“Can you not guess, Cherish?” he asked with furrowed brow.
“No. What are you suggesting?”
He gave her cheek a light caress. “We are married. He knows I will be coming after him shortly demanding a full account of your inheritance. Why would he leave a place that he rightfully owns?”
She inhaled lightly, and then gaped at him. “Are you suggesting Northam Hall has been mine all along? I know it was not part of the entailment, but I just assumed when they moved in and took it over that… Dear heaven. Is it possible it has been mine all along? Those despicable cheats!”
“I will have to check the deed records to make certain they did not attempt to convey the property to themselves. Even if they did, I will quickly get it straightened out. I have no doubt in my mind that your uncle and his witch of a wife were the usurpers. They are now fleeing like rats abandoning a sinking ship, but they will be made to pay. Same for everyone else involved in this larceny.”
Potter nodded. “Their plan to keep you isolated and unmarried has fallen apart now that you are Duchess of Bromleigh. Rest assured, I will order the staff to shoot them on sight if they ever attempt to return. We’ll show them no mercy for what they tried to do to you. Loathsome people. We shall gladly assist you in any way possible, Your Grace.”
Cherish regarded Gawain. “It is frightening how complete their betrayal was, and that they might have gotten away with it had you not married me.”
“You were catching on to their thievery and would have done so sooner had your father shared his intentions with you,” Gawain muttered. “It cannot be overlooked that he enabled them to act this boldly. It is a lesson for me, as well. You are smart and capable, Cherish. I will make certain you are aware of all my holdings and know exactly what my plans are for them.”
She nodded. “I am also to blame for not being more insistent. The few times I tried to talk to my father, he dismissed my concerns, claiming it was not a woman’s place to deal with these legal headaches.”
“Backward and stupid,” Gawain said with a growl. “But all too common. All this could have been avoided had he shown you his testamentary documents or even once discussed them with you.”
Cherish tried not to get angry about this, since it would all be put back in order shortly. “He patted my head and told me not to worry about anything. He assured me that he had left me in good hands.”
Potter snorted.
So did she. “He was so fond of his younger brother and completely taken in by him.”
Gawain appeared to be getting angrier as he gave the situation more thought. “I’ll make certain everything your father left you is rightfully transferred to you and fully accounted for before the end of summer. I think I must ride to London this very day, Cherish. I need to stop that unholy alliance of uncle, banker, and solicitor before they can cover up their misdeeds.”
Cherish’s heart ached. “You would leave me?”
“Only with the greatest reluctance,” he assured her.
Potter cleared his throat. “There is more, Your Grace. They are gone now, but not before ransacking Northam Hall. They must have done it during the night when we were all asleep in our quarters and could not hear them moving around. I shudderto relay the news. But you will soon see for yourself. It is a terrible sight.”
Cherish gasped. “Those vile villains!”
Gawain raked a hand through his hair. “Is this not more proof that they must be stopped before more harm is done?”
She hated to admit that he was right. “I’ll ask Mrs. Harris to help us pack right now.”
He took her hand. “No, Cherish. Not us, just me. You cannot ride a horse. We’ll lose precious days if we go by carriage. Odin is a beast and can fly over the terrain. I already have my solicitor at work on the matter of your inheritance, but my letter must have reached him only today. He could not have gotten anything done yet. I will engage a good Bow Street man to follow those curs and investigate them thoroughly. He’ll ferret out whatever those thieves are trying to hide. If I leave now, I can reach London hours before Northam and his wife arrive to plot their next mischief.”
Reggie had come down while they stood in the entry hall discussing what was to be done. He must have overheard most of the conversation. “Let me attend to it,” he insisted, tossing his uncle a pleading look. “This is my chance to prove myself to you. Give me a letter authorizing me to act on behalf of the Duke of Bromleigh and his wife. As for the Bow Street runner, I know you use Homer Barrow. Give me the authority to engage his services and we’ll get the old earl’s solicitor and banker hauled into prison so fast, their heads will not stop spinning for a week.”
Cherish readily agreed to the plan, for being apart from Gawain after a single day of marriage was no way to start their lives together. “I like the idea, Reggie. Can you ride out immediately? There is everything to be gained by reaching London ahead of my uncle. You’ll be able to cut him off from his fellow conspirators before they can do more damage.”
She had come into the marriage with nothing. Gawain had not cared, but it still wounded her pride. He was now trying to make things right for her, but was it not just as important for Reggie to prove his worth?
“Gawain, we can follow in a day or two. But I would like to assess the damage to Northam Hall first, and make certain the farms have not been touched. We’ll then take up the fight wherever Reggie left off.”
He sighed, contemplated the suggestion, and then nodded. “Potter, alert the staff that we will arrive within the hour. I’ll be seeing my nephew off first.”
“Very good, Your Grace,” Potter said, and returned in haste to Northam Hall.
“Cherish, I’ll do as you wish and remain here with you. But it is important for us to get to London quickly afterward.”
She nodded. “We will. I promise.”
He now turned to Reggie. “You had better ride like the wind. There’s to be no straying from your mission. Take Durham with you. He has connections to those in power that you don’t have yet.”
