Page 86 of Duke in Darkness

“May I help you, sir?” said one of them in a rather harried-sounding voice as he marched over.

Gabriel smiled, and the young man visibly swallowed. For the first time in his life, he was actually grateful for his vicious looking scar. Nothing like the facial appearance of a brawler or cutpurse to intimidate a nervous clerk.

With perfect timing, his wife stepped forward and bestowed a dazzling smile on the clerk. Hell. She really did look angelic. “Good morning. The Duke and Duchess of Exton to see Mr. Ormsby.”

“Oh! Your Graces…” the young man said, his cheeks flushing as he stared at Lili, clearly already half in love with her. “Forgive me, I did not see your names in the appointment book. What a dreadful oversight. Ah…Mr. Ormsby is out at present, they are all in a meeting.”

Playing her role to the hilt, Lili whipped out her fan and lightly smacked the clerk on the hand. “Lud, sir. We are only just acquainted and already you are breaking my heart?”

Gabriel put his hands behind his back and pinched himself, torn between laughing at her theatrics, and wanting to heave the clerk out a window for daring to gaze adoringly at her. “My dear…”

“No, no,” said the clerk swiftly. “Tis quite all right. Perhaps I might be able to assist? I notice you have ledgers with you?”

“Impossibly dull ledgers,” said Lilian, pouting. “I’m sure what you do is infinitely more interesting.”

Good God. This might be more than his stomach could take.

“Yes,” Gabriel said brusquely. “Estate ledgers. Ormsby is expecting them.”

“I could take those for you—”

“No. I will have no hands…but his touch them.”

“Really, Exton,” said Lilian, leaning further over the counter and batting her lashes. “I don’t know why you must be so…so fussy. They are just ledgers. Silly numbers.”

The clerk actually patted Lili’s hand. “Quite. Not for a lovely duchess to worry about.”

His wife sighed. “Perhaps, sir, you would allow Exton to place the ledgers in Mr. Ormsby’s office? Then he knows they are safe and well, and won’t become…unhappy. And you could take me for a short tour. As I said, I’m sure your tasks are most stimulating.”

Gabriel glowered and brought his hands forward, curling them into fists and flexing them once then twice. The young man turned parchment pale.

“Of course. Yes. I’m sure that would be fine, Your Grace. Mr. Ormsby would not like it if such an illustrious client was displeased. His office is down that hall, second on the right. I would be delighted to entertain Her Grace.”

“Very well,” he barked, exchanging a quick, triumphant glance with Lili.

And the risky, entirely non-strategic plan with a ten-to-twelve percent chance of success, was underway.

HOW MUCH LONGER COULD SHE keep up this ridiculous pretense? Not only was the company lackluster, the offices were cold, with a poorly stoked fireplace and small, high windows that didn’t allow a great deal of light in. As most of the employees who worked here were out and about, the iron candelabras dotted around the room weren’t lit. On the whole, entirely unpleasant, which she supposed suited snakes like Ormsby and Jacobs.

Gritting her teeth, Lilian continued to smile at the clerk, Mr. Dennis. It had become clear that while this young man was polite and eager to please, he had less sense than a turnip and probably wasn’t given any particularly difficult tasks to accomplish. She highly doubted he would have been charged to copy the ledger.

“Would you care for tea, madam?”

“That would be heavenly,” she cooed, curling her hand around his upper arm as she peeked around his shoulder to observe the desk they stood next to. Frustration burned. Just like all the others they had passed, the handwritten notes and lists of tasks to achieve in the day didn’t match what they had seen in the doctored ledger. Perhaps she and Gabriel were both wrong. Perhaps Ormsby or Jacobs had indeed done the copying themselves.

“Do you think His Grace would also?”

“Oh no,” she said quickly. “It is hard for me to admit, but Exton prefers that ghastly coffee. Without milk, even.”

“Barbaric!” muttered the young man. “You know, Mr. Ormsby and Mr. Jacobs have both spoken of the, er, eccentricities of the duke. So very different from the previous one. I believe they had a very cordial relationship with him. But it is far more difficult with your husband.”

Rage nearly blinded her. “What has been said, sir? Please do tell me. You can be sure I’ll not tell a soul, as it is nothing I haven’t seen or heard myself.”

His face lit up. Ah. It seemed a man didn’t need to be in the upper ten thousand to be a wretched London gossip.

“Well, the previous duke, as a proper gentleman, did not concern himself with matters of a legal or financial nature. Instead he placed his trust in Mr. Ormsby and Mr. Jacobs.”

Lilian barely refrained from embedding her slipper heel in his instep. No wonder the pair had got away with their fraud for as long as they had. “Oh, quite.”