Chapter One
“My Lord.” The gentle voice of his butler prodded William from sleep. Groaning, he turned over and buried his face in the pillow. “My Lord.” Again, came the butler’s voice, like an insistent prodding that jerked William into wakefulness. The moment he opened his eyes, everything screamed. “I must apologize for my insistence, but five of your closest acquaintances are in the drawing room, determined to speak with you. Lord Stoneleigh is in a somewhat injured state.”
“Injured?” Keeping his eyes closed, William flung one hand over them as he turned over. “What do you mean?”
The butler cleared his throat gently.
“I believe that he has been stabbed, my Lord.” The butler’s voice remained calm, but his words blunt. “A surgeon has already seen to him, but his arm may be damaged permanently, I was told.”
“Permanently?” The shock that flooded through William forced his eyes open as he pushed himself up on his elbows. “Are you quite certain?”
“Yes, my Lord. I did, of course, inquire whether there was anything the gentleman needed, but he stated that the only thing required was for him to speak with you.”
“And he is well?”
The butler blinked.
“As well as can be expected, my Lord.”
William nodded slowly, but then wished he had not, given the pain in his head.
“Must it be at this very moment?” he moaned, as the butler looked at him, the dipping of his mouth appearing a little unsympathetic. “I do not wish to appear heartless but my head…” Squeezing his eyes closed, he let out a heavy sigh. “Can they not wait until I am a little recovered?”
The butler shook his head.
“I apologize, my Lord, but I was told that they wish to speak to you urgently and that they would not leave until they had spoken with you. That is why I came to you at once. It appears most severe indeed.”
“I see.” William realized that he had no other choice but to rise, pushing one hand through his hair as the pain in his head grew. “This is most extraordinary. Whatever is it that they wish to speak to me about so urgently?”
“I could not say, my Lord.” The butler stood dutifully back as William tried to rise from his bed. “Your valet is waiting outside the door; shall I fetch him?”
“Yes.” William’s head was pounding, and he grimaced as he attempted to remove his legs from the sheets. They appeared to be tangled in them, and it took him some time to extricate himself, hampered entirely by the pain in his head. “I am sure that, after last night, my friends must also be feeling the effects of a little too much enjoyment,” he muttered aloud. “Why then-”
Shock tore through him as he suddenly realized that he could not recall what had happened the previous evening. He could not even remember how he had made his way home. A heaviness dropped into the pit of his stomach, although there was no explanation for why he felt such a thing. Had something happened last night that he had forgotten about?
“Jefferies.” Moving forward so that his valet could help him dress, William glanced at his butler who had been on his way out the door. “You may speak freely. Was I in something of a sorry state when I returned home last evening?”
There was no flicker of a smile in the butler’s eyes. His expression remained entirely impassive.
“No, my Lord, you were not in your cups. You were entirely unconscious.”
William blinked rapidly.
“Unconscious?”
The butler nodded.
“Yes, my Lord.”
“Are you quite sure?”
The butler lifted one eyebrow.
“Yes, my Lord. The carriage arrived, but no one emerged. Your coachman and I made certain that you were safe in your bed very soon afterward, however.”
Confusion marred William’s brow. It was most unlike him to drink so very much that he became lost in drunkenness. He could not recall the last time he had done so. A little merry, perhaps, but never to the point of entirely losing his consciousness.
How very strange.