Chapter 24
Crispin offered his hand to his sister as she stepped out of the coach after him. With a nod to the coachman, he then led Beatrice up the stairs to the doors of the estate of the Earl of Comstead.
“Crispin, the level to which you care for this woman is evident, but I fear that you are focusing so much on her rescue that you are not taking the time to woo her,” Beatrice said under her breath.
Crispin sighed and remained silent, waiting for the door to open. Beatrice had been scolding him nonstop about the fact that he had not professed his love to Lady Mary. She had argued that he should have done so when he came to see her last.
But it was not the priority right now. Crispin knew he could woo her after he had already found her justice. The most important thing he could do for the woman he loved was to ensure that she lived a peaceful life without fear of her stepsister and stepmother running all over her and controlling every facet of her life.
The door opened and the housekeeper raised an eyebrow at Crispin before dutifully curtseying and welcoming them inside.
“I expect that you wish to speak with Lord Comstead?” she asked, her demeanour slightly chilly. Crispin could easily gather that he was considered somewhat of a nuisance already.
“Indeed, we would,” Beatrice said before he had the chance.
“Very well. I shall inform him of your arrival,” the housekeeper said.
She made her way down the hall and returned a short time later, while Crispin and Beatrice continued standing, admiring the entryway and hoping for a glimpse of Mary.
“Lord Comstead will see you in the study,” the housekeeper said, leading them back down the hall from which she had just come.
When they entered the study, Lord Comstead stood, his own expression with a forced smile and a polite, but stiff, energy about him.
“Ah, Lord Hanbrooke. Lady Beatrice. What an unexpected surprise,” he said. “Please, have a seat.”
Crispin and Beatrice sat near the fireplace across from Lord Comstead. Unbothered by the rather uncomfortable air in the room, Crispin made himself comfortable and prepared to give the impassioned speech he had been practicing up until now.
“How may I help Lord Hanbrooke and Lady Beatrice today?” Lord Comstead asked with that same terse smile.
“We are here to address the matter of your daughter, my lord,” Crispin began.
“Ah, yes. I assume you are referring to Lady Charlotte? I have heard that the two of you are getting closer,” he said, clearly aware that this wasnotthe order of business for which Crispin had come.
“On the contrary, my lord, I think you know that we are addressing another issue entirely. We need to speak with you about the accusations against Lady Mary and the true affair of Lady Charlotte,” he said.
Lord Comstead inhaled a deep breath and focused directly on Crispin’s eyes. “Having so many accusations levied between these girls is going to be the death of me,” he said. “But as it is, my wife has already approached me regarding the matter. I am very sorry if Mary has fooled the both of you, but there is evidence that she hired this man—the blacksmith—to claim an affair with Charlotte. It was all a ruse.”
“And how can you be sure? You think your daughter has conned us, but why? Why would you give more credence to the word of your stepdaughter than your own Mary?” Crispin asked.
“Because my wife is her guardian and keeper. She is the one who watches over the two of them and has seen how they behave with one another,” he replied.
“And you believe that she would not favour her own daughter above yours?” Crispin asked.
Lord Comstead, looked away, furious. He was clearly an arrogant man, but worse, he was ambivalent. He did not seem to care anything about the matters occurring within his home, so long as he did not have to be responsible for them.
“Lord Comstead, please listen to me. On the evening when Lady Charlotte told me of Lady Mary’s affair, your wife said that you had told her Lady Mary has a history of such behaviour. I would not have believed her had she not said that. So is it true? Do you really think that your daughter has shown a pattern of flirtation?” Crispin challenged him.
Lord Comstead looked thoroughly perplexed by this. “Of course not. She has never…Mary has not been so foolish in the past as far as I am aware. I never told my wife anything of the sort.”
“Then why would you believe her now? If she lied to me about something you said because she wanted your daughter to appear immoral, would she not lie to you as well?” Crispin reasoned, hoping Lord Comstead would see reason.
But he simply paused and gave an arrogant shrug. “Perhaps she misunderstood something, or maybe it was you who misunderstood. It may have been her former governess who witnessed such behaviour from Mary and she spoke up to my wife.
Regardless, I must make my own observation, Lord Hanbrooke. It is very difficult to be a father and a husband. A man must rely on his wife. He must trust her. She must be noble and honest and good. So long as he finds such a woman, he may know that whatever is going on in his home is being dealt with in the best of ways.
“As such, I must put my faith in my wife. She is the one looking after our daughters and she is the one I have to believe. I know that you care for Mary and that you want her to be a good, prudent young woman, but if there is evidence to the contrary, I have no choice but to hold her accountable for her actions and prevent her from society until I see adequate change in her behaviour.
Until she confesses what she has done and makes a solid commitment to proper character, I cannot trust her,” Lord Comstead said, making it clear that he would not hear another word of it.