The Sweetest Love (Sons of Worthington Series) (24 page)

Although he wanted to go to her now, there were still things he must do to ready his family and friends for his
traveling abroad
story. He must let his mother know so she wouldn’t worry, and for certain he needed to let his brothers and Hawthorne know so they would not panic. Tristan would only tell his older brother, Trevor, the truth just in case the magistrate wanted to arrest him.

Deciding not to put this off a minute longer, he snatched his coat jacket off the back of a chair and left the study. “Gentry,” he called out as he marched down the hall.

“Yes, my lord.” The servant rushed out of one of the rooms.

“Please have my horse ready to ride quickly.”

“As you wish, my lord.”

Gentry hurried down the hall as fast as his boney legs could carry him. He reached the front door and opened it, but came to a halt. Standing with his fist raised to knock was Dominic Lawrence.

“Hawthorne,” Tristan called and motioned his friend to enter. “What brings you to my door this morning?”

Dominic walked in, but he wasn’t wearing his usual cheerful smile. Instead, worry laced his eyes and frown.

“Worthington, I need to speak to you in private.”

“Certainly.
Let’s adjourn to my study.”

As they walked to the study, Tristan noticed something else different about his friend. The dark circles under
Nic’s
eyes, wrinkled clothes, and his unkempt appearance reminded Tristan of how
he
used to look after returning from a late night of drinking. Although—Tristan took a deep sniff—
Nic
didn’t smell strongly of spirits at all.

Once they reached the study and Tristan closed the door behind them, it was
Nic’s
turn to pace the floor with his hands clutched behind, resting on his lower back. His expression was unreadable, but Tristan could see there was much turmoil weighing on his friend’s mind.

Tristan walked to his chair and sat. “I’m assuming you have heard bad news.”

Nic
stopped and faced him with wide eyes. “How do you know?”

Tristan wanted to chuckle, but refrained. “Because of the way you are acting.”

Hawthorne nodded. “What I have to say is not good at all.”

“Then please, tell me what is on your mind.”

Running his fingers through his hair,
Nic
breathed in deeply then exhaled in slow measurements. His gaze dropped to the floor. “The other day when I met Diana’s maid, the girl intrigued me, and I felt as if I knew her somehow.” He shrugged. “She looks so familiar, but I cannot figure out how we met.”

Tristan groaned and rubbed his forehead. “Stop right there.” When
Nic’s
eyes jumped up and met Tristan’s, he continued. “Are you going to tell me you seduced Miss Tabitha into your bed?”

Confusion swept across Hawthorne’s expression for a split second before he rolled his eyes. “Of course I didn’t seduce her. What would make you think such a thing?”

“Because you have a way with charming women, and I noticed the way you had acted around her the other day.” Tristan arched an eyebrow.

Nic
flipped his hand in the air. “Well, remove that idea from your mind because it did not—and never will—happen.”

Tristan couldn’t believe how relieved he felt right now. He nodded. “Then pardon my intrusion. Please continue.”

Clearing his throat,
Nic
straightened. “As I was saying, the girl interested me enough to watch her closely. Something just was not right about her. Last night I caught her in Diana’s carriage with Diana’s trunks, yet I knew Lady Hollingsworth was at that party which you had attended. When I talked to Miss Tabitha, my suspicion grew so I followed her to a place I have never been before—a few hours southwest of here. She arrived at a small cottage that sat on a beautiful piece of land surrounded by a magnificent grove of trees.”

Tristan nodded. “That’s the place she took me when she kidnapped me. It’s Diana’s grandmother’s cottage.”

“As it were, I continued to spy on her.” He paused and cocked his head. “Were you aware they are keeping one of Lord Elliot’s servants there?”

Surprise washed over Tristan and he blinked. “No, I was not.”

“Apparently, Lord Elliot had beaten her severely, and Diana is now caring for her.”

A smile stretched Tristan’s mouth. Diana had such a loving heart. “That is something she would do.”

“However,”
Nic
said, folding his arms across his chest, “were you aware that Lady Hollingsworth had taken this maid from Lord Elliot’s townhouse the very night of his murder?”

“Of course not… Don’t be ridiculous. I was at the cottage during that time. There was no way Diana had taken this servant on that night.”

“Well, she did. Both Tabitha and the servant girl had spoken about it while I was listening to their conversation.”

Tristan’s mind scrambled to remember details about that night. Wasn’t that the night the women had given him a drink of tea laced with sleeping draught because he’d had a bad dream? Come to think of it, that next morning when he was soaking in the tub and Diana had walked in on him, he realized her boots were caked with dried mud and she looked tired.

Pain throbbed behind his eyes and he tried to rub it away. No! This couldn’t be right.
Nic
must not have heard correctly.

“Tristan,”
Nic
said as he walked closer, “I believe Lady Hollingsworth knows more than she has told you. From what I had overheard, I received the impression that Miss Tabitha killed Lord Elliot and Lady Hollingsworth knows about it.” He placed his hand on Tristan’s shoulder. “And if Miss Tabitha killed Lord Elliot, then she was the one who killed Diana’s husband.”

The confusion inside Tristan grew thicker and it felt like his head was being squeezed by giant hands. Not only that, but his chest tightened, making it harder and harder to breathe. If what
Nic
said was true…

“No!” Tristan pushed his friend’s hand away, rose from his chair, and stormed to the window. The throb in his head had intensified. “What you say cannot be true. If Diana knew Tabitha was the killer, she would have said something to the magistrate.” He swung and glared at Hawthorne. “Mine and Diana’s reputations are at stake here. She knows neither of us wants to pay for a crime we did not commit.” He raked his fingers through his hair as frustration built inside of him like a fierce volcano, ready to explode. “She wants to be with me as badly as I want to be with her, yet we both know making our relationship public is out of the question because of this very issue.” He breathed deeply. “And if she has known all this time who the killer was, then she bloody well better report it to the magistrate.”

