to be said with half the words she chose to use. Very much a female trait as well, saying more than is necessary, though I prefer to think of it as an expansion of ideas.”
“I’ve not time for your female superiority on this, Amelia,” Elliott said dryly, though he had to admit her suggestion made sense. But it was also impossible. Women did not lend money to wicked young men down on their luck and backed into corners. “There is a messenger waiting for my response. What is the right course?”
“I think you should confirm the details of the inheritance so that Lord Damion will know Harry will not be able to sweep some half-witted woman off her feet and land himself with thirty thousand pounds to clear his debts.”
“You see no reason why I should not tell this . . . person such details?”
Amelia stopped kneading and cocked her head in his direction. “Your goal has always been to help Harry, and I believe your confirmation that you will not undo the good this woman is trying to accomplish would be the right course. If you do not give her that information, she may not help Harry. And it sounds like he needs the help and that this help will encourage what you want for him—respectability and a change of course.”
“He could get married, inherit the means he needs to have a respectable life, and not need this Lord Damion’s intercession at all.”
“If he is truly so far in debt, then he is in no position to marry. But he might be in a position to think about it if he can get himself back on a straighter path. Tell her what she wants to know, and then pray that Harry is learning from all of this.”
Elliott kept to himself that he was additionally uncomfortable sharing financial information with a woman. Amelia would not take that well, but was a woman capable of understanding the intricacies of finance and society well enough to be a lender of this caliber? And was it really a woman at all? Amelia could very well be seeing more than was really there. He knew better than to say any of that out loud, however.
Elliott returned to his study and pulled a fresh sheet of parchment from his desk drawer.
Lord Damion,
I shall confirm what I am comfortable. I have indeed cut Harry off and will not pay any of his additional debts precisely because of what you expressed in your letter—as long as he knows that someone else will cover his debts, he will keep incurring them.
I have also created inheritances for all of my nieces and nephews regarding securing a quality match. Should he make an acceptable marriage with a woman of high birth, he shall come into an inheritance, but it is not a cash asset. The enterprise he would gain will require him to educate himself in management and apply himself to something of value and purpose. The goal of this inheritance is to offer him financial security and create an opportunity for his children, should he have any.
I do not know what to make of your position in this, but I shall not interfere. Harry is more intelligent than he has ever cared to appreciate, and he has incredible potential that I hope he will discover within himself. Should the topic arise, please let Harry know that I care deeply for him and hope one day that he and I can heal the breach between us. My unwillingness to financially support my nephew’s vices has nothing to do with my love for him.
Sincerely,
Lord Howardsford
Elliott reread his words, uncomfortable with how much he was revealing and yet assured that he’d been both honest and circumspect.
He took the letter to the messenger, a young man holding the reins of a rented horse; he’d have had to make a few different exchanges if he’d come straight from London. The man thanked him, put the response in his satchel, and swung himself into the saddle.
Godspeed, Elliott thought before turning back to his house. Elliott’s greatest hope was to one day sit at a table filled with the people he loved with no animosity between them. That dream would never be complete if Harry were not at that table, but the power to make that happen was in Harry’s hands, not Elliott’s.
At four o’clock Monday morning, after a restless night, Harry slipped out of the servants’ entrance and made his way through the sleepy streets