Simon had done his best to hide his monetary woes from everyone, but had told the duke? That seemed very odd indeed.
Selina pulled a bag of coins from her reticule. “Mr. Hertzog told me that this emerald is very old and rare. As such, he could not in good conscience give what you told me to ask.”
“What do you mean? If the emerald was old and rare it should be worth at least what I asked for it.”
“No,” Selina said, spilling out the coins on the sofa. “It should be worth much more than what you asked. And with Colin standing next to me, Mr. Hertzog knew better than to cheat me out of the value.”
Mia stared at the coins in disbelief. It was more than she had received for the other pieces of gold. “I can’t believe it.”
“Nor could I. Mr. Hertzog said the age had to be at least five hundred years. And that was not an emerald from a boy’s hilt.”
“Then from what?”
Selina smiled. “A very wealthy knight’s sword, most likely. It might have been lost during a battle or when it was being cleaned. Mr. Hertzog also said if you find any more pieces be it gold, silver, or gems, he would give you an excellent price.”
“I wonder what happened on that piece of land.” If there had been a battle there, then there should be more items on that land. Perhaps she needed to spread out the area she investigated.
“Colin suggested we go through the earl’s family history. Some men were granted land after an important battle for the king.”
Mia thought about all the old books in Simon’s library. “I shall ask Hart about it tonight at dinner.”
“Excellent. Maybe he shall want to dig up the land there to see if there is any more jewels or gold.”
Mia would insist they do just that. The amount Mr. Hertzog paid her would give him enough money to last a few more months.
“Have you heard anything from Tia?” Selina asked, changing the topic of conversation. “Colin paid a call on Middleton while we were in town but Middleton said he’d not found her yet.”
“No,” Mia replied with a sigh. “It’s been a month and there has been no news at all.” With everything that had happened over the past fortnight, she’d barely thought of her twin sister. That was highly unusual. They had been so close growing up but when she moved to Middleton’s estate, they only saw each other once a week. But Mia had thought of her every day until the incident with Davies. “Did Middleton say if his brother was still in town? Maybe she chased after him again.”
“Middleton told Colin that he hadn’t spoken to his brother yet. Colin doesn’t believe he knows where Mr. Tavers is staying.”
Mia closed her eyes. “Where can she be?”
“Middleton will find her.”
“I can only hope.” A long silence filled the room as Mia continued to think about her errant sister and prayed she was all right. Middleton had promised to find her.
Selina leaned forward slowly. “How are things between you and the earl?” she whispered as if Simon might discover them speaking of him.
“We are to marry by the end of next week. You will stand up with me, won’t you?”
“Of course.” Selina glanced away with a frown. “You are certain this is the right thing to do?”
“Yes,” she said far too quickly. Was it the right thing to do? Marrying a man for his protection was not the best way to start a marriage. Although, the more time she spent with him, the more she sensed her feelings changing for him. She definitely liked and respected him, but doubted what she felt for him was love. There was no denying the attraction between them. If only they could be honest with each other.
“If you are certain, then I shall set aside my worries.”
“Thank you, Selina.” If only Mia could do the same.
Simon entered the house hours later and shook off his wet coat. He wanted a hot bath and large snifter of brandy to take the chill off. At least his trip had been successful. He had the license so they could marry on Friday at the parish church. He had contacted a local seamstress about some clothing for Mia. Once they were married, he’d have Madame D’Aramitz put together a wardrobe fitting a countess.
“Good evening, my lord,” Harris said as he took Simon’s coat and hat from him.
“Harris,” he replied with a nod. “I would like a hot bath in my room.”
“Of course, sir. Miss Featherstone is in the library reading. Will you dine with her or in your room?”
As much as he wanted to see her tonight, exhaustion had taken its toll on him. “In my room.”