Sighing,
Nic
leaned back against the edge of the desk. “Do you think Miss Tabitha is blackmailing Diana then?”

Once again, Tristan thought back to the time he was held prisoner, remembering the way Tabitha and Diana acted around each other. “No. Tabitha is not blackmailing. Diana loves her maid too much to be fearful of her, and Tabitha has too much respect for her mistress to do such a thing.”

That conclusion meant only one thing. Diana knew who had killed her husband and Lord Elliot and wasn’t about to say anything. If Tristan got arrested, would she then speak the truth to free him? He wasn’t sure he wanted to wait until that time comes to know of her loyalty.

“I cannot believe she wouldn’t tell me,” he whispered brokenly.

“There must be a reason.”

Tristan shrugged. “The time we were apart, we each held onto the love we had once shared even though we tried to hide it those years. And now, when we can finally be together, she is the one stopping it…all because of her maid.”

“Let’s not assume anything yet,”
Nic
said. “Because of what I heard Miss Tabitha and the other girl say, I believe Miss Tabitha is the killer. But I will continue to watch them both closely. Perhaps I’m wrong and Diana doesn’t know—”

“Then we must find out.” Tristan’s heart broke—a feeling he had never wanted to experience again. “From what I have observed between Diana and her maid, they are as close as sisters. If she is protecting Tabitha, I want to know now—not after I’m arrested.”

“But how can you find out? If she hasn’t said anything to you…”
Nic
threw up his hands and began to pace. “Does she not love you more than her maid?”

“I want to think that,” Tristan said in quiet tones as he stared blankly at the floor. “And I want to trust her. If I lose that trust, I cannot fully give her mine. And love without trust is no love at all.”

Hawthorne stopped in front of Tristan. “What will you do now?”

“I don’t know. I was actually going to join her at the cottage in a few days without anyone knowing I was there. But now…” He sighed heavily. “I will leave today. I cannot go on any longer without knowing the truth.”

Nic
gave Tristan a quizzical glare. “Are you addled? Why would you go now? What if Miss Tabitha makes you her next victim? And…what if the magistrate finds you with Diana? He would certainly believe you two are in this together.”

“Not if you go with me.” Tristan nodded as confidence built inside him. “You must go with me, mainly so nobody gets suspicious. I need to talk to Diana in person, or at least hear it for myself that Tabitha is the killer. We need hard evidence to present to the magistrate to clear my name from their suspects’ list.”

Pausing, he scratched his chin as thoughts rushed through his head. Silence filled through the room for the next several minutes while memories flitted through Tristan’s head. All that he and Diana had been through, why did it have to end up like this? Why couldn’t love win out…for once in his life?

“I fear the only thing for me to do is go to see her today,” Tristan said in defeat. “Even if it means discovering something I don’t wish to hear.”

Nic
came closer and clasped his hand on Tristan’s shoulder. “Give me time to return home and change before we’re off.”

“Yes, but hurry. I’m exhausted with all this worry. I want the truth out in the open once and for all.”

Nodding,
Nic
turned and hurried out of the room. As Tristan watched Hawthorne leave, he prayed their plan would come about, and the real killer discovered. Tristan didn’t know what he was going to say to Diana or how he was going to act, but one thing was certain—he couldn’t trust her until she opened up to him about Tabitha.
Until that happened, he couldn’t fully give her his heart, either.

* * * *

Diana stared out the window at the passing landscape, not really paying attention to the land she knew was so beautiful. Due to the pain in her heart, it was impossible to gaze upon such loveliness and smile.

The carriage wheel hit a rut and jerked her on the seat. She scooted back and made herself comfortable again. Yet deep in her heart the rut of despair could not be filled.

Pain squeezed her chest as she recalled the exchange she’d overheard between Mr.
Coggins
and Martha early this morning as the two servants loaded the carriage for Diana’s departure.

After all these years of wondering why Ludlow’s servants hated her, she finally discovered the truth.

Blinking back the tears stinging her eyes, their voices echoed in her ears—like a terrifying screech that would always be branded in her memory. They hated Diana because she had never given Ludlow a child. Apparently, Ludlow’s father had a temper when he first married, but after Ludlow was born, the temper disappeared. The servants who knew Ludlow’s family were in hopes that this would happen with Ludlow, but when Diana couldn’t conceive, they blamed her. And ultimately, they blamed her for his death as well.

When she had realized she could not have a baby, a ray of satisfaction had glimmered in her heart. She didn’t love Ludlow, and hadn’t wanted his child. She didn’t want a child to have to experience some of the beatings she had done during their years of marriage. Unfortunately, his judgmental servants couldn’t see it that way.

Diana took a deep breath and slowly released it, hoping to calm her spirits. With any luck, Mr. Lusk would arrive at the manor while she was staying at the cottage. Then she would never have to return to the nightmare she’d endured for far too long.

Shouts from Mr.
Coggins
and the slowing of the carriage alerted her to her surroundings once again.
Home at last.
This cottage held such wonderful, tender memories of the times she spent with her grandmother.
And now…
Diana sighed and smiled. Now new memories would be made—happy and unforgettable.

When the carriage stopped, she opened the door and climbed down. Tabitha rushed out of the house and began issuing instructions to Mr.
Coggins
. Diana tried to ignore the suspicious glares from her disgruntled servant as he carried her trunks inside the house.

“Good day, Tabitha. I trust all is well with the place?”

Tabitha smiled brightly and nodded. “Everything is in order, my lady.”

“Splendid.”

Tabitha moved closer and touched Diana’s arm. “When will Lord Tristan be arriving?” she whispered.

“Our plans were for him to arrive in three days.”