His brother considered him for a moment before saying, “I just wish I could see the future and know that everything will work out for me.”
“That would be nice, but the fun is in the journey.”
Rising, William said, “I am meeting Ruth for breakfast. Would you care to join us?”
“No, thank you. I have enough work for two lifetimes here,” Harred replied.
“If the offer still stands,” William started, “I would like to accept the job to help run the estate.”
Harred could not have been more surprised by his brother’s change of heart. “You would?”
“It might take some time before I get Ruth’s dowry and Ihave plenty of time on my hands,” William replied. “But if you would prefer that I didn’t—”
Speaking over him, Harred said, “I would be honored to work with you.”
William smiled. “Very good.”
A knock came at the door before Ruth stepped into the room. “Good morning,” she greeted. “I have come to collect my husband for breakfast.”
Harred had risen when Ruth stepped into the room. “Good morning,” he responded.
Ruth came to stand next to William and he leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. “Hello, Wife,” he said.
A shy smile came to Ruth’s face. “Hello, Husband.”
It was evident that his brother was making progress on wooing his wife. Which was a good thing. They both deserved to be happy.
The butler stepped into the room and met Harred’s gaze. “Lord Chatsworth and Lady Octavia would like a moment of your time, my lord,” he announced.
“Send them in,” Harred ordered. He was pleased by the prospect that Octavia was here to see him.
A moment later, Fredrick and Octavia entered the room. Harred briefly admired how beautiful Octavia looked in her pale yellow gown. Her brown hair was pulled back into a low chignon and she looked the epitome of perfection. He hoped, and not for the first time, that one day he could convince her to be his.
Fredrick put his hands up. “I am glad that everyone is here because Octavia and I figured out who is behind the attacks on Harred.”
“You have?” Harred asked.
Octavia bobbed her head. “There was one more person that would benefit from Harred’s death. It was someone that we hadn’t even considered.”
William spoke up. “Who is that?”
“Ruth,” Octavia replied.
Ruth’s eyes went wide. “I beg your pardon?” she asked. “You think I was behind these vicious attacks on Harred?”
“It all makes sense,” Fredrick said. “You had the means to pour arsenic into the decanter and the motive, and you were the only one who could have lured Octavia out of her townhouse to be abducted.”
“This is preposterous. What motive could I possibly have?” Ruth asked.
“At first, we couldn’t think of one, but then your words came back to me. You wanted a title to prove that you are worthy of Society’s esteem,” Octavia said.
Ruth furrowed her brow. “I have William’s title. That is all I have ever wanted.”
“But it wasn’t enough, was it?” Octavia asked. “You wanted to be a marchioness and have a higher rank than the young women from your boarding school.”
Turning her attention towards Harred, Ruth asked, “You don’t believe this nonsense, do you?”
Harred wanted to believe that Ruth wasn’t capable of such terrible crimes, but he wasn’t about to dismiss what Fredrick and Octavia were saying. He trusted them and wanted to hear them out before he came to his own conclusions.
