Colin came to an abrupt halt. “This is where you live?”
“It is,” Peter said as he came to a stop in front of the door. “My mother should be inside.”
Colin’s eyes roamed the cottage, and he grew increasingly irritated. This place was uninhabitable, yet somehow he had tenants dwelling in it.
Arabella gave him a questioning gaze as she remained near the door. He hurried over to her and opened the door, following her inside.
The one-room structure was drafty, despite having a fire in the hearth. Two straw mattresses were pushed against the walls in the back, and the floorboards were deteriorating.
His eyes finally landed on a thin woman with a cap covering her dark hair. Her dress was clean but tattered. She stared at him with wide eyes for a moment, then she dipped a curtsy. “Milord,” she murmured.
“How is it that you know who I am?” Colin asked.
She looked baffled. “Everyone knows who you are.”
“I see.” He gestured towards Arabella. “Allow me to introduce you to Lady Arabella.”
The woman curtsied again. “It is an honor to have you in our home.” Her eyes landed on the small, round table with a few pieces of bread. “The only thing I can offer you is bread, but I should warn you that it is a few days old.”
Colin raised his hand. “Thank you for the kind offer, but I would prefer to get down to business.”
“Is this because our rent is late?” the woman asked, her eyes growing fearful. “I told Mr. Brown that I was a few coins short, but I would get him the money.”
“I am not here for that,” Colin said.
Peter spoke up from next to his mother. “He is here because of what I did.”
“I’m afraid I don’t understand,” the woman said, glancing between them.
Colin gave Peter an expectant look. “Would you like to confess, or should I tell your mother what you have done?”
Peter hesitated before admitting, “Lord Barrett caught me hunting on his land.”
She gasped, her hands flying up to her mouth. “Tell me it isn’t so.”
“Did you know that he was poaching?” Colin asked.
With a shake of her head, she replied, “I did not, but we shall find a way to pay you back.” She turned towards Peter. “Won’t we, Peter?”
Peter nodded. “We will,” he said.
“I was recently fired from the milliner’s shop, but I am trying to find work,” the woman shared.
Arabella interjected, “Peter informed us that you were fired because you couldn’t find proof that you were married to your husband.”
“That’s true,” the woman said. “My husband and I were married, and he left shortly thereafter to fight in the war.”
“That must have been hard for you,” Arabella acknowledged.
The woman smiled. “We didn’t know I was increasing at the time, but he believed he would make his fortune in the army. Whenever he could, he sent back his wages to provide for us.”
“Have you gone back to speak to the clergyman who married you?”
“Unfortunately, he died shortly after we were wed,” the woman said. “He was quite old, and his heart gave out while he was giving a sermon.”
“What about your witnesses?” Colin asked.
“I’m afraid we didn’t know them,” the woman admitted. “We paid a small fee to have two witnesses come in off the street.”
