Page 76 of Once Upon a Reckless Rogue

“If that is your choice, but at least eat with us what is left in the basket.”

“I would be honored, sir.”

They returned to the house and found some candles to light and made a cheery fire in the parlor. They ate the cold pork pies and the fruit, cheese, and bread, all washed down with wine. Hardly the homecoming he had dreamed of. Not how he had wanted Elena to be introduced to his family. Nothing had gone right since they had stepped foot in England, and for once he had no idea what to do next.

He took Elena up to bed and made a fire in their room. She had been quiet most of the night and as he slid into bed beside her he knew he had to tell her everything he knew.

“I think they may have gone to my aunt in Somerset, at least I hope they have. I cannot understand why though. Even if I was dead, they should still have had a decent amount to live on. Why tell the staff they could no longer afford them? I cannot help thinking they were scared to stay. Or at least something happened to make them too scared to stay.”

“Do you think the French maybe did come here first and threatened them?”

“Possibly. Whoever was here turned my study upside down. I cannot imagine my mother doing that. If the Frenchmen did come here, they obviously did not find what they wanted.”

“You can send a message in the morning to your aunt. If they are there, you can make it clear that it is safe to return.”

“And if they are not there?”

“We contact Lord Ashton. He can surely help.”

“Let’s hope it does not come to that.” He kissed her; she snuggled into him, her hand over his heart.

“We have to have faith that they are all right. If those men had been here, your family did the right thing to leave.”

Thomas rested his chin on the top of her head and stared at the fire in the grate for a long time before his eyes finally closed in sleep.

Chapter Twenty

At dawn, they started to arrive. A constant flow of people. Thomas was glad to see them and introduced them to Elena as they shuffled in. He translated whenever she didn’t understand. It was one thing to learn English, but with the different accents, it would be a challenge for her.

An older woman took control of the younger maids, and the house soon smelled of beeswax and lemons. They lit the kitchen fire, and the flurry of activity in the house made it feel like a home again. Elena soon endeared herself by helping in the kitchen. At first, they were unsure why she would want to help, but when they saw she was more than capable, they were happy to let her cut vegetables, and she even made them some Spanish tea. He could not have been more proud of her. He had sent a message to his aunt first thing this morning, hoping he would hear a response by the end of the week. He also sent a message to Ashton about the three dead Frenchmen.

And now, all he could do was wait. It was as if his past was preventing him from moving on.

*

At first, Elena felt overwhelmed by the number of people, the questions she had no answers for nor understood. The noise of people working and laughing was comforting. They all seemed happy to be here. In the kitchen, the cook, a squat woman with a ruddy complexion, allowed Elena to help. She found out that cutting vegetables did not require language.

Tomas rode to the next town to enquire at the bank why his mother would assume she was not getting any money to live on. John Driver had left to return to London. What a story he would be able to tell the duke when he returned. This left Elena alone in her new home with a group of people she did not know.

The cook came up to her and asked her if the menu for dinner was acceptable. Elena glanced at the piece of paper and tried to make out some of the words. In the end, she smiled and nodded. Cook seemed happy with this and turned back to her pot.

Elena escaped outside just to clear her head and found herself standing in the middle of the home garden. It was obvious that it had not been tended to for some time. She stopped to pull a few weeds, and an hour later she had done one whole bed.

“Already in the garden and it is only day one,” said a voice behind her. She turned, smiled, and leaped up. Tomas folded her in his arms. “Have you decided where to put the greenhouse?”

Breaking his embrace, she turned and pointed to a small clearing to the side of the house. “Yes, I think over there. Not too far from the house but somewhere it will not be generally noticed.”

“Then that is where it shall be.” He tucked a stray tendril of hair behind her ear.

“What news from the bank?”

“They were, of course, surprised that I was not dead. They had heard the rumors. They also said there was no need for my mother to panic as she did. It would have taken some time for my death benefits to come through, which I now no longer need, but not so long that they would not give her a line of credit knowing this.” He took her hand as they headed back to the house. “The strangest part is they never even came into the bank to check, and my will was still unread. This is all very strange and the more I find out, the more worried I am.”

“We can only hope they have gone to your aunt and are safe.”

He nodded, but his eyes showed his deep concern. “I think I need to go through my study. They were obviously looking for something, and it would not be like my mother, or my sister for that matter, to make such a mess.”

She stopped on the doorstep. “Unless they thought they had only a limited amount of time to leave.”