Chapter 4 - The Night the Duchess Confessed
The person closer was Lady Beatrice.
At least that was what Clara believed after reading her mother's letter again.
Beatrice had known about the trust.
She had known about the false diagnosis.
She had warned them.
But warnings could have been another form of manipulation.
Sebastian wanted to confront her.
Clara insisted they wait.
“She may know more than she has told us.”
“What if she's involved?”
“Then we need to know before we accuse her.”
They arranged to meet Beatrice at Blackmere chapel.
The old chapel was rarely used.
It had been built for Sebastian's grandfather.
Stained glass cast colored shadows across the stone floor.
Beatrice arrived alone.
She carried no gloves, no purse, no escort.
She looked tired.
“You found your mother's letter.”
Clara nodded.
“You knew.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because your mother begged me not to.”
“Why?”
“Because she believed the only way to protect you was to keep you outside the family.”
Clara frowned.
“But I married Sebastian.”
“I know.”
“She couldn't have predicted that.”
“She predicted more than you realize.”
Beatrice sat.
“Your mother was in love with your father.”
Clara smiled faintly.
“They were married.”
“Before your father, there was another man.”
Clara frowned.
“Who?”
Beatrice looked at Sebastian.
“Your father.”
Silence.
Sebastian went rigid.
“What?”
“Not a lover.”
Beatrice shook her head.
“They were young. Your father knew her through business. He admired her intelligence. They almost married.”
Clara stared.
“My mother almost married your father?”
“Yes.”
“Then she chose my father.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because your father loved her without needing her wealth.”
Clara felt tears rise.
She had never known.
Beatrice continued.
“Your mother discovered that Arthur Ashford had become involved with people who wanted control of family assets. She rejected him. He never forgave the humiliation.”
Sebastian looked stunned.
“My father wanted her trust?”
“Yes.”
“And when she refused?”
“He attempted to pressure her.”
Clara's voice shook.
“Is that why she left England?”
“Yes.”
“She ran from him.”
“Yes.”
“Then why did she keep his secrets?”
“To protect you.”
Beatrice's eyes filled.
“Your mother believed if she exposed everything publicly, men who had influence in both countries would retaliate against your father and daughter.”
Clara closed her eyes.
“She carried all of this alone.”
“Yes.”
Sebastian spoke.
“And the false diagnosis?”
Beatrice looked at him.
“Arthur ordered it.”
“When?”
“Before his death.”
“How could he?”
“He had Prescott under his control.”
“But Arthur died.”
“Yes.”
Beatrice looked toward the chapel doors.
“Julian continued it.”
Clara asked,
“And you?”
Beatrice's voice broke.
“I knew.”
The admission hung between them.
“You could have stopped him,” Clara said.
“Yes.”
“But you didn't.”
“No.”
“Why?”
Beatrice wiped her cheek.
“Because I was afraid.”
Sebastian's jaw tightened.
“Of what?”
“Your father had evidence against me.”
“What evidence?”
“My husband had been using Blackmere funds to pay political officials. I helped hide the accounts.”
Sebastian stared at her.
“You were involved.”
“Yes.”
“Did you hurt Clara?”
“No.”
“Did you know Julian intended to?”
“Yes.”
“And you did nothing.”
“I sent the anonymous letter.”
“That was not enough.”
“I know.”
Clara looked at her.
“What do you want now?”
Beatrice reached into her coat.
She removed a key.
“This opens your mother's old office.”
“What?”
“It was sealed after her death.”
Sebastian took the key.
“Why give it to us now?”
“Because I am tired of surviving through silence.”
She stood.
“I spent twenty years believing secrets protected families.”
Her voice trembled.
“They don't.”
“What do they protect?”
“Power.”
She walked away.
The old office was located in a forgotten wing of Blackmere House.
Dust covered the furniture.
Clara entered first.
The room still smelled faintly of lavender.
There were shelves of books.
A writing table.
Photographs.
A small piano.
And a portrait of Clara's mother.
She looked younger than Clara remembered.
Clara approached the desk.
A hidden drawer opened with the key.
Inside was a packet.
Sebastian found the first document.
A legal agreement.
It named Clara as beneficiary.
Not of money.
Of the Ashford family trust.
Clara frowned.
“What does this mean?”
Thomas Wren, who had joined them, read it.
“It means your mother transferred her American shares into a joint trust with Blackmere.”
“And?”
“The trust gives you authority over both assets if you marry an Ashford heir.”
Clara stared.
“Why?”
“Because your mother wanted to make sure no Ashford could take control of your shares.”
Sebastian looked at her.
“She protected you from my family.”
Clara's fingers trembled.
“She knew this would happen.”
Inside the packet was another letter.
From her mother to Arthur Ashford.
You may inherit the title, but you will never inherit my daughter's life.
Beside it was a second document.
A confession.
Arthur admitted he had ordered Prescott to falsify Clara's diagnosis.
He had done it because he believed Sebastian's eventual wife should be chosen from an aristocratic family.
He intended Sebastian to marry Vivienne Russo.
Julian would then gain the trust if Sebastian died.
But Sebastian had defied him.
He married Clara.
Arthur died shortly afterward.
Julian inherited the plan.
Clara looked at Sebastian.
“He married me against his father's wishes.”
“Yes.”
“And you knew part of this.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
Sebastian swallowed.
“Because I wanted one thing in my life that wasn't decided by my family's secrets.”
“What?”
“You.”
Clara's eyes filled.
She stepped closer.
“Then why keep the doctor’s letter?”
“Because I wanted to prove who had done it before telling you.”
“You should have trusted me.”
“I know.”
This time she took his face in her hands.
“I am still angry.”
“I know.”
“I may be angry for a long time.”
“I'll wait.”
She kissed him.
It wasn't forgiveness.
Not yet.
It was a promise that forgiveness might one day become possible.
Then Thomas entered holding another document.
“Your Grace.”
Sebastian turned.
“What?”
Thomas looked pale.
“The trust has one final clause.”
“What clause?”
“If Clara gives birth before the first anniversary of the marriage, control passes completely to the mother and child.”
Clara's hand moved instinctively to her stomach.
Sebastian stared at her.
They both understood.
May you like
They had only six months left.
And Julian now knew exactly what they were trying to protect.
Related Stories
