Love Everlasting (Kingston Novel Book 3), page 28
“I love you, Toriana Mine.”
“I love you, Drake, so very, very much.”
“All right, my lovely vixen, I guess we can go downstairs now.”
Toriana laughed and as he finished fastening the back of her dress. “Our staff probably thinks we’re shameless.”
“They know we’re on our honeymoon.”
“True.”
“I wonder what Mrs. Richards is making for dinner.”
Toriana tied the bow around her braid and then took hold of his hand. “Let’s go find out. I’m starving.”
“Maybe there’s something to snack on in the kitchen until dinner is ready.”
“We’ll find out.”
“I was going to ask you about Jane. Is she not working out as your maid?”
“She is. It’s only been a day. Jane has never been trained to be a personal maid. I’m going to ask Mimi if she’ll come over a couple hours a day to train her. Jane is quick and smart, so I don’t think it will take her long to learn.”
“She seems to get along good with you.”
“She does. You’ll have to meet her husband Lonny. She has nothing but praise for him and their two children.”
Drake nodded. “Is there a reason you’re telling me this?”
Toriana smiled as they headed down the stairs. “Maybe an increase in pay and a larger house for their home…she’s expecting again.”
“Do you think this new position will be too much for her?”
“No, it will be easier than working in the kitchen with her mother.”
“You have a tender heart, wife.”
“Just like my husband,” Toriana countered. Pausing on the bottom step she waited for him to kiss her. “I know, it’s not very dignified for the Duchess of Hertworth to kiss her Duke in the foyer, but I just can’t seem to help myself.”
Drake pulled her into his arms. “To bloody hell with being dignified, this is our home and we can do as we please within it.”
“We’re such rebels,” she murmured against his lips.
Henry stood off to the side near the doors to the dining room. He smiled at Benjamin. “I like our new Duchess,” he whispered.
Benjamin nodded. “Her Grace is quite likeable.”
“Mrs. Mason said she had tea with her yesterday morning. Her Grace insisted.”
Benjamin almost smiled at that. “She’s not going to be like other ladyships.”
“I heard her mother treats her staff as if they are friends or family members,” Henry whispered.
“In case you haven’t noticed, His Grace has basically done the same thing since arriving at Hertworth Hall.”
Henry thought over Benjamin’s words and then smiled. “You’re right, he has. I say, I think I like this.”
Benjamin nodded.
“So do you. You and His Grace might have had rough start, but that isn’t the case any longer. I can see where he depends on you quite often now. You’ve become more than just a valet to him.”
“We’ve both made some adjustments, but I’ve come to realize that he’s a very honorable man…a man I’m most pleased to be working for.”
“Aye, that goes for me, too.” Henry nodded and then smiled. “Here they come.”
“Good evening, Henry.”
“Your Grace.”
Toriana smiled at Benjamin. “Are we too early for dinner?”
“It will be ready in about an hour, Your Grace. However, Mrs. Richard made some of her special treats to have before dinner.”
“The accounts from Hertworth Hall arrived this afternoon. I put them in your study, Your Grace.”
Drake glanced at Toriana.
“Go on and take care of business. Henry, see that some of Mrs. Richard’s snacks are sent to his study.”
“And what about you?” Drake asked.
Toriana stood on tiptoes and waited for him to bend down so she could kiss his cheek. “I’ll be fine. Just hurry along so we can share dinner together.”
“I love you.”
“And I love you, Drake Easton.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Someone will die!”
Henry flinched and his knees nearly gave out.
Benjamin wasn’t paying him any heed. Instead his gaze was on His Grace. The man was storming back and forth across the length of the foyer like a caged animal. His hair was messed from running his fingers through it in growing fear and anxiety.
But how else was the man to look?
Some evil, spineless, creature had kidnapped their precious Duchess of Hertworth!
At around five o’clock, Her Grace had informed Henry that she was going to take a walk in the back garden as she waited for her husband to finish in his study. Henry told His Grace how his wife had the most beautiful smile on her face when she told him the garden, with all its wonderful blossoms, was just too lovely to resist.
But fifteen minutes after five when her husband went to join her she was gone…vanished without so much as a single clue as to where she had gone.
An intense and extensive search of the entire house only confirmed what they already knew…Her Grace wasn’t there.
Now, after all the frenzy of the search, the house was quiet.
The staff stood like frozen statues hovering in the shadows near the dining room doors as the storm within their halls began growing, promising to become violent and raging.
The storm of Hertworth.
“Bloody hell!”
Henry jumped when Drake picked up a chair and smashed it against the wall.
“Did you send someone to her family?!”
“Yes, Your Grace,” Henry stated. “I sent the footman, Quinn.”
“When?! Where the hell are they?!” Drake stomped across the opposite end of the foyer and picked up another chair, ready to smash it to pieces.
“Drake!”
Turning, Drake scowled at the sight of Bartley, Logan, Vance, and Grandfather Justin. “It took you bloody long enough to bring your arses here!”
The first thing Bartley noted was that his son-in-law looked like a true, crazed, madman. The next thing he noticed was the hovering staff standing in the background observing him in all his madness.
