They arrived at their new home just as dusk was settling in the warm summer air. Abigail had to admit the place was breathtaking. It seemed much older than her own home at Wintercrest. The massive structure was made up of large stones intricately placed together and decorated with flourishing stone angels on every corner. In fact, it seemed impossible in her mind that such large and magnificent place could have been made by man.
The whole estate was one long majestic looking castle. It was raised slightly higher causing the horses to strain to make the last leg of their trip. Abigail wondered if perhaps a moat once surrounded the four turret structure.
Finally, the carriage leveled out after a few switchbacks taking the ride up the steep incline. She was sure that the household had watched them take the long back and forth path up to the main gate as they were all standing on the other side.
“So many,” Abigail said more to herself.
Colton had made it seem that the place would be barely suitable for living. From the look of the gardens on the outside and the large staff, Abigail would guess they had the house fully functional.
“Well, it is ancient. With that means a lot of people needed to keep it up and running. Perhaps that is why my father chose to stay in London. He preferred not to deal with all the work of it.”
“I am just surprised that you found the people necessary. I feel like as if I’ve seen nothing but countryside for the last several hours.”
“Yes, that is true. To the north of us there is mostly just open land. There is a village not far to the east, however. Maybe two miles at the most. This area is not very conducive to farming, so there were plenty of people in need of employment.”
“What employment can people seek here, if you don’t mind me asking?”
He smiled softly as Abigail. In truth he was happy to see the light of interest in her eyes. He partly feared she would take one look at this rocky, marshland and beg to be returned home.
“A great many live in small fishing villages along the bay. I would say that is the predominant occupation. For some time there were tenant farms here, but they rarely produced enough for their own needs. My grandfather decided to combine the plots and give them to sheep herds instead.”
“And what happened to the families that lived on the land?” Abigail asked with concern.
She thought of the tenant farmers she had known well back home. What would happen if their livelihood was removed from them?
“My grandfather wasn’t the kindest of men, and he left quite a many to return to the local village where they again took their place as fishermen. Sadly, I can’t say my father changed much. There were some hired on to tend to the sheep and deal with the preparation and transportation of the wool down south.”
“But your father was so kind and had such a happy disposition. I can’t imagine he would treat others so cruelly.”
Colton shrugged.
“I don’t think he found it cruel, in his mind it was just good business. Wool is much more profitable than tenant farmers. That helped him, all of my family, keep the lifestyle we were accustomed to. I knew he would also pay anyone’s voyage to Virginia that wanted to go. In return, they worked my father’s land for an allotted amount of years.”
Colton could tell by Abigail’s furrowed brows she was not happy with this story. It had never set well with him either, to be honest, this was more the case as he joined the regulars and saw first-hand how much those below his station had to struggle just to survive.
In a way, his return to Cumberton Park was more to help the surrounding community than anything else. He really didn’t need to return to the country; he could have left Abigail in London and taken a boat straight from Liverpool.
He felt in this small way; he might have helped restore some of the people of the land. It most diffidently took a small army of his own to keep the estate house up and running. Even after he left for his new world adventure, he planned to keep the house fully staffed.
Finally the carriage stopped before the front of the house and all the staff stood a little taller expending their new lord’s appearance. Colton exited first and then turned to help Abigail down. They both felt stiff after the long ride.
When Colton turned to greet the staff waves of shocked looks overcame them. He was sure that they had all been warned by Mr. Johnson, the head butler, of his appearance. It must have not done justice to the deformed figure before them.
He bowed his head, letting the brim of his hat cover as much as possible. Mr. Johnson, however, did his best to show no emotion at all and merely stood forward to introduce the earl and countess to the vital members of staff.
Abigail was happy to place eyes on her new lady’s maid, a girl who seemed to be the same age as her, named Mildred. Abigail could see a long list of questions unraveling in the girl's mind as she looked between the scarred face of the earl and Abigail.
They found the house to be not only prepared but adequately warmed and inviting. They were given a quick tour around the main floor, as neither had knowledge of its layout. There was an office that also opened into a vast library, a morning room, sitting room, breakfast room, and a vast dining room where they ended their tour.
A beautiful setting for two was already placed at the far end of the table and trays of ham and warm meat pies were being placed down. Both Abigail and Colton were grateful for the warm meal prepared for their arrival and took their places.
“It’s so quiet,” Abigail said halfway through the meal.
Colton looked up from a pile of notes that had accumulated here since the time he took leave of his London house. He seemed to look around the room as if noticing it for the first time. In truth, silence had been his companion all these years since his injury, and he was very content with it.
“I am just so used to having the twins and Jackie. They bring so much happy noise into the house,” she added when he didn’t respond.
“Yes, I dare say it will be a while before I forget the continuous speech that seemed to flow from those two. I actually was rather enjoying not having to answer so many questions while I ate,” Colton said with a lopsided smile on his lips.
“Did they bother you terribly then?” Abigail asked wondering if her new husband was adverse to just his niece and nephew or perhaps all children.
“No,” he said with a heavy sigh. “Well, a little actually. I just wasn’t used to that kind of attention.”
“You were very dear to them these last few weeks,” Abigail encouraged.
“I think I was more like the attraction of Astley’s Circus.”
“Not at all,” Abigail said with deep sincerity.
Over the next few days, Abigail settled into making a routine in her new house and new position. Most of her time was spent with the housekeeper, Mrs. Hanse. However, there was soon little left that Abigail needed to instruct her on. This left Abigail’s endless hours of the day to wonder alone.
Colton, on the other hand, went right back into the same routine he held back in town. He spent most of his days in his office reading books from the library before the fire. From time to time there was work to be done, though his father and grandfather had made sure the estate was fairly self-sufficient.
He enjoyed the seclusion of his new library. It was much larger than the small cramped office of his London home. It also had its own sitting area with plush couches and chairs. It was perfect as he read up about the country he was about to visit.
He wondered about Abigail, whom he saw so little of. Would she stay here in this big house alone after he left? Perhaps she would return to London and to the society that she seemed to thrive in.
Unquestionably she could return now. In fact, she could expect to now be welcome with open arms as a permanent member of the peerage. It seemed like it would be a logical choice for her.
Rarely did Colton see her during the day. In fact other than their evening meals together, he almost didn’t see her all. He assumed that she kept herself busy, though he wasn’t entirely sure how.
Most of Colton’s focus was now on his preparation for travel and avoiding as much of the staff as possible. Although every member of the staff had been polite to his face, he knew what it was like in a small country village. He was sure that he was the talk of every pub and tavern for miles around.