence to remain widowed."

Ann studied her cards intensely and looked over the other cards laid out. "I prefer not to fall under coverture again. Besides my children will want suitable marriages when they leave school. My focus will turn to that. I am quite content with my lot."

Henry coughed loudly into his fist.

"I can't wait to be married and set up my own house," Mary said with a wistful sigh towards Mr. Elwood. No one paid her any attention.

"I say its prudent not to marry unless its absolutely necessary," Bess spoke up then and gestured for a footman to pour more wine.

"Yours is the happiest of marriages!" Henry protested. "You have a spouse who loves you so much he is happy to be away months on end so you may never grow tired of him."

Bess slumped in her chair a bit as she laid down a low card. The wine had made her cheeks rose and her her whole carriage soften. "I suppose I married for an adventure. Only he's been the only one free to explore-"

"Explore what?" asked Henry playfully.

Mr. Elwood's eyes narrowed all of a sudden but then just as quickly he raised his brows and pushed back playfully till his chair tattered on two back legs. "No need to mince words on account. My brother and I enjoy a cordial relationship, but I wouldn't call us friends. Pretend I am anyone else but your husband's brother and tell us the truth!"

"What are you talking about?" asked a very confused Mary.

"It just think my sister-in-law has thoughts and feelings she's withholding from us."

Lady Ann cringed inwardly when Bess burst into another peal of nervous laughter.

"Don't be rude ol' boy!" Henry admonished his friend. "Look, you're making poor Bess quite nervous."

"Marriage is a complicated matter," said Lady Ann observing Bess through the corners of her eyes. "Even in this modern age when every one of the gentry seem to fancy marriage to be based on love."

"As it ought to be!" Mary declared.

"Perhaps, but what if Cupid's arrow struck on a lowly porter, Mary? Would you lower yourself and suffer poverty for him?"

Mary's mouth pressed shut.

"When there are titles and vast fortunes at stake one can't simply reply on love to be the compass," Mr. Elwood added.

"Unless..." Henry mused. "one happens to be so powerful and rich that one could simply live in a menage a trois with one's wife and one's true love under the same roof!."

"Such a thing wouldn't be tolerated!" Bess interjected with her eyes wide and her mouth agape.

"Wealth and power being key necessities behind such an arrangement!" Mr. Elwood grinned impishly as the two men exchanged a knowing grin.

Mary cried out in scandalized delight. "I saw that play-what's the name?! Still, I can't imagine anyone doing that! It wouldn't stand, I'm sure!"

"I prefer if we changed the conversation to more pleasant topics," Bess interjected.

Mr. Elwood played his hand and won the next trick. "Speaking of marriages, I'm sorry I returned too late to see Lady Davenport for myself. Much has been made of her beauty and wit. Though one gash is the same as another- Oh! Pardon me ladies! Blimey! How many points was that?"

"Well, they're all quite pretty when they're young and fresh." With that Henry played his card.

"Evelyn does have a peculiar disposition!" Mary chimed in again. "I almost felt sorry for her as she didn't seem particularly accomplished at anything musical, though I suppose she does dance rather well. Not as well as me. In fact, my sister, Lady Warwick, was most worried Evelyn would never catch a husband with her odd disposition."

"Then you must be so relieved your dear friend did catch a husband," Lady Ann said with a casual smile.

"They were precontracted," Mary' said with a sniff. "...Luckily."

Bess won the next trick and she mulled over her remaining cards for a long time before finally tossing one down with a shrug. "I'm determined to like her and look forward to being received by her at Keswick Hall."

"How exciting," said Lady Ann with an even smile. "When did you receive her invitation?"

"I haven't- yet, but I go to my father's in a few days and I expect we'll all be invited to dine with them. Henry, I wish you'd come as well with my sister."

Henry gave his sister-in-law a slight bow from his chair. "I'm afraid I must attend to my own affairs. You must all carry on without me. Do give my regards to Lady Davenport. She was quite charming towards me on the few occasions we met."

