Chapter Twenty: Alexander

With a gasp, Elinor recoiled. Her eyes widened as she stared at me. There were shadows under her eyes, and her face was pale. Then again, now that I thought about it, she had looked like that the last few times I had encountered her. Now, I thought I knew the reason.

"What did you say?" she whispered.

"I asked if you were unwell. Forgive me for saying so, but you do not look yourself this morning." I paused and then added, "Miss Burke."

She shook her head, blonde tendrils of hair coming free around her face. Were those tears in her eyes? "You shouldn't say that," Mrs. Haynes hissed, lunging towards us. "Get out.".

"I made that visit to Mr. Rushman," I said without looking at the cook. "And you were right, Miss Burke. A great deal can be learned from parish records."

She sucked in her breath, her hand flying to her lips. "You actually went? But–"

Since it had been so long since our conversation, I could understand her surprise. "I'd hoped I would learn something about Captain Burke and his first wife. Imagine my surprise when Mr. Rushman and I discovered that the page containing their daughter's baptism has been removed from the parish records."

Her eyes closed as she grabbed the table to steady herself. "Oh," she said faintly. "That...that's unfortunate. But—"

"But," I added quickly. "I did find the date when Captain Henry Burke married one Marie Elinor Brown."

With a start, Elinor opened her eyes. "Marie Elinor?" she repeated, her tone breathless. She twisted to look at Mrs. Haynes who was staring at us with concern. "Mrs. Haynes–"

"Mr. Turner?" Mrs. Burke's voice called out. "Mr, Turner, are you still here?"

Mrs. Haynes sucked in her breath. "You have to go," she said sharply. "Now. There's trouble enough without you adding to it."

"I need to speak to you, Miss Elinor Burke," I said, keeping my eyes on the young woman. Her blue eyes were suddenly shiny with tears. "If I wait in the pasture where we first met, will you come?"

"I'm not supposed to leave the cottage," she responded, her tone uncertain. She shook her head. "Yes. I will come."

"Miss Ellie," Mrs. Haynes said, her tone one of warning.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Mrs. Haynes," I said, raising my voice to a normal tone. "Good day."

I didn't wait for her to answer as I spun on my heel. Only a few steps took me to the door of the room where I encountered Mrs. Burke. "There you are," she said. She leaned to look around me, her eyes narrowing. "I didn't realize you were in the kitchen."

"Isn't that where a steward usually takes his tea?" I asked. Since I now knew what she had been hiding, her desire to keep me away from Elinor and Mrs. Haynes made sense as did her malicious rumors about the young woman. "You have your note for the earl?"

After a pause, the woman held the note out to me. "I expect you to take it to him directly," she said as I took it from her.

"As soon as I have completed my work," I said, slipping it into my pocket. "I expect it will be about mid-afternoon when I return to the manor."

Her eyes widened. "What? No! It must be now!"

"Have a good day, Mrs. Burke." I retreated to the front door before she could protest any further. As I opened the door, I heard her sputter in anger and frustration.

It was ungentlemanly to be pleased at the reaction I had caused, but I wasn't precisely a gentleman.

~*~

Impatiently, I shifted my weight from foot to foot as I waited for the real Miss Burke to arrive. It had been something of a surprise to encounter the false Miss Burke on the road. Her story had been completely ridiculous. What driver would abandon his passenger, especially a young lady, alone on the side of the road? She had torn her slipper and had required my arm to lean against for the brief walk to Meadowbrooke cottage.

She had seemed like a harmless kind of girl, chattering about how she was visiting her stepmama and was to attend the earl's ball. I hadn't been able to get in a word while she talked. Had that been the point? A ploy to avoid questions she didn't want to answer?

Once she was next to Mrs. Burke, I'd seen something of a resemblance between them. They had the same shape of face. The same black hair and brown eyes. Hadn't Olivia said Mrs. Burke had a daughter of her own? Was it this girl? Why was she pretending to be Miss Burke?

The sun weakly broke through the grey clouds, only to vanish from sight a few minutes later. Would Elinor come? She had said Mrs. Burke was keeping her close to the cottage. Would there be a way for her to slip away evne for a few minutes?

It had reached the point when I was wondering how much longer I would be able to wait. I was supposed to be over seeing an overflowing pond being drained of water.

Then, I caught sight of a young lady climbing over the fence. Relieved, I hurried to meet her. "I wasn't sure if you would be able to come."

