Page 106 of The Rogue's Last Scandal
She waved a hand in the air. “I am a colonial girl and a sea captain’s daughter. I have slept in huts, and windowless cabins, and even out in the open air. The new bedchamber where they put me was better because I was closer to Reina, and I was able to more easily escape. I am not a fairy tale princess.”
Charley shifted and her gaze met his. “You are my princess,” he mouthed, pointing at himself.
Her cheeks warmed. She bit her lips and rubbed at a spot on the chair arm. She must fight the temptation. Never mind that it was her wedding night. She did not want to be swept away tonight, unless she was swept out the door, with her servants and child—well, and perhaps Charley also—to some anonymous lodging far from this tangle.
None of it had been her doing. She had been good. She had been dutiful. When Papa said he must leave them in Tampico, she’d hugged him goodbye and stayed. When Mama said they must go to Veracruz, she’d gone along on the journey. When Papa said to stay with the Kingsleys until he returned, she’d stayed.
Stay here with my cousin. You will be safe. Should my journey be long or unsuccessful, I’ve set up a trust for you. I’ve set up guardians until you come of age. You must be strong, Graciela.
She had tried to be strong. And time had inched on during Papa’s absence but it was still almost three years until she reached her majority. And now none of that mattered because she had stepped off the edge of the deck and plunged into marriage.
Lord Shaldon cleared his throat. “I know it has been a very tiring day and night, but will you share with us what you know, my dear?”
More memories crushed her.
Reaching Veracruz had not brought them safety. First there was the fighting between the Spanish and the rebels. Then illness came, weakening them.
And the fever had not killed her mother. Before he left England, Papa had told her the truth, his words turning her grief upside down. While Graciela was sweating and writhing, Mama had recovered and had been murdered, and Consuela with her.
Papa had ordered her to keep the murder secret, but surely Captain Llewellyn had been helping him search for whoever was behind Mama’s murder. That was why Papa left England, to sail back and join Captain Llewellyn.
They were all watching her. Only Charley’s eyes showed an identifiable emotion, because he hadn’t hardened as these men had, because he wasn’t really a spy.
Because she knew him and loved him.
She sniffed and twisted her hands. She’d always been able to read Papa, too, until that last day together.
If the worst comes, the book holds all I have found. If you are in danger, go to Lord Shaldon. If I should die—only then—take the book to him, and tell him it is not for the Crown. If the worst comes, Lord Shaldon can be trusted. Until then, you must hold it for me.
Papa wasnotdead. She must not share his words.
“I lied.” She eased in a breath.
But who would have killed Mama?
I intend to find out, and there is another matter I must look into. You’ll stay with my cousin. You’ll be safe there.
She knew Lady Shaldon was dead, but Charley’s words implied that she’d been murdered also.
She would share that much. “My father was looking for someone. He was looking for the man who m-murdered my mother.”
She looked through her lashes at Charley. His face had set into a tense mask.
“She did not die of the fever as I told you.”
Tell no one, Graciela.
The terrible burden of this secret lifted. “I lied then also. Papa told me to keep to that story.”I’m sorry, Papa. I’m just a weak, stupid, stupid girl.
Her vision clouded and she blinked furiously trying to clear it.
A handkerchief was pressed into her hand, and she lifted it to her eyes, Charley’s scent filling her. A great sob rocked through her, and she pressed the cloth to her mouth to hold it back, conscious of the men waiting around her.
The weight of everything—their presence, her father’s words, his books, his secrets? pressed down upon her.
An arm came around her, a large hand pulling her head to a broad shoulder, lending her strength while her breathing eased.
She lifted her head and looked into Charley’s eyes level with hers as he knelt beside her.
