The Devilish Deception Read online

He found Mrs. Sutherland, as he expected, in the bedroom and he said,

  “I am going out to luncheon, Mrs. Sutherland, and I wish you to stay with Miss Giovanna while I am gone. She is not to be left alone, not even for a few moments. Is that clear?”

  “Very clear, Your Grace,” Mrs. Sutherland replied.

  “I am also going to instruct them downstairs that in my absence no visitors are to be admitted to The Castle under any pretext whatever,” the Duke said, “and there is no exception to that rule.”

  He spoke sharply and knew, as Mrs. Sutherland did not express surprise, that she was aware that there was something strange in the fact of Giovanna’s visit being supposed to be a secret and that he was making what appeared an unnatural fuss about her.

  At the same time, whatever their personal feelings in the matter, the Duke knew that his orders would be obeyed.

  He did not ride over to the Dalbeth House, although it would have been quicker.

  Instead he drove an ancient pony cart with large wheels that he had seen in the stables.

  He remembered it was a vehicle that his uncle had used to drive around the estate and, although it was out of date, it was well strung and did not impede in any way the speed of the two horses that pulled it.

  It was not only because he was still supposed to be at least a semi-invalid that he had ordered the pony cart but also because he wished to take Ross with him.

  “When we get there, Ross,” he had said when he was changing from his riding breeches into a kilt, “I want you to say that you have lost one of my cufflinks or, if you prefer, an evening stud. Go up to the room I slept in and pretend to search for it. Then while I am at luncheon, chat to the servants and find out if they have anything to say about the disappearance of Miss Giovanna.”

  The familiar glint in Ross’s eyes told the Duke how much he enjoyed being, as he would have put it himself, ‘back on a job’.

  “I were sure that was why you wanted me to come with Your Grace,” he had said, “but from what I’ve seen of ’em they’re a strange lot and I doubt whether I’ll learn much.”

  “Well, try,” the Duke urged him. “What is certain is that they will say nothing to me.”

  He was, as he expected, greeted with delight by the Dowager Countess, whose elegant black gown trimmed with provocative touches of white, like her painted face, seemed very out of place.

  So too, the Duke thought, did Kane Horn, who was in the drawing room with her when he arrived.

  He was wearing the sort of clothes that were a travesty of what an English gentleman would wear in the country and, looking at him, the Duke was sure that he would be far more at home in the type of costume affected by men in Southern Italy.

  He might speak with an American accent, but he was sure that his antecedents were Italian and his swarthy skin and dark hair confirmed this.

  Kane Horn was, however, as effusive as the Dowager Countess.

  As the Duke sat talking to them, sipping the excellent champagne that the Countess insisted he should drink, he was sure by the way she spoke to the American and looked at him that she was in love.

  That could be the real reason why Kane Horn was so insistent that the new Countess should hand over a large sum of money to her stepmother.

  It was getting near to luncheon time before Jane came into the room.

  Once again she looked very different from the first night that the Duke had seen her.

  She too was in black, but, because he seldom missed any detail, the Duke was almost certain that a great deal of ornamentation had been removed both from the bodice of her dress and from the skirt.

  It was, as he knew, the fashion for dresses, which were known as afternoon toilettes, to be elaborately laced, braided, ruched or tucked.

  After a quick glance he was sure that, when Jane’s gown had been bought, it had been very much more spectacular than it was at the moment.

  Her hair was also severely arranged in a small knot on top of her head and, as yesterday, she wore no make-up of any sort.

  It was such a transformation from the first night, when he had been astounded by her mascaraed eyelashes and crimson lips that he was certain the difference was entirely for his benefit.

  This was confirmed when he stole a quick glance at Kane Horn and realised that he was looking critically at Jane as she advanced down the room towards them.

  She also looked at him for a fleeting moment almost as if she was asking for his approval.

  The Duke was aware that all this would have escaped the notice of any ordinary visitor or one who had not been so vitally concerned as he had been in the art of disguise.

  Kane Horn had, however, obviously not instructed Jane to alter her manner towards her prospective husband.

  She held both hands out eagerly towards him, saying,

  “It is lovely, lovely to see you again! I am so happy you are well. Now I can do all the things I want to do with you and especially explore your marvellous Castle.”

  “I am looking forward to that,” the Duke replied, “but first of all I think that I ought to polish it up a bit. I am afraid it is nothing like as comfortable as you are here.”

  Jane looked round at the luxurious drawing room with an almost scornful expression in her eyes.

  “This is far too modern and not really Scottish,” she said. “If I had my way, we would live in the old Castle, which is the proper background for a Chieftain.”

  “You are right,” the Duke said, smiling, “but there is always the danger that it might tumble into the sea!”

  “At least your Castle will not do that,” Jane replied, “and we must make it look exactly like it did when it was first built.”

  “That is what I hoped you would say.”

  As the Duke spoke, he saw as he glanced at Kane Horn that the man was listening intently to what was being said and he was quite certain that he had rehearsed with Jane exactly what she should say.

  As they went into luncheon, the Duke became more and more convinced that the conversation was a theatrical performance.

