“Do you know Kilmarin?”
“I would venture to say that anyone in Scotland knows Kilmarin, Lady Sarah,” he said.
She was startled at his vehemence.
They looked at each other for a few long moments, then Sarah left him, glancing back to find him still regarding her with that intent gaze of his.
Why did she feel as if she had just begun a significant journey, one a great deal more important than a simple visit to Scotland?
Chapter 16
Douglas walked out the door in the north façade, an entrance not in daily use by the inhabitants of Chavensworth. This view of the house was distinguished by five chimney stacks flanking a tall central clock tower, all of them in a beige brick that had mellowed over the centuries.
He waited until the carriage turned and stopped in front of the steps. This particular carriage had been his first purchase on arriving in London, and the coachman the first person Alano had hired. Both looked well cared for and perfectly at home in front of one of the grandest estates in England.
“Am I the Queen of England then?” Alano said, lowering the window of the coach. “Here you are to meet me. It makes me wonder if I shouldn’t turn tail and run back to London.” His gaze encompassed the façade of Chavensworth. “Though I can see why you haven’t returned.”
“I’ve been hoping you’d make it in time.”
“In time for what?” Alano asked. “I’m thinking that you didn’t ask me here simply to fawn at your new home.”
“It’s not mine,” Douglas said. “I doubt I’d want the responsibility even if it were. It takes a great deal of time and effort to oversee Chavensworth.”
Alano had never been known for his handsome appearance. He looked more like a pirate than a successful, well-traveled man, especially when he was annoyed, like now. His eyes narrowed, and the wrinkles around his nose deepened, and deep furrows on his brow appeared.
“Are you going to tell me, then? Or are we playing a game of guess the reason?”
Douglas reached for the door handle and pulled it open. “What’s got you in such a bad mood? That new butler of yours?”
“He’s a molly woggle,” Alano said. “Always correcting me. I’d fire the fool, if I didn’t think it would make him happy.”
“In what way?” Douglas asked, stifling his smile.
“He’d know he got the best of me. I’ll have him quit before I give him the satisfaction of firing him.”
Douglas decided that any further conversation on the subject of Paulson would be fruitless, so he gave the driver directions to the stables before escorting Alano up the steps.
“Have you arranged that other matter?”
Alano pulled some papers out of his jacket and handed them to Douglas. “Done and ready for you,” he said. “Cost you a pretty penny, though.”
“Thank you,” Douglas said. “I’m going to Scotland, Alano. To Perth.”
Alano halted on the step and studied him.
“Are you, now? Are you ready for that?”
“I am,” Douglas said, certain of it. “But I need your help in another matter. The crystallization process hasalready begun, and the crystals will be ready in a day or two. I can’t leave it unattended.”
“When do you leave?”
“Within the hour,” Douglas said.
“That’s a bit of poor planning, isn’t it?”
“Exceedingly,” Douglas said.
Alano squinted at him. “You really do need my help, not to insult me back.”
