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Chapter Eleven
Grace held herself as still as possible so as to not betray the agitation she felt inside. The handsome gentleman was just like any man she had encountered. Even her lovely brothers-in-law had a tendency toward thinking women couldn’t possibly be as wise or intelligent as they themselves were. She tried not to hold it against them, as she could tell they were trying to overcome that particular tendency. But she could also tell that Lord Sterling was very surprised by her lack of drama over what he had told her, despite the little scene she had enacted when he had first arrived.
Did he think she was going to faint over his revelations? What a nincompoop. Gracie almost shook her head but offered him a gentle smile instead and grinned on the inside over the confusion written upon his face.
He was as handsome as the devil and socially adroit, but it took all Grace’s effort to not rail at the man. Of course, she wanted to hear every detail about whatever this plot might be, especially if it might involve her cousin and if other members of her family might be affected.
While Grace, for the most part, didn’t like to exert herself any more than was absolutely necessary, she certainly wasn’t one to shirk her duties. She was here, at her sister’s invitation, and now she must take charge of protecting her sister’s family, since Felicity was in no position to do so at the moment.
“Please, tell me whatever you can, my lord,” Grace finally managed to utter after a deep breath produced sufficient calm within her breast.
He still looked a little uncertain, but Lord Sterling finally launched into his explanation.
“In answer to your question about why my new steward has told me any of this, Rathnelly told him he might, since it was my finding out about his horse breeding venture that caused him to hie away to London so suddenly. I cannot tell you why he wishes to keep it such a secret, but the fact that I found out by happenstance disturbed him.”
Gracie nodded. “Even I am probably not aware of the full extent of his empire, my lord, but I am aware of his desire for secrecy. I believe it stems from his understanding of Society’s view of such matters and his concern that it might affect his children’s acceptance by theton.”
She could see that Sterling wished to scoff over the thought that the children might be shunned for such a reason, but after a moment’s thought, she could see him accept that there was probably an element of truth to it. He reluctantly nodded.
“Anyhow, since it is such a secret, anyone asking around about his ventures seems to cause alarm,” Sterling continued.
Grace nodded and grinned. That had certainly been her sister’s experience with the duke.
“And so, you have caused alarm, then?” Grace prodded.
Sterling finally seemed to relax enough to grin at her, and Grace had to wish that he hadn’t.Why does he have to be so blasted good looking?It was a distraction they certainly didn’t need during this conversation.
“It would seem so,” he replied. “But I was the least of their worries, as it turns out. Someone else has been sniffing around and trying to cause problems for Rathnelly.”
“What sorts of problems besides these strange, vague notes?”
“One of your brother-in-law’s ventures includes a fleet of ships. He lost one a few months ago. At the time, it was thought that it went down in bad weather, which it did, but further investigation showed that the ship had also been tampered with, making it far more susceptible to the storm they encountered.”
Grace felt misgivings intrude. She considered herself to be sufficiently intelligent and competent, but this might be beyond her ken. “Was there loss of life?” Her voice was a little smaller than she would have liked as she asked the question.
“Blessedly, no. But he did lose revenue.”
“It seems like a great deal of effort with no guarantee of success.”
“What do you mean, pray tell?”
“Well, if it was merely tampered with, who was to say they would run into a storm? And what about the risk of death? It was a wicked and cowardly thing to do with no guarantee that it would do any harm to Rathnelly in the least.”
Grace couldn’t interpret the assessing expression on the earl’s face as he regarded her but also didn’t put too much effort into it, as she was too wrapped up in worrying about Rathnelly’s businesses.
“And furthermore, how are we to know if there aren’t other acts of sabotage out there just waiting to cause losses? Did you not say this could, perchance, be directed at the house of Sherton rather than Rathnelly? Why, there could be traps awaiting any number of people I care about at this moment.”
Agitation welled in her chest and pushed against her teeth, making her want to rant a little longer. Knowing it would be a senseless waste of time, Grace knitted her lips together and held silent for a moment. She could no longer sit docilely though and got to her feet to pace about the room. She took some deep breaths and regained her composure but didn’t bother to resume her seat. From across the room, she turned to stare at Lord Sterling.
“You are certain about this information, my lord?”
“I am, unfortunately.”
“And do you know for certain that Rathnelly is aware?”
“As I said, he is, in a roundabout way, the source of most of the information I’ve just told you.”
Grace nodded. “Yes, of course, I’m rather thinking out loud.” She nibbled on her lip with worry. “Do you have any idea if Rathnelly has warned the rest of my family?”
