As they stood in the kitchen, with only a low burning lamp for light, Olivia told Andrew how Ellie came to be her personal maid, including the fact that Whibbs had already had doubts about her. Olivia admitted she had rehired Ellie to be her lady’s maid because she felt sorry for her.
“Do you remember the evening I went to your room and told you I heard voices?” Olivia asked.
“Yes. You mean you actually heard voices? That wasn’t just a ploy to come into my room and steal a few kisses from me?”
“Certainly not,” she said indignantly before she noticed a teasing gleam in his eyes. “Andrew, this is not the time to amuse yourself at my expense.”
He grinned and dropped a soft kiss onto her lips. “Sorry. I couldn’t help myself. There are some things that are very easy to tease you about.”
“And I will welcome it at a later time. But for now, I’ll continue my story. A few days later I heard voices again, and this time I knew you were not in the house so I went on a search to find where the voices were coming from. I found Ellie upstairs in the room directly above mine. She insisted there had been no one with her and that she had been napping.”
“She admitted to sleeping while at work?” he asked. “And you didn’t dismiss her at once?”
Olivia hated having to admit that she had not terminated Ellie’s employment, especially now when she could see how wrong she had been to keep the maid on.
“No. I know I shouldn’t have listened to her, but I was trying to be compassionate, so I agreed she could have another chance. I told her I would let the transgression pass, but if it ever happened again her employment would be terminated immediately.”
Andrew looked down into her eyes. “I’m glad you are a kindhearted person, but if someone has more than one problem at work there is usually a valid reason as to why one’s not up to the task.”
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” she asked.
He nodded. “That somehow Ellie has been helping Willard Hawkins slip in and out of the house, and he is the one who has been creating the mischief, trying to get rid of me by way of an accident.”
“But how did she get him in and out without anyone seeing him? Or perhaps she has been doing the things at his direction.”
“That’s what we have to find out,” Andrew said.
“If we inspect the suit of armor I believe we’ll find that it was tampered with in some way to make it fall. And the urn that narrowly missed hitting you when it fell from the landing? It may have been manipulated so it would crash to the floor. Whibbs put the armor in the attic. We can easily check that, but I’m sure the broken urn has long since been thrown out.”
“Maybe not,” Andrew said. “I remember Whibbs saying something about saving the pieces until someone he knew came back to town. He thought she might be able to put it back together so that no one would know it had ever been broken. There’s a good chance it’s in the attic, too.”
“Let’s go up and check for both.”
“It will be daylight soon. Let’s get dressed and see what we can discover before Whibbs and the rest of the servants begin to stir.”
They hurried up the stairs to their rooms and quickly dressed. In the attic, they found the armor standing in a corner. Olivia held the lamp close to the hand where the pike usually rested. It was clear the fingers had been pried apart so wide that the pike wouldn’t fit securely in the fist and the least bit of jarring or disturbance would make it fall.
Next they checked the attic over for the broken urn. They looked in trunks, baskets, bags, and drawers. Andrew hadn’t seen half the stuff that was in the attic, as he’d never bothered to look at the things relatives before him had piled into the room. It was crammed full of possessions others had deemed too important or too sentimental to throw away.
Just as they were about to give up Olivia saw a wooden box sitting on top of a tall chest. Andrew stood on a chair and handed the box down to Olivia.
When they shined the lamp on the broken pieces of china they looked up at each other and laughed softly.
“What made us think there would be a clue in this?” Andrew asked as he picked up a couple of large pieces of the vase and looked at them.
“I think we’re trying too hard,” she said and glanced down in the box again as she started to take the lamp away. Something caught her eye. She reached into the box and pulled out a single strand of white embroidery thread. It was attached to the broken handle of the urn.
“What’s this?” Andrew said.
“A piece of thread tied to the handle. Look how long it is.”
“I don’t think Whibbs would have tied this to the handle of a broken urn.”
“Me neither. Why do you suppose it is on there?”
He studied the string. “I can only guess, but my thoughts are that someone tied the string to the handle so they could hide on one side of the landing and pull the urn off the landing from the other side.”
“And it could have been set up the night before. The thread is so fine it wouldn’t have been seen unless someone was looking for it. Someone could have been hiding almost anywhere upstairs and pulled on that thread.”
