Page 91 of Miss Dauntless
“The marriage isvoidable, Matilda. Harry deceived you and the Church when he stood up with you. He’ s not who he said he was, he’s not of the faith he claimed to be, and the only property you are entitled to control are your dower goods. The case canbe made that Harry defrauded you of valuable goods, and if necessary, that case shall be made.”
Now that Tremont was sitting, his body reminded him of every mile he’d spent wrestling fractious horses, while his ears, nose, and toes stung, and his mind filled with thoughts of packets lost at sea with no survivors.
“What does ‘voidable’ mean?”
“With a stroke of the pen, the bishops can render your marriage a nullity. If they do, Tommie will become illegitimate in the eyes of the law. I will understand if you choose not to visit that fate upon him.”
Tremont would have to understand, because Tommie was a blameless child and Matilda his only champion.
“Tommieisillegitimate.” Matilda set her drink aside and rose. “My unwillingness to take responsibility for that fact is why I ended up marrying Harry in the first place.” She faced out to sea, staring at the black and gold water as if she could read wisdom in the waves.
Tremont got to his feet as well, though his every muscle and joint protested. “You took that young fellow Yoe at his lying word, Matilda. When you married Harry, you were trying to protect a child abandoned by his father and his father’s family. Your scheme worked to the extent that Tommie is regarded as Harry’s son.”
“Was I thinking of Tommie, or was I trying to get free of the mess I made and the father I abhorred?”
Tremont could not answer that for her, nor could he decide Tommie’s fate, so he waited and hoped and held his peace.
“You’d marry me,” she said, turning her back on the sea, “knowing all of society will question Tommie’s antecedents?”
“I’d marry you if you had ten illegitimate children, Matilda. I did more than curse my mounts on the way here. I did some thinking.”
“At which you excel.” Some hint of humor colored her observation.
“At which I bumble convincingly.” He took a step toward her. “Who is your family, Matilda?”
“Tommie,” she said, “Portia. Dorcas MacKay has been a good friend. You are more than a friend. Major MacKay is something like a protective older brother, though he knows better than to overstep. I was growing quite fond of Mrs. Winklebleck and MacIvey and… the lot of them.”
“Precisely. My family includes a lot of former soldiers, one of whom happened to hear that you and Tommie were taking the Dover packet. I did not know Corporal Shores numbered among my relatives, but there he was, wishing me well and aiding my cause as any brother would have. My family includes Nanny Winklebleck, who never let me get too familiar, and Cook, who never allowed me to go hungry.
“MacKay is a self-appointed Scottish cousin,” he went on, “and even Michael Delancey offered to listen to my brokenhearted maundering for the length of a midnight stroll. These people are my family. Their opinions of me matter. Your opinion of me matters. They will not judge Tommie for his origins, and they will not judge us either should we decide to marry. Those who do judge us are of no moment.”
“Youhavebeen doing some thinking.” Still, she did not come any closer. “So have I, mostly along the same lines. Madame Howard, who never saw me before tonight, is more protective of me than either my father or my so-called husband ever was. Dorcas MacKay, MacIvey,you… You all wished me well and aided my cause, as you put it. I set my sights on France because that much distance was intended to guarantee I would not beg you to keep me as your mistress. I did not want Tommie to be ashamed of me, or so I told myself.”
“And now?”
“Tommie—a grown-up Tommie, or even half-grown—will be more upset with me for turning my back on those who care for us than he will be for turning my back on blastedpropriety.I’m not saying I should have become your leman, but I behaved precipitously, again, and I fear some stubborn element of evading my father’s judgment once again drove my actions.”
She took a step closer. “I was evading Harry, too, make no mistake about that. I wasn’t evading you. Am I making sense?”
“Some, though I can’t pretend to grasp the nuances in my present state. Are we to be married, Matilda? There will be talk and scandal, and Tommie’s path won’t be easy. Harry Merridew-Merriman-Merri-whatever will not face pillorying in the press if the marriage is quietly declared void. Harrell Merchant can walk away from his past relatively unscathed.”
“I do not care that,”—she snapped her fingers under Tremont’s nose—“for the fate that befalls Harry. Can he stop this voiding of the marriage?”
That was the best part, of which Michael Delancey had been very certain. “No, he cannot. Harry lied, Matilda, and for once, he lied to an organization in a position to hold him accountable. You make your petition and put your proof before the bishops, and Harry can argue the case if he wants to, but the facts tell the tale. You need not mention faked death, swindles, or the fact that Harry tried to extort a house from you. The marriage license and some testimony will be enough to make the case.”
Matilda paced back to the sofa and picked up her drink. “I signed that house over to him. Executed a legally binding quitclaim.”
“You executed a quitclaim to Harry Merriman, who does not exist. I had occasion to remind Harry of the legalities, and he conceded my point.” Grudgingly, of course. He apparently truly thought himself in need of the funds.
Matilda held her brandy up to the firelight. “Then Harry has neither house nor wife nor son. He’s in trouble with the bishops, and his family in Bristol might have had him declared legally dead. Maybe there is some justice in this life. Shall we sit down? You have to be exhausted.”
He remained on his feet. “Are we to be married?”
She set her drink aside without tasting it and took to studying the flames crackling on the hearth. “I am afraid…”
Oh God. No. “Don’t be afraid. We can face anything if we face it together.” Brave words, though Tremont was at that moment terrified. If Matilda rejected him, if she chose legitimacy for Tommie rather than happiness for herself… Tremont would cope, eventually.
He hoped, but it would a bitter, empty coping, and lonelier than he could sanely contemplate.
