Page 21 of The Lyon Deception

Cat felt her head turn dizzy. The next moment she was seated in the hall chair with her head between her knees, and Aunt Jennie was rubbing her back and speaking in soothing tones while Uncle James offered her a glass of whisky.

She took a sip, and it did seem to help.

“I am so sorry, Cat,” he said gently. “It is a shock to you. Me too. I shouldn’t have blurted it out.”

She shook her head. There were tears on her cheeks, and her lips were trembling. “No, Uncle James, this isn’t your fault. Just a—a surprise when I had hoped . . .” She looked up at him. “What are we going to do now?”

He glanced at Jennie, and then sighed. “I honestly don’t know. I will set off for Bonnyrigg as soon as I can so that Maxwell and I can discuss matters. But believe me, Cat, this isn’t the end.” He sounded as if he meant it, but she wondered if really, deep down, he believed it.

How could this not be the end of her life in the secure surroundings of her home? The end of her family too. They were done. They may as well start looking for a hovel to live in immediately. She imagined Penelope giving birth to her child in such a place and felt like screaming.

“James will think of a way,” Jennie was saying, her fingers tightening on Cat’s shoulder until they were almost painful. “Try not to worry, my dear. When are you leaving?” she spoke to her husband.

His voice was low and serious. “Unfortunately, I have a deal I am in the middle of negotiating with a client about a new ship, but I will finish it as quickly as I can. A few days. A week at the most.”

“I think you should go with him, Cat,” Jennie spoke firmly. “As much as I have loved having you here, I think you are needed at home.”

Cat opened her mouth to protest, but she knew her aunt was right. Her mother needed her, her brothers and their families needed her, and her father needed her most of all. She gave a defeated nod.

There wasn’t much more to say, and soon she was heading up the stairs to her bedchamber. Bothwell was waiting for her at her door, chirruping as he followed her into the room.

“I’ll miss you too.” She bent to stroke his fur. She would miss London but mostly because her aunt and uncle were here, and the Snowden sisters. And deep in her heart she knew she would miss Mr. Sutherland, a man she barely knew and yet she felt as if she did. Whatever her aunt thought of him, Cat believed he was a good man, a kind man, and someone she could have depended upon.

A tear ran down her cheek. She couldn’t even send a message to tell him that she was going, because she did not know where he lived!

The true horror of her situation crashed down upon her. The MacKenzies were going to lose everything. They would be cast out of their home and off their land, to wander through the countryside as beggars.

Perhaps that was a tad dramatic. She was sure Aunt Jennie and Uncle James would not allow them to become beggars, they would share their home, but it would never be the same. How could it be?

She had been trying to find a way of saving them without doing what she knew she must do. She would have to marry the Master. Mrs. Dove-Lyon had said she could arrange matters so that Bonnyrigg would be hers. Even if not immediately, then certainly when Lord Armytage died, and he was an old man. Mrs. Dove-Lyon had also said that Cat needed to make up her mind quickly, if she wasn’t to miss out on her opportunity.

The time had come for her to speak to the Black Widow again.

She must put Mr. Sutherland out of her mind forever.

Cat was a determined sort of woman, and once she had set her mind on something, she refused to let anything else get in her way. It was time for action, and she would act.

Tomorrow, she would go to the Lyon’s Den.

Chapter Twelve

The Snowden girls arrived the next morning, eager to hear about Cat’s first London ball, and instead learned her bad news. Aunt Jennie was there too, long faced, explaining that Cat would be going home in a week, to be with her family. Everybody was so somber. Harriet could barely take a bite of the delicious cakes that were served with the tea, and it was only as they were leaving that the Snowden girls were able to speak to Cat privately.

“What are you going to do?” Harriet whispered, frowning. “I mean, about—”

“I know what you mean,” Cat hissed, with a glance behind her. “I am going to the Lyon’s Den this evening at eight o’clock.”

“Oh.” Prudence’s pretty face fell. “You are going to agree to marry him.”

“That is dreadful!” Harriet wailed.

Cat straightened her shoulders as if she were going into battle. “I must,” she said grimly. “If there is the slightest chance I can save Bonnyrigg, then I must take it.”

Aunt Jennie joined them at that point, looking curiously from one to the other. “You all look so woebegone,” she said. “Don’t worry, you will see each other again before Cat leaves. And perhaps you can visit Bonnyrigg before . . .” She bit her lip.

They all knew what she meant.

Once the sisters were alone outside, they conferred.