AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“But you have already admitted the Burloynes are related to the Otterburns.”
“Yes, but I am a little uncertain of your mother’s parentage. I did hear that one of the Burloyne cousins married Shurland, now I think of it, but I don’t recall which one. If memory serves me, there were three Burloyne brothers of my generation. Their father married into the Otterburn family, through one of the daughters of my own great-aunt.”
Delagarde blinked. “You are very well informed, Aunt Hes.”
“One likes to keep abreast of these things.” She sounded casual, but Maidie, when the elder lady turned back to her, was surprised to encounter an extremely penetrating glance. “Which of those three brothers was your grandfather Burloyne, child?”
“The second one, Brice.”
“Indeed?” A long sigh escaped Lady Hester, and she sank back into her chair. “Well, well. Brice Burloyne’s granddaughter. With no male relatives.”
“No, for all the Burloynes are dead now, and I have no uncles or male cousins.”
“Except Shurland,” put in Delagarde.
“But I have told you—” Maidie began.
“Enough!” broke in Lady Hester. “Do not fall into a pointless dispute. Now, my dear Mary—if I may call you so?”
“Oh, please don’t. No one ever calls me Mary—except Adela, and that was only to annoy. My great-uncle Reginald, when he found himself saddled with the care of me, dubbed me Maidie, and so I have remained.”
“Very well then, Maidie, if you wish it. Tell me about this Adela. She sounds a most unpleasant sort of woman.”
Maidie wrinkled her brow. “I would not describe her as unpleasant,” she said, trying to be fair. “Her manner is no more objectionable than Lord Delagarde’s, for example.”
Delagarde’s infuriated glance raked her. “I am obliged to you, ma’am.”
Lady Hester laughed. “She is nothing if not direct, Laurie. I don’t suppose she means to insult you.”
“Why should he care? Besides, he has said worse of me.”
“For which you don’t give a fig, I dare say?”
Maidie lifted her chin. “I am not come here to gain his good opinion.”
“No, you are come here to gain my services. Not that I have the slightest expectation of your adopting a conciliatory manner. What I wish to know is, what was Shurland doing while this Adela was constraining you to marry her brother?”
“Yes, why did you not appeal to him?” asked Lady Hester.
“I did. His answer was that, between us, my great-uncle and myself had wasted his inheritance, and I would get no assistance from him.”
“Wasted his inheritance?” echoed Delagarde. “On what, pray?”
Maidie brushed this aside in a hurry, unwilling to go into that aspect of Great-uncle’s activities at this juncture. “It does not signify. The truth is it would suit him very well for my money to come into his family, even at one remove. Were I to marry another, he could not hope to get any share of it.”
“He is scarce likely to gain directly from his brother-in-law’s marriage,” objected Lady Hester.
“No, but I am sure he and Eustace have reached some sort of agreement on the matter, for there would otherwise be no reason for him to lend his support to Adela’s scheme.”
“But what drove you to take this drastic action, child? Not that I blame you, but Adela could hardly force you into matrimony with her brother. She did, I think you said, offer to bring you out.”
“Yes, she did.” Contempt entered Maidie’s voice. “It was only for the sake of appearances. She was afraid of what people might say of her, if it was seen I married her brother without choosing him from among a number of others. Eustace also did not wish to figure as a fortune-hunter.”
“Then why in the world did you not allow her to bring you out, and then choose another?”
Maidie stared at Lady Hester in frowning silence for a moment. Such a course had never even occurred to her. If it had, she would certainly have rejected it out of hand. She lifted a proud chin. “I may not be well versed in the etiquette obtaining in fashionable circles, but I assure you, ma’am, I am not without a sense of honour.”
She thought Lady Hester looked amused, but her tone was apologetic. “I had no intention of putting up your back, child. Are you suggesting that to have accepted a Season from Lady Shurland would have put you under an obligation?”
