“But—”
“Oh, for pity’s sake, do not become Lord Capulet.” Mama peeked out from the garderobe that she’d been sorting through. She was in charge of checking Hugh’s clothing for evidence and comparing his possessions to the late duke’s expense records for his eldest son.
“You dare to useRomeo and Julietagainst me? That is our story!” Papa dramatically clasped his hand over his heart. Her mother had taught him to read using the play, and he took great pride that he could recite passages from it. He’d always seen himself as Romeo to Mama’s Juliet.
“Now your daughter is one of the star-crossed lovers, and you’re the crochety father. The late Duke of Foxglen was aterrible villain of a man, but that does not make his grandson one,” her mother said, and Hannah nearly barreled across the room to hug her.
“Eoin is a victim of his grandfather as well,” Hannah pointed out. “What the old duke did to you and Uncle was unconscionable, and I am not trying to diminish what you suffered. But that man is dead, and perhaps so, too, is the revenge that we sought.”
“She is right,” Sophia said as she sorted through a pile of missives. “Imagine being ripped away from your mother at the age of six.”
“His maternal parentage is surprising,” Papa admitted, his tone begrudging. “And I’ve never been one to chase after ghosts. I gave up destroying the Aucourte name decades ago. My family and the Black Sheep were always more important to me. But that doesn’t mean that I am happy to see my daughter with the current Foxglen.”
Hannah’s anger toward her father started to dissipate. He was hot-tempered but so was she. But after his blood cooled, he was a kind and caring man who would do anything for his loved ones and even rid himself of valid, long-held grudges.
“The first step that Eoin took when he became a peer was to find his mother and sister.” Hannah paused to stare pleadingly at Papa. If she and Eoin were to reconcile, she didn’t want to badger her father for his approval. “It’s exactly the same choice that you would have made under the same circumstances.”
“Perhaps he is not utterly a bad sort,” Papa grumbled, but Hannah knew that, for him, it was a capitulation. He might not be completely convinced, but he’d come around once he’d witnessed more of Eoin’s true nature… that is, if Eoin wished to still be part of Hannah’s life.
“Eoin is truly a wonderful person,” Hannah said as she pulledout a featherdown comforter. Beneath it lay neatly rolled-up scrolls. “Oh! I may have found something!”
As Hannah unspooled one of the parchments, everyone hurried to her side. Maybe this was proof of Hugh’s involvement with the Horse and Hen. Although Hannah’s desire to destroy the Aucourte family name had faded, she desperately wanted to protect Eoin. If they could unseat the Purveyor, then Hannah could honor Eoin’s wishes to have time away from her. But until he was safe, she didn’t want to leave his side.
“Ugh!” Hannah wrinkled her nose as the canvas unfurled to reveal a naughty image of a well-endowed woman pleasuring herself.
Sophia looked over Hannah’s left shoulder and clicked her tongue. “I don’t believe a real woman would have those proportions.”
“She wouldn’t,” Hannah’s mother agreed succinctly as she took up a position at Hannah’s right side.
“What are you three talking… oh.” Hannah’s father took several rapid steps backward as he covered his eyes.
Mama laughed. “You act as if you’d never seen a scandalous drawing before! If I recall, you used to—”
“Mama!” Hannah shouted in horror, just as Papa cried out desperately, “Not with my daughter holding it!”
Sophia laughed unabashedly as she reached for another scroll. “Let’s see if this one is any better… Oh, it’s three people this time… I don’t think that particular position is anatomically possible.”
“And now I am leaving the room,” Hannah’s father announced before he literally scurried out the door with their laughter ringing after him.
“What we discovered in Hugh’s room only proves he has the mind of a lusty, lazy adolescent.” Hannah summarized her group’s findings as everyone crowded into the great hall.
“I agree with Hannah’s initial assessment that he simply cannot be the Purveyor. He can barely take care of himself,” Sophia chimed in.
“Francis’s room was in a similar state. We did discover that he has an enormous amount of expensive shoe buckles. Given the old duke’s accounts, I do not think that Foxglen purchased them.” Lizzie spoke instead of her brother. Eoin had positioned himself toward the edge of the group, despite the entire investigation centering around his safety. He was studiously avoiding Hannah’s gaze, and she’d forced herself to accept the distance even as it sliced deep.
“Hugh had expensive waistcoats, many embroidered with gold and silver threads, and in the latest styles. They weren’t listed under his expenditures either,” Hannah’s mother added.
“We checked the sisters’ rooms and found nothing particularly out of the ordinary,” Charlotte reported. “Both women had a few expensive baubles that didn’t match the records, but nothing to the extent of the men’s. Eliza possesses a well-organized and extremely large collection of gossip rags. We did discover a diary of sorts in Joan’s that lists bets that she makes. She seems quite fastidious about it, recording both her successes and losses.”
“Would her winnings be enough to explain the extra finery?” Sophia asked.
“If you include her brothers’ possessions, then no,” Charlotte answered. “On average, she loses more than she wins. But she did earn enough here and there for a trinket or two. She is also not betting enough to gamble away a fortune like her husband did. She only plays with pin money.”
Hannah sighed as worry and frustration burgeoned inside her. “All we have discovered is that the brothers likely have another source of income.”
“That is still valuable information.” Sophia reached over to pat Hannah’s arm. “It could be an indicator that either Hugh or Francis is the Purveyor, or at the very least, they are helping him.”
“Why are we only searching their rooms?” Hannah’s father asked. “Perhaps the men made them as disgusting as possible as a deterrent? If so, it worked on us.”
