Page 35 of Her Heart's Rightful Earl
Arabella turned as if to leave.
“Please,” Alexander frowned. “You are worried about my brother? Pray, tell me why?”
Arabella shrugged a little and looked about as if wondering if she might have said too much.
“Please, Arabella. I heard no update regarding my brother from Thomas, and I have returned to find that Wellwood has been utterly neglected in my wake. The grounds have not been maintained, the horses have nearly all been sold, and the household staff are dismissed or leaving of their own will. It appears my brother is struggling to shoulder the responsibilities of being an active earl.”
Arabella dropped her gaze and nodded, acquiescing.
“It is true. Marcus does struggle. Your mother fears he may have inherited the mental instability your great uncle endured.”
Alexander’s eyes grew wide with concern. “It cannot be.”
“That is what your mother communicated to me, just yesterday evening past.”
“And what are your thoughts on the matter?”
“Marcus is sweet, affectionate. Eternally gregarious. We all agree that you know when Marcus is in the room!” Arabella allowed herself a little smile, which lifted Alexander’s spirits momentarily.
“However, his behaviour of late has become increasingly erratic. He bursts into a sudden tantrum, yelling at the servants. His moods escalate due to the most innocuous of activations. He is unpredictable and quite intense.”
“So you believe he is suffering from the same illness as my great uncle?”
“I believe it could be possible,” Arabella agreed sadly.
Alexander rubbed his hands down his face in despair. “My poor brother. Does he complain of the estate and how difficult his experience has been?”
“If he does, it is not in conversation with me. I have not witnessed him expressing a struggle, though it is clear that he does.”
“I wish I had been around to avoid him having to assume this role he never desired.”
“You appear to carry a burden of guilt regarding your disappearance,” Arabella observed.
“Inevitably. As I told you the other evening, it was a choice I would never have made, had it not been essential. I feel responsible for my brother’s mental decline.”
“If it is hereditary, it is likely he would have succumbed to it regardless.”
“Possibly aged fifty, though, and not a mere twenty-nine?”
“Nobody can predict.” Arabella shrugged her shoulders. “Life would have been different for all of us had you stayed.”
The accusation hung heavily in the air between them, and Arabella refused to meet his eye, staring instead, once again, towards the house.
Concerned that she had concluded the conversation and would once more suggest leaving, Alexander jumped in.
“Will you walk with me a little?”
Arabella looked at him in alarm.
“I will keep my distance, I assure you. Only, this is my home and—oh! How I have missed it! I should like to look around the grounds, and it would be so much more pleasant to do so in your company.”
Arabella took a moment to consider before bowing her head in admission and beginning to walk down the gravel path away from the folly.
***
Alexander honoured his word, leaving a space between Arabella and himself when the path was wide enough to do so.
When it narrowed, passing through low boughs of trees or borders of flowers, he would fall behind significantly, to respect her desire for space and to abide by the correct social expectations.
