Ash bumped his shoulder gently. “All’s well. Just keep breathing. I told them you no longer worked as my valet, that you left the position five months past and that I didn’t know of your current whereabouts.” He gave a small tight clear of his throat, one Sam recognized as Ash’sbuuuut there’s something else.“I did tell them if I were able to get in contact with you, I would inform you they were looking for you.”
“So, there’s no avoiding this, then.” Sam sank deeper into the couch cushions, his shoulders feeling as though they were dragging on the floor. His hand went to his throat, absently rubbing. “What are my options?” he whispered. He knew of one. He hated it, but it might be his only option.
“You cannot outrun a title, Sam,” Ash said softly. “As long as you walk this earth, you’re now the Earl of Dalreoch, Viscount Trenton. And let me tell you, they’re mighty motivated to find you, a dual titled lord.”
Sam groaned. He knew that. He knew how the laws of primogeniture worked. Even exiled—he swallowed hard, his chest tightening—he was Earl now. He was the moment his brother ceased to breathe the air of this earth.
“Will I need to flee?” he asked quietly.
A soft knock filled the chamber, and Sam’s and Ash’s heads whipped to the drawing room door. Felix stood there, a light blush covering his freckled cheeks.
Sam instantly stood, his body itching to go to Fee.
“I know you didn’t want me here,” Felix managed to get out.
A piece of Sam’s heart cracked off at the hurt laced in those words.
“I just found I couldn’t stay away… Not with such an immense revelation…”
That hadn’t been what Sam meant at all when he’d left Felix back in the study—that he didn’t want Felix here. He hadn’t known what Ash was going to say. He didn’t want Felix to hear something that would hurt him. Not before Sam knew all the facts, could process them. Which didn’t seem like it was going to happen any time soon with the way his head was spinning.
“Of course you’re welcome, Fee. Join us? Please?”
Felix gave a jerky nod and sat with them. Sam didn’t miss how tight Felix’s gait was, how his shoulders were rolled back, chin lifted, nor how he claimed the armchair at the head of the seating arrangement. Felix had been left back in his study, and the Earl of Bentley had arrived here.
“Now, I’ve been working through some ideas,” Felix said, all traces of reticence gone. “Sam will need to meet with his solicitors immediately. The more quickly he can consult them and begin getting familiar with his estate and assets, the better position he will be in to face whatever will come to pass. This is complicated.” His hard amber gaze met Sam’s. “You’re a fugitive, Sam. Which means you’re subject to arrest. However, constables do not just storm an earl’s estate. You’ll need to leave for your country estate. London won’t be safe for you.” His gaze drifted away. “And I can no longer have you stay here,” he added quietly.
Because that would make Felix complicit. Harboring a fugitive. And create the greatest scandal, one the Bentley name could not be tied to. Sam swallowed hard.
Ash was nodding. “I agree with Bentley. We have time to come up with a plan. But until then, you need to stay out of sight and work quietly with your solicitors and stewards. Get access to as much funds as you can as a precaution.” In case Sam needed to quickly leave the country, in other words.
“How do I know I can even trust them?” Sam asked. “What if I show up at my estate and they’ve already alerted the constables?” His gut twisted, his lungs tightening, and a choked cough burst from him.
“Your solicitors have known you were alive, Sam—just as your brother did. If they’d intended to turn you in, they’ve had ample opportunity already. But they haven’t.”
Sam shifted, the burning in his stomach intensifying. It wasn’t enough reassurance.
“Solicitors have no obligation to report fugitives,” Felix added. “And frankly, it’s not in their interest to do so. You’re the one who pays their retainer. Unless the Crown were to intervene directly…” Felix trailed off and shook his head. “There is absolutely zero chance of that happening. The Crown does not hang its nobility, not over things like this. Every single nobleman who has ever been accused of sodomy has been able to flee to the continent or to the Americas and run their estates from abroad.”
“I’ll go with you to your estate,” Ash said quietly.
Even though Ash spoke, Sam’s gaze flicked to Felix’s. His jaw ticked, lips pressed in a tight white line. He didn’t say anything, and the muscle in Sam’s chest withered slightly. What had he expected? Felix to jump in and volunteer to go with Sam? Of course, that wasn’t a possibility. It would raise questions. Questions the Earl of Bentley could not afford to have asked.
But Ash… Well, Ash was married to a woman who very much would vouch for his unquestionable preferences for women. He held the power of a duke, not to mention he was already a recluse. No one would even be aware of his whereabouts.
Sam tried for a smile and failed, so he nodded instead.
“We should probably leave without delay,” Ash murmured, his attention pinging between Sam and Felix.
“You’ll leave in the morning,” Felix said tightly, avoiding Sam’s gaze. He cleared his throat and stood. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.” He bowed stiffly and strode for the door. He paused in the doorway and turned back to Ash. “Would you like me to have a room prepared for you?”
Ash shook his head lightly. “No, thank you. I sent word ahead to have my townhouse readied. I’ll give you two…” He trailed off.
Felix’s face hardened at the same time a sharp pain rent through Sam’s heart.
Let them have their privacy. Because Sam could no longer pose as Felix’s valet. He’d be lucky if he could even stay in England.
Felix spun on his heel and left the room. Sam collapsed back against the couch. He couldn’t hold himself up any longer. Not when everything had gone numb.
