It tore at her heart that she’d not shared it with him before. The reason for not doing so now seemed less clear. He was a good man, why hadn’t she just spoken to him? Why had she doubted her own skills so much? Why had she doubted him?
‘And you did not think to discuss it with me?’
If she could relive the last few weeks she would, the moment she had made the first discovery, she would quite happily have shared it all. But even a fool can seem wise if they had the gift of hindsight.
‘At first I was unsure if I had made an error.’
‘And was there an error?’ The hope in his voice pained her to hear. He was hoping for something to cling onto, but she could not give it to him.
Grace took a deep breath. She would not lie. ‘No.’
Hurt and bewilderment creased the corners of his eyes. ‘And you still did not tell me.’
Grace touched his arm to soothe away his pain, or perhaps her own, in that moment she did not know which.
‘There is so much to tell you, Talek. Please, let me come with you.’
Talek twisted his arm away from under her hand. ‘Of course you are coming with me,’ he snapped. ‘You know where Henry lives.’ He stared at the harnessed horse in front of him as Grace climbed aboard. ‘You have much explaining to do. I thought I knew you . . .’ he gave her a cursory glance ‘. . . but it appears that I was wrong.’
Talek shouted at the horse, which lurched forward, jolting both the trap and its occupants. Grace clutched at the seat to steady herself as Talek expertly turned and headed towards the drive.
Talek drove the horse at a brisk trot, his eagerness to speak to Henry making him unusually reckless. Twice a wagontravelling in the opposite direction was forced to enter a ditch to allow him room to pass.
‘Please, be careful,’ begged Grace. ‘Henry is not going anywhere.’
‘How can you be sure? He has withdrawn money. Who knows what his intentions are?’ His jaw tightened, ‘Or perhaps your visits involved more than just business.’
‘I don’t care for what you are insinuating.’
‘At this moment, I don’t care what you think. I only care about what you have discovered and hidden from me. Tell me, Grace. What “discrepancies”?’
‘I believe Henry has sold Stenna Pit clay for a higher grade.’
Talek’s hands tightened on the reins, but he did not look at her. ‘Go on.’
‘Henry told me he had made a good deal and there was nothing out of the ordinary about it.’
‘And you believed him?’
Grace looked at him. The ride jarred her body, but his remained rigid and focused on what was ahead.
‘At first I did not trust my own judgement to know one way or another. And . . .’ her gaze soaked in the man she had grown to love ‘. . . I did not know if you were aware and was part of it too.’
Talek threw her an angry glance. ‘You think I would be involved in such an underhand practice? You think I would risk my reputation by selling clay at a higher value than it is worth?’
‘Not as I came to know you,’ she replied, earnestly. Talek’s anger did not soften. She could not blame him. ‘I suspected he was recording a lower price for the clay he sold and keeping the profit for himself . . . but that was more difficult to prove.’
‘Idiot! His foolishness risks our reputation. Although from the look on your face this does not surprise you.’
‘I feared it, but was persuaded otherwise. My knowledge of the clay industry is limited.’
‘By Henry, no doubt. Well, the risk is real. My meeting with Caradon Potteries didn’t go well. The porcelain made from some of our clay is not firing properly. They have had to throw away numerous batches. They are beginning to suspect it is our clay. I, like a fool, persuaded them otherwise.’
He turned off the road and headed towards Charleston Harbour.
‘You are going the wrong way. Henry’s cousin lives on the south side.’
‘We will see him later, first I have a shipment to stop.’
