A Scandal By Any Other Name-Chapter 199 - Hundred And Ninety Nine

The Kingsley estate was finally quiet. The heavy, oppressive tension that had choked the house all evening had settled into a thick, dark silence. The servants had retreated to their quarters, terrified of drawing the master’s anger. Aunt Eunice was firmly locked in her bedroom, her angry shouts having long faded into exhausted, bitter weeping.

Inside her large bedchamber on the first floor, Delaney sat at a small, polished wooden writing desk. A single candle flickered in a silver holder, casting a warm, dancing circle of light over the dark wood. The fire in the hearth had burned down to soft orange coals.

She pulled out a fresh sheet of thick white parchment. She dipped a sharp quill into a glass bottle of black ink.

She took a slow, deep breath, letting the quiet peace of the room wash over her. She needed to write to Rowan. She needed him to know exactly what was happening.

She pressed the tip of the quill to the paper and began to write.

My Dearest Rowan,

I write this from the safety of my room. I hope this letter finds you well and that your head is not causing you too much pain. I arrived safely, though the welcome was as cold and cruel as I expected. But do not worry for me. I am perfectly fine, and I am entirely safe.

Delaney paused, a soft, loving smile touching her lips as she thought of his fierce, protective face.

I must thank you properly. Hamish arrived this morning. Knowing he is standing in the hallway, and knowing Odis is watching the tree line, gives me an incredible amount of peace. Thank you for the extra security. You were right to send them. I feel your protection even though you are miles away. I also miss you too, Rowan. My heart feels terribly empty without your seeing your handsome face, and I find myself looking toward the door, wishing you would walk through it.

She dipped her quill again, her expression turning very serious. It was time to deliver the crucial news.

I have made a massive discovery today. While I was in town at the dressmaker’s shop, I had a secret meeting with Lady Celine Farrington. She is a very brave woman. She knows the truth about her father and my uncle.

Rowan, the evidence is not ashes. Lord Hawksley did not burn the proof of the Oakridge silk scam. Lord Farrington has it. He possesses an old ledger that contains all the proof of Lord Hawksley’s crimes. He keeps it locked in a hidden safe at his estate, and he uses it to blackmail Lord Hawksley.

Delaney’s hand gripped the quill tighter as she remembered the desperate look in Celine’s blue eyes.

Celine knows where the key to the safe is. She has offered to steal the ledger for me. We made a deal. She will bring it to me at the dressmaker’s shop in exactly four days. But she asked for something in return. She wants your help.

She wants you to find out where Edward was buried. His name is Edward Fitz. I believe he was the young stable boy who worked for the Farringtons. The boy who tried to run away with Celine. Lord Farrington murdered him, and Celine simply wants to know where he rests so she can say a proper goodbye.

Please, Rowan. I plead with you to let Mr. Vance investigate this immediately. Find Edward Fitz. Celine is risking her life to bring us the ledger; we must give her this small piece of peace in return.

She finished the letter with a soft sigh, her heart aching for the young, trapped lady.

I will write again soon. Rest your head, and do not try to leave that bed before the doctor allows it. I wish you a very good night.

Yours always,

Delaney.

Delaney carefully sprinkled fine sand over the wet ink to dry it. Once it was set, she blew the sand away and folded the thick parchment into a neat square. She took a stick of dark red wax, melted it over the candle flame, and let a heavy drop fall onto the fold. She pressed her thumb firmly into the warm wax, sealing the secrets safely inside.

She stood up from the desk and walked quietly to her bedroom door.

She opened it just a crack. Hamish was standing silently in the dark hallway, standing guard exactly as Rowan had commanded.

Delaney called Hamish softly. He immediately stepped toward the door, bowing his head.

"Help me make sure this letter reaches Rowan in the morning," Delaney whispered, handing the sealed parchment through the small opening. "It contains incredibly urgent information."

Hamish took the letter and slipped it into his dark coat. He assured her with a firm nod.

"It will, Miss Kingsley," Hamish promised, his voice a low rumble. "I will send a fast rider to London immediately. It will be in His Grace’s hands before he breaks his fast."

"Thank you, Hamish," Delaney replied softly. She closed the door and locked it again with a solid click.

As soon as he left, Delaney walked over to her small travel bag resting on a wooden chest at the foot of the bed. She reached deep inside the side pocket.

She brought out the sleeping medicine from where she hid it.

It was not a liquid. The apothecary had been very clever. He had coated the potent sleeping drug in a thick, hard layer of crystallized white sugar. It was shaped exactly like a regular cube of sugar. It looked entirely harmless, perfectly sweet, and completely deadly to a man’s consciousness.

Delaney held the small, hard cube in the palm of her hand. She stared at it in the flickering candlelight, her mind traveling back to the tense, violent events of the dinner table just a few hours ago.

~ • FLASHBACK • ~

Aunt Eunice was screaming, her face red and ugly with pure hatred. Cole was shouting back, his patience entirely broken.

While her aunt was loudly insulting her, calling her a worthless orphan who spent too much money, Delaney had been moving with absolute, quiet precision.

She had slipped her hand smoothly into the deep pocket of her dress. Her fingers brushed against the small wooden box she had purchased from the apothecary. She popped the lid open with her thumb.

She was bringing the fake sugar cube out from its container entirely unnoticed. The harsh, screaming voices of her aunt and uncle provided the perfect distraction.

She held the cube tightly hidden in the palm of her left hand, her fingers curled slightly inward to conceal the white shape. She kept her face looking sad and deeply offended, playing her part flawlessly.

When her uncle publicly defended her, telling her to ignore Eunice, Delaney knew it was time to strike.

She stood up from her wooden chair, acting as though she was too upset to finish her roasted meat. She turned as if she was about to leave the room.

As she moved, she deliberately brushed her hip against the table. She swung her left hand forward, making it look like a clumsy, accidental motion.

Her hand hit the silver sugar cup.

The heavy silver bowl tipped onto its side with a loud clatter. Two real lumps of white sugar spilled out, sliding across the dark polished wood of the table.

"I am sorry," Delaney had said quickly, keeping her head bowed in fake shame.

In that brief second of confusion, while Cole was glaring at his screaming wife, Delaney opened her left hand. She quickly, smoothly placed the sleeping cube directly on top of the pile of spilled sugar. It blended in perfectly. It looked exactly like the real thing.

Cole’s voice stopped her from leaving. He told her to sit down. He slapped Eunice. The room descended into total chaos as the servants dragged the screaming, kicking woman out of the dining room and up the stairs.

When the room was finally quiet, Cole had poured his hot herbal tea, his hands shaking with exhaustion and rage.

That was when Delaney made her final move.

When she asked her uncle if he needed sugar, she reached forward. Her hand was completely steady. She used the small silver tongs to pick up the fake sugar cube.

"One lump will do," Cole had muttered.

Delaney dropped the cube into his teacup. It landed with a soft plop.

As he poured his hot tea over it, Delaney watched the white sugar shell dissolve rapidly in the dark liquid. The hidden sleeping medicine mixed perfectly into the tea, completely undetectable by sight or smell.

Cole lifted the delicate china cup to his lips. He drank the entire cup. He swallowed the trap without a single second of hesitation.

~ • FLASHBACK ENDS • ~