John Chamberlain, the Duke of Lennox, read through the letter for the third time. It was not ambiguous. Ezra Burk, the Earl of Pembrook—and his ex-father-in-law—was calling in the loan he’d made to John. No reason for the request was given in the letter.

Blackleg disease had raged through his sheep the winter before his wife died, wiping out over half of his flock. He’d urgently needed capital to rebuild his stock and to get the estate through the rest of the year until he could sheer the new sheep. He had workers he needed to pay, and he was not about to let go of those people who depended on him for their livelihood.

He had fully intended to pay off the loan, but when Annabel died he was devastated and pleaded with Ezra to extend the loan until he recovered from his grief. Ezra had agreed and John had been making regular payments on the loan since then.

But that had been more than five years ago and he had still not paid off the loan in its entirety. This letter had come as a shock and he realized he would still be unable to pay off the loan at this time.

He had already contacted his bank about a new loan to pay off the Earl, but they had refused, sighting the fact that he already had a mortgage on the estate, and his current income was insufficient to warrant a new loan.

The only thing he could think to do was to go up to Pembrook Hall and plead with Ezra not to call in the loan at this time. His new flock had been well established and he would be sheering in the late-autumn. Perhaps he could convince Ezra to wait for his payment until after the sheep were sheered and the wool was sold.

He checked the calendar. It was now mid-September and he figured he would have the wool sold by mid to late November. That was only two to three months. Surely, he could persuade Ezra to wait that long.

It was a day’s ride to Pembrook Hall, and he set out without telling his Aunt the reason for his travel. Nor did he stop in to say good-bye to his daughter, which was not unusual for him.

The weather was fair and he made good time, arriving late evening after making an early start. He had the most conflicted emotions as he approached the Earl’s home, for it was here he had first met Annabel, his wife to be. And while the marriage was arranged, it soon blossomed into a great love. He could not help but be flooded with images of her and their happy life together as he approached the house.

John had not written ahead to warn Ezra of his visit and when he knocked on the front door, he was uncertain how well he would be received. Ezra and he had not met again since the day of Annabel’s funeral at Haverford and had not corresponded since then, except for John making regular payments on the loan.

The door was opened by the butler.

“Ah, Your Grace, we were not expecting you,” he said.

“Is the Earl at home?”

“Yes, he is. Come in and I shall announce you. One moment, please.”

John went inside and stood waiting in the entrance hall as the butler went to find the Earl. He soon returned.

“This way, Your Grace.”

The butler led the way to a drawing room where the Earl and his wife, Hester, were seated at a card table, playing dominos.

“Ezra, Hester, good evening, and please forgive the intrusion. Ezra, I needed to speak with you about your letter and I didn’t want to write you and wait for your reply.”

“Good evening,” Hester said sweetly. “It’s a pleasure to see you, John.”

Ezra stood up, obviously displeased with the interruption.

“John, this is most unexpected and not very welcome.”

Ezra was a sour looking man with a red face and straggly whiskers. He had beady eyes and a large red nose. He was strangely shaped with a thin chest, a large belly, and spindly legs.

“I thought my letter was perfectly self-explanatory and unambiguous. Why are you here?”

“To see if there is some way we can resolve this issue as gentlemen. I’m unable to make the full payment at this time and wanted to negotiate a fair settlement.”

“You certainly don’t expect me to deal with this at this time of night? You had better stay over and we can deal with this in the morning. I’m certainly in no frame of mind to deal with this now.”

“Very well, Ezra, and I thank you for your hospitality.”

“Huh,” Ezra said. He then turned to the butler who was still attending. “Show His Grace to the east guest room.”

“Yes, My lord.”

“Have you eaten?” Hester asked.

“I have not,” John replied.

“Barton, please arrange a tray with cook and take it to his room after you have settled him in.”

“Of course.”

Barton led John out of the sitting room and up the stairway to the guest room.

“Could you have groom take care of my horse, please?” John asked.

“Of course. And I shall bring you your tray presently.”

“Thank you, Barton.”

“Your Grace.”

* * *

The next morning John arose and looked out the window. The estate was nestled in amongst a forest. Timber was the Earl’s primary income, although he was cutting far more than he was growing, and John suspected his supplies would soon be exhausted. Perhaps that was why Ezra was calling in the loan.

He did not want to delay any longer than necessary his meeting with Ezra so he dressed and went down to the conservatory where he knew breakfast was usually served. Only Hester was seated.

“Good morning and thank you for your hospitality. You’re most kind,” John said, seating himself opposite his mother-in-law. “Will Ezra be down soon?”

“Oh, he’s been up a long time and has already breakfasted.”

“I see. I must have slept late. It was a long and tiring ride over here.”

“My husband just went to the stables and should be back shortly.”

“There you are,” Ezra said as he marched up to the table. “Finish breakfast and I’ll be in my study. You know where that is, no?”

“I do.”

