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That thought led Sophia to wonder what Delilah had taken into the woods and why. It was two o’clock in the morning; not the usual time to be making social calls. If she was meeting with someone, it wasn’t anyone reputable, of that Sophia had no doubt. Delilah hadn’t been in the woods long enough to hide the package anywhere, and certainly hadn’t taken anything with which to dig a hole.
So what on earth had she been doing? Some of the items had gone, but had Delilah handed them over to someone waiting in the woods? If so, who?
Sophia’s worries increased tenfold as she thought about the rest of the items in the box. She knew they were stolen. The right thing to do would be to return them to their rightful owners, assuming Delilah knew who they were and was prepared to hand them back. That thought led her on to wonder how on earth she could return them without admitting she had taken them in the first place?
With a deep sigh, Sophia threw the covers off her legs and hurried back downstairs. Once she had the required items to write a letter to Hooky, and the bureau lid was closed, she made her way back to bed.
Unfortunately, sleep was a very long time coming.
The following morning, tired, grumpy, and in no mood for any more of Delilah’s social functions, Sophia made her way downstairs. Unsurprisingly, Delilah appeared to be still in bed, even though it was lunchtime. Pleased to have some time alone with her thoughts, Sophia began to prepare luncheon, but made no attempt to keep the noise down. Eventually, the banging and clattering of the pots and pans had the desired effect, and a somewhat dishevelled Delilah appeared in the doorway.
“Darling, am I to take it that you are not in a good mood this morning?” Delilah drawled as she sauntered into the kitchen.
Sophia glared at her and lifted a querulous brow. No, she was most definitely not in a good mood this morning. Rather than answer in her usual sunny way, Sophia snorted and slammed a cup onto the table. She turned her attention back to the bread she was in the process of hacking to pieces, aware that her aunt had seen the two stolen trinket boxes sitting right in the centre of the table. The silence behind her was deafening.
“I think you had better explain,” Sophia ground out coldly. “We both know where they have come from, so don’t try to deny it. Given that you have at least ten of these upstairs in that drawer, you really don’t need any more. I can only assume these have been stolen to sell.”
Confirmation came from the way Delilah sat stony-faced and silent.
Last night, once she had written the letter to Hooky to explain what was happening, sleep had completely eluded Sophia. She had tossed and turned all night, right up until the moment dawn had broken over the horizon. Even then she had fallen into a fitful doze that had left her far from rested, because she had been at a complete loss to know what to do.
“Do you realise what trouble you will be in if anyone sees these?” She snapped when Delilah remained uncommunicative.
For the first time in her life, Sophia actually wanted to physically shake another living person. It was so uncharacteristic of her that it fuelled her temper even more, especially when she saw the cold disinterest on her aunt’s face.
Did Delilah not care about the turmoil she had thrown her niece’s life into?
Apparently not Sophia mused as she stared at her aunt’s icy features.
“Well, if you don’t want them to be found, why did you leave them in the middle of the table?” Delilah snapped suddenly. Before Sophia could reply, she snatched them up and returned them to the bureau. “They are not yours. This is nothing to do with you.”
“And they are not yours either,” Sophia countered.
“This is nothing to do with you,” Delilah repeated.
“It has everything to do with me. I am a Carney too. Anything you do has an impact on me. If you get arrested for stealing from such reputable people then the entire family’s name is cast into ill repute. Do you not care?”
Delilah tossed her head back. “Why should I? The only reason you are here is because Hooky sent you to tell me to stop spending money he would rather keep for himself.”
Sophia gasped at the unfairness of the accusation.
“That is not true,” she protested loudly. “You never come to see us. Apart from the occasional letter, none of the family has seen you for nearly an entire year. What else was I supposed to do? You mentioned on a couple of occasions that I was welcome to visit; I didn’t realise you were lying about that too. Hooky has contacted you himself about the state of your finances. You know he has. I just happened to mention it while I was here, that was all.”
Alright, so it was a slight fabrication, but Delilah wasn’t being entirely honest with her so could hardly expect outright honesty in return.
“Well, you have se
en me, so it is time for you to go home.”
“I am not going to allow you to continue to help yourself to things that don’t belong to you. How can you expect me to just go home and forget about something of this magnitude? I know about this now. Do not expect me to lie by covering up your crimes, Delilah. I will not sit idly by and allow you to continue unabated either. You will stop. Or I shall take this to the magistrate. I have seen the stolen items right here in this house. You have been to all of the social occasions when items have been stolen. Each person present last night can attest, quite honestly, that they didn’t take a blessed thing that didn’t belong to them. It is a shame that you cannot say the same.”
Delilah slumped in her seat.
“You don’t understand what it is like,” she murmured, suddenly the epitome of a beleaguered soul.
“What? What don’t I understand?” Sophia would have felt sorry for her aunt; who at first glance appeared quite dejected, but on closer inspection had a calculation in her eyes that just didn’t ring true.
“I have lived in this house ever since my mother passed away. It is quiet here. I like that. It is wonderful to be able to do what I want, go out when I want, and see whomever I please. However, it can get cold and dull at times. It can be tedious just running this place, keeping the fires going, cooking for one all of the time. So I go out. I enjoy talking to others and don’t deny it.” She drew in a deep breath and looked at Sophia with arrogant defiance in her eyes. “I am not going to stop, no matter what you say. I have a reputation to uphold. It would be a scandal if I were seen out wearing the same half a dozen outfits all the time. I would be just like the Harvell ladies, and it will be a long, cold day in Hades before that happens.”
