Pricing The Heart

Chapter 42

Dear Lord David,

I can indeed confirm that the woman described in your missive lives here with my family, overseeing my two young daughters. I do not know the reason for which you so vigorously seek her out. Perhaps she's guilty of wrongdoing and has come all this way to escape the law. If this be the case, then please be informed that I wish to be absolved of all liabilities. My wife and I had no foreknowledge of her past before hiring her, only that she was fresh off the boat from England and sought to begin anew here in New York.

As requested, I shall keep the details of our correspondence confidential until you're able to visit at your earliest convenience.

Faithfully,

Mr. Reginald Decker.

He found her! After fourteen months, David could barely believe his persistence finally paid off. He had the crew member to thank for it. But for Joseph's surprisingly sharp memory, David would never have found out about Eloise's new alias, Lydia. A quick scan of the passengers logbook confirmed that a Lydia Beecroft boarded the ship headed for America on the same evening Eloise disappeared. Armed with the knowledge, David visited Eloise's uncle.

The Viscount Bolingbroke proved to be the most irksome man. His laughter grated on David's nerves and his wandering eyes betrayed his duplicitous nature. He did not feign modesty as he shamelessly demanded a bribe before he would divulge the information David sought. Stifling the urge to strangle the man, David offered a hundred pounds in exchange.

"Two hundred, and I shall be forthcoming."

David fisted his fingers, then nodded, thinking he might give into his rage if he spent more time than was necessary in the viscount's presence.

"Lydia Beecroft was my in-law. It was her maiden name before her marriage to my brother, the viscount at the time. They're both dead now."

"So, she was Eloise's mother?" It made sense that Eloise would wish to honor her dead mother by taking up her identity.

Bolingbroke cocked his head. "You know my niece?" David nodded. "I see." He rubbed his gray stubble. "She shamed me, that one. Chose to run off and marry my former footman just to spite me. I should have sued to have the marriage annulled, but she just wasn't worth the trouble."

"That's not the story she told me."

"No?"

"You maltreated her, imposed forced labor on her, squandered her dowry, then tried to marry her off to a much older man against her will." His anger rose with every word. "As far as I'm concerned, it is in order to escape your loathsome presence that she was forced to resort to marrying James."

"You will not sit here and accuse me of something you know nothing about!" He pointed a chubby finger across the desk at him. "I was good to her! I fed, housed—"

"You pushed her into a dangerous situation. You risked her life in your greed! And while I shall like very much to mete out vengeance against you—while I have half the mind to ruin you financially, to buy your mountain of debts and call them in at once—I do not wish to exert myself in dealing with you, when I have much better things to take care of. But, mark my words, Bolingbroke, you have not heard, nor seen, the last of me."

By the time David stormed out of his house, the older gentleman had been sweating and shaking like a leaf.

Two weeks passed before the private investigator tracked Eloise 'Lydia' down. David received news she was living with a Mr. Decker and his family, and eager to confirm the news, he'd written Mr. Decker a letter requesting to know if there was indeed a woman named Lydia living in his home. He'd concluded the letter with the request that their correspondence remained a secret because he feared what Eloise might do if she heard he'd been looking for her.