Chapter Twenty-Two – Rumours
“My lady.”
Looking up from the frustrating task of embroidering a cushion, Beth found Grafton, the tight-lipped butler with the serious frown, standing in the doorway, slightly inclining his head as she turned to him.
“Yes?”
“The Dowager Lady Radcliffe as well as Lady Adelaide are here. Shall I see them into the drawing room?”
“Yes, of course.” Jumping to her feet excitedly, Beth quickly discarded her embroidery as it had proved to be mind-numbingly boring, making her question whether she would ever fit in among the ladies of the ton. However, the thought of seeing her grandmother and half-sister brought a joyous flutter to her heart, and Beth could barely keep herself from clapping her hands together in enthusiasm.
As her guests entered the room, Beth had to remind herself not to be overly familiar with her grandmother in the presence of her half-sister. After all, the young woman still did not know who Beth truly was. That thought brought on a stab of pain and regret, which, however, quickly evaporated upon seeing the gentle smile on her grandmother’s face.
“Lady Elton,” her grandmother greeted her, a mischievous twinkle in her pale blue eyes as she came toward her with outstretched hands. “I sincerely hope you are well, my dear.”
Accepting the dowager’s hands, Beth rejoiced at the reassuring pressure against her own. Oh, how she longed to embrace her grandmother! “I most certainly am,” she emphasised, returning the dowager’s affectionate smile and delighting in the touch of relief that came to the old woman’s eyes. “I admit I am most happily settled.”
“I am delighted to hear that,” her grandmother said. “I had hoped that you would find him an amiable husband.”
“My best wishes on your wedding,” Lady Adelaide added rather shyly, glancing from their grandmother to Beth as though begging their pardon for joining their conversation.
Smiling warmly at her half-sister, Beth beckoned them to take a seat. “I admit I felt a trifle lonely considering that I know so few people here in London. It is most kind of you to call on me today.”
“Oh, I simply had to know if you were happy in your new home,” her grandmother said affectionately.
Lady Adelaide nodded before saying, “And I wished to thank you for what you did for me at the ball.” Gratitude shone in her emerald eyes as she looked at Beth, a heart-warming smile curling up her lips. “I fear without you I would have been lost.”
“Then you do not disapprove of my interference?” Beth asked carefully, delighted to be exchanging the first real words with her half-sister. “I feared I might have overstepped my boundaries.”
Lady Adelaide shook her head vehemently. “Oh, no, not at all. Although I admit I was confused when you first addressed me, I did and still do appreciate your help.”
“Do I dare ask what happened since that night?” Beth enquired, glancing from her half-sister to her grandmother. “As I recall your father was quite furious when he did not find you in Lord Arlton’s company and feared that Lord Elton had compromised you.”
A slight blush came to Lady Adelaide’s face, and for a moment, she averted her eyes. “I do apologise for his accusations. I suppose I should have reappeared sooner, but I was so relieved to have escaped Lord Arlton that I couldn’t bring myself to leave the library. After all, from what my father had said earlier that evening, Lord Arlton had intended to propose that night.”
“But he did not, did he?” Beth asked, hoping that Lord Arlton had not changed his mind after she had spoken to him last.
A brilliant smile on her face, Lady Adelaide shook her head. “He did not,” she whispered as though in awe of Beth’s craftiness in thwarting her father’s plan. “And I do believe he has lost all interest in proposing to me in the future.” She took a deep breath. “Father was furious. He was quite harsh when he asked me what had happened.”
Patting her granddaughter’s hand, the dowager nodded. “You held yourself well, my dear.” Then she turned to Beth, a meaningful look in her eyes. “My son can be a bit of a brute when he does not get his way. However, so far, he seems to have accepted that Lord Arlton has lost interest in Adelaide. We can only hope to find her a suitable match before he decides to marry her off to another one of his friends.” Shaking her head in disapproval, the dowager took a deep breath, then once more turned to Lady Adelaide. “Be of good cheer!” she encouraged. “I’m certain we shall be successful in finding you a good husband.” A mischievous smile curled up her lips as her eyes shifted to Beth. “Lady Elton, you seem quite resourceful when it comes to these matters, may we call on you for assistance?”
Understanding her grandmother’s meaning, Beth nodded her head joyfully. “Certainly, Lady Radcliffe. It will be my pleasure.” Then she looked into her half-sister’s grateful eyes. “I, too, am certain that we shall find you a wonderful husband like my own.”
“Thank you,” Lady Adelaide whispered. Then she took a deep breath, and her shoulders visibly relaxed.
Delighted with her grandmother’s and half-sister’s visit, Beth wondered if they could be of help to her as well. “May I enquire how long you have known my husband? As you very well know, I’ve only had the opportunity of making his acquaintance a fortnight ago. Therefore, I’m afraid I know very little about the man I married.”
Lady Adelaide leant forward, but then hesitated when her grandmother was about to speak. “You tell her, dear,” her grandmother prompted, a delightful twinkle in her eyes as they shifted from one granddaughter to the other.
“Well,” Lady Adelaide began, licking her lips as she considered what to say. “As I am not a very sociable person, I admit I’m not all that well acquainted with him. However, I do believe that he is a very kind man. Never have I seen him speak a harsh word to anyone. His parents have been dead for over two decades now, and he and his sister grew up with their aunt and uncle.” Her face darkened a little. “Although I do not wish to speak ill of anyone, I have to say that his uncle is rather an unpleasant man.”
