Page 57 of The Beastly Earl

Worst of all would be the doubt he was certain he'd see on Louisa's face. The idea of her even contemplating the possibility he had been lying about the circumstances of his birth would drive his soul into the darkness without any hope of survival.

The only option left to him was self-banishment from Argaty Keep. Lady Argaty would want to witness his disgrace, and he refused to give her that. A self-imposed exile would deprive the woman of that malevolent pleasure, and he knew the woman well enough by now to know she'd wait patiently until she found a way to make him return home.

Ewan slumped downward in his seat, his head resting on the back of the chair. Drained of energy, he stared at the fire. His entire body ached as if he'd just fought a major battle. Not even when he'd walked off a battlefield had he ever felt so battered and weary of life. As he stared into the fire, his exhaustion became a numbness that pulled him down into a troubled sleep.

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A blood-curdling cry made Ewan jerk upright in his chair. Every muscle in his body taut with tension, it took him several seconds to realize he'd been dreaming. He looked up at the clock on the mantle and saw it was after lunch. Leaning forward in his chair, Ewan rubbed the back of his neck. He needed to leave Argaty Keep as soon as possible, but first he would have to resolve the problem of his brother's confinement.

Gilbert was a threat he couldn't ignore. Finding a place for his step-brother to live under constant watch might take weeks. Even a temporary solution could take days. The dowager countess would be a problem as well. She'd made it clear she would fight him if he tried to send Gilbert away.

Then there was her refusal to keep Gilbert under constant supervision How was he supposed to keep everyone safe if he couldn’t control the activities of the rightful heir to the Argaty title? The dowager's lack of concern for anyone other than her son made him certain she'd do little to restrain Gilbert's access to the passages in the keep's walls. His step-brother was a threat to anyone who crossed his path, especially Louisa.

His brother's fascination with Louisa meant she would have to leave immediately. He'd send Ross with her as well. He couldn't risk her safety or that of the children. And of all the obstacles he had to surmount, Louisa would be the most difficult. She wouldn't need the an dara sealladh to know something was wrong the moment he asked her to take Ross with her. It would be necessary to make her think it was her idea to do so, although how he would achieve that goal was beyond him at the moment.

The thought sent his heart slamming into his chest as he envisioned the battle to come. Louisa would vehemently protest being sent away. If there was even one certainty in his life at the moment, it was that Louisa cared for him. Her forthright nature would not have allowed her to give herself to him last night if she didn't harbor feelings for him. Hiding the truth from her would be the most difficult thing he had ever done in his life.

Instinct said she would fight his decision with the ferocity of a wildcat and demand an explanation. She would be relentless in her pursuit of why he was sending her away. From the moment she'd convinced him to let her stay as Ross's governess, she'd displayed a skillful expertise for persuading him to cast aside his better judgement on almost a daily basis. This time she wouldn't succeed. It wasn’t simply Gilbert's interest in Louisa that made it imperative he send her away.

The ramifications of what had happened between them last night would have been difficult enough even if the ground hadn't disappeared from beneath his feet this morning. The dowager countess's stunning confession had sealed his fate where Louisa was concerned. He'd had little to offer her to before, but now he didn't even have a home to give her. Last night had changed everything for him, and it reinforced the fact she would take his heart with when she left. The thought sent a strong wave of hopelessness and pain crashing down over him. It was an emotion even more devastating than what the dowager's words had inflicted on him this morning.

The quiet sound of laughter interrupted his thoughts, and Ewan lift his head to look at the study’s closed door. When no one knocked, he frowned slightly in puzzlement. The laughter echoed through the study again. Suddenly realizing the sound was coming from behind the wall, Ewan sprang to his feet with a soft oath. He strode across the room to the door hidden in the paneling and heard Charlie Morehouse’s embodied voice float out from behind the wall.

“Quiet. We’re on an expedition. We don’t know what dangers might lie in front of us.” The boy’s quiet command made Ewan growl with anger.

Unfortunately, the lad didn't realize just how dangerous the hidden corridors were. With a jab of his finger, Ewan pressed the upper corner of the panel in front of him, and the door popped open. With a rough tug on the upper edge of the panel, he swung it was wide open.

Eyes wide with surprise, the three boys stood framed in the small doorway. Covered in dust, they looked like ragamuffins one might see on the streets of Edinburgh. Any other time, he might have chuckled at their appearance, but today wasn't one of those times. They looked as if they'd been exploring parts of the hidden passageways few people knew about. An image of Gilbert sent a chill through him as Ewan eyed the boys sternly.

“Gentlemen.”

Ewan jerked his head in a silent command for the three of them to enter the study. Apprehension clouded Wills’s expression, while Ross, who knew not to enter the dark passages, appeared resigned to whatever fate befell him. As the ringleader of the small party stepped into the light of the study, Charlie squared his shoulders and met Ewan's intense gaze with restrained defiance. The boy’s facial expression was one he’d seen on Louisa’s face numerous times.

“Ross, an explanation if you please.” Ewan turned his head toward the boy and bit down on the inside of his cheek as he saw the lad wince with more than a hint of apprehension. That the child feared him only deepened Ewan's shame and regret.

“It wasn’t Ross’s idea, my lord. I found the passageways.” Startled by Charlie’s admission, Ewan frowned as he turned his head until Louisa's oldest boy was in his line of sight.

“How?” he demanded. As the boy bit down on his lip, Ewan arched his eyebrow in a silent command for the boy to answer the question.

“My uncle showed me the entrance.” Head tilted defiantly upward, Charlie faced him without any hint of fear of reprisal.

"Your uncle?" Frowning, Ewan shook his head before his body grew rigid in surprise. “The an dara sealladh. You have the gift.”

Trepidation flitted across the boy’s face as his bravado disappeared. Whether someone had called him a liar in his past or he feared his mother’s disapproval, Charlie had suddenly realized he might have erred in divulging his ability to speak with the dead. Despite the faltering courage flitting across his face, Charlie faced him without any remorse.

"Yes, my lord."

"Did your uncle say why he showed you the secret door?" Ewan's question made the boy's eyes widen in surprise. The lad had obviously expected a different reaction on Ewan's part.

"He said I needed to know in case Mama needed my help."

"Needed your—" Ewan didn't finish his sentence as an icy finger slithered down his back.

Clearly the ghost of the boy's uncle feared for Louisa's safety just as much as Ewan did. If he'd not already made up his mind to send her away, the boy's words would have convinced him to do so. At least he could place Ross in her care without reservation. Her affection for the lad was evident. His gaze took in the faces of the boys, and he frowned.

"I will say this only once. You are never to enter the passageways again. Is that understood?" Ewan waited for their nods of acquiescence before he moved to his desk to put his affairs in order. Not bothering to look in their direction, he waved his hand at them. “I suggest the three of you go to your rooms and clean your appearance before Lou—Mrs. Morehouse sees you or there will be hell to pay for your adventures.”

Ewan sat down at his desk and heard the soft breath of relief someone expelled. In the next instant, shoes slid across the floor as the boys raced from the room. He reached for a pen as they left, when a quiet sound whispered through the air on his blind side. With a jerk, he turned his head to see Wills staring at him with silent curiosity.