  It was all about plans of what should be done on his own land and the parties that could be given in his Castle.

  He was sure that every word had been thought out, directed and rehearsed by a mastermind in the shape of Horn.

  There was no doubt that the players of the piece were extremely skilful.

  Had he been anyone less perceptive and had he not been alerted by Giovanna into knowing that the Dalbeths were very different from what they appeared, he would in fact have believed that the Dowager Countess was a charming sophisticated woman, only concerned with the happiness of her stepdaughter Jane, who would have seemed to be a delightful young woman on the verge of falling in love with the man who had been chosen for her to be her husband.

  The food was excellent, the wine, as it had been the first time he had dined here, outstanding.

  There was, however, the Duke noticed, once again far too much of it and he had the greatest difficulty in preventing the servants from continually filling up his glass.

  When luncheon was finished, he said,

  “I hope you will understand but I must not stay long, much as I would like to. I have given my solemn promise to those who have been looking after me that I would not overtax my strength on the first day I felt well enough to leave The Castle.”

  “I do understand,” the Dowager Countess replied. “At the same time you know how much we have been looking forward to seeing you. Jane has begged me to ask you to come back to stay with us tomorrow or, if you prefer, the next day.”

  “How kind of you!” the Duke exclaimed. “May I let you know which would suit me best? I have in fact neglected so many things at The Castle since I returned that I shall feel as if I am playing truant if am absent once again.”

  “We have been deprived of one night at least of your company,” the Dowager Countess replied quickly, “and you know, my dear Talbot, how much we want to have you with us.”

  She pu
t her hand on his arm as she had done before and looked up at him almost pleadingly, while Jane on his other side slipped her hand into his as she said,

  “Please, please, come back. Or if not, can we come over to you? I wanted to explore your Castle yesterday, but Stepmama said you would want to show it to me yourself.”

  “Of course I want to do that,” the Duke agreed, “and I think it would be delightful if you and your stepmother came to stay with me perhaps at the end of the week.”

  He deliberately omitted including Kane Horn in the invitation and, as he was looking at Jane, he was aware that the Dowager Countess turned quickly towards the American before she answered,

  “We would love to come to you, as you know, but I hope you don’t mind if we bring Mr. Horn with us. As he is our guest, we can hardly leave him here on his own.”

  “Of course not,” the Duke said. “I only hope that he will not be bored with what after all will be an entirely Scottish household.”

  “I shall not be in the least bored,” Kane Horn said firmly, “and now, Duke, before you leave I hope you have thought over what we discussed with you yesterday. It would be a great help if you can see your way to sign the papers that are here waiting for you on the writing table.”

  He indicated as he spoke a very elegant French secrétaire that stood in a corner of the drawing room.

  “Papers?” the Duke said vaguely. “Oh, yes, I remember your speaking of them. I was really feeling so rotten that I found it difficult to take in what you were saying.”

  “Then I can quite easily explain,” Kane Horn said. “All that is really required is your signature.”

  “Then let’s leave it until you come to me on, let’s say, Saturday,” the Duke replied. “I will try to have everything ready by then and will, of course, arrange a party for you in the evening.”

  He did not wait for his invitation to be accepted, but shook the Dowager Countess’s hand, saying,

  “Thank you so much for having me here at such short notice. I enjoyed my luncheon enormously.”

  Then, as Jane was still holding onto him, he drew her away towards the door.

  “Come to see me off, Jane,” he said. “I am driving an old-fashioned pony cart, which I think will amuse you.”

  He realised as he walked with her towards the hall that Kane Horn was looking after him with a scowl on his face and an expression in his dark eyes that he did not like to interpret.

  It was only when he was leaving the room that he looked back to say,

  “Goodbye, Horn. I will see you again on Saturday.”

  Then he and Jane walked alone towards the open front door.

  “We never seem to have a chance to talk,” the Duke said, as she looked up at him with what he thought was a questioning expression in her eyes.

  “I wanted to show you my own special sitting room,” Jane said in a low voice. “Could we go there now?”

  “I wish I had known that there would be a chance of our being alone together,” the Duke replied, “but unfortunately I have made an appointment to see my doctor as soon as I return to The Castle and, as he is a busy man, I really cannot keep him waiting.”

  “I understand,” Jane said, “but it is very very disappointing and I have so much to talk to you about.’

  “I know,” the Duke agreed, “and I will make sure that it will be different when you come to stay at the Castle.”

  There were two footmen and a butler waiting at the door to see them off and the Duke raised Jane’s hand to his lips and said,

  “Goodbye, Jane. Forgive me for being so remiss at this moment, but it is something I am unable to help.”

  “I know that,” she said, “and I will look forward to Saturday.”

  The Duke climbed into the pony cart to pick up the reins with the groom sitting beside him and Ross behind.

  As they drove off, Jane waved to him and he waved back.

  They drove off in silence because it was impossible to talk to Ross with the groom present. But, when they reached The Castle, the Duke walked quickly up the stairs into the Chieftain’s Room and Ross followed him.

