He blinked, puzzled by the question. “I do. A little. Mostly for my own enjoyment, though.”
She looked back to Lord Hawthorn. “We have lots of maps of our property, don’t we?”
“Yes…” his eyebrow rose, his gaze fixed on his daughter.
“What are you thinking?” Lady Hazel leaned forward.
Holly looked back at Richard. “Would it be possible—if we provided you with some of our maps—that you could recreate something similar to the most important document you brought with you?”
Her question caught him by surprise, and he looked stunned for a few moments.
“Uhhh…”
“Good,” smiled Holly in satisfaction. “We can announce that Richard had a copy made of one of the documents in his lost bag and secreted it on his person…or something. How would Blackstone know any different? And even if he does, how can he say so without revealing his part in Richard’s attack?”
“But we don’thavecopies,” said Sir Duncan.
“By tomorrow we could, sir,” Holly replied. “I have a complete set of art supplies in my study. I used them recently to create a painting of the moon while I was observing it over the autumn.” She glanced at her mother. “I believe we could make something that would pass as an official document…Richard must know the necessary wording to include, and we have plenty of maps of the area we can copy. Perhaps even one old enough that it could be used as a foundation.”
“Well, I don’t know…” Sir Duncan pursed his lips, but got no further.
“My personal wing, with my telescope and books, is far enough away from the main house that there’s no reason Blackstone would know it exists, let alone come snooping around to find out what we’re doing there.”
“It will take a bit of time,” the Viscount tugged at his lip in thought.
“It could work, Hawthorn,” Sir Duncan offered quietly. “If we all stand behind it…and Mr Hawkesbury thinks he can do an adequate job of it, of course.”
“I’m for anything that will get rid of that dreadful man,” declared Lady Hazel. “And we’ll see that Richard has everything he needs…”
“Well then,” Holly stared at him. “It’s up to you, Richard. What do you say?”
He took a deep breath and blew it out through pursed lips as he thought about it. “I must say yes. I’ll try my best.” He looked at Holly. “With the understanding that if I fail, you all remember this wasn’t my idea to start with…”
Lady Hazel chuckled. “So noted. But you won’t fail. I have faith.”
Holly leaned toward Richard as everyone started talking at once. “I have faith, too. I believe you can do this. I really do.”
“Will you help me?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I’m not sure if I can do it alone, but with both of us working on it? We have a chance at success.” He stood. “Take me to your study, Miss Holly, and let’s get started.”
She jumped up and took his arm, leading him toward the door as she glanced back over her shoulder. “Mama, I’m afraid we won’t be at dinner this evening.”
Chapter Eleven
In Which Richard Accepts a Challenging Task — and gets Somewhat Distracted
Not quite sure what to expect when it came to the rooms Holly described as herpersonal wing, Richard was caught by surprise as she led him up a long flight of stairs and then ushered him into a spacious suite.
“Oh,” he murmured. “This is really delightful.”
“Thank you. I think so.”
The main area was circular, and he realised it had been created within one of the turrets that rose at each end of the house. High enough to see over some of the surrounding forest, the largest window had plenty of space for what a professional and impressive telescope. He approached it with curiosity and a degree of caution, knowing her skills and respecting the magnificence of the instrument itself.
“You saw me with this?”
