Page 69 of The Curious Life of the Unfortunate Duchess
She inhaled sharply, her blue eyes moving toward him in surprise.
“Your Grace! Wh-why have you come?” she sputtered, sitting up. Hastily, she slid her novel between the cushions and stared at him.
“You know why I have come,” he growled. “Where is she?”
“Who, Your Grace?”
“Miss Elizabeth. Do not play coyly with me, Miss Priscilla. I am in no mood for games. Speak to her whereabouts now and I will ensure you are shown mercy for your crimes.”
Indignation flashed in Priscilla’s eyes and she rose from the settee, her skirts swirling around her plump body.
“I haven’t the foggiest notion what you are going on about,” she said slowly. “But if I had to wager, I would guess that something has happened to your darling Miss Elizabeth.”
“This is an exercise in futility,” Catherine sighed. Leonard had not realized that she had joined them. “We are merely wasting time with this.”
Before Leonard could counter, Catherine strode purposefully toward the Baron’s daughter and struck her openly with the palm of her hand.
“You are mad!” Priscilla howled. “The lot of you! Remove yourselves at once!”
The horses moved quickly away from the manor.
“I am afraid I do not understand,” Percival said. “What have we learned? We are no closer to finding Elizabeth than we were this morning. We have only wasted valuable time but perhaps it is for the best.”
“How is that for the best?” Leonard asked in disbelief. “We must find who took Elizabeth!”
“Perhaps we should not be doing this before Elizabeth is returned safely to us,” Percival murmured. “We should not be forewarning the Baron and Miss Priscilla that we know of their scheme or panic may strike and they could react badly on Elizabeth. After she is returned, Elizabeth can provide us with more information and lead us to the men responsible but if we continue to pursue this before she is secure…”
He did not need to finish his thought with words spoken aloud. Leonard felt a weight fall onto his chest and he realized how much sense the Viscount’s words made. If Priscilla did have Elizabeth, all he had done was alert her and Lord only knew how she would respond to being caught. She certainly was not the most intelligent woman he had ever known, and was guided by impulse and jealousy.
“Your point is valid, Lord Gordon,” Catherine spoke. “And it would have merit if Priscilla was responsible for this but I do not believe she is.”
Both men stared at her.
“Explain yourself,” Leonard demanded. “What makes you say so?”
Catherine smiled, her wan face barely brightening with the expression.
“I think we can all agree that Priscilla is not the wisest soul we know, Leo, and despite what she might believe, she wears her emotions quite readily upon her face. She genuinely had no notion what we spoke of. It was the reason for the slap—I wished to catch her off her guard and I did. She knows nothing of what happened to Elizabeth.”
Leonard thought back to the look of anger and confusion in Priscilla’s face and he reluctantly agreed with his sister’s assessment.
“Be that as it may,” Percival said. “Her father may have done it without her knowledge.”
“I highly doubt that, Lord Gordon,” Catherine exclaimed and, again, the men’s looks demanded elucidation.
“Why would he demand a ransom from you? If he intended to take Elizabeth as some misguided act of revenge, why not kill her? Why would he cast suspicion upon himself by demanding a ransom?”
Leonard’s mouth opened and closed just as quickly. They were sound questions and ones he had not considered. While it certainly appeared to alleviate the suspicion on the House of Argonshire, Leonard found his frustration mounting.
“What does this mean, Catherine? That Elizabeth was truly taken by highwaymen? How could that be when they seem to know intimate details about our lives?”
“It is possible that Elizabeth told them,” Catherine mused. “But I daresay that it is more likely you are correct and someone in the household has told these ruffians our business. We only need learn which one of the servants loathes us enough to do something so cruel.”
The coach fell silent, each member of nobility lost in their own thoughts as they made their way back to Brookside. Leonard could not fathom that anyone in their household was capable of orchestrating a kidnapping. He had always been a kind employer, paying the staff well, and never using the switch. There was not one man he could imagine in that role, no matter how hard he tried.
“It does not explain why you were not taken,” Leonard heard himself say. The expression on Catherine’s face spoke volumes to her guilt.
“I am eternally grateful for such things,” he added, hoping to wipe the grimace from her lips.