“And made the urn fall,” Andrew finished.
“That’s why no one was seen on the landing when it fell.”
“It’s a very clever idea.”
Olivia wrinkled her forehead. “I don’t think Ellie would have had time to do these things during the day without someone seeing her.”
“You’re right. It’s possible she let Hawkins in the house. He could have accomplished these things while everyone in the house was sleeping.”
“I don’t like the idea of that man being in our house.”
Concern etched its way across Andrew’s features and Olivia knew he was thinking that it was too dangerous for her to be in the house as long as this man was free. But she wasn’t leaving him.
“I don’t, either. And I sure as hell don’t like the thought that he might have been the man you saw in your room.”
“It couldn’t have been him. That first night my door was locked. That’s why I thought it must have been you. I knew you would have a key. But tonight, I’m certain it wasn’t you or Hawkins in my room.”
“Believe what you will about your phantom, my love. I would rather a ghost be in your room than a real man.”
Olivia smiled. He was going to allow her to believe she had seen a ghost. “I love you with all my heart, Andrew. I’m so happy no one has been hurt.”
Olivia reached up and kissed him. She would have made it a quick kiss, but Andrew cupped the back of her head, allowing the kiss to linger. The sweetness of it touched Olivia to her soul.
“I love you, too,” he whispered softly when the kiss ended. “I want to take you to my bed and show you just how much I love you, but right now we have more work to do.”
“There will be time for loving later, but what can we do now?”
Andrew lifted his head. “Let’s go to the room where you found Ellie and see if we can find anything in there that will give us a clue.”
They quietly left the attic and walked belowstairs to the guest room. It was small and contained only a bed, a chest, and a slipper chair. Andrew ran his hands up and down the walls looking for a crack in the wood that would indicate a secret door, but he didn’t find anything.
“Where was she standing when you came in?” Andrew asked.
“By the bed. I remember thinking that the covers on the bed had been disturbed and wondered if she could have possibly had a man with her. I was sure I heard a man’s voice, but when she was the only one in here I assumed I was wrong.”
“Let’s move the bed and have a look at the floor.”
Olivia helped Andrew ease the bed to the other side of the room. They knelt on the wood floor with the lamp at their knees and quickly found a trapdoor. Andrew slowly opened it. Cold, dank air rose up to meet them as he shined the lamp into the hole.
“There’s a ladder,” he said. “It appears to be some kind of narrow shaft that’s been built to run along the back wall of the house. Very clever. On this wall it makes it easier to hide the secret passageway with a fake outside wall.”
Olivia shivered. “That means whoever built this house wanted to sneak out without being noticed.”
“Or he wanted to sneak in,” Andrew said and winked at her. She laughed softly.
“I love to hear you laugh,” he said. “You need to do it more often.”
“I have many reasons to be happy, my lord.”
“So do I,” he answered.
Olivia looked down at the opening again. “Where do you think this passage leads?” she asked.
“I don’t know. My guess is that it’s been here since the house was built. This fake wall isn’t the kind of thing you can add later. Here, hold the lamp while I climb down. I’m going to find out where it goes.”
“No, we’re going to find out,” she said. “I’m coming, too.”
He put his hand on her shoulder. His touch was warm, strong, and comforting. “Olivia, I have no idea where this goes. It looks treacherous and I don’t want to take any chances on you falling. Stay here and hold the lamp for me.”
She looked down at the shaft. “We’re in this together. Don’t leave me out now.”
He reached over and kissed her softly, briefly, on the lips. “You are an amazing woman, you know that?”
Olivia smiled at him and whispered, “I know that I love you.”
Andrew returned her smile. He placed the lamp at the edge of the opening. “Hold your dress away from your feet and take your time following me. Be careful of the light when you step down. I’ll go slowly in case you need help.”
Andrew climbed down into the narrow shaft. Olivia grabbed the hem of her dress and started down the ladder. It was dark, cold, and damp inside the walls of the house. Within a couple of minutes her hands and feet were numb.
It seemed they climbed down for hours, but Olivia knew it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes before Andrew whispered, “I’ve reached the bottom. Stay where you are until I find an opening to the outside.”
