“I saw the way that you looked at Miss Finch, Lady Redgate.”
“At first, perhaps,” she agreed. “As you have rightly pointed out, there is a perception of me in the ton, one that I am forced to encourage for reasons that… well, for the exact reason that I am here. But I promise you, I care little about your relationship with your governess.”
“And why do I not believe you,” he said dryly.
“It is the truth,” she said without a hint of betrayal. “In fact, I would very much like to speak to her.”
“Ha,” he barked. “If you think that I am going to allow you alone with Miss Finch so that you can scare her, then you have wasted your time.”
Lady Redgate sighed and shook her head. While she was a hard-looking woman, she managed to soften her expression, transforming before Evander’s eyes into a frail old lady who was lost and unsure and just plain tired.
“Please,” she said, her voice softening. “There is so much you do not know… so much that I am still unsure of. But I must speak with this Miss Finch. I have spent my life…” Her chin began to wobble. “Send for her, I implore you. Let her decide if my intentions are malicious or not.”
Until this very moment, Evander had been certain of his opinion concerning Lady Redgate. Just as he had been certain that he would not let her within one hundred yards of Miss Finch. But the previously rigid and cold Lady had suddenly turned soft, and there was an earnestness about her that was undeniable.
Is this all part of the act? Luring me into a false sense of comfort? If it is, it is a lot to go through just so she can have her say.
“Very well,” Evander said as he came to a decision. “I will send for her, but if I sense that your intentions are malevolent –”
“Then you may ask me to leave,” she spoke over him. “But please, I must speak with her. Just as I promised you, she will want to speak with me.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
When Octavia was told that Evander wished to see her and that Lady Redgate was with him, Octavia pictured all manner of reasons for such a thing, as well as all manner of reactions from Lady Redgate. None of them is good.
She remembered well enough their short-lived interaction at the Opera, and Octavia had no doubt whatsoever that this would be an extension of that moment. Was the woman here to scare her away? To warn her and the Duke off their relationship? Would she make threats, shout and scream, even force the Duke’s hand so that he fired her?
Of all the things that Octavia pictured, what she found when she walked into the Duke’s office was not one of them: tears.
Lady Redgate stood up the second that Octavia walked into the room. Octavia paused when she saw her, bracing herself for the verbal onslaught. The woman had the same stern face that she remembered, was just as regal and intimidating, and filled withjudgment. Behind her, Octavia noticed the Duke bracing, a scowl on his face as he looked between them.
“Amelia…” Lady Redgate gasped.
Octavia blinked in surprise.That name…“How do you know that name?”
“It is you.” Lady Redgate’s chin began to wobble, and her cold eyes turned glassy as tears began to well in them. “I knew it, I knew it when I saw… it is you.”
Octavia stood in a state of shock. The Duke too, he reared back as he noticed the tears that started to drip down Lady Redgate’s cheeks. For a moment, nothing was said, and all that could be heard was Lady Redgate’s sniffing.
“Perhaps I ought to…” The Duke stepped around the desk, still watching Lady Redgate closely. “Miss Finch, Lady Redgate has asked that she speak with you alone. I told her that I will allow it, only if you do.”
Octavia never dreamed that she would want to be alone with this woman. But faced with her tears, and that name she spoke still echoing in the back of her mind, she knew it would be fine. In fact, she wanted to be alone with her, if for no other reason than to find out what was going on.
“It is fine,” she told the Duke. “I think I will be fine.”
The Duke crossed the room, still watching Lady Redgate closely. When he reached Octavia, he took her hand and looked at her sternly. “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will.”
He offered her a final look of worry, then a look of utmost confusion at Lady Redgate, before striding from the room and closing the door behind him.
“I am sorry.” Lady Redgate wiped the tears from her eyes. “I did not mean to… oh, look at me! I have come apart completely.”
“Here…” Octavia pulled a handkerchief from her dress and crossed the room. She held it out for Lady Redgate, who took it gratefully and dabbed her cheeks.
“This is not how I expected this to happen,” the elderly Lady explained as she finished drying her eyes. “Although I suppose I was somewhat doubtful to begin with. After how long I have searched…” She sighed and shook her head, only to brighten as her watery eyes found Octavia again. “One can only take so much disappointment before it becomes commonplace, even expected.”
Lady Redgate was not at all who Octavia had expected.