Page 10 of An Affair at Stonecliffe

“Then I give you my word I shall not try to take him from you.” He paused. “But I promise you also, if you break your word, if you run, I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth.”

Noelle had no doubt of that.

CHAPTER THREE

“DO YOU TRUST HER?” Diggs asked as they watched the hack drive away with Noelle and her son inside.

“Hardly. But what choice do I have?” Carlisle pointed out. “Keep an eye on her. Not you; she’ll recognize you. She’s proven to be more resourceful than I ever imagined.”

“Aye, she’s slippery, that one.”

“Indeed. Even if she doesn’t run off, at least your man will be close enough to help them if she runs into trouble walking through that wretched place.” Seven Dials. His jaw clenched at the thought of Adam’s son living there, even if that street was on the slightly less squalid side of the area. “Daytime should be sufficient. I would think she has enough sense to keep her door locked and not venture out in that area after dark.”

“I’ll see to it, sir. I’ve got a lad who can look scruffy enough to pass in St. Giles. And we’ve got a good spot to watch the shop from a distance.”

“To watch the front door, you mean.”

“Aye, sir, I’m sorry. I would have sworn there was no back way out.”

“There wasn’t. I’d like to know how she worked it.”

“Had to have some way through the other buildings. Or across the roofs, maybe.”

“Well, as long as she doesn’t feel threatened, I doubt she’ll go to such extremes. You keep watch on her. I’m going to Stonecliffe to inform the countess we’ve located her grandson.” He hadn’t sent word yesterday to Lady Drewsbury because he feared his blasted quarry would slip through his hands again. He wouldn’t set the countess up for disappointment. Of course, that could still happen. Noelle—he could not think of her as Lady Rutherford—hadn’t yet agreed to his offer. Still, she was considering it; he had seen that in her eyes. Carlisle couldn’t hold back such important news from Adam’s mother.

The past five years had been unremitting misery for the countess. With Carlisle’s help, Lady Adeline had worked on her husband to take Adam back into the family. She’d been looking forward with delight to seeing her son again and holding her grandchild. Then her dream had come crashing down. Adam was gone, the baby missing. Lady Drewsbury spent the next year in deep mourning, not leaving the estate—indeed, rarely even leaving the house. Even though she had gradually come back to life, she still dressed in black, and the sparkle in her eyes was gone. Carlisle hated to see Lady Adeline so sad, so drained of life, and it was all the worse knowing that it was his own clumsy handling of the matter that had kept her from knowing her grandchild.

Lady Drewsbury was the most important person in the world to Carlisle; she had taken him in as a ten-year-old child, assuaging his grief over losing his father and treating Carlisle as if he were her own offspring. She was, in fact, more a mother to him than his own, who had been all too willing to release her child into the care of another so she could return to the lights of London. He was not alone in his regard for the countess. Charming as well as softhearted, she was easy to confide in and swift to offer a comforting word, and if anyone could prevail on that stubborn witch Noelle to accept his offer, it would be Lady Adeline.

The Rutherford estate was in Kent, and Carlisle’s horse was swift. He reached the house before dark. Not wanting to leave the countess all alone after the late earl’s death, Carlisle had spent the last few years at Stonecliffe as much as he had at his own estate. It was in many ways more his home anyway, having spent so much of his childhood and adolescence there. The footman greeted him with pleasure but without surprise, and Carlisle went into the sitting room unannounced.

Adeline was seated by the window to catch the dying rays of sunshine as she stitched at her needlepoint.

“You should have lit a lamp, my lady,” Carlisle said, and the countess glanced up, a smile spreading across her face.

“Carlisle, love!” She pushed aside the embroidery and came forward, holding out her hands. “How nice to see you home again! I thought you would be in London for several more weeks.”

“I had meant to stay, but the house is much too lonely without you.” He bowed and took her hands in his.

“Oh, posh.” Her eyes narrowed as she looked up at him. “Carlisle...what is it? You know something!”

“How do you do that?” He steered her back toward the chair; she would need a seat after his news. “I could never hide anything from you.”

“Of course not. Now tell me.” Her face tightened. “Is it bad?”

“No. Not at all. I have found Adam’s widow.”

Adeline drew in her breath sharply and sank down onto her chair. She raised her hand to her chest. “And Adam’s son?”

“He is with her.”

Her hands flew to her mouth as tears filled her eyes. “Oh, Carlisle...this is so—I hadn’t given up hope, of course, because I knew you would persist until you found him. But, oh! To actually hear it, to know...” She swallowed. “Sit down and tell me all about it. What happened? What is he like—did you see him?”

He took a seat on a nearby ottoman. “He’s a grand boy. Sturdy. Blond hair, blue eyes. He looks much like Adam when he was young, though his hair is lighter.”

Tears welled in her eyes again, spilling over onto her cheeks, but she wiped them away impatiently. “Go on. He’s well?”

“Yes, he seems so. Brave little thing. He popped out, bold as brass, and told me not to scare his mother.”