Olivia tried to look down but she couldn’t see anything but a little crack of light from some kind of opening in the wall. She was beginning to feel chilled all over when suddenly there was a creak of wood. She knew Andrew had opened a door.
“Come on down,” he whispered.
A few steps farther and her foot hit the ground. She let go of the ladder, dropped to her knees, and crawled out the door Andrew held open for her. When she stood up she saw she was on the ground at the back of the house. There was a very narrow clearing between the house and a row of tall yew trees.
Sunrise was just beginning to break the sky, turning the horizon from midnight blue to dusty pink.
“I guess we now know how Hawkins got in and out of the house without being detected.”
Olivia looked from the trapdoor to the yew trees. “How would he know about this secret shaft?”
“That’s easy to explain,” Andrew said, pulling her into his arms. “He used to come to London twice a year to go over the account books with me. He always stayed in that room. He could have been looking under the bed for a stocking or a shoe and found the door.”
“And Ellie hadn’t been working for you long when I came. Hawkins must have had her apply for a job at your house.”
“That’s why she was begging you to let her stay when Whibbs was ready to turn her off. She had to stay so she could help Hawkins.”
“Oh, I can’t believe I fell for her lies.”
“Olivia, don’t worry about that. We’ve all made mistakes.”
Olivia snuggled deeper into the comforting heat of Andrew’s arms. She pressed her nose into the warmth of his neck and said, “What do we do now?”
Andrew kissed the top of her head as he held her tightly. “We go back inside and plan a trap for Willard Hawkins.”
***
Olivia sat restlessly in the parlor with her needlework in her lap. The room had been scrubbed clean and the scent of beeswax and lemon polish had replaced the smell of burned fabric. She had already sent the housekeeper out to purchase new fabric so more draperies could be made for the window.
The day was passing slowly. Olivia had done more pacing than sewing and reading put together. It was her job to spend the day at the house and keep an eye on Ellie.
It was Andrew’s line of reasoning that Hawkins would know that the house didn’t burn down last night and that he would come see Ellie to find out what was being said about the fire or possibly to plan other mischief. Andrew wanted everyone going about their day routinely, which meant he had to be away from the house, but not very far.
Andrew had a Runner hiding in the garden watching the outside trapdoor. Another man was stationed just outside their garden waiting to signal Andrew, who was waiting in a hired coach down the street, if Hawkins showed up.
Thompson had been stationed inside the house in Andrew’s book room, pretending to be going over his account books, but Andrew made it clear to the man his only mission was to keep Olivia safe should Hawkins make it inside the house.
“Countess.”
Olivia looked up from her sewing to see Ellie standing in the doorway. “Yes?”
“Lady Lynette is here and wondering if you might be available for her to visit.”
Olivia studied over it for a moment. She started to say no, thinking there might be trouble if Hawkins showed up. But Andrew said for her to follow her routine as much as possible, so she decided not to send Lynette away.
“Yes, of course, show her in.”
A few moments later Lynette walked into the parlor. The first thing Olivia noticed was that Lynette was wearing the facial cream that covered her birthmark.
“Lynette, how lovely of you to drop by,” Olivia said, putting her sewing aside. She rose from the settee and the two ladies hugged.
“I’m sorry to stop by again without previous arrangement,” Lynette said with a big smile on her face.
“Don’t be silly. Have a seat. I’ll have some tea brought in.”
“No, none for me, thank you. I don’t have the time today. I have so much to do, but first things first.”
“All right,” Olivia said, glad Lynette wouldn’t be staying too long, but curious as to why she had come. She sat down beside Lynette.
“I came over to tell you that I won’t be stopping by anymore.”
Olivia stiffened at the shock of Lynette’s words, yet she was confused by the smile on her friend’s face. “I don’t understand. Did I do something wrong?”
“No, no. You did everything right. I won’t be stopping by because I won’t be in London. This morning the Marquis of Musgrove Glenn asked my father for my hand and my father agreed. I’ll be moving to Sussex with my husband.”
Chills of excitement pebbled Olivia’s skin as she grabbed Lynette in another tight hug. “I’m so happy for you. How wonderful. So very wonderful! Tell me how it all happened. Did you know he was going to ask for your hand?”