"I almost couldn't," she said breathlessly. Her face was flushed as though she had run the whole way there and her brown dress was spattered with mud. "But Mrs. Rushman came to visit and she is keeping Mrs. Burke distracted."

Her expression darkened as she added, "Harriet Burke must be welcomed to the neighborhood, you know."

So I hadn't underestimated her revulsion. "I have guessed correctly, then? You are Captain Burke's daughter?"

Earnestly, Elinor nodded. "When my father died, my stepmother brought me here and then returned to London," she explained. "I've been at Meadowbrooke ever since and my stepmother has been in London. When she came here two weeks ago, it was the first time I had seen her in twelve years."

Mrs. Burke had abandoned her to servants for that long? Why? "Then, you never had a governess and you were never sent to school?" I asked, remembering the expenses the previous steward had noted.

"No. The only education I have had is what Mrs. Haynes and Miss Sharpe have given me." She hesitated. "There wasn't always time to learn though with everything we had to do to keep the cottage tended to."

The admission was staggering. While I'd thought Mrs. Burke had shown selfish tendencies before, this was something else entirely. Why would she so callously neglect her stepdaughter? "Why didn't you say anything before this?" I asked. "Why are you letting someone else take your place?"

The young woman dropped her gaze. "I didn't have a choice."

Where we were standing felt too exposed as a farmer passed by on a wagon. He nodded in our direction and I raised my hand in acknowledgement. I held my arm out to Elinor. "Let's walk a short way where we won't be easily seen."

After a moment's hesitation, she put her hand on my arm. I guided her toward the opposite side of the pasture. The long grass rusttled around us with every step. "Why did you have no choice? What is it that Mrs. Burke is holding over you to make you endure such ill treatment?"

Her hand trembled against my jacket. "She said she would send me to Bedlam if I did not keep silent," she said quietly. "She said if I tried to disagree with anything she said, she would summon a doctor from London to send me there."

"Bedlam!" I came to a halt, horrified by her words. "She cannot mean it! How would she manage such a terrible deed?"

"Mrs. Burke said she would tell the doctor that I was mad and pretending to be a servant." Elinor's voice was devoid of emotion, but her hand was still trembling. From rage, or from fear? "She said she would be believed and anything I said would only convince the doctor that she was telling the truth."

Breathing out, I shook my head. Had such a thing happened to my sister? Had Lord Dunn twisted the matter? No. I couldn't think about Nerissa right then. "Did you know the earl—and his father before him–was your guardian?"

"No! At least, not until I overheard Lord Berdwell and my stepmother discussing it when he visited her the first time. When I confronted her, my stepmother laughed in my face and said the earl would never believe me even if I did try to expose her lies."

Given how fervently my cousin had been defending Mrs. Burke, I knew that was true. "Then, you were never visited by the earl or anyone who worked for him?"

She shook her head. "No one has ever visited Meadowbrooke. Except for the neighbors who came to see Mrs. Haynes. You were the first from the manor who ever spoke to me."

"Then, since the moment she arrived, your stepmother has been maligning you?"

"She said I had lied all this time; that I was Captain Burke's daughter and that I was only there because of her mercy. She apologized for not warning the parish of the truth, claiming that she never knew how I would try to manipulate them."

"How have you been able to bear the slander and lies?" I asked, putting my hand over hers.

Elinor shook her head. "What else could I do? Mrs. Burke won't hesitate to do as she has threatened. Mrs. Haynes said she would leave and take me with her, but my stepmother said that would only prove her right. What girl would leave her home to go with a servant?"

I couldn't deny that Mrs. Burke's assertion was no doubt correct. Again. The woman really had thought of everything, hadn't she? But why? "What does she think she will gain from this charade?"

Pulling her hand free, Elinor rubbed her arm as though she were cold. "She wants Harriet to marry the earl. At the very least, she wants to get as much from him as she can, even if it is influence by being associated with him."

That made a kind of sense. "She's already taken thousands of pounds from the earl and the former earl." What had she done with that money? Used it on herself or for her own daughter?

"Do you have any proof of your identity?" I asked, trying to think of how I could present this to my cousin. "Something we can show to prove your stepmother is a liar?"

Her expression regretful, Elinor shook her head. "Not really. I have a few letters from my father's solicitor that are addressed to Miss Burke, but my stepmother could easily claim I stole them. I don't even have a painting of my parents that I could point to and show the resemblance."