  It was a very impressive room decorated with portraits of the McCarons through the centuries and a large number of stags’ antlers.

  Ross closed the door and the Duke could hardly wait for the lock to click before he asked,

  “Did you find out anything?”

  “Yes, Your Grace. They found Miss Giovanna’s shoe in the long grass by the drive.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “They asked me, Your Grace, why, when you left, did you stop in the drive between the house and the lodges.”

  The Duke stiffened.

  “How did they know that?”

  “I thinks from what they said that one of the lodge keepers was out takin’ a stroll, walkin’ his dog or just bein’ nosey.”

  “Go on!” the Duke instructed curtly.

  “Anyway, he sees the lights of the carriage stop and they asked me why.”

  “Who asked you?”

  “A strange-looking chap, a foreigner.”

  “A foreigner!” the Duke exclaimed in surprise.

  “He weren’t in the house when we was, Your Grace. He came later with that Mr. Horn.”

  The Duke made no comment and Ross went on,

  “When he asks me why we’d stopped, I said that Your Grace had felt awful sick and got out of the carriage rather than mess yourself up inside it.”

  The Duke’s lips twisted in a faint smile. Ross always had an explanation for everything, which invariably amused him.

  At the same time there was a worried expression in his eyes.

  “What else did he say?”

  “Nothin’ else. It wasn’t him that talks to me about the shoe, but it had obviously been talked about by everyone in the household. A pretty lass, who I chatted up a bit, said that after we’d left there’d been a real hue and cry as someone was missin’. All they’d been able to find, she giggled, was a shoe, just like Cinderella!”

  “The foreigner did not mention it?” the Duke asked.

  Ross shook his head.

  “No, but I expect he knows. Nasty-lookin’ chap. The way he looked at me made I feel that, if I said somethin’ he didn’t like, he’d stick a stiletto into my guts!”

  “Are you saying he is Italian?” the Duke asked.

  “He might be, Your Grace. I couldna be sure. He spoke good English.”

  The Duke sighed.

  “What we have to do now, Ross,” he said after a moment, “is to get Miss Giovanna away.”

  “Where to, Your Grace?”

  “That is what I am asking myself,” the Duke replied.

  He left the Chieftain’s Room and walked along the passage to visit Giovanna.

  She was not sitting as he had expected in the armchair that Mrs. Sutherland had arranged for her, but was standing at the open window, looking out at the view.

  Mrs. Sutherland was sewing and she rose to her feet as the Duke entered.

  “I am back,” he called out.

  Giovanna turned from the window with a cry of delight.

  “I was not expecting you so soon. Is everything all – right?”

  He knew how important the question was and, as Mrs. Sutherland left the room and shut the door behind her, he said,

  “Come and sit down, Giovanna. I want to talk to you.”

  There was a sofa near the fireplace and, as she moved towards it, he saw that she was wearing a blouse made of a blue woollen material and a skirt of the McCaron tartan.

  She was still very slender, her waist tiny and she gave the very ordinary garment that might have been worn by a Highland girl of any class a grace that the Duke thought he might have expected.

  She sat down on the sofa and he realised for the first time that her eyes were very pale green like the waters of a clear stream, but flecked with gold.

  She looked at him anxiously.

  “Something has happened,” she said. “Y
ou look worried.”

  “I am only worried because they found one of your shoes.”

  “How could I have been so stupid as to drop it!” Giovanna cried. “Where did they find it?”

  “On the drive.”

  “Now they will know that I did not – die in the cascade as I – hoped they would think. Did they say – anything to you?”

  “No, it was Ross who found out from one of the housemaids that there had been a commotion because someone was missing.”

  “I suppose everyone in the house must really have known I was there,” Giovanna said as if she spoke to herself.

  “How many of them did you see?” the Duke asked.

  “Only the old maid who brought up my food – and deliberately took it down again, saying I was too mad – to eat.”

  Because she was revealing things that the Duke longed to know, he did not speak.

  After a moment she went on.

  “They all believed I was – mad and, when at first I was – imprisoned in a room on the top floor that was not in use, I screamed for help.”

  As she finished speaking, Giovanna gave a little groan and put her hands up to her face.

  “It’s all over now,” the Duke said quietly. “You are safe and all we have to decide is where to take you, because I think it would be a mistake for you to stay here much longer.”

  She took her hands away from her eyes.

  “Yes, of course. You have been so kind – so very kind, but I don’t know where to – go.”

  “I will find somewhere.”

  He calculated as he spoke that he had three days to do so and spirit Giovanna away before his guests came to stay.

  He was sure that it had been a wise move to invite them besides the fact that he was playing for time to avoid signing the papers that Kane Horn was pressing on him.

  “Can you really find somewhere?” Giovanna asked. “Perhaps it is asking too much and I should go away on my – own as I – suggested.”

  “That is something I would certainly not allow you to do,” the Duke replied. “Leave everything to me. Just continue to grow stronger and better every day so that you can begin to enjoy yourself, as you ought to be doing at your age.”

  Giovanna did not answer, but he knew, because he could read her thoughts, that she did not believe that was impossible.