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“Eric was born first.” Vanity glanced over at the fallen man. “And there was no crying. No screams. I was scared that he was dead, but I couldn’t focus on him as I was still in labour with you. The pain was still there. The midwife gave the baby to one of my maids and told her to deal with the child. As far as we were aware, we thought that he - Eric - was dead.” Vanity’s voice trembled. “It wasn’t until last year after your father’s death, and you left for France again, that I discovered he had been alive all this time. And he had been raised by…” Her voice broke and Vanity let out a little sob. “By my former betrothed.”
This felt like far too much to take in. Nathan felt like he had been hit over the head. He rubbed his hands over his eyes.
“Let me get this straight. You’re saying that I had a twin and you threw him away within minutes of him being born because you thought he was dead?”
“I didn’t mean to, I…”
“Did Father know about the other baby?”
Vanity bit her lip.
“He was told that I had twins but only one survived. He was just grateful that I was alive, and we had a child. The midwife was so focused on trying to keep me alive.” She raised a hand to her mouth, her hand shaking. “Why the maid took Eric to the man who hated me, I have no idea. She left my service soon after. But the damage was done. I had abandoned him when I was needed most in his life, and then he was raised with poison being poured into his ear. Then your father died, you went back to fight, and Eric...he came back. Walked into this room and said he wanted the title of Earl of Brixton, as it was his birth right.”
“But you couldn’t let me know about it because you didn’t want to reveal what you had done,” Nathan murmured.
The strange thing was, if Vanity had told him about Eric and that Eric wanted the title, Nathan would have given it to him. He never wanted it. In his eyes, it meant knowing that his father wasn’t around. Nathan preferred his army title. Eric could take what he wanted. Except Vanity’s pride had got in the way.
“Then Eric had a better way of doing it.” Vanity was staring at the floor, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. “Simply replace one Earl with another. Seeing as you two are identical, it wouldn’t have been that difficult.”
“You were going to help him lure me here to kill me, weren’t you?”
Vanity didn’t immediately respond. Nathan’s heart sank. His own mother had been involved in bringing him back with the plan of killing him so another son could take his place. All because she didn’t want her past to catch up with her.
Nathan felt sick.
“Forgive me, Nathan.” Vanity burst into quiet sobs and buried her face in her hands. “Forgive me.”
Nathan didn’t respond. He couldn’t respond. There wasn’t really anything he could say to that. Now he just felt numb. Very numb.
His mother had been plotting with his long-lost brother to kill him for his title.
And all because of someone’s pride and another’s greed.
Some family he had.
* * *
Eleanor stood at the doorway to one of the dorms and watched as the nuns got the children settled. There had been at least two dozen children who had been confined in that warehouse by the river who now resided at the orphanage, and there were going to be more, but this was a start.
They would find the rest of them. Once Eric’s people had talked, they would find them all. Hopefully, not in shallow graves - or in the river like some of the children. Those who argued back and had a mind of their own didn’t last long in their world.
Now these children would be able to get the care and attention they desperately needed. Eleanor was glad to have been there when they were found.
She was still getting her head around the fact that the man who had taken these children for his own business dealings was the same man who had set Nathan up to be killed. Or that he was Nathan’s twin brother. Nathan looked in a state of shock himself when he told her. Eleanor could understand. That was some secret to have kept hidden for so long.
Eric had been dragged out of the house, snarling and threatening to come back after Vanity to finish the job, declaring his birth right. For someone who seemed so controlled and put together for his business, he seemed a little unstable himself. Nathan had simply stood back, Eleanor with him, expressionless but he had been shaking. Eleanor didn’t know what to say to make him feel better.
This was one mess that was going to take a while to unravel and sort out.
Deciding that she couldn’t do anything more tonight, Eleanor headed downstairs, giving Sister Cecilia a wave as she went past. Nathan was pacing around in the lobby, going from one side of the room to the other. Eleanor slowed. She hadn’t expected to see him there. Nathan had gone along with the magistrate to put Eric in jail. From the way the judicial official had been staring at Nathan and Eric, he was equally baffled at it all as well.
“Nathan?”
Nathan turned. His shoulders slumped, and he hurried to her. Eleanor accepted the embrace, hearing Nathan’s sigh of relief and his whole-body losing tension. They remained like that for a moment before Nathan eased back.
“I didn’t want to go in there and frighten the children. How are they?”
“Exhausted.” Eleanor covered her mouth as she yawned. “As am I. But they’re glad to be out of there.”
