“I think,” he found himself saying, as a vision of Lady Esther came to the forefront of his mind, “that our trust remains, Lord Brandley. It may be strained, it may be tested, but our past actions prove to each other the sort of gentlemen we are.” He looked around the group, his fears slowly being pulled apart and thrown away. “Lord Hogarth was the first gentleman to ever show such disloyalty,” he continued, seeing Lord Watt nodding in agreement. “This is 1815 and The King’s League has been working together for nearly a decade. Only once has such a dreadful thing occurre
d, and we must not allow it to shatter what strength we still have. Yes, I will confess that I have struggled to know what to do or where to go from here, but if I think of Lord Hogarth, then I must believe that he is only one dark spot in our history. We must strengthen our bonds of trust, gentlemen. The days to come will be difficult, and we may have to have men working together, going out in pairs rather than alone, to ensure that trust is recovered, but we will find a way to do so and we will succeed.” His voice grew stronger now, his resolve hardening. “Lord Hogarth’s actions will not bring down The King’s League. We will fight against the fears that his behavior has brought us; we will refuse to allow a sickness to take hold of our hearts. Instead, we will acknowledge his wrongdoing, his treachery, but we will not let it rip The King’s League apart.” He saw Lord Watt smile in agreement, with Lord Brandley’s expression no longer deeply troubled. “Together, gentlemen, we will rise above this and continue on to fight for our King, for our Prince, and for the good of all of England.”
“Here, here!” Lord Riggerton exclaimed, clearly emboldened by Charles’s speech. “And may we also find the cipher and prove to the Prince that we are able to achieve what we intend.”
Charles, knowing now that there was every chance that Lord Leighton would recover, lifted his glass in a toast. “That cipher shall be ours very soon,” he promised, seeing the other gentlemen glance at each other in evident surprise. “Have no doubt about that, gentlemen. Despite all that has occurred, we shall still triumph.”
“The victory will be ours,” Lord Watt added quietly, lifting his glass in response. “We shall have the cipher, the book shall be understood, and many names will belong to us. And that, gentleman, will be a victory indeed. For the King!”
“For the King,” Charles echoed, before throwing back the rest of his whisky with the other gentlemen of The King’s League. They had not been torn apart yet, and he would not allow it to occur now. No matter what Lord Hogarth had done, he would not destroy the League. They would rise higher than before, their trust would have to be strengthened, yes, but they would not be destroyed. The future of The King’s League was not in any doubt. They would not be spurned or trampled. They would, as Lord Watt said, have the victory – and what a victory it would be.
* * *
“You have returned, Lord Westbrook.”
Charles turned around upon hearing Lady Ware’s voice, clearing his throat and inclining his head as she came into the room.
“I am, Lady Ware,” he answered, uncertain whether or not to inform her that this was, in fact, the second time he had come to call. “How does Lord Leighton do?”
She smiled, although it did not quite rid the worry held in her eyes. “He appears to be recovering,” she said quietly, coming to sit down in a chair by the fire that burned in the hearth, filling the room with heat that, had it not been for Lady Ware’s tiredness, would have been quite superfluous. “The fever broke early this morning, and since then he has been sleeping peacefully.”
Relief flooded Charles’s soul. “That is wonderful,” he said fervently “I am very glad to hear it.”
“And Lady Esther has been doing the same,” Lady Ware added. “I believe she has slept for most of yesterday and again last evening.” One eyebrow rose. “You did call yesterday, I think?”
“I did,” he confessed, with a quick smile. “But I was informed that both you and Lady Esther were resting, and I did not want to force you to rise and attend me. It was quite unnecessary, I assure you, and I was contented to return home to do much the same as Lady Esther!” He chuckled, as Lady Ware smiled. “But I am glad that both you and Lady Esther have had the opportunity to recover from what must have been a very difficult ordeal indeed.”
A short silence met his words, with Lady Ware watching him closely. Charles shifted from one foot to the other, feeling a trifle awkward, only for Lady Ware to smile and glance away.
“Your devotion to my niece is quite remarkable, Lord Westbrook,” she murmured, her expression a little dreamlike. “I cannot help but think that, despite the difficult circumstances and the strangeness of what you and she have faced together, Lady Esther has been blessed by your company.”
“I thank you,” Charles murmured, a little surprised by Lady Ware’s compliment. “But I believe that it is she who has brought a good deal of blessing to me, Lady Ware.”
She looked back at him, nodded, and then gestured to a seat. “If you would, Lord Westbrook,” she said, with a flicker of curiosity in her eyes. “There are many things I must ask you, many things I must understand, and I cannot allow another moment to go past without being permitted to ask them.” Waiting until he had seated himself, Lady Ware rose and then pulled the bell, before sitting back down. “Lady Esther will wish to see you, but there will be a short delay until she is ready to greet you. Perhaps we might take tea together, and if you are willing, you might explain all that has occurred? I confess that I do not understand why my brother was so poorly treated nor why Esther was used in such a dark fashion.”
Seeing the worry in her eyes and the twisting of her hands as she held them in her lap, Charles leaned forward and smiled reassuringly.
“I would be glad to,” he said warmly. “Although I must be assured of your discretion and your promise of absolute secrecy of what I am to tell you.” He smiled to himself as Lady Ware’s eyes widened, her astonishment evident already.
“But of course,” she stammered, one hand pressed against her heart. “I shall say nothing to anyone.”
He nodded. “Then allow me to begin.” He spoke for a long time, aware of Lady Ware’s quickened breath, of her quiet gasps and the shock that ran through her when he revealed the truth about Lord Leighton and The King’s League. He saw her eyes fill with tears as he described how he had found Lord Leighton, only for her chin to lift with pride as he explained that Lord Leighton had remained steadfast and true to the king and had not revealed anything to Lord Hogarth. He then told her all about Lady Esther, although he chose not to speak of how she had gone to The Shrew in search of her father, but simply stated that they had been thrown together one evening and that he had, since that moment, been determined to help her.
“She knew all that you were doing then,” Lady Ware asked, her voice hardly any louder than a whisper. “She knew that you were in The King’s League?”
“I did.”
Charles’s head spun around upon hearing Lady Esther’s voice, rising quickly to his feet as she came into the room. She was more beautiful than he had ever seen her before, for her expression was now entirely free of anxiety and fear. Her eyes were warm as they lingered on him, and he could do nothing but hold his hands out to her, walking towards her and wishing he could hug her tight against him. Were it not for Lady Ware’s presence then he would do precisely that, but for the present, he could not.
“My dear,” he murmured, taking her hands and pressing one and then the other to his mouth. “You have quite recovered, I think?”
“I have,” she replied, her voice a gentle touch to his heart. “I have rested for a long time, and I confess now that I feel a good deal better than before.” Laughing, she lifted her shoulders in a half shrug. “I did not mean to sleep for so long however.” A slight blush touched her cheeks, and he smiled, not wanting her to feel any sort of guilt.
“You needed to rest after all that you had to endure,” he said softly. “There is nothing to concern yourself with, Lady Esther.”
“Just ‘Esther’ will do, I think,” she said—so that only he could hear. “I believe we are to be permitted such an intimacy after what we have worked through together.”
His smile spread, and he squeezed her hands gently. “I believe you are right,” he murmured, as a touch of pink spread across her cheeks. “Thank you, Esther. I am very glad to see you so recovered. I have thought of nothing but you ever since I was forced to depart from this house. You have constantly been on my mind.”