He pushed James, the man staggering back, his hand to his throat, gasping for breath. And in James’ eyes, fear and fury waged war.
“I will make Walter legitimate if I have to,” Henry added, rubbing salt in the wound.
Walter blinked, pulling a disapproving face.
James stood to his full height, pinching his bleeding nose. “So, you know about that?”
“I do,” Henry replied.
James sniffed. “You should be thanking me, really. Iwasgoing to kill you. I’d overheard my father speaking of Walter’s illegitimacy for years, but it was not until after my father died that I found the evidence. After all, I could not act without proof.” He grabbed a handkerchief and put it to his nose. “I bided my time. All was well as long as you remained a bachelor. But then youhadto go and propose marriage.”
Across the room, Frances seemed to be trying to sneak away, edging toward the terrace doors. Walter, noticing at the same moment, got up with a casual air and stood in front of the doors, blocking her path.
“I could not risk you having an heir,” James continued. “There was not much time to execute a plan, but I managed. I found out Thalia’s name and family, discovered all of their dirty secrets, and created the perfect idea for an accident. I was there that night—did you know that?”
Henry squinted. “Where?”
“At Gibbs Carter’s dreary little dinner party,” James replied. “I had meant to kidnap her and send her off toward the ‘highwaymen’ in a carriage, but she did the hard part for me. I only discovered afterward that she had run off to try and talk you out of it: a mistake on my part. I should have let her.
“Anyway, I asked those idiots to hurt your wife just enough that she would not attend the wedding, but they disobeyed. And Gibbs did not care at all that his daughter was hurt; he marchedher to the church himself, still bruised and scratched.” James barked an unhappy laugh. “So many despicable fathers, eh?”
Henry glared, his fists curled. “I hope you count yourself among those?”
“EverythingI have done since then is for my son,” James replied sourly. “At first, yes, I did want the dukedom for myself. But then I thought of my legacy, and I concentrated on finding a wife and having an heir before I made my next move. That is why I had a child so soon after your wedding.”
Henry laughed coldly. “Is that supposed to make this better? Am I supposed to hand over my dukedom because you think you have done something righteous bynotkilling me for the inheritance?”
“You do not deserve it!” James roared. “You have no sense of duty or legacy or any of it! You abandonedyourwife. I cherish mine. All you needed Thalia for was to quieten the rumors going around about you being the owner of a club instead of the perfect duke everything thought. Pathetic!”
Henry shook his head. “I have loved my wife from the moment I set eyes on her. But I gave her a choice, and I abided by her wishes.”
“Well, she should have stayed away from you,” James said, tossing the handkerchief. “She should have been grateful to have what she wanted, instead of being greedy.”
“Greedy?” Henry very much wanted to hit him again. “She is the most selfless person I know.”
“Hardly. Frances told me about the letter, about Thalia’s despair about wanting to be a mother. The endless hours whining about it,” James replied, rolling his eyes. “I had no choice; I had to act before she could make you agree.”
Henry’s body went rigid, his heart knocking hard against his ribcage, stealing some of his breath. He knew what happened next, he just did not knowhowit had happened.
“You poisoned her,” he said. “Rather, Frances did. I know that already.”
“I did no such thing!” Frances cried, trembling a little. “I just drank tea with her, so that James could sneak in. It was him who slipped a note under her door, telling her to go to the tower! It was him who pulled her down the stairs!”
It was all so clear now. Henry should have known that thereweretwo other people who knew the secret ways in and out of the manor, for they had spent countless summers there. Indeed, Henry remembered being the one toshowthem those secret passages and doorways, particularly the narrow slit about halfway down the North Tower’s staircase. It led to an old tunnel that spat a person out onto the roof of the ballroom, not far from woodland where a person could easily hide in the chaos.
Or sneak all the way to the road, where Frances’ carriage would collect him…
He had not considered that old tunnel, for the narrow entrance to it had a board across it. One he had not bothered to check, to see if it was loose. He had just assumed it was too thin for anyone to exit or enter, but a mancouldforce his way through it, sideways.
“Youdidpoison her tea in the end, though,” James countered.
“I did not know it would hurt her! I did not know it was poison,” Frances protested. “You said it was just a tonic. You said it would just stop her from having children, that I should put it in her tea every week. You said she would be fine, and then we could continue with our lives—no more of these… incidents. And I do cherish her as a friend, Henry. Truly, I do. I… wanted it to be over, so I could just… be her friend again.”
James’ face twisted. “I should never have agreed to let you send for a physician. I should have told you to pour the whole bottle in. I should have?—”
Henry punched him again, so hard he felt the pain ricochet back through his knuckles. Grimacing, he shook out the jarring sensation, his blood roaring in his ears.
“I should do far worse than that for what you have done, daring to touch my wife, laying your hands on her,” he hissed. “I should kill you!”
