"Mrs. Lemont?" Harry sputtered. "But that makes no sense. The blackmail ..."
"She was out to ruin Marissa's reputation because of Charles Lemont's previous affection."
"My God," Harry breathed. "All that because of young love?" Everything on his face sang of surprise, but Jude still felt uneasy. Harry was a born actor, after all.
Jude's neck prickled. His instincts had never failed him before. He raised one eyebrow. "Quite a feat for a gently bred woman to carry off on her own."
"Indeed." Harry's eyes didn't even twitch.
"Do you think she might've had help? Someone to arrange contact with the maid? Someone to help her plot?"
"I suppose it's possible." His forehead crinkled with thought. "One of the guests, do you mean?"
Jude cocked his head. "I was thinking someone closer still."
Harry's p
uzzlement held for a few more heartbeats, then his eyes widened as he met Jude's gaze. Blood rushed to his cheeks in a violent flush. "I say, sir! You are not accusing me in this, I hope!"
"Perhaps accuse is too strong a word."
"How dare you! I am her cousin. A member of this family! If anyone is set to benefit from this outrage, it's you."
A fair enough point, actually, but Jude was sure of himself, at least. "Ah," he said, "but I am not the one who's hiding something from this family, Harry. You are."
Jude felt a hard surge of satisfaction at the panic that flared in Harry's eyes. Without a doubt, Marissa's cousin was hiding something. Something important, it seemed.
"I d-don't ..." he stammered. "I most certainly am not."
"Indeed you are. I can see it clearly on your face, not to mention there's the little scene I witnessed in the stable yard. Something involving that package you entrusted to the groom ..."
Harry's face went so white that Jude felt a moment of sympathy. "You... you didn't. . . ?"
"Why don't you tell me the truth, Harry, else I'll feel it my responsibility to mention what I saw to Edward."
"It's nothing to do with this," Harry breathed. "I swear on my honor as a gentleman."
"The same honor that allows you to live beneath your cousin's roof and lie to his face? Tell me what you did. Perhaps you didn't even realize you were helping Mrs. Lemont."
"It's nothing like that! You must believe me."
Jude wanted to believe him, for Marissa's sake, if nothing else. "What is it then?" he asked quietly.
Harry shook his head. "Edward mustn't know. I owe him so much, and I've taken every precaution to protect the York name, I swear to you. It's only that I felt so unimportant. A useless extension of the family tree. For a time, I cared for Aidan. I was needed. But then ..."
Jude felt more confused than ever. "What is it, man?"
"'Twas boredom, I suppose. I thought no one would know."
Jude wrapped his hand around Harry's arm to draw his attention. "What did you do?"
Harry's gaze met his, eyes wide with shock as if his own confession was a surprise. "I wrote a book," he murmured.
Jude shook his head. "You what?"
"I wrote a book. I never expected... but it was accepted by a publisher, and he wanted another. So I wrote a second hook, and then a third."
Jude dropped his arm. "A book? What type of book?"