“Henry, send the staff back to their duties or dismiss them for the evening,” Bartley told him.
“Yes, milord,” the older man murmured, before hurrying off to do as instructed.
Bartley turned his attention back to Drake. “We’re here now, so tell us what’s going on.”
Drake opened his mouth, closed it, and then had to shake his head. “Someone took her.”
The words were said in such a low, raw, and anguished tone that at first Bartley wasn’t sure he had heard him right. He looked to where Benjamin stood not far from Drake as if silently offering him his strength.
“Did I hear him right?” Logan asked coming forward. “Someone took Toriana?”
“Yes, milord. We have searched the entire house and grounds and Her Grace is nowhere to be found. She went out into the garden around five o’clock and that was the last anyone seen of her.”
Drake picked up the chair, his anger was so great he broke the piece in half with his bare hands. “I will kill the bastard! Do you hear me?!”
“Bloody hell!” Vance muttered. “I don’t believe I would want that man’s hands on me in anger.”
Logan nodded in agreement.
Grandfather Justin moved past them and headed toward Drake. “We hear you, my boy,” he stated. “If I were younger, I would offer you my help. The most I could do, is ask you to drop them at my feet so I can hit them with my cane.”
Drake met the old eyes that were so much like Toriana’s. Tears instantly welled up in his eyes. “I have to find her,” he whispered.
Justin opened his arms and was quite pleased when Drake came forward and knelt down before him so he could embrace him. “You’ll find her, son. I have faith in you and more than that, Toriana has faith in you. She knows you’ll come for her.”
“You don’t understand, I can feel her fear and it’s driving me mad.”
“I may not understand the depth of what you and my granddaughter share, but I’ll ask you to delve a little deeper,” Justin told him. “If you can feel her fear, then she can feel your strength, and she’s going to need that until you can reach her. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
Drake nodded. “My fear is only going to cause her more fear…I have to send her my strength.”
“That’s right.”
“Thank you.”
Justin patted Drake’s shoulder. “It’s I who thanks you,” he stated leaning close so the others couldn’t hear. “I thank you for loving Toriana as much as you do.”
“I’m still going to kill the bastard who took her.”
Justin laughed aloud. “And I’ll still hit him with my cane.”
Bartley glanced over at Benjamin. “I think Drake could use a glass of brandy. For that matter, so could I.”
“If all of you would like to come into the front parlor, I’ll have a fresh bottle and glasses brought in.”
Drake came to his feet. “Let’s find out who took my wife.”
Logan nodded and headed toward the front parlor. “We’ll start by assessing who hates you enough to take Toriana in order to draw you out.”
“Why would you assume it’s someone who hates Drake?” Vance asked, following behind Logan. “You Telfords seem to draw quite a bit of hostility on your own.”
Logan turned around to face Vance. “Don’t talk about my sisters like that, Surrey! My sisters are not the type to cower beneath the snobs of the ton! You know as well as I that most of the women are jealous of my sisters and that’s where their hostilities stem from!”
“Stop shouting at me or I’ll bloody your nose and then Alianore will be mad at me,” Vance responded as he pushed past his brother-in-law. “I wasn’t referring to the females of the Telford family, but of you, you arse!”
Logan shrugged. “I don’t cower to the snobs of the ton either.”
Henry and Benjamin carried in two trays with brandy and glasses and began pouring. Benjamin left Henry to serve the rest as he carried a glass over to Drake.
“Here, Your Grace.”
Drake shook his head.
“It will settle your nerves until Her Grace is found,” Benjamin murmured. “You want a level head and a cool heart in order to handle the villain who has dared to trespass this dark day.”
Drake met Benjamin’s grey eyes. Of all the staff, this was the one man who had become Toriana’s true champion and friend. Oh, Henry adored her, but Benjamin was there to help her out no matter the situation.
“Thank you, Benjamin.”
“You’ll find her, Your Grace. I just know you will. Never have I trusted another man’s ability as I do yours. You’ll bring home our Duchess.”
“I will.”
“The first name that comes to my mind is Lady Tulia,” Vance stated, taking the glass Henry offered him.
Bartley shook his head as he crossed the room and took a glass from the tray Henry was holding. “No. We have to look closer to home…this home. It was someone within these walls.”
Drake stared at Bartley. “You’re right. She was taken from our garden.” His gaze moved to Henry. “Is any member of the staff missing?”
“Not that I am aware of, but I’ll double check, Your Grace.”
“Have you recently dismissed any servants?” Logan asked.
“Or have any of them taken exception to any orders that have been given since Drake and Toriana have taken up residence?” Justin inquired next.
Drake drank the brandy in his glass in one swallow and then looked from Henry to Benjamin. “Here’s a better question that needs to be asked…did any member of our staff here in Town have a close relationship with Mr. Stanley Milton?”
Kidnapped!
It was just unbelievable!
How could such a thing happen…and at such an inopportune time?
That last thought had Toriana shaking her head.
Obviously, captivity was playing havoc with her mind, for there was never an opportune time for a kidnapping.