“No, no, of course not, but it is a dream come true. My father called me into the parlor this morning and the marquis was there. Father told me that the marquis had asked for my hand, and if I agreed, he would give me a few minutes alone with him so he could make a proper proposal.”
“And he did?” Olivia asked with her smile as big as Lynette’s.
“Yes! He told me he has always been fond of me. Can you believe that? He’s always been fond of me.”
“Of course he has, Lynette. You are special to many people.”
“He asked if I would be happy married to him and taking care of his children. I told him of course I would. I love children. And then he asked if we could marry without waiting so he could quit the Season and get back to his family. We’ll be married next week.”
Olivia took hold of Lynette’s hands. “Lynette, I don’t know what to say except to extend my very best wishes for a long and happy marriage.”
“Thank you, Olivia, and thank you for helping me believe in myself.”
“I didn’t do anything. You just told me the marquis has always been fond of you.”
“He said that when he saw me last night with my birthmark covered it was like looking at a new woman, like he was seeing me for the first time. But this morning he realized that my birthmark is part of who I am and he has always been fond of me just the way I am. He said I should wear the cream to cover it if it made me feel better but he now considered my birthmark a beauty mark.”
Olivia squeezed Lynette’s hands. “It was so sweet of him to say such a lovely thing to you.”
“He told me that when he saw so many men dancing with me last night he was worried one of them would ask for my hand before he could.”
“I’m sure he was right, and he did the proper thing by coming to your father at once.”
“Guess what he did after he told me that.”
“What?”
Lynette bent close and whispered, “He kissed me on my lips. It felt so wonderful I thought I was going to faint.”
Olivia laughed. “I agree that kissing the man you love makes you feel that way.”
“I think I’m walking on air. My feet may never touch the ground again.” Her expression turned more serious and she said, “There is one more thing I must tell you before I go, and I must hurry, as I have two other ladies to see this afternoon. In fact, they are married to the other two Terrible Threesomes.”
“Do you mean Lady Dunraven and Lady Chatwin?”
“Yes, Millicent and Catherine. They both already know what I’m about to tell you and I felt it only right that you know, too.” She stopped and took a deep breath. “I have been writing Lord Truefitt’s column for two years now.”
“Ohhh,” Olivia whispered as a chill shook her. “Oh? You? You mean he’s not a man? He’s you?”
Lynette nodded as she opened her reticule and handed Olivia a sheet of vellum. “This will come out later today in the paper.”
Olivia looked down at the vellum and read:
The ghost of Hamlet’s father couldn’t be more popular than a certain duke’s daughter who arrived at the Great Hall last evening as a diamond of the first water. She quickly became the belle of the ball, claiming dances from bachelors young and old. She was sought after so vigorously she was heard saying, “Unhand me, gentlemen, by heavens! I’ll make a ghost of him that lets me.”
—Lord Truefitt, Society’s Daily Column
Stunned, Olivia looked back to her friend. “I had no idea.”
“Very few people know, but I wanted you to know because you have given me a new life.”
“You did that for yourself, Lynette. But tell me, how did you get started writing the column? Why did you do it?”
“The column has always been written by a lady. The name was made up to help protect the identity of the first lady to be Lord Truefitt. Since I took over I’ve tried to make the column fascinating for the readers. Millicent always used a quote from Shakespeare. That’s why I wanted to end my last column with a line from Shakespeare.”
“Lady Dunraven used to write as Truefitt, too?”
Lynette smiled. “Only for a very short time, and you must never tell anyone about any of this.”
“Never,” Olivia said.
“Millicent took over from her aunt, who had an accident and was unable to write the column any longer. The responsibility of writing the column has brought me tremendous satisfaction, but now I must give it up to be with my husband, and I do so with no reservations.”
“So there will no longer be a Lord Truefitt’s column?”
“That’s up to the Daily Reader. Perhaps the owner will find someone to take my place. The only thing I know is that it will no longer be me. I’m changing my name from Lord Truefitt to Lady Musgrove Glenn and I shall be very happy leaving the gossip behind and taking care of my husband’s children.”
Olivia leaned back in the settee and smiled. “You will have a marvelous life, Lynette, and I shall look forward to seeing you after you become Lady Musgrove Glenn.”
