I had my letter personally delivered to Lord Hamilton by Nanny Beat and my betrothed visited me at the Cavandishs" residence on Mayfair that evening.
There was great cause for celebration in the Cavandish household that night, for Lord Devere had proposed to Susan that very afternoon and Lord and Lady Cavandish had blessed the couple"s plans to marry. Susan was especially excited that her betrothed had suggested that they be married by a special licence granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Such a licence cost the huge sum of twenty-eight guineas and was quite often used by the well-to-do. I daresay I had never seen my dear friend more beside herself with excitement, joy and pride, for she was to be a countess, just as her mother before her. Quite apart from the prestige of the affair, Susan was very taken with Lord Oxford, James Devere, and he with her-everyone agreed it was a fine match.
Due to a falling out between Lord Hamilton and the Church of England over his research, a marriage by special licence was not a route the viscount and myself could take. The risk of my father-or Lord Hamilton"s extended family-objecting was too great for a marriage by the banns to be an option either. So it was decided that it would be a civil licence for us. We only needed to be residents of London for fifteen days and a licence would be granted, whereby we would be permitted to marry in a church or a registry. As neither of us was very religious we decided on the latter option.
Five days later I was visiting with Lord Hamilton, whom I had taken to calling Mr Hamilton. Nanny Beat had accompanied me on the visit to avoid gossip and she was quietly doing needlepoint at the other end of the room, whilst Mr Hamilton and I discussed our wedding plans.
Not that there was too much to discuss. As soon as we were married, we planned to do the frightfully unfashionable thing and leave London for the duration of the social season. We would retire to Lord Hereford"s estate in the Midlands, which housed his extensive reference library, and get to work on my further education.
I enjoyed discussing our plans and I thought Lord Hamilton was also, but as I began speaking of our future together, the man"s good mood ebbed. His light-body clouded over momentarily and I knew that something was bothering him.
"Why are you so distressed?" I asked. "Is it the objections to our marriage that your relatives have expressed?"
"Hardly. We both know they have nothing to fear, and if they wish to get all sweaty over the issue then...so be it." He grinned to hide his worry. "I am distressed because I have a gift for you." He reached down behind his comfy chair and handed me two heavy, bound locked books. "Like you, Miss Granville, these are very precious to me and therefore I want you to have them."
"Oh, my lord!" I was stunned. They looked intriguing, and had locks on them, yet neither of the books had t.i.tles or authors on the cover. "What amazing texts are these?" I looked the curiosities over as I accepted them from my betrothed.
"What is within is too secret to be named," he explained. "Here are the keys." He held them out to me on a fine piece of deep green ribbon which was tied in a bow to stop the keys escaping.
I placed the books aside and, leaning forward to take the ribbon from him, my lips brushed his cheek fondly. "Another man might have given me jewels to win my favour...and that is why I love you, Mr Hamilton."
As Nanny cleared her throat, I took the hint and sat back to investigate my presents further.
"Open them later, my dear, when you are alone," alone," he insisted, rather awkwardly, and I knew there was something underlying the unsettled mood of the viscount this evening. he insisted, rather awkwardly, and I knew there was something underlying the unsettled mood of the viscount this evening.
I smiled. "You know that I know there is something amiss with you?"
Yes, I had told my intended of my extraordinary abilities and how my father had made me suppress them for fear of me ruining his reputation or embarra.s.sing him. To this Mr Hamilton had replied that he had already ruined his reputation in the House of Lords and that no matter what I did with my life, I would never bring him anything but joy and utter delight. Now you see why I couldn"t but adore the man.
"You promised you wouldn"t use your hocus-pocus on me." He defended himself lightheartedly.
"I don"t have to look past the expression on your face to know that something has upset you...is it me? Are you having second thoughts?"
"No," he stated resolutely. "You are not the problem."
"Is it my father? Your relatives? Mr Devere?" I kept trying to guess, while Lord Hamilton shook his head, smiling.
"All of the above," he joked, "and none." His humour evaporated.
I had promised Mr Hamilton that I wouldn"t violate his mental s.p.a.ce, and if I broke that vow now there would be no hope for me during our married life together.
"Are you ill?" I became worried, although I noted that his light-body was much healthier than when we"d first met-especially his heart.