Drat. Though I had made the connection between Marie Elinor Brown naming her daughter after herself, it wasn't solid proof. "And she has already turned all your neighbors against you, so they will not speak up on your behalf."

"Well..." She hesitated. "There is one woman who might be able to help, but she is very old. Widow Miller has lived here for her entire life. If you were to speak to her on a good day, she might be able to tell you about my parents. Mrs. Burke says she is unimportant."

The word of an aged woman was not much. "It's something," I assured her so that she wouldn't lose hope. "Did your stepsister go about in society much? Will she be recognized?"

"I don't know." Then Elinor's eyes brightened. "Harriet mentioned a man she admired. It's someone my stepmother does not approve of. A Mr. Patchman. He might reveal that Harriet is not who she says she is"

That was something I could use. Then again... "Don't forget. It is a masquerade," I said. "I assume Miss... What is her name?" I knew Olivia had mentioned it once, but I couldn't remember.

Elinor paused, her forehead creasing. "It's... I think it is Emerson. Harriet Emerson."

"Emerson. I think that is right. She will have some kind of costume, won't she? That might make it difficult for this Mr. Patchman to recognize her." And did I really want to arrange so public a reveal?

"That depends on if she insists she lost all of her clothes like Mrs. Burke wants her to do," she said slowly. She looked over her shoulder. "I should get back. If she discovers I'm gone..."

"Come to the manor with me," I urged. "If you were to go back, you would be in danger."

"Then, Mrs. Burke will know her plan has gone wrong and who knows what will happen next," she said, shaking her head. "She doesn't like being thwarted or to have things go differently than she has planned."

"Be careful," I said, catching her hand. "Bedlam is nothing to joke about."

"I know," she whispered, squeezing my fingers. "I've been so afraid and so angry. I didn't want to be a part of her scheme, but I didn't know what to do."

I couldn't imagine how it must have felt to be in her position. "You're not in this alone anymore," I said, squeezing her hands. "I will do everything in my power to make sure you are safe."

She pulled her hand free only to throw her arms around my neck. Instinctively, I put my arms around her and returned the embrace. "Thank you," she whispered. "I don't know what I would do without you."

Her slim body felt at home in my arms and I didn't want to let go. Her hair smelled faintly like roses. "Well," I forced out with a slight laugh. "You forget I've met Mrs. Haynes and Miss Sharpe. They would never abandon you."

With a laugh, Elinor pulled back and reluctantly I let her go. My arms felt empty without her. I tried to shake off the feeling as she smiled up at me. "That's true. Miss Sharpe even concocted a plan to sneak me into the ball tomorrow night. Though I'm not sure what I was supposed to do after that."

Somehow I wasn't surprised to hear the former governess had a plan. It was a little alarming to learn it involved the ball. "Just don't do anything rash. Send her or Mrs. Haynes to me if anything happens."

With a nod, Elinor hurried across the pasture. The sun deigned to come out and for a moment her hair glowed in the sunlight. I waited until she was out of sight before I turned back.

Even if I didn't have proof, I would have to warn William that Mrs. Burke was not to be trusted.

But that hadn't gone so well for me before.

~*~

"Why didn't you bring me this immediately?" William demanded, crumpling the note in his hand. "You know I have been waiting for Miss Burke to arrive! I want to meet her right away."

We stood in the library. All of my cousin's guests were somewhere in the garden. The hour was somewhere around three o'clock. The task of draining the pond had taken longer than I had expected.

"So I am to number messenger boy for Mrs Burke among my list of responsibilities now?" I asked, annoyed at being snapped at. My feet ached from being on them for so many hours. Apparently, my boots were not as well fitting as I had thought them to be. "Should I visit her cottage every hour of the day to carry her demands to you?"

My cousin paused. "What? No, of course not. I'd just hoped you might prioritize a matter than I consider more important than anything else. She says there was an accident."

An accident? "She said nothing of an accident when I was there. There is something I think you should—"

"She says Miss Burke lost her wardrobe on the journey here," William interrupted, "and that the girl was left on the road with no one to help her."

"Yes. That's what the young woman said to me. I thought it a strange story."

William spun to face me. "What do you mean by that?"

"I found her on the side of the road, some distance from the village itself. What driver would leave her there? Why not in the village? Or at the gate of the manor, if the man could not find Meadowbrooke Cottage itself?"

