Page 10 of A Lady's Heart Deceived
Major Hall gave another long, weary sigh. “You let a civilian into the Horse Guards? I really ought to put you on report. Then I should have you clapped in irons.”
For more than two years, Piers had been subjected to this bastardry. From a man bent on petty vengeance. This morning, he had reached his limit. He wasn’t going to stand quietly and take the abuse. “Miss Margaret Radley is the daughter of the Bishop of London. Her uncle is the Duke of Strathmore. Considering her family connections, I decided it was prudent to give her case my attention.”
He looked the major straight in the eye, refusing to blink.
It was the tall, thin stick of a commanding officer who eventually flinched. “A duke and a bishop. Sounds like the first line of a bawdy jest. But alright, yes, you should follow up her query. If the muster and pay rolls here haven’t given you anything, what’s your next plan? Please tell me you have one.”
This was a golden opportunity; one which Piers was not going to let go to waste. “Well, since it seems the colony muster roll is out of my reach, I was thinking, with your permission, sir, that I might undertake a trip north. Captain Robert Taylor was supposed to have come from Coventry. I have a possible birthdate and a full name. Perhaps the records at the barracks in Smithford Street might have something. If not, I will check the church records.”
He held his breath, praying that the major wasn’t that familiar with Coventry or the regiments which operated out of the city. Major Hall was London born and bred, and his previous regiments had served mostly overseas.
Come on, please. This is a perfect chance to get me out of the way for a few days.
The major gave a decisive grunt and slapped his swagger stick hard against Piers’s arm. He shook his head as his victim gasped in pain. “Alright Denford. We wouldn’t want to incur the wrath of a duke or the Church of England. Pack your things and head to Coventry. Find out what you can about this missing officer. Then return here. Those piles of papers will still be waiting for you when you get back. Carry on.”
Piers and Captain Preston saluted. They remained at attention long after theclump, clumpof the major’s heavy boots had disappeared.
Bastard.One day, he would tear that bloody swagger stick from the major’s hand and thrash him with it.
Captain Preston put a friendly hand on his shoulder. “Just think. If you go to Coventry and solve the mystery of the missing man, you might win yourself some new friends. If Miss Radley is related to two of the most powerful men in the country, you offering to help her will hopefully go some ways to furthering your own cause.”
Piers nodded. He shouldn’t need those sorts of friends. He was the eldest son of a viscount. A future peer in his own right. But Major Hall had never bothered to either acknowledge or respect the Denford family name.
“You heard the major; he has ordered me to go to Coventry. And since the man already thinks I am incompetent, I won’t bother to go and double check any more of the regimental records.” If he had overlooked Captain Taylor on one of the lists, and then happened to discover him, Piers’s trip north would be immediately cancelled. He wasn’t having that.
Mind made up, Piers promptly marched over to his desk and closed the muster book. He tucked it under his arm and headed for the door. “I shall just return this to the records. Wouldn’t want to be accused of misplacing army property.”
Half an hour later, he locked the door of his office. In his hand was a letter addressed to Miss Margaret Radley informing her of his intention to travel to Coventry to follow up on Captain Taylor.
There was a spring in Piers’s step as he marched out the front entrance of the Horse Guards. He was determined to make the trip north last as long as he possibly could.
Please let there be a hundred churches in the district, all of which need to be visited.
He would be a happy man indeed if Robert Taylor turned out to be a deep mystery that took weeks to solve. For the first time in a very long time, the Honorable Captain Piers Denford had things to look forward to including a long trip out of London, a chance to clear his head, not to mention a beautiful maiden to serve.
Of those three things, one concentrated his mind more than the other. Miss Margaret Radley, the bishop’s raven-haired daughter.
Chapter Eight
Maggie set the neatly folded letter from Captain Denford on the breakfast table in front of her and took a deep breath. Her mind was made up, but that didn’t make this any easier. Convincing the Bishop of London to allow his unwed daughter to travel all the way to Coventry with a man not of her family was going to take some doing.
Her father may well have suggested it when they were discussing Captain Denford in the walled garden, but she wasn’t entirely convinced that he had been serious at the time. Hugh Radley had a habit of promising things, knowing full well they might not come to pass.
After having received the captain’s note, Maggie had immediately penned a reply, wishing him well for his scheduled departure on Thursday morning. It was now Wednesday, and she was going to have to move quickly in order to be able to go ahead with her secret plans.
“Papa. Do you remember when I mentioned that I was thinking of taking a trip to Coventry? That if Captain Denford didn’t have any success here in London, that I would go north and seek out Robert’s family?”
Hugh lowered his newspaper and considered his eldest daughter over the rim of his spectacles. “As I recall, my words were more along the lines of checking the church records. And also deciding who would accompany you on such a pilgrimage if I agreed to let you go.”
Why do you have to have such a sharp memory?She tapped her finger on the letter. “While Captain Denford has been most accommodating with his assistance, he still hasn’t had any luck here in London. The good news is that his commanding officer, Major Hall, feels that my case warrants the captain’s full attention. He is allowing him to make the journey north to Coventry.”
Her words sounded a little too rehearsed, which they were, but Maggie held her father’s gaze. She hated lying to her family, but there was every chance that Captain Denford would say no to her, accompanying him. And if her parents knew the truth, they would also refuse to let her go.
I have to do this.
“Denford? Would that be Piers Denford?” asked Mary.
Her mother’s remark caught Maggie off-guard, but she quickly recovered. “Yes. How do you know the captain?”
