He sighed heavily, as if acknowledging that she wouldn’t give up her questioning until she got the answers she sought. “Very well, your grace, if you insist. I suspect that Grimshaw’s involvement in your charities was a pretense … a charade to hide your true patron’s identity. It was never admitted in so many words, but I fancy Grimshaw has been acting for the Duke of Rotham all along.”
Tess’s mouth opened in startled disbelief. “You mean, Grimshaw made all those donations at Rotham’s behest?”
“I suspect so. But from the very first, Rotham made clear to me that he didn’t want you knowing about any role he played as your benefactor.”
She stared at Hennessy in bewilderment. Had Ian truly supported her philanthropic endeavors anonymously all this time, contributing large sums to her charities from his own vast fortune?
“Perhaps you are mistaken,” she protested in an unsteady voice. “Grimshaw could be acting entirely on his own. What makes you think he is not?”
Hennessy hesitated. Evidently, however, he realized the futility of silence, for he heaved another sigh. “Chiefly because Grimshaw always seemed to know exactly when we needed large sums for our productions. I believe the timing was not mere coincidence, since I regularly kept Rotham informed of our needs. And I know for certain the duke aided us in the past, in ways other than financial. I had only to mention to him that we required a thing and he saw that it was done. Do you recall when the Prince Regent attended the benefit at the Theatre Royal in September? That was the duke’s doing.”
Tess sat there in mute astonishment. Prinny’s attendance that evening had assured the event’s success, but she’d never known Ian had interceded on her behalf.
“How long has this been going on?” she finally asked.
When her tone remained calm instead of irate, Hennessy’s expression went from anxious to sheepish. “Since you first hired me two years ago. Rotham appeared the very next day and made his wishes known. I was to apply to him if we ran into difficulties on any front.”
Tess raised a hand to her temple. “How would he even know that I had hired you?”
“I gather that some of your servants may report to him about your affairs. Your footman, the former pugilist, for one. I believe that big strapping fellow was in the duke’s service before he came into your employ.”
Fletcher had been in Ian’s service? Was still in Ian’s service, doing his bidding? He had commissioned her servants to spy on her?
Tess didn’t know whether to be outraged or grateful. Ian had always claimed that it was his duty to protect her because he considered her family. Perhaps controlling her servants was his chosen way of imposing his will on her and ensuring her safety at the same time.
But his furtiveness made little sense to her. Why would he keep his good deeds a secret? Because he didn’t wish her to know he had a soft heart?
This was not the first time, either, that she had wondered if Ian was hiding his inner goodness, Tess recalled. Without question, he’d kept secrets from her before this. He had never told her about his young ward, for one thing.
But in that instance, he most likely hadn’t wanted her knowing that he had a son from an adulterous affair with a married woman.…
Tess shook herself and returned her gaze to Patrick Hennessy. “Why would Rotham contribute to my charities, but let his solicitor receive all the credit?”
“I couldn’t begin to guess, your grace.”
Neither could she, Tess realized, feeling swamped again by conflicting emotions.
She was still stewing over the baffling question when she concluded her meeting with Hennessy and returned to her carriage. Fletcher was there to hand her inside, but although she gave him a piercing look, Tess refrained from interrogating him just yet, not wanting to accuse her servants of betraying her without proof.
She would have confronted Ian directly on the matter, but she had no notion when he planned to return from Cornwall. Furthermore, she hoped to find some sort of evidence of her suspicions so that he could not simply deny his involvement.
Perhaps Basil could assist in her search for the truth, Tess reflected. As the duke’s newest secretary, Basil could likely help her learn more about Ian’s past business dealings. And as a former law clerk, he might even know Daniel Grimshaw.
I
f so, then she could possibly confirm what she was beginning to believe: That for some inexplicable reason of his own, Ian had spent years aiding her causes through his lawyers.
She directed Spruggs to take her to Fanny’s nearby boardinghouse at once. While waiting for Basil to return home, she visited with Fleur and Chantel, the two aging courtesans who had mentored a young Fanny at the beginning of her career and who now supervised her lodgers.
When Basil arrived shortly before supper time, Tess explained her suspicions about the duke’s solicitor. And since he was a quick study, he instantly understood her desire to know if her husband was the enormously generous benefactor who had anonymously supported her charities for years.
“What do you wish me to do, your grace?” Basil asked simply.
“Can you tell me where Rotham’s account books are kept?” she replied. “I maintain a record of the major contributions my charities have received over the years. If I could check his accounts and compare entries to see if the same sums were paid to his solicitor around various dates, then it would confirm my theory.”
Frowning, Basil shifted uneasily in his seat. “I only hold a junior position in the duke’s household, so I don’t yet know where his staff keeps his account books. I could inquire, certainly, but I dislike betraying the duke’s trust. And then there is—”
Even before Basil stopped abruptly, Tess could see his obvious reluctance. “There is what, Mr. Eddowes?” she prodded.