"I'd love a chance to meet Lord and Lady Davenport," Mr. Elwood said casually. "Perhaps I'll come for a visit on my way to the seaside. What do you think, Bess?"

"You can't mean for that man to play a part in our scheme!" Lady Ann said later to Henry. "Your friend is certainly handsome and charismatic but he's crude and looks on every woman as if he means to devour them! Evelyn will not like him."

Henry shook his head. "Have faith. Ainsley Elwood has a proven record to wretch destruction and destroy hearts wherever he goes, believe me!. And since I can't get the job done myself .-"

"After that stunt you pulled at the club, I doubt Lord Davenport would let you near his county let alone his wife!"

"Sadly, Philip Mallory proved to be a disappointment. Where's he been hiding since his cousin's marriage anyway? Do give Elwood a chance. He can be quite charming when he wants to and he'll serve our purpose well. Trust me."

Lady Ann wasn't so convinced. "And have you spoken to him of our purpose?"

"Of course not! I'm not stupid you know. I'm learning from you to set the scene and let nature take its own course."

Lady Ann grimace and she quickly glanced around to be certain they weren't overheard. "Perhaps not. It seems Lord Davenport isn't satisfied the attack on his wife was a singular, isolated event. He's quietly dispatched a squadron of skilled agents to discover everything there is to learn of that creature you hired. They're meticulously going over every part of that filthy creature's life. Are you quite certain there's nothing in the dead man's possession that might link him back to you... or me?"

Henry sucked in a breath through his teeth as sweat started to bead across his forehead and roll down his temple. He thought long and hard. "There's nothing. I swear it! I made certain he never knew who hired him. Since dead men tell no tales-"

"He might have mentioned something to someone." Ann shook her head. "We can't take chances. What makes the Marquess of Davenport a dangerous foe is his dogged determination when he's set his mind to something."

"Perhaps he only claims to be investigating the matter to appease his nervous wife?" Henry asked hopefully.

"She's quite ignorant of what he's doing."

"How do you know this?"

"I have my ways, Henry. Lucky for us that I do. We can't leave things to chance. He must be diverted!"

Henry didn't take but a moment before a wide smile spread across his face. "Then I think my sister-in-law will prove plenty useful."

"Don't be stupid! Lady Bess St. James is a pretty girl but she has a marble in the place of a brain. That laugh!-"

Henry shook his head. "You sometimes overestimate what attracts a man. But I wasn't thinking of THAT! Let me acquaint you with the often absent Lord St. James-"

Henry spoke quickly and quietly into Lady Ann's ear. It took but a moment for Ann's feline eyes too to sparkle. "Then I think we have what we need! But Henry, we must be even more careful for if we do this and we're discovered, we'll be inviting a much more dangerous and catastrophic enemy than even Davenport! "

Henry clasped his hands together gleefully. "Then let the games begin!"

****************

Keswick Hall sat proudly on the high bank of a river that fed into several ponds. It was surrounded on either side by expansive gardens and parkland, and backed by wooded, rocky hills. The structure of the house itself was a fine example of centuries of ever evolving style and tastes. The current outer shell of simplistic English baroque with it's elegant lines, white urns and Corinthian porticoes, belie an inner web of interlocking gothic galleries and Tudor niches. An entire far wing was cordoned off and under scaffolds for more renovation.

"The Master often invites the brightest young minds to pursue his collections and share with him their discoveries and inventions," explained the head housekeeper, Mrs. Evans, with a stone face as impassive as her master. "That part of the house will be used as a laboratory of sorts."

Evelyn's shaky speech to the staff assured them she wouldn't interfere with the mechanics of their day to day. And from the reception she received she had a feeling none saw her presence as the new mistress as a threat or disruption. Every part of the house and estate was impeccably maintained with military precision by a well-trained staff with the singular devotion to the Marquess of Davenport's desires and tastes.

