Page 15 of It's All About the Duke
“It’s only been out a little over a week, Eugenia. We must give it time. You know Mr. Trout has told us the scandal sheet is quite popular. He thought the book was a good idea and that surely everyone who reads the sheet will want a copy of the book.”
Eugenia smiled, swung her feet to the floor, and sat up. “You’re right. I don’t know why I worry so.”
“It’s human nature. But let’s give people time to purchase a copy of it before we get concerned.”
“I promise I will. Now tell me why the Duke of Rathburne was here if not to have us arrested for writing about him.” She stopped, her eyes rounded. “You don’t suppose he found out about Mr. Bramwell, do you? That he and—”
“No, no, you must stop this. Do not work yourself into a faint again. The duke is not a shy man. If he knew about that he would have questioned me, and he wouldn’t have left until he had the answers he wanted. Besides, he couldn’t possibly have found out what Mr. Bramwell did for us. How could the duke possibly know that?”
“Perhaps someone finally recognized Mr. Bramwell as the man who started the rumor in White’s.”
“I don’t think that’s possible. Mr. Bramwell hasn’t been back to White’s. He’d tell us. And since your brother-in-law hasn’t paid his account at White’s in over twoyears, he’ll probably never be allowed back even when he does.”
“If he does,” Eugenia echoed.
Marlena agreed that possibility wasn’t looking good with all the money Mr. Portington was spending on his extravagances. “You don’t think Mr. Bramwell would tell on himself, do you?”
A calmness seemed to settle over Eugenia. “No, of course not. He wouldn’t indict himself like that.”
“And he wouldn’t want to see us in trouble, either.”
“Never. He’s a very thoughtful and intelligent man and always so kind to me.” Eugenia’s eyes turned dreamy, and a sad smile eased across her lips for a moment. “He would like to call on me, but Veronica would never allow it.”
Eugenia had mentioned that almost every time she came over for the past couple of months. Marlena never knew what to say. Eugenia was right. Veronica would never agree. “She is only trying to take care of you the best way she knows how. She has been your mother as well as your sister for many years now.”
“I wish she would just be a sister.”
Marlena could have said to Eugenia that she wished she’d had a sister to care about her. Or that she wished her aunt Imogene and uncle Fergus hadn’t decided to take their boys and move to America, leaving her behind with Mr. Olingworth, or when Mr. Olingworth suddenly told her she must go to London and live with a cousin she’d never met. But not wanting her friend to feel ashamed for her innocent comment, Marlena stayed silent about the feelings of abandonment that sometimes swept over her. She had managed. She’d always survived and learned how to adjust to wherever she was and accept whoever was in charge of her.
Eugenia sighed softly as if suddenly consenting to herplight as well. “It is simply too unbelievable to comprehend that the duke was here in your house.” She rose from the sofa and looked down at Marlena. “If he doesn’t know you are Miss Honora Truth, why was he here?”
Marlena cupped her hands together in her lap. “That is something I’ve yet come to terms with myself, but know I must. He is my new guardian.”
Eugenia fell back onto the settee with a plop beside Marlena. “Guardian? How can this be? Did Mr. Olingworth—”
“No,” Marlena said quickly. “He’s alive, but still ill. I assume he feels it’s time to give the responsibility of seeing me enter Society to someone else. The duke’s father knew Mr. Olingworth. Apparently very well. His Grace felt duty-bound to take over when Mr. Olingworth asked him.”
Marlena thought about the kindly old gentleman who’d been good to her and allowed her to continue the independent life she’d had when she lived with her aunt and uncle and their boys. But he’d seen to it she was educated, too. He’d put few restrictions on her when she’d arrived at his house. The few rules he’d given her were easy to follow. She had to finish her studies, embroidery, pianoforte practice, and any other lessons before she could go outside. When dusk settled across the sky she had to come in and dress properly for the evening meal. Every night before she went up to bed, she had to play chess with him or read for an hour. All his rules were things she enjoyed anyway.
She swallowed a sudden lump that formed in her throat. Shortly after she was born a fever swept through her father’s estate and almost everyone succumbed to it, including her parents. Marlena was told she was spared because her father had the forethought to have Marlena’s nurse take her to his brother’s house, where she liveduntil he wed his second wife. At that time her aunt Imogene and uncle Fergus took her to live with them and their boys. She would never forget her time with them or how following the boys around had shaped who she was today.
Much to her disappointment, when she was ten her uncle told her she must go live with Mr. Olingworth, because the family was going to America. They didn’t feel it was right to take her from her homeland. She needed to be properly schooled and brought up so that when the time came for her to wed, she could make a good match with a suitable young man. Marlena hadn’t understood them not wanting her to go with them, why her remaining in England was important, but after a time she’d accepted it. She’d had no choice.
When Mr. Olingworth’s health started to fail, he had contacted one of Marlena’s older cousins. It wasn’t unusual that Marlena had never heard of Mrs. Justine Abernathy. One of her father’s brothers had nine children by three different wives. Marlena had many other cousins from both sides of her family, though she knew little, if anything, about most of them. Having recently been widowed, Justine was agreeable for Marlena to move to London with her so she would be ready to prepare for her debut Season as soon as Mr. Olingworth was well enough to join her.
That hadn’t happened. Mr. Olingworth’s health continued to decline and Marlena’s Season had been put on hold for the past two years. That was perfectly fine with Marlena. The only thing that distressed her was that Mr. Olingworth hadn’t allowed her to visit him when she’d requested to do so.
“What are you going to do about the scandal sheet?” Eugenia asked softly.
Looking back at her friend, sprawled on the setteewith her head against the back cushion and her arms spread limp to each side, Marlena answered, “I don’t know.”
New concern clouded Eugenia’s pale eyes. “You’ll have to stop writing it.”
“Maybe not.”
“I remember you were going to discontinue it after the first Season but Mr. Trout didn’t want you to and offered you more money to continue.”
“It suited me to keep doing it.”