“Unpleasant?” Beth snorted, and for a moment, her half-sister froze, clearly afraid that she had given offence. “Although I’ve only met him once, I am certain he is not a good person.” Lady Adelaide visibly relaxed. “He seems overly judgemental and disapproving of my husband, completely disregarding his opinions and instead forcing his own down everyone’s throat. From what I observed at my wedding breakfast, I must say that his son is merely an echo of his father while his wife barely dares open her mouth in his presence.” Beth shook her head in vehemence. “That is definitely not the kind of marriage I desire.”
“Nor I,” Lady Adelaide whispered, hope shining in her eyes as she looked at Beth.
“Then you can consider yourself lucky,” her grandmother observed, “for Lord Elton has always been remarkably untouched by his uncle’s ideas of marriage. He is indeed a very kind man, who has always appeared to be genuinely interested in finding a woman who could be his equal. However, maybe it is not surprising that he longs for love after the disregard he’s always received at the hands of his family.”
Beth nodded as her grandmother’s observation matched her own. “Do you know what happened to his parents?”
“There were a lot of rumours going around when they were killed,” her grandmother explained, her eyes slightly narrowed in thought. “However, as far as I know the family spent time at their hunting lodge and were set upon by some criminal. Both his parents were killed. Though, the culprit was never caught.”
“How sad!” Beth exclaimed as renewed grief over her mother’s death brought tears to her eyes. “To think he lost his parents so young!”
“As far as I recall, he was barely a few months old at the time,” her grandmother continued. “However, all his life, people have been comparing him to his father, who was a drunk all his life and treated others, including his own family, with disregard. He was the black sheep of the family, and I suppose many felt something akin to relief when he died and his uncle took over until Tristan would come of age.”
“In what way do people compare him to his father?” Beth asked. So far, she had not noticed a certain partiality for liquor.
“Some time before he was killed, his father had gone mad,” her grandmother explained. “As he was always raging and ranting about this or that, his family kept him away from Town, but I guess rumours do spring up under these circumstances. I cannot say that I know the details of what happened. However, Lord Elton is generally looked upon with a sense of cautious perusal as rumour has it that he is on his best way to losing his mind like his father did.” Holding Beth’s expectant gaze, the dowager shook her head. “I, however, have never been able to observe any signs of a feeble mind in him. Naturally, such rumours plague him.”
Lady Adelaide nodded. “Yes, I agree. He always appears rather sad, especially when he stands off to the side, not interacting with others.” A shy smile flitted across her face. “I myself often keep my distance from large crowds as they tend to overwhelm me. Therefore, I’ve occasionally observed how he laughs with others as though bearing a mask on his face which slides off the moment he feels unobserved. In these moments, he seems rather lonely as though wishing he could be elsewhere. Even more so now that his sister is gone.”
“Oh, I’m glad you mention her,” Beth exclaimed, having all but forgotten to ask. “What happened there?”
“She was recently married to a Scot,” her half-sister answered, growing a bit livelier as she spoke. “Everyone was surprised for she had always been rather insistent on remaining unmarried, much to her uncle’s disapproval. Still, despite his objections, she had always successfully thwarted any attempt made to see her married.” A touch of awe in her eyes, Lady Adelaide smiled. “I sometimes wished I could be like her. So confident and brave.”
“But now she is married after all?” Beth prompted, and a smile came to her face as she saw her half-sister so relaxed.
Lady Adelaide nodded. “We were all surprised when it happened. Apparently, a Scottish gentleman asked for her hand, and they were married at his family’s estate in Scotland. He had only come to London to claim his late father’s title.”
“Did they marry for love?” Beth asked, wondering if, after all those years of thwarting suitors, her husband’s sister had been swept off her feet after all.
Her grandmother shook her head. “I doubt it, although I do not know for sure. Rumour has it that she was quite reluctant to leave for Scotland.”
“And what about my husband? Did he attend the wedding?”
Again, her grandmother shook her head. “He did not, which, too, came as quite the surprise. Brother and sister had always been close. I suppose losing their parents that young had brought them closer together, made them depend on one another even more.”
Beth frowned, wondering what had happened between her husband and his sister. Could it have something to do with the way he saw himself these days? “Did they have a falling out?”
The dowager as well as Lady Adelaide shrugged. “No one knows for sure,” her grandmother said. “However, it is fairly obvious that it upset Lord Elton when he was not invited to his sister’s wedding.”
“I should think so,” Beth mumbled, wondering if Tristan would tell her should she ask about his sister and what had happened between them?
After spending the remainder of the morning with her grandmother and half-sister, Beth felt more at home in London than before. Although her half-sister did not know her identity, the young woman seemed to have noticed the same bond that had caught Beth off guard as well. Maybe over time, they would at least become close friends. And who knew? One day, a time might come when Beth could tell Adelaide the truth in private, not to ruin her life, but only to strengthen their connection.
“Please feel free to call on me any time,” Beth said, smiling at both when they took their leave. “It has truly been a most wonderful day.”
Both women nodded in acquiescence, and Beth noticed the satisfied smile on her grandmother’s face as she looked back and forth between her two granddaughters. It warmed Beth’s heart.