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The letter Heslop had sent had informed him that his father had taken a second wife and that it had created unforeseen complications that needed immediate attention. William had been an only child, however, so it hadn’t dawned on him in the slightest that those “complications” would be a half brother and half sister. For that was what they were: his siblings.
Good heavens.
“Perhaps this is a conversation better had without the children present,” William suggested in a low voice, his lips barely moving.
“No!” the boy, Peter, exclaimed. “I’m not leaving Mama. And Daisy isn’t either, are you, Daisy?”
“Mama,” the little girl said, burrowing deeper into her mother’s lap.
“We can speak in front of the children, Lord Farleigh,” Miss Purnell said. “They are generally aware of the situation in which we find ourselves. I doubt the details will be any more stressing than the generalities already are. And I would prefer to keep them by my side.”
“It might be possible to find a suitable person to tend your children while we discuss matters best suited to adults, however,” William said in what he hoped was a gentle tone. He was still trying to gather what remained of his wits and maintain a smooth facade. “I doubt the conversation will be of interest to them.”
“I am keeping my children with me nonetheless,” she said firmly. She was an attractive woman, which shouldn’t have surprised him, considering the singular taste for fine things his father had always had. It certainly applied to his choice of women.
Heslop looked at William and gave a subtle shrug. “Very well,” the solicitor said. He scooped up the folder of documents on his desk and handed it to William. “These are the papers she brought to me yesterday, including a few I have added since then.”
William rested his hip against the corner of the desk and perused the documents one by one before looking up. “It says here that your marriage to my . . . to the former Viscount Farleigh, was on—”
“Christmas Eve 1796. That is correct, milord.”
“But that’s—”
“Before the first Mrs. Barlow, Lady Farleigh, was deceased. Yes, I know that now. I did not know it at the time and only discovered the truth of it yesterday when we came to talk to Mr. Heslop; he has been very kind in explaining the particulars to me. My marriage is null and void, I have come to understand, and my children, therefore, are illegitimate.”
Confound his father! He’d betrayed William’s mother in the most heinous of ways, but he’d used this woman just as badly. The guilt and shame William felt over the actions of his father fell on him like a heavy mantle that threatened to suffocate him.
Peter—William’s half brother, for heaven’s sake!—obviously knew what the word illegitimate meant, if the scowl on his face was any indication. “I hate him,” the boy muttered.
“Allow me to summarize, your lordship,” Heslop said. “Your father married Miss Purnell under false pretenses—”
“He told me he was a widower,” Miss Purnell added. “That he was Mister William Barlow. I never even knew he was a viscount.”
Heslop nodded in acknowledgment and then continued. “As he was at Farleigh House in London rather than with Miss Purnell when he died, the servants there had his remains escorted to Buckinghamshire for burial in the family cemetery at Farleigh Manor, leaving Miss Purnell none the wiser.”
“He was often away, sometimes for several weeks at a time,” Miss Purnell added. “He had responsibilities, he said, though he never talked about them, and I stopped asking. I didn’t know anything was wrong until a man showed up asking me for the mortgage money; he said back money was owed as well.” She blinked back tears, and William couldn’t help but feel compassion for her. He’d watched his own mother struggle with his father over similar things when William was no more than Peter’s age now, and things had only gotten worse over time. “William always told me the house was mine,” she added. “That he’d bought it for me and Peter and Daisy. I thought it was all paid for.” She fumbled in her reticule for a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes and nose, then she straightened her back and lifted her chin. “I’m sorry, Mr. Heslop. Please continue with your explanation.”
“Miss Purnell discovered my name and direction amongst the viscount’s belongings. She arrived here yesterday with questions.”
“Ah,” was all William could think to say.
“I didn’t become worried about him—he’d been gone only a few weeks, you see—when your betrothal announcement was printed in the papers,” Miss Purnell said. “It listed your name, William Barlow. Just like his name. It was such a coincidence, and I couldn’t ignore it. It got me wondering . . . He would never speak about his past, you see. I should have persisted in asking, I see that now, but I never did. He was older than me, so very imperious . . .” She looked down at her children. “Well, it doesn’t matter, because eventually, he spent little time with us. And then when the man, the landlord, I suppose he was, showed up, demanding money . . .”
Heslop took up the rest of the story when she faltered. “Sadly, I provided her with the answers she needed but did not expect,” he said. “I thought you had better be a participant in our conversations.”
“What of your own family, Miss Purnell?” William asked.
“I have no family. I met William when I was a governess, but those days are long behind me. He was an acquaintance of my employer; at least he attended a house party my employer hosted. That was when we met.” She dabbed at her eyes again. “I didn’t know he was dead,” she whispered. She patted her daughter’s curls and held her close; still, William suspected she was mostly comforting herself. The little girl had lost interest in the adult conversation around her and had fallen asleep on her mother’s lap.
“Will you excuse Lord Farleigh and me, Miss Purnell?” Heslop asked her. “Perhaps you could use a few minutes alone.”
“Yes, thank you.”
He and William left the office and moved slightly away from the closed door. Wilcox and Jamison were busy at work, dutifully minding their own business. Heslop had trained his employees well.
“I have informed Miss Purnell that even if the legitimacy of the marriage had been proven sound, there wouldn’t be any inheritance—that you are the rightful heir. I also mentioned the debts. She’s a bright woman, milord; she understands that she has been left with no home, no source of income, and two children to support in addition to herself—all while discovering that her marriage was a sham and that her illegitimate husband died without her knowledge. It’d be quite a blow for anyone, poor woman.”
“She’s well-educated, which accounts for her former position as a governess. She’s fought out of dire straits before this, I imagine,” William said. “The lady has a great deal of poise. I must think. Blast it all; her children are my blood relatives. I cannot in good conscience abandon them.”
