‘Possibly nothing,’ responded Adam. ‘But as our chief suspect is the Earl of Bamford, Felicity has given me permission to break her confidence.’
Nicholas frowned, looking over at Felicity, then back towards Adam. ‘Has Felicity requested your aid to discover the whereabouts of her cousin?’
Adam waited, but when the older woman did not respond, he nodded. ‘Indeed she has. All she knows is that her cousin, Bamford’s wife, is incarcerated in a private asylum somewhere in Wiltshire.’ He paused, again inviting Miss Beaumont to add her comments. This time she acquiesced.
‘I asked for his lordship’s help in locating where she is being held because he grew up in the county of Wiltshire and knows it well,’ she explained.
‘Why did you not simply ask Bamford?’ queried Nicholas, sympathy clearly evident in his voice. ‘Or her family? Surely, they are aware of the location of the asylum?’
‘They knew the whereabouts of the original certainly and did everything in their power to effect her release. However, Bamford ignored all their entreaties.’ Her voice betrayed a bitterness no one in her adopted family had heard before. Grace laid her hand on her old friend’s arm. Clearly, this was something she had not been aware of. Felicity patted the Duchess’s hand gratefully before continuing. ‘Some years ago, Bamford had her moved and since then has refused to tell her family where she now resides. And now most of her family are dead. There is only me.’ Her voice broke, and she bit her lip, struggling to regain her customary poise.
‘Thunder an’ turf, that’s monstrous,’ breathed Augustus Shackleford with a shudder.
‘Indeed, it is,’ agreed Adam, glancing over to obtain Felicity’s permission to continue. ‘It is Felicity’s dearest wish to somehow free her cousin, or at least be reassured that she is happy and healthy.’ The Earl paused before adding ruefully, ‘Though with all we have discovered about Bamford, the happy and healthy part seems a forlorn hope.’ He grimaced and shook his head. ‘A few days ago, I received a report that a small manor house quite close to Ravenstone was being used to housefallen womenand deemed it necessary to investigate further.’
‘That’s why you returned to Ravenstone?’ Nicholas questioned, reproach evident in his voice.
Adam nodded. ‘Forgive me for not confiding in you Nick …’ he began, only for Felicity to interrupt having regained her composure. ‘I did not wish to involve the rest of you in my problems,’ she explained, ‘and extracted the Earl’s promise to keep my secret, though he was extremely reluctant.’ She shook her head before continuing. ‘In light of recent events, my decision was … unfortunate.’
She looked from Adam to Nicholas and gave a small reluctant chuckle. ‘In truth, I believe it was more the aid of Malcolm that Adam was interested in,’ she finished wryly, casting an enigmatic glance towards the Duke’s valet.
Nicholas raised his eyebrows before concurring with a sigh. ‘Is it possible that Bamford could have abducted Patience and deposited her in this … asylum?’ he asked with a frown.
‘If Bamford has taken her, he’s unlikely to have put her in the house I investigated. As far as I could ascertain, there was no connection to the Earl at all, and the ten women living there owed their incarceration to a wealthy widow whose only concern appeared to be the saving of their immortal souls. Indeed, they appeared well looked after and naturally none were hankering after their previous lives.’
‘Then perhaps your cousin is similarly well-provided for,’ suggested Grace hopefully.
‘Perhaps,’ conceded Felicity. ‘But we cannot know that, and as Adam suggested, everything we know about Bamford does not provide any confidence in such a likelihood. And the fact remains, she is being held against her will.’ She paused and bit her lip before continuing. ‘If Bamford has taken Patience, it’s my belief he will have locked her away somewhere similar – perhaps even the same place. The man is a snake with neither empathy nor compassion to anything living.’
‘That’s if hehastaken her.’ commented Temperance. ‘We must still hold out hope that she has not fallen into his clutches.’
Max felt his heart constrict with dread. ‘He has her,’ the Marquess declared emphatically into the silence. ‘Bamford is a master at playing the long game. He will be content to watch us chasing our tails and running around in circles. Indeed, his pleasure depends on it.
‘When he was in possession ofSepideh, it was enough to know that he had it while others had no idea. Why should it be any different with a woman? He moved his wife to an unknown destination to inflict the worst possible pain.’ He looked around at the tormented faces of those present in the drawing room before finally murmuring, ‘The bastard thrives on the anguish of uncertainty, and in Patience, he truly has his revenge.’
Nobody berated him for his coarse language, and the expressions on the faces of everyone present indicated their agreement that Bamford was very likely responsible for abducting Patience.
‘Should we confront Bamford immediately?’ Grace questioned fearfully, clearly looking towards her husband for answers.
Nicholas did not respond straightaway, then. ‘If we confront and accuse him without any proof, we risk him running. Despite Malcolm’s bloodthirstier tendencies, we cannot resort to simply torturing the information out of him.’ He threw a wry glance towards the Scotsman who merely shrugged.
‘Then we watch and wait?’ questioned Adam, his frustration clear.
‘Bamford will lead us to her,’ stressed the Duke. ‘If your assessment of his character is correct Guildford, he’ll be unable to help himself. The diamond was his to gloat over and as you say, I don’t believe he will regard Patience any differently.’ Nicholas paused and closed his eyes, briefly revealing the depths of his distress. ‘It’s my belief he will not only wish to ensure she is securely locked away, but he will also have a desire to observe her suffering first hand.’
Max clenched his teeth, tempted to argue with the Duke for the second time in the day. The desperate need to do something –anything- was almost unbearable. However, he knew his grace’s logic was sound. Going in half-cocked would not help them find Patience. Bamford was no fool. He would expect some kind of reprisal. Their failure to give him one would keep the bastard off balance and mayhap cause him to make a mistake.
That said, there was still one other possible avenue they had not yet explored. The one Max had tried to avoid at all costs.
‘We could send a missive to Queen Charlotte,’ he stated matter-of-factly.
Nicholas and Adam looked at him keenly. Both men were aware of the Marquess’s close relationship with the Queen but did not know if Charlotte had divulged the details of the duck pond incident. The likelihood of her majesty running to the aid of a Shackleford any time soon was slim to none. Naturally, if things really went to hell in a handcart, they might be forced to rely on the Queen’s charity, or rather her fondness for her handsome godson.
‘Mayhap it is best if we attempt to discover Patience’s whereabouts without her majesty’s involvement – at least in the first instance,’ Grace commented carefully. ‘We would not wish to bother the Queen with such a trifle unless it’s absolutely necessary.’
‘You believe kidnapping a trifle?’ questioned Max with a frown before suddenly recalling the Viscount’s comment about an incident involving a pond. He looked around the room, sensing the almost palpable discomfort at the mention of his royal godmother. Bloody hell, he wished he’d been at the wedding.
‘We will gratefully accept any aid the Queen is able to give us, should her intervention become necessary,’ the Duke commented drily after the silence became pointed, ‘but until we have proof that Bamford has indeed abducted Patience, we cannot think to get her majesty involved.’
