"Of course, Your Grace. Understood. However…"
James pressed his eyes closed for a moment, trying to remain patient. Clearly, he was going to hear this information whether he wanted to or not. Was his man of business as prudish as his butler? Did they truly believe such sins could not be forgotten or forgiven, even after thirty years?
"I believe you know that Mrs Simmons had a child out of wedlock and was permitted to remain in service here when she returned, having left the child with her brother in France."
James had not known the details of where the child had gone, but the rest was information the butler had already shared with him.
"Yes, I am aware."
"Well, the information I have uncovered, while ensuring this matter did not come to light and impact the reputation of Dunloch Castle, concerns the father of the child."
James was not sure this was information he wanted. It felt uncomfortably close to gossip, which he detested. Mrs Simmons had made a mistake many years earlier, and she had surely paid for it. What good could come of dredging up the past now?
"Is it essential I know this, Thomas?" he asked, giving his man of business one last chance to walk away and keep this private.
Thomas, clearly sensing irritation, gripped the sheaf of parchment tightly, his hands shaking slightly. "I’m sorry, Your Grace, but I think you do."
"Very well," James said with a sigh.
"There is rather a lot of evidence to suggest that the man who fathered the child was the former Duke of Dunloch."
James struggled to process the words being spoken to him.
"Excuse me?"
"It seems the father of Mrs Simmons’s son was your father, Your Grace – the sixth Duke of Dunloch."
The words seemed to knock the breath clean out of his lungs, and all of a sudden, the room felt airless.
His father… His father had an illegitimate child? He had fathered a son with their housekeeper – or, James supposed, back then she was probably just a housemaid.
He had no words he could express to Thomas, who stood there awkwardly, clutching the parchment, which James presumed held evidence of this new information which had come to light.
"Thank you, Thomas. That will be all." It took a great deal of effort to force the words from his lips.
"Shall I–" Thomas began, holding out the parchment.
"I said that will be all," James repeated, raising his voice a little, needing to be alone.
Thankfully, he got the message. He darted from the room, leaving the parchment on the desk, and when the door closed, James gripped the desk tightly and tried to take deep breaths.
He had no idea what to say to Thomas about such a development, just as he had no idea why it was effecting him so deeply.
Although it was growing dark outside, he needed to get out. He threw open the study door and stormed from the room, thankfully not meeting anyone as he made his way down the corridor, out of the main door, and into the grounds. The air was fresh, and yet still, he did not feel he was fully breathing.
Thomas and Richards had both said the scandal was over thirty years ago, presumably before James was even born. Was it after his father had married his mother? Of course, having affairs was not uncommon amongst theton, and James would not have judged his father particularly for doing so. He had not felt that the marriage between his parents had been some great love match, but rather a sensible combining of names, fortunes, and estates.
But having a discreet affair with another married lady of the same rank, or a widow, was one thing; an affair with amaid that resulted in a child – a boy! That was something else altogether.
James walked until he was confident he was out of sight of the house, not wanting to be disturbed. Then he sat down on a stone bench and held his head in his hands. For his entire life, James had been raised to know that he was the next Duke of Dunloch, and all the responsibility that entailed. He had taken his father’s words seriously – and yet now he found out that his father had not held himself to any higher standard at all. No, he had apparently fulfilled his basest desires without concern.
And the worst thing was that he’d had a son. A son who was older than James. A son who, had he been born to the Duchess of Dunloch, would have been the next Duke and entitled to everything that was James’s. Everything that defined him.
His whole world felt as though it was being turned on its head. How had he been raised to think something was so important when a quirk of fate could have meant it belonged to someone else entirely? Yes, he believed he was a good Duke of Dunloch – but what was to say this half-brother of his would not have been equally good, had he had the opportunity?
Instead, he had apparently been raised in France, away from his mother, away from his biological father, away from his country.
And now this information was known – at least by Thomas. Who else knew? And who else would find out? He trusted his staff, even after Mrs Simmons’s latest transgression, which he supposed was rather more understandable if the secret she had been hiding was the illegitimate child of the former Duke of Dunloch.
