Page 77 of Claimed By the Beastly Duke

“I assure you, Blackmore, I am prepared for anything you may have discovered.”

Magnus sighed. “Fine, I warned you. You know I promised to hire men to follow Wilbury so we can gather evidence that he sent the man who attacked you.”

Edwin nodded. “Indeed, you did.”

“My men followed him every day for two weeks.”

“Two weeks? Then they must have seen something during that time.”

“Two men followed him every day—one in the day and one at night. And you will find it interesting that they both reported the same thing.”

“What is that?”

“They never saw him meet with any thugs.”

“Oh…” Edwin was rather disappointed. “I suppose I was wrong, then.”

“By the time I am done, you might change your mind.”

Edwin perked up. “Did they discover something noteworthy?”

“You may call it that. You see, the men reported that Wilbury enjoyed staying at home, hunting, and then visiting friends.”

Edwin furrowed his brow. “That is not so odd for a man of his status.”

“At face value, it might not seem so. However, I told them to monitor the frequency of his visits to his friends. And guess what they found out? He would often spend the night in one house in particular—sometimes even three nights in a row.”

Edwin sat up.

Now, that is unusual.

“He spent the night in a friend’s house three times a week?”

Magnus nodded.

“Then that is not a friend.”

“Then, one day, as he was leaving that house, my men caught a glimpse of a lady waving goodbye to him.”

Edwin’s lips twisted. “Ah, old Wilbury has a mistress, doesn’t he? Well, while that is quite a morsel of gossip—and I am certain the idle housewives of the ton would love to hear this news—it does not quite get me any closer to uncovering my attacker’s identity.”

“But you don’t know yet who his lover is—and believe me, I had no choice but to look into it.”

“I do not care. She is probably a light skirt leading an affluent lifestyle thanks to his generosity. If I believed in blackmail, then I might have used that information against him.”

“I assure you, you’ll be happy I looked into it. Out of mere curiosity, I checked the records book of London.”

“Then you must have found the house registered in Wilbury’s name. Why these noblemen take mistresses is simply beyond me. And they spend a fortune on these women, too.”

Magnus shook his head. “That is where I got confused. The house was not registered in Wilbury’s name. Rather, it was registered inyourname.”

“My name?” Edwin blinked rapidly, confused. “I have quite a number of properties in London, but that?—”

“That house is currently inhabited by the Dowager Duchess of Gillingham.”

Edwin gasped. He closed his eyes as the room suddenly spun around him and his ears started ringing. He pressed his fingers to his temples as they began to pound.

That was a name he hadn’t heard in so long—and he had hoped to keep it that way.

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