She wasn’t sure how long it had been since she had been taken from the garden out back of her and Drake’s townhouse.
Drake was probably going out of his mind with worry.
Toriana glanced around at the small dirty room she was locked in. There was another door to her right, but it was locked. She was positive the door lead to another room, but it was one she had no desire to enter…for whatever was in there the odor from it was enough to make her gag.
Thankfully, at the other end of the small room was a window. It was covered with thick boards, but it had enough space between them that she could draw in enough fresh air to save herself from getting sick. It was there where she positioned herself to wait for her kidnappers.
She peered threw the tiny cracks between the boards and noticed the daylight was quickly fading…soon it would be dark…soon she would be trapped in this dark place with whatever smelled so god-awful bad.
A cold shiver raced down her spine.
“Your Grace?”
Toriana turned toward the window. “Who’s there?”
“You don’t know me, Your Grace.”
“Please, let me out. Please open the door.”
“I wish I could,” the voice whispered.
Toriana listened to the voice and tried to place a face to it, but she didn’t recognize it. “Do I know you, sir?”
“No.”
“But you know me,” Toriana simply stated.
“I know of you, Your Grace. I have never actually had the honor of meeting you.”
Toriana quickly thought over his words, searching her mind for someone who knew Drake, but who had not met her.
“I’m sorry we couldn’t have met in person, Mr. Milton,” Toriana replied softly. “I think I understand why you withheld our letters, or at least I would like to think I understand.”
“How…that is—”
“It doesn’t matter how I know it’s you,” Toriana continued. “But, I’m going to guess once more and say you’re not the one who kidnapped me, are you?”
“No.”
“You know who did.”
“I do. Though I didn’t do the deed, I’m to blame, just the same,” Stanley murmured.
“Your goal was to get back at Drake, but instead the kidnapper’s target changed and I became the goal.”
“Aye.”
“You never wanted Drake to marry me. You had someone already picked out for him to marry, didn’t you?”
“A distant cousin, of mine,” Stanley admitted. “She’s an heiress in her own right. But she only wanted one man, a man who wanted nothing to do with her, and a man whose family dislikes her as much as she dislikes them.”
Toriana closed her eyes. “Lady Tulia Henden.”
“Aye.”
“I see,” she whispered.
“She was determined to marry your brother and felt you ruined her chances.”
“Logan never would have married her.”
“I think she realizes that now. Instead she wants revenge on you, your family, and your husband.”
“She won’t get away with this. Not only will Drake stop her, but my family will ruin her.”
“Tulia’s quite insane, you know,” Stanley confessed. “It’s a disease that runs on one side of our family tree. Our grandfather was really quite mad when he died. It’s not a disease that all of us inherit, thankfully. But I can say, without the least bit of reservation, Tulia definitely is inflicted with the family illness. She even threatened to kill me when I tried to stop her from taking you.”
“I appreciate you trying to help me, Mr. Milton…and for coming here like this.”
“I could do no less. I would not like to see you get hurt.”
“You know, I would like to believe we would have gotten along just fine. As to the letters, I forgive you for all that.”
“T-thank you, Your Grace.”
“Do you know what Lady Tulia has in store for me?”
“She’s taking you to a cemetery.”
Toriana grabbed hold of the boards covering the window. “Did she say why?”
“Something about The Graveyard Bandit finding you.”
Fear once again tried to take hold of Toriana, but she fought it down. She couldn’t afford to loose control, not yet, not while she still had time to escape.
“Mr. Milton, could I ask one favor of you?”
“What?”
“Go to Drake and tell him about Lady Tulia’s plan. Only he can prevent her from this madness.”
“H-he would kill me.”
“If you can save my life, I will promise you this, he will not harm you. He and I both will be in your debit.”
“I still fear he will kill me, Your Grace.”
“Tell Drake I said if he wastes time with murder when he should be looking for me that I’ll be very displeased with him.”
“Your Grace!” Stanley mumbled in shock.
“He will know what I mean and he will not do you any harm.”
“I hear a carriage and riders approaching. I have to go.”
“Please, hurry,” Toriana whispered urgently.
“I will, Your Grace…just pray I get to deliver your message before he kills me.”
“I’m going to kill you!”
Stanley backed up and collided with another man.
“Get away from me,” Vance growled out, with a shove.
“Wait!” Stanley shouted. “Her Grace promised me you wouldn’t kill me!”
Drake came to a sudden stop. “What do you mean she promised you?!”
“She said she would be most displeased if you wasted time killing me when you should be looking for her.”
Logan shook his head. “That sounds like Toriana.”
“Where is she?” Bartley asked.
“Who the bloody hell took her?!” Drake shouted.
“Lady Tulia was the one behind the kidnapping.”
Drake pushed Milton up against the wall and held him there. “Start explaining!”
It would have taken less time if Stanley could have spoken without stumbling over his words, but with so many large men glaring at him at one time, his words just kept coming out all jumbled up and then he had to repeat them in an uncluttered manner, which was even more difficult because his throat was parched as if someone had poured sand down his throat.