Mr Hamilton laughed away that fear. "My dear Miss Granville, I haven"t felt this good in twenty years. I just wanted to give you a present, that"s all." He sidestepped the whole inquiry. "Is there a law against it that I am not aware of?"
"No," I giggled, as he exaggerated his injured pride for my amus.e.m.e.nt. I wanted to ask why he hadn"t waited until our wedding night to give me his treasured books, but since he"d worked so hard to steer me off the topic I didn"t have the heart to breach it again.
When I returned home that evening and I was alone, as requested, I unlocked the viscount"s gifts.
The silver key unlocked a green volume. Inside was a handwritten text, complete with sketches, of the life"s work of Douglas and Clarissa Hamilton. My eyes immediately filled with tears of grat.i.tude, that he would give me such a personal treasure. On the inside of the thick cover Lord Hereford had written, To my love incarnate my love incarnate-Douglas, and today"s date. I was so moved I could barely breathe and as I was only wearing my chemise, it wasn"t a corset restricting me, but my own heart expanding to fill the confines of my chest. and today"s date. I was so moved I could barely breathe and as I was only wearing my chemise, it wasn"t a corset restricting me, but my own heart expanding to fill the confines of my chest.
The thick red volume was far more extraordinary. It had a gold lock and key, and inside was no text at all. The pages had been hollowed out, but it appeared to be a book when closed. It did, in fact, contain a small vial of white substance-it was not a liquid, so I a.s.sumed it was a very fine powder, like ash.
"Such a big book for such a little vial?" I picked the intricately carved crystal container out of its padded red velvet casing, but I dared not open it until I asked Lord Hereford what it was.
I closed my eyes and focused on the vial to see what history it had to tell me, but apart from a few fleeting glimpses of Lord Hamilton admiring the contents, I saw nothing. It was as if the vessel had been cleansed of all psychic imprints.
I opened my eyes to observe the object once more. Just the exotic design of the vial told me the substance was probably rare or expensive, or both! I placed the vial back in its case and I was closing the cover when I saw that the substance had a slight illumination of its own. My eyes were transfixed by the little glowing bottle for some time. My heart fluttered in my chest with excitement and I was overcome with the kind of warm sentiment that I had only ever felt toward Susan, Lady Charlotte or my dear Nanny Beat: yes, I was falling in love with Mr Hamilton and all his mysterious secrets and knowledge.
This morning I learned that doing the right thing is not always for the best.
I awoke from a lucid dream; Lord Hamilton was dead. I was sure of this, as if it had happened yesterday-only it had not happened yesterday. Mr Hamilton had been in fine health when I"d left him after dinner.
"What is happening?" I felt ill, as if I had one foot in two separate worlds. I was clutching my treasure stone, which I had taken to wearing on a chain around my wrist, where the stone was hidden from the public eye by my gloves.
There was a vision superimposing itself upon my bedroom surroundings. I saw Lord Hamilton slouched in a chair in his study, wine gla.s.s still in his fingers and white as a ghost.
I rang the bell for Nanny and slid out of bed into the icy morning, the shock of which dismissed the awful vision and my nausea departed with it.
Nanny entered, still in her bedclothes.
"I have seen something awful, Nanny. I need to see Lord Hereford at once."
My saving grace nodded and left to prepare.
"Please let me be wrong about this." I moved to the mirror to make myself presentable. "If there is a G.o.d, then let this be a nightmare and nothing more."
He can"t be dead! I reasoned to myself. I had seen the vitality returning to his spirit-body and his physical body was following suit. Lord Hereford could simply not have died of natural causes. I reasoned to myself. I had seen the vitality returning to his spirit-body and his physical body was following suit. Lord Hereford could simply not have died of natural causes. No, not No, not natural natural causes. causes. I saw a hole in my reasoning. I saw a hole in my reasoning.
When our carriage arrived at the front of the viscount"s residence in London, I was distressed to see much commotion afoot. The front door was open and a policeman stood guard.
I was allowed into the house once I explained my relationship to Mr Hamilton. A Constable Fletcher and Lord Hamilton"s cousin, Mr Fredrick Hamilton, met me in the hallway. Mr Hamilton was the heir apparent to the Hereford estate and t.i.tles-he appeared both pleased and displeased to see me.