"Well. I suppose that's true. But the alternative would be that Miss Burke concocted a lie and why would she do that?"

"I cannot pretend to understand what the young lady or Mrs. Burke might think or do. Another lie would not be unexpected in light of the evidence."

The earl shook his head. "Another lie? What was the first?"

While on my feet, I'd had plenty of time to consider what would be the first step to approach my cousin. "I've been pursuing the matter of where the funds to maintain Meadowbrooke Cottage went," I explained.

"What? Why? Did not Mrs. Burke say that those who she employed took the money for themselves? What more investigation of the matter needs to be done?"

It was difficult to tell which irritated me more: that my cousin was questioning my actions or that he had apparently taken Mrs. Burke's word at face value. Either way, I was quickly losing my patience with him. As an employee of his, this was not a position I wanted to be in.

"Yes, that is what she said. However, I have heard conflicting accounts from all parties. Mr. Watts, Captain Burke's solicitor in London maintains that Mrs. Burke was to pay the wages of her staff and submit any bills for repair to him. Mrs. Burke insists that money was sent to the cottage but not used as it should have been. The housekeeper/cook, Mrs. Haynes, informs me that no money was ever sent and that all appeals for repairs to be made were ignored."

"It is obvious who is lying," William said immediately. "No doubt the servants did not think their mistress would ever come to catch them at their lies and are now trying to keep from being arrested for their crimes."

"I wouldn't be so quick to make accusations," I warned. I gestured with my hand that held the notes I'd collected. "You see these? They are written by Mrs. Burke and go back through the years. Each one contains her insistence that the staff of Meadowbrooke are to handle matters themselves. One letter contains her words that she tires of their repeated requests for money. You can see for yourself"

A troubled expression crossed the earl's face and he waved his hand. "Well, I'm sure that is not the whole matter. Naturally, the servants would not wish to implicate themselves in a crime. You must have misunderstood the situation."

"I have misunderstood? Can you not see that Mrs. Burke has been less than completely honest?" Frustration tinged my tone. "It is clear to me that something is not right in this situation. Mrs. Burke cannot be trusted, and—."

"We've discussed this already, and I am tired of repeating myself," William snapped. "Just leave it alone, Alex."

His tone was sharp and I drew myself up. "Are you making that a command, my lord?" I asked.

"If it has to be, yes! Leave well enough alone! I am going to do what I think is best for my ward, and that means keeping on good relations with her stepmother. There must be some misunderstanding between Mrs. Burke and her staff. I'm sure it won't happen again and nothing more needs to be said about it."

"Very well, sir. I will not mention Meadowbrooke or it's occupants to you again." I pocketed the letters. If my cousin did not accept this proof, it was unlikely that he would even entertain the idea that Mrs. Burke had substituted his ward for her own daughter.

William pinched the bridge of his nose. "And now you're using your high and mighty voice."

"I apologize if it displeases you, my lord. I will endeavor to moderate my tone."

"Stop 'siring' and 'my lording' me, Alex! You are my cousin for crying out loud!"

"You can't have it both ways! Either you are ordering me what to do as an earl, or you are my cousin, in which case you would ask. If you cannot decide how you will treat me, I will look elsewhere for a position."

The last was a threat that left my lips before I could think better of it. Heaven knew where I would find another position. I hadn't been at the manor long enough to qualify as having experience, so it would be difficult to be hired somewhere.

"Alex, you don't mean that."

Clenching my teeth, I shook my head. "I have been trying to find the right balance between being your cousin, your friend, and your steward, William. You don't seem to like anything I do in any of those roles and I can't keep on like this. It seems like I'm going to have to pick one since you will not."

He stared at me, his jaw dropped slightly. "Where is this coming from?" he asked, his tone shocked. "I haven't ordered you about, or demanded your time."

"Haven't you? What about now, when you heard something you didn't want to about Mrs Burke? Your words were 'Leave it, Alex. I'll make it an order if I have to.' When you asked me to find out what I could about Mrs. Burke! What about when I say I have paperwork to do, you say 'leave it. It will still be there.'" I took a deep breath. "I came here to earn my way in life and to have the money to rescue my sister. Not to ride out with you or have fun with you whenever you want a companion!"

William blinked, but before he could say anything—if he had anything to say— the door swung open. "Oh, dear," Lady Berdwell, my aunt, said as she entered. "I thought I heard raised voices. Is everything alright?"