The Mystery Woman (Ladies of Lantern Str - By Amanda Quick Page 0,39

“You are now involved with Josh and it is plain to see that your relationship with him is not a simple matter of business.”

“That’s not true,” Beatrice said quickly.

“I know Josh,” Hannah said. Her brows rose. “It is clear to me that he is fascinated by you. Now that I have met you, I understand why.”

“No, really, you are mistaken.”

“I told you, I know my brother,” Hannah said. “I love him, but he is part of the reason why I cannot find any peace of mind these days.”

“There is no need to confide in me.”

“I must talk to someone. You now know more of my family’s secrets than anyone else outside the family. I did everything I could to protect Josh when he was young. In the end I failed. I lost him to the wildness that runs in the men of my side of the family. It was that streak of recklessness that made it so easy for that dreadful man to turn Josh into his own personal weapon.”

“What, exactly, did Victor Hazelton do to your brother?” Beatrice asked.

Hannah went to the window and stood looking out over the night-darkened gardens. “When Josh was in his late teens it became clear that he had inherited the wild blood that runs through the male line of our family.”

“Wild blood?”

“I swear, it’s like a curse,” Hannah said. She took a hankie out of her pocket and dabbed at her eyes. “It draws them to danger and risk. The wild streak killed my father. A year ago it nearly got Josh killed. And now my son, Nelson, is showing every indication that he has inherited the same taste for violent excitement.”

“I understand. You fear this wild blood will be the death of your only child.” Beatrice went to stand with Hannah at the window. “No wonder you were in such a state of anxiety when you consulted with me.”

“Nelson tries to protect me from the truth.” Hannah sniffed into the hankie. “He moved out of the house and into his own lodgings a few months ago.”

“Many young men do that.”

“I know. He never tells me what he is doing and he visits me faithfully. But I recognize the same pattern in him that I saw in Josh when he was the same age.”

“Men that age yearn to experience the world.”

“Trust me, I am well aware that Nelson does not want his mother hovering. I’ve tried not to fuss.” Hannah blinked away a few tears. “But my intuition tells me that he is doing what Josh did at that age. At night he is going out into the worst neighborhoods looking for excitement. He is risking his neck in the gaming halls. Hanging out with a bad crowd.”

“In other words, he is looking for trouble.”

“And sooner or later, he will find it, just as Josh did. In his case, trouble came in the shape of Victor Hazelton.”

“Mr. Smith.”

“Yes,” Hannah said.

“I see.” Beatrice hesitated. “Perhaps you could ask Josh to speak with Nelson? It might be easier for a mature man to nudge a younger man in the right direction.”

Hannah’s fingers clenched around the hankie. “The last thing I want is for Josh to lead Nelson down the same dark path that Hazelton set my brother on all those years ago.”

“I understand,” Beatrice said. “But in this situation—”

She broke off because Sally had opened the connecting door.

“I apologize for interrupting, ma’am,” she said to Hannah. “But I found this envelope on your pillow when I turned down the bed. It’s addressed to you.”

Hannah went very still. She looked at Beatrice.

“I’ll turn down the lamps and light a candle,” Beatrice said.

Seventeen

Beatrice left a worried Hannah in her bedroom and descended the main staircase. She wore her plain day dress and a pair of soft-soled leather slippers in an attempt to make as little noise as possible. The big house had finally fallen silent a short time ago. Lord Alverstoke kept early hours in the country and his guests were obliged to do the same. Not that the elegant, bored people who had accepted his invitation were bothered. They had other plans for the evening.

Beatrice was well aware that the hush was deceptive. In her role as a paid companion she had attended enough house parties to know that the main attraction of such affairs was not the fresh air and scenic landscapes of the countryside. Nor were many of Alverstoke’s guests truly interested in his collection of Egyptian antiquities. They could view any number of