"What has happened?" I beseeched, trying to look past them into the study.
"I regret to inform you that my dear cousin departed this world during the night, Miss Granville."
I gasped more from knowing than shock. "But how?"
"We"ll know more once the doctor has completed his examination." The constable motioned me into the sitting room to talk.
"I want to see him," I insisted, knowing that doctors were useless when it came to deducing the cause of death; post mortems were seldom in-depth investigations unless foul play was suspected. If Douglas had been murdered then I wanted to know, and by whom, and why. I couldn"t stand to think that someone might have killed him to prevent our union. My eyes turned to Mr Fredrick Hamilton, for he had the most to gain.
"When the doctor is done, Miss Granville," he advised me, whereupon I promptly turned and disobeyed, charging into the study.
The doctor was packing up his things, so I strode toward the desk where Lord Hamilton was slouched, just as in my vision, except for one small detail-the wine gla.s.s was gone. I skirted around the desk looking for recent stains and there it was.
"A fresh wine stain." I pressed my clean white gloves into it and captured the deep red stain on my fingers. "Was my betrothed drinking when he died?" I held my fingertips up for the men to see. Mr Hamilton turned pale as the constable looked at him.
"Why, there was a..." He appeared too afraid to say it.
"Yes, man?" the constable demanded.
"Wine gla.s.s...that had spilled all over the desk, so I had the maid clean it up." He appeared to me to be afraid, but not guilty.
"You never disturb a crime scene!" The constable was irate and the rebuke made little, plump Mr Hamilton jump.
"But I a.s.sumed he"d had heart failure...you see how he looks." Mr Hamilton motioned to the deceased. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the handkerchief in his free hand.
"I second Mr Hamilton"s diagnosis," the doctor added. "Lord Hereford has died from apoplexy."
"Apoplexy?" I queried.
"A stroke, Miss Granville," the doctor explained, as if I were ignorant. "Lord Hereford was not a young man. Too much exertion or excitement excitement means high blood pressure...his ticker couldn"t cope. There is no mystery here." means high blood pressure...his ticker couldn"t cope. There is no mystery here."
"Boiling foxglove leaves in wine was a preferred poisoning technique in earlier centuries, as it induces fatal heart events in victims," I posited, "and it leaves no scars on the way down."
"How do you know that, Miss Granville?" The constable was genuinely curious.
"I read, Constable Fletcher," I replied a little dryly. It was not easy to stand there arguing with these idiots, whilst Lord Hamilton was dead beside me. I could no longer deduce information from Lord Hamilton"s light-body, for it had withdrawn with his spirit at the time of his death.
"Well, if my cousin has died of such a thing, we know who did it," Mr Hamilton commented snidely to the doctor.
"I rather think that if I were going to kill your cousin, Mr Hamilton, I would have done it after the wedding. As it is, I stand to inherit nothing from my betrothed, or my father." I could see the statement put me in the clear so far as the constable was concerned, but it also made me realise that I was dest.i.tute.
I walked around the desk and placed my hands on Lord Hamilton"s shoulders, hoping to pick up some impression from his remains, but I felt nothing. He had gone to his beloved wife, Clarissa. Perhaps this was how fate would have it whether Lord Hereford"s death proved to be murder or not. Maybe Clarissa was not prepared to share Douglas with another woman? Still, as I had been left the Hamiltons" combined knowledge in one huge volume, I had achieved my aims, in a way.
"May I have a moment?" I requested, a little of my sadness slipping into my voice.
"I apologise, Miss Granville," the constable said as the doctor and Mr Hamilton made for the door, thankful for the opportunity to withdraw, "but if a crime is suspected of being committed here, I can hardly leave you alone at the crime scene."
"I only wish to pray quietly for a moment," I explained.
"I"ll be quiet," the constable a.s.sured me, taking a seat.
Just because the viscount"s spirit had left his body, it didn"t mean his spirit had departed the premises. I turned back toward Lord Hamilton and, closing my eyes, I quietly opened myself to his presence. What happened here, Douglas? What happened here, Douglas? Do Do my perceptions deceive me? Could you have died from natural causes? my perceptions deceive me? Could you have died from natural causes?