In her letters to her brother Edward, Evelyn spoke of nothing but the lush surrounding lands with it's hills and ponds where there was plenty of game and fish. To Charlotte, Evelyn praised Keswick Hall with platitudes of praises for the art collection, the beauty of the whole place. To her friend Lady Ann, Evelyn allowed herself to let some of her uncertainty and loneliness seep through.

Evelyn wrote in her letter to Lady Ann: "Country life is not as peaceful and idyllic as one might think. There's a litany of building projects all around. I won't bore you with the details of every building project here at the Hall or down at the village. I can't pretend to understand the work behind irrigating farm lands. Suffice to say everything is done under my husband's direction and scrutiny. He seem to thrive in the midst of chaos, so I've made it my duty to simply stay out from underfoot."

That letter was written and rewritten till Evelyn was satisfied it wasn't full of self pity. She told herself she simply had no right to complain. In the month they'd been married, Lord Davenport kept his word and never once spoke harshly to her. Then again, he rarely had an opportunity to speak to her for any length, when he was home at all.

Three days after they arrived at Kenswick, he was called back to London for a fortnight. When he returned for a mere week, he was called away again. The days he spent at Keswick, compounded matters at the house or in the surrounding lands required nearly all his attention. In heavy rain or fog, he would ride out early and wouldn't return till late at night. In the short intervals that he was home, he in constant motion, marching in and out of the house dispensing orders to the butler or his own valet. Land agents, solicitors, bankers were constantly streaming in and out of the billiard room or his lordship's study. Several times, after Evelyn had dined alone, she would walk past the billiard room to hear the rumbling of a rousing conversation. Through the crack in the door she saw her husband always with one or two men, under a plum of cigar smoke, cracking a cue across the table.

Every now and then Evelyn caught him staring at her with his inscrutable steely-blue glare through that door, or from a window of his study while she was out walking the gardens. That look never failed to set Evelyn's heart aflutter and made her inside turn to liquid. She lived for that brief hour, late at night, when he finally came to her bed. That was the only place when they were together, uninterrupted where no words were needed. For a brief time she had his full attention on her. But just as soon as he was finished with her, she could see his mind wander elsewhere. Those moment when he gave her a final caress and left her bed for his own were the worst for Evelyn. The feeling of abandonment was palpable. More than once she cried herself to sleep, but at least, when he was in the house, she slept.

Three days after they arrived at Keswick, Lord Davenport left again. Almost immediately, Evelyn had the eerie feeling she was being watched constantly, even when she knew she was alone. At night, when the last scullery maid had gone to bed, the foreboding silence took ghostly shapes that lumbered past her chamber doors. When Evelyn called out and flung the doors open, there was no one there!

That night, Evelyn had a dream. It was a recurring dream from her childhood. Against an angry dark crimson sky, a giant, bald oak tree spread out it's mass of snarling bald branches over a hill of slug and slim. Beneath it stood a lone woman dressed all in black, her face shrouded and obscured beneath a veiled of dark netting. When Evelyn saw the woman, she felt an instant rush of longing. Evelyn would always run towards the dark lady, only her legs would not move. She looked down realized that her legs had sunk into the marsh with tall reeds wrapped around her ankles to keep her in place. As Evelyn watched, terrified, the dark lady, turned to leave. Evelyn screamed and screamed with her whole heart to call the woman back! But no sound came from her throat. And no amount of tears could make the woman turn back!

The moment Lord Davenport returned after a long fortnight, the house cast off its gloom and filled to the rooftop balustrade with life and light again! But even his intensely overpowering presence could not stave off her nightmares. That first night of his return, after they had made love, Evelyn dozed off immediately. The dark lady rose up before her underneath that same old oak tree. Once more Evelyn tried to run to her, but once more her legs wouldn't move. When the dark lady turned to go, Evelyn waved her arms wildly to call her back. Suddenly the giant oak's branches descended upon her! It's giant branches reached out and told ahold of her arms. Evelyn screamed in terror and fought back. The branches turned into massive strong hands that was pushing her down into the marshland at her feet. Evelyn cried out again and tried to tear herself from the beastly grasp!