***
Andrew was going crazy in the enclosed carriage. He didn’t know why he thought he could stay in this small compartment all day and not drive himself insane. In the wee hours of the morning it had seemed like a good idea, but at that time he’d also been convinced that Hawkins would show up early in the day to find out what the servants were saying about the fire.
Obviously he was wrong. Noon had passed and so had tea time. In another hour it would be dark, but he still had hope Hawkins would appear. It was the time of day that Olivia had heard the voices in her room. But to be safe, he had to make plans in case Hawkins didn’t show. It wasn’t safe to let Olivia stay another night in the house until Hawkins had been caught.
Andrew was trying to decide if he should take Olivia to her aunt’s house for the night and station a Runner outside for their protection or if they should go to an inn.
Suddenly the carriage door was jerked open and his groom said, “He’s here.”
“Let’s go,” Andrew said as he jumped from the carriage and ran down the street. As he neared the house he slowed down and lightened his steps, not wanting to make noise and alert Hawkins.
Andrew quietly walked up to the Runner who’d been hiding in the back garden. “He just went through the trapdoor, my lord,” the burly Runner whispered as Andrew drew near.
Judging from the time it had taken Olivia and him to scale the shaft, Andrew figured Hawkins should be about halfway up to the maid’s room.
He looked at the Runner and said, “Give me five minutes and then pull the tin plate from under the shrub and nail it over the door.”
Andrew walked as quietly as he could. He wanted to get into the house with the least amount of noise. He didn’t want Hawkins getting spooked and trying to rush down the shaft to the back garden.
He eased open the door and entered the foyer. Silently he walked down the corridor, past the parlor. He heard Olivia and Whibbs talking about menus in the dining room but he kept softly walking toward his book room. He stopped at the doorway. Thompson saw him and immediately rose from his chair. Andrew motioned for him to follow.
With stealth and calm they quietly climbed the stairs to the guest floor and slowly walked to the room with the trapdoor. Andrew listened for a moment. He heard shuffling noises from inside. He reached inside his coat and pulled out his loaded pistol. Thompson did the same.
As soon as he heard voices, Andrew turned the handle. The door was locked. He heard frantic whispering. He shoved his shoulder into the door and it burst open. Hawkins was trying to scramble back down into the shaft. Ellie stood beside him holding the trapdoor open.
Andrew and Thompson pointed their pistols on Hawkins and he straightened.
“Make any move I don’t like and you’re a dead man,” Andrew said, and he meant every word.
Hawkins slowly lifted his arms into the air.
***
From the window, Olivia watched Ellie and Hawkins, hands tied behind their backs, being taken away by Thompson and his men. She closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. From now on she would trust Whibbs’s judgment concerning the help.
“You can come away from the window now. It’s over.” Olivia turned around and saw Andrew walking into the parlor.
“Oh, Andrew.” She rushed into his arms and kissed him and held tightly to him. The day had been draining, and just being in his arms was heavenly.
“It’s over,” he said again as he kissed her lips, her cheeks, her eyes.
“I’m so glad no one was hurt.”
“I just want to hold you, my love,” Andrew whispered in her ear. “I just want to love you.”
“Forever, Andrew, I will love you forever.”
“Don’t promise me that if you don’t mean it.”
She looked up into his eyes and smiled. “How can you doubt it? You’ve already tried to get rid of me and I wouldn’t go, remember?”
Andrew laughed. “Yes. Never listen to me when I want to send you away.”
“Andrew, I love you. I was heartbroken when you asked me to leave.”
“I know. But now you understand I didn’t want you to go away to live. I only wanted you out of danger.”
“Yes, but to me it was my mother’s story and Agatha’s story all over again, always loving a man who kept them waiting for him.”
“You will not have that problem, my love. In fact, I think I should take you upstairs right now and show you just how much I love you.”
“Let’s go,” she said. He took her hand and as they walked into the foyer to head up the stairs, a knock sounded on the door.
Olivia tensed. Andrew motioned for her to stay by the stairs. He slowly opened the door and said, “Miss Loudermilk.”
Agatha stepped into the foyer. “Afternoon, dearies, I hope I haven’t called too late in the day.”