The lighting in the room changed; it was evening now and candles burned brightly in the room. I felt Douglas very close, but before I had spotted him, my attention was diverted to the door of the study as two gentlemen entered.
"Miss Granville is meant for Mr Devere, Hereford," said one of the stately-looking fellows, dispensing with formality to get straight to the point. "There is nothing to debate here tonight."
I looked back to the desk to find my betrothed alive, but his expression gave me the impression that he was not happy to see his callers. "She does not wish to marry Mr Devere," Hamilton replied, not sounding surprised by their visit or the nature of it.
"You owe us your allegiance, Hereford, and we have never needed it before today," retorted the fellow, who had not taken a seat, but stood holding his coat and hat in his hands. Obviously, he did not plan on staying long.
"This is nothing personal, Hereford," said the other gentleman who was younger than the first. "We didn"t spend all these centuries creating Miss Granville so that you could abscond with her."
Creating me? Was I hearing this correctly? Was I hearing this correctly?
"You don"t have any claim on her," Hamilton advised them, sounding most amused by their delusions, "and good luck holding such a woman when she doesn"t want to be held."
"She will will marry Devere. It has been foreseen," said the larger, more threatening fellow, who was already putting his hat on to take his leave. "One way or another, Hereford, it will eventuate." marry Devere. It has been foreseen," said the larger, more threatening fellow, who was already putting his hat on to take his leave. "One way or another, Hereford, it will eventuate."
Who are these men, Douglas? Who are they working for? Mr Devere? I couldn"t believe the man would hire killers! Besides, these two had the look of men more highly placed in society than Mr Devere was himself. And from the intimate tone of the conversation, I concluded that Lord Hamilton knew these fellows well. Why the h.e.l.l was everyone so interested in who I married? I couldn"t believe the man would hire killers! Besides, these two had the look of men more highly placed in society than Mr Devere was himself. And from the intimate tone of the conversation, I concluded that Lord Hamilton knew these fellows well. Why the h.e.l.l was everyone so interested in who I married? My secret craft; My secret craft; had word somehow got out about me? had word somehow got out about me?
The vision vanished along with all sense of Douglas. That was all I was going to get out of this place today; I was in no fit state for any more channelling at present anyway. "I"m done," I told Constable Fletcher, who immediately sprang from his seat to prevent me from departing.
"I"ll need to question you further, Miss Granville."
"Not now." I flatly rejected the idea. My head was swimming, my stomach was full of panic and my heart was aching for the happy marriage it would never know. "Perhaps this afternoon?" I became more amiable in the hope of getting my way. I really needed to be alone and thankfully the constable was understanding, as he nodded in agreement.
"If I might just ask..." He begged my indulgence. "What distracted you from your prayer just now?"
"Pardon?" I must have been in a trance.
"You looked from the doorway to the desk several times," he said, seeming confused that I didn"t recall my actions of only minutes beforehand.
"I was just considering all those who had good cause to kill my betrothed...there were many people who did not want Lord Hereford and myself to wed."
"So you do believe he was murdered?"
"Most certainly," I said plainly. "But now that all the evidence has been cleared away, I daresay you won"t have a case for murder, let alone a chance of finding the culprit."
The constable"s light-body dulled a little. He thought I was insulting him, and he was angered that he"d not discovered the oversight himself.
"No reflection on your skill, constable. Your profession does not have all the resources it should. However, I am sure it will be concluded that Lord Hereford died of apoplexy, due to the excitement of his forthcoming wedding. That"s nice and neat."
"Such serious cynicism in a woman your age, Miss Granville?" Thankfully Constable Fletcher could see my point. "It almost sounds as if you are issuing me a dare?"
"I know how the law works, so there is little point." I felt a great bitterness well up inside my throat, and I knew I was taking my anger out on the wrong person. Hence, I promptly curtseyed and left.
LESSON 5.
MARRIAGE.
Lord Cavandish had vowed that I would never be dest.i.tute so long as he lived, and his family was in accord with him. I was very grateful for their generosity and kindness, but I had no intention of imposing on them for one moment longer than it took me to work out what on earth I was going to do.