If I don’t steal any more spices, I could walk away.
He didn’t need the money. With Victoria’s sizeable dowry at his disposal, he could focus on his crops and in time take on the East India Company without the fear of them coming after him.
Robert was still pondering his next move when Jasper appeared from out of the trees and gave him a nod. That was the last of the crates which had left Tolley House in London the day after he and Victoria had departed.
Tomorrow, two wagon loads of those now rebranded spices would be on their way to Cambridge to be sold at market. That would then leave the secret cache, which only he and Jasper knew about, as the final remaining haul of stolen spices on the Tolley Manor estate.
Robert and Jasper, guns still at the ready, brought up the rear as the Tolley estate workers made their way back toward the manor. Slowing his steps, Robert turned to his loyal steward and asked, “What would you say if I told you I was thinking of us calling a temporary halt to this line of work?”
His steward cleared his throat. “I would say that your recent marriage has given you room for thought, Your Grace. You fear losing the good favor of your duchess. Lady Victoria is a rare woman indeed, and I wouldn’t want to be the man who disappoints her.”
Jasper gave him a knowing grin, and Robert chuckled. “Wise words indeed. Let’s make tomorrow our final run for the time being. It will give me the opportunity to reconsider any future plans for stealing from the Honorable East India.”
As he spoke those words, Robert felt the weight lift from his shoulders. For Victoria he wanted to be a good husband, not afraud. He wanted to be able to look his wife in the eye and know that she was proud of him.
But even he couldn’t deny the formidable hold his burning desire to fight the East India held over him. The thought of giving up and walking away was one thing, but actually doing it, was something else.
Victoria crept back to the house and upstairs to the ducal suite. She carefully hung Robert’s spare coat back into the wardrobe and put her own clothes away. Clad once more in her nightgown, she slipped into bed, doing her best to quickly warm the sheets. But sleep eluded her.
She was still awake when she heard the sound of footsteps outside in the hall, followed by the squeak of the bedroom door being opened. Victoria closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep as Robert moved quietly about the room, undressing. He opened the wardrobe and put his clothes carefully away.
There was a clang of something metallic hitting the floor, and Robert cursed. “Damn keys.”
She’d seen the key ring in his hand as Robert headed away from the house. He must have dropped it. The jangle as he picked up the keys and put them back into the wardrobe had Victoria wondering what exactly it was that he and his men were keeping so securely under lock and key.
The bed dipped as Robert climbed back in and pulled the blankets over himself. Victoria pretended to rouse from sleep. “Oh, where have you been?” she asked, in her best croaky voice.
He pressed himself against her, and even through her nightgown, she could feel the night chill on his skin. “Nowheremy love. I’ve been here the whole time. You must have been dreaming.”
His cold hands and feet bore witness to his lie. The only part of Robert which was warm were his lips. He put them to good use and kissed her. “Go back to sleep.”
She rolled over in the bed, and he cuddled up against her back, the bed trembling as he shivered under the blankets.
He just lied to me. But why?
Lessons from her parents’ marriage had taught her not to start a fight in the middle of the night. To choose her battles wisely. If Robert felt the need to tell her mistruths, then he must have his reasons. She’d let him get his sleep, then wait for the right moment to ask about his nocturnal habits.
Teeth gritted, she stared at the wall. Her mother, the one person whose counsel she so badly needed, was many miles away in London. While Robert slept soundly beside her, Victoria pondered her future. Her greatest fear was that her marriage was already over before it had really begun. That she would never be able to fully trust him.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Apensive Victoria waved Robert, along with the two wagons laden with produce, a fond farewell as he set out for the market in Cambridge a day later. Before leaving, he’d proudly shown her the contents of the first of the wagons: various fruits and vegetables, along with some small jars of saffron. But when it came to the second wagon, Robert had merely waved his hand at it in a wordless gesture which said it contained pretty much the same as the first wagon and she needn’t bother examining its contents.
Both wagons were covered, and their loads tied down. At first glance they did indeed appear to be the same, but as the small convoy of wagons, accompanied by Robert on horseback, slowly made its way down the drive Victoria noted that the second wagon sat lower on the road. The wheels groaned as they turned. Whatever was on board was heavy.
Her husband was keeping things from her, and she had a horrid suspicion it had something to do with what she had seen the other night in the laneway.
I don’t know what is going on. I shouldn’t go making dangerous assumptions.
She tried to talk sense to herself. Tried to calm her racing heart. There could be a perfectly reasonable explanation for Robert being absent from their bed late at night. For him and some of the estate workers to be moving crates and barrels in the dark. And for her husband and his steward to both be toting loaded weapons. What did she know, perhaps the lead up to market day was always like this, late nights and early mornings.
Victoria stood watching until the last wagon had dipped below the rise in the road and disappeared from sight.
“I could simply ask him when he gets home,” she whispered to herself. By raising the subject along with her concerns, Robert could be able to understand her worries and no doubt help set her mind at ease.
But she couldn’t think of any plausible reason for the need for such secrecy. Or for him to so blatantly lie to her.
Walking back into the house, Victoria considered her next move. Robert would be gone all day and was not expected home until late tonight. If she was going to succumb to temptation and go snooping about the estate, this would be her best chance.