“Not at all,” Olivia said, even though Andrew was giving her the sign to tell her aunt it was a bad time. “Come into the parlor and have a cup of tea.”
Olivia and Andrew followed Agatha into the parlor and Andrew kept trying to kiss Olivia and she playfully pushed him away.
Agatha took her usual seat on the settee and Olivia sat beside her.
“Can I get you something to drink, Miss Loudermilk?” Andrew asked.
“I’d love a little of that port Claudette is always talking about.”
“All right. Perhaps you’d like to try it, too, Olivia,” Andrew said.
She nodded to him and turned to Agatha and said, “Did you have a special reason for dropping by?”
“Yes, I wanted to tell you that Lord Pinkwater came to see me last night.”
“He did?” Olivia looked from her aunt to Andrew, who jerked around to look at both of them when he heard Agatha’s comment.
“I guess he got tired of me trying to find him and he found me.”
“What did he say?” Olivia asked.
That faraway look came into Agatha’s eyes and her bottom lip trembled. “He’s not coming back. He told me to go on with my life. He’s not coming back for me.”
A lump of sadness grew in Olivia’s throat. “How do you feel about that?”
“Well, last night I cried as I did that first night he left me.”
Olivia took her hand. “I’m so sorry, Auntie. What can I do?”
Agatha took a deep breath and forced a smile. She took her hand out of Olivia’s and said, “You can stop feeling sorry for me. I’ve thought about it all day and I decided that if Claudette is not too old to be looking for her fourth husband, I’m certainly not too old to look for my first.”
Olivia gasped. “What?”
Agatha looked over at Andrew and said, “You don’t think I’m too old to marry, do you?”
Andrew handed her a glass of port and one to Olivia and said, “Of course not. Once they know you are finally available, gentlemen of all ages will be seeking your attention.”
“See, Livy,” Agatha said, then sipped the port. “Mmm. Very nice. Claudette always had excellent taste.”
“Auntie, you can give up Lord Pinkwater just like that?”
“What do you mean, just like that? It’s taken me close to fifty years.”
“Well, I—I’m happy for you.”
“I’m not sure I understand it, but I know for the first time since I was eighteen I feel as if Lord Pinkwater has truly set me free.”
“This calls for a celebration,” Andrew said.
“Yes, it does,” Olivia agreed. “We also found out that Lord Pinkwater’s ghost did not cause the urn to fall the first night we were here.”
Olivia and Andrew explained to Agatha what happened with Hawkins and Ellie.
Agatha smiled contentedly. “Your estate manager and maid might have caused the mischief here in the house, but it was Lord Pinkwater’s ghost that brought you two together. Make no mistake about that.”
Andrew winked at Olivia and said, “And I shall always be grateful to him for that.”
A short time later Agatha left and Olivia and Andrew closed the door behind her.
Olivia turned to Andrew and said, “Do you really think she’s going to look for a husband?”
Andrew smiled and pulled Olivia into his arms and hugged her tightly. “I think she might look, but whether or not she’ll marry I have no idea. In any case, she and Aunt Claude will have a good time talking about it.”
“Andrew, I do think it was Lord Pinkwater’s ghost who came into my room.”
“Do you really?” he asked with all sincerity.
“Yes, and I have this strange feeling I’ll never see him again. Now that he has spoken to Aunt Agatha I think his mission here is done and he won’t be coming back.”
“I hope you are right, Olivia. I don’t like the idea of you seeing any man in your chamber except me.”
“You know, Aunt Agatha was right. Lord Pinkwater did bring us together.”
“In that he brought you to London, yes. But I was drawn to you when I first saw you in the receiving line at my house. I think you must have felt the same way because you were certainly letting your gaze feast upon me.”
“Feast!” she said in mock horror. “I was merely appreciating a handsome man.”
He smiled. “And what was it that caused you to kiss me later when we met in my chamber?”
“I was merely curious about your room and your kisses.”
“And if I’m remembering correctly I still haven’t had you in my bed yet.”
“I believe you are right.”
“I suggest we go upstairs right now and change that.”
Olivia looked up into his eyes and answered, “I agree, my love.”
Andrew reached down and lifted Olivia up into his arms and started up the stairs with her.
Olivia thrilled to his touch.