John finished his simple breakfast quickly and headed to Ezra’s study and went inside.

Ezra looked up as John entered. “I’m sorry you had to come all this way. I assume you didn’t come to pay off the loan?”

“And that’s correct.”

“Then what do you hope to accomplish? I’ve extended the loan twice already and I’m in need of capital myself and am not prepared to extend the loan again—under any circumstances.”

“Please, Ezra, I’m not asking for much.

Ezra considered for a moment, then said, “Come with me.”

He led the way out of his study to the stables. He had a horse hitched up to a wagon and he and John headed out along one of the many logging roads on the Pembrook property.

They spoke little until they came to the sawmill. Ezra stopped the wagon.

“Here, this is what I wanted to show you,” he said as he jumped down. John followed.

They walked to the side of the mill and Ezra pointed to the large wheel being fed by the sluice.

“Look at that. The damn thing is about to fall apart. I need to completely rebuild the gears, the wheel, and the sluice. That’s what I need the money for, John. It’s not for some personal whim. This is the basis of my business and I must repair the mill as soon as possible or I’m completely out of business.” He turned to John. “You understand, don’t you, son?”

How could he not? John studied the dysfunctioning mill and knew he must do what he could about repaying the loan as soon as possible. But what was possible?

Ezra led John back to the wagon and they returned to Pembrook Hall.

Back in Ezra’s study, he said, “My loan is secured by your Hollyoak House and I plan to sell that as soon as possible after I take possession. My bank and my attorneys are working on that as we speak.”

“But that house is to be the school for my workers’ students. I’ve been preparing that for some time now.”

“Then you’ll be too late.”

“But I’ve made every scheduled payment on time. Certainly, you can’t cancel the note just like that? There has to be a grace period where I have the opportunity to pay off the loan after notification. Is that not standard?”

“That’s as may be with a conventional loan, but if you read our loan agreement, you will find that does not apply in this instance.”

“Ezra, please. In memory of your daughter…”

“John, don’t you dare play that card with me.” Ezra came from behind his desk and charged up to John, threateningly. “You promised to care for her and you failed.”

“Those were circumstances beyond anyone’s control. You know that.”

John charged ahead. “Then for the sake of your granddaughter. Please, Ezra, just give me three months. By then I will have sold my wool and I can pay you back in full at that time.”

“No. Unless you agree to twenty-five percent interest on the entire loan.”

“Ezra, that is unreasonable and unfair. But I will pay you twenty percent interest instead of the five we agreed upon.”

“Very well, but six weeks, not three months. I need that money urgently and that is the longest I can extend the loan. And I insist on twenty-five percent interest.”

John knew he was backed into a corner. But perhaps he could work something out in the meantime. At least he would not lose the second house just yet.”

“I agree,” John quietly agreed.

“And how is my granddaughter? I regret we’ve not seen her for a year and a half or so.”

“She’s thriving. I’ll have a portrait made of her and will send you that. And, of course, you and Hester are always welcome to visit her at any time.”

Ezra went back to his desk and wrote something out. He finished and offered it to John.

“The revised agreement. Sign it, and remember it’s due, and to be paid in full, by the date on this document—end of October.”

“I understand. And now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s a long ride back to Haverford. And it’s a late start as it is. And thank you both for putting me up.”

Ezra nodded.

* * *

It was a fraught ride back to Haverford House. John’s mind swirled with possible ways to solve his problem. But no matter in which direction he looked, he could not think of a way to save his second house.

John had built the house, especially for Annabel because she felt Haverford House was too large, impersonal, and cold. She wanted something smaller, more comfortable and homey. And John had used all of his free resources to build that house for her. He had named it Hollyoak, as the house was surrounded by a grove of fine old oaks, and, at the back, Annabel had planted a number of Holly bushes—a plant she loved so much—saying it represented their lives—with the red berries of passion and the thorns of ever changing time.

John could not bear to move into the house after Annabel died, and he actually delayed finishing the building it until he decided to use the house as a school for the workers’ children. And now, unless he could repay the loan, he would lose the house forever when Ezra sold it.

Once home, John spent the next several days inventorying all his possessions to see if there might be something he could sell to raise the payment. The six weeks Ezra had given him were not enough time to sheer the sheep and sell the wool. And even if he did accomplish that, it would probably not be enough with the added interest he had agreed to pay.

He spent weeks searching the estate to find objects of value but, although the house had many fine objects, none were of significant value to warrant selling.

He, again, contacted his bankers who, again, refused his request for a loan. He knew Aunt Clarissa had money from her husband, but he had no idea what her capital was, and quickly decided against approaching her with his problem. However willing she might be to help him if he asked, he was loath to do anything that might jeopardize her security.

And so, he had to admit, he was at his wit's end. He sat at his desk in the library and realized he would need to reconcile himself to the fact that he would lose Hollyoak, he would lose the precious gift he promised his wife, and he would lose the school he’d planned to create for his workers.