Page 66 of A Highland Duke to Claim Her Heart

“Ewan’s illness,” Cassandra said at once, and Alaric nodded in surprise.

“So you are suspicious too?”

“I am concerned,” Cassandra said, frowning. “A headache or two would be one thing, but it has been days, and he is only growing worse. Coupled with the fatigue, his irritability, and his lethargy…”

“Yes,” Alaric said, “I am concerned as well. The headaches seem to be growing worse, and the period of time between them is shortening.”

“He needs to be seen to by a doctor,” Cassandra said at once, fear taking hold of her heart with its icy hand. “Or perhaps a surgeon in Edinburgh. We should get him there at once!”

“Yes, I agree. In fact, I’ve already organized for the Calder doctor to visit directly” Alaric said. “But there is also something else I wish to discuss with you. Something that is of a highly sensitive nature.”

Alaric reached into his pocket and pulled out a small glass vial, stoppered with cork. It was empty, except for a layer of sediment at the bottom of it.

“What is that?” she asked.

“It is a tonic that Christopher gave His Grace this afternoon,” he said. “I watched him do it. He claimed that it was medicine he himself had taken from an apothecary in London.”

“I have known friends who believe in the power of apothecaries,” Cassandra said.

“It might be a useful concoction,” Alaric said, although from his tone, she sensed he did not really believe this. “It might also be useless but harmless. But my fear is that it will do more harm. That it may, in fact, becausingthis illness.”

A chill moved down Cassandra.

“What are you saying, Alaric?” she whispered, glancing over her shoulder as she did to make sure that they were alone. “Are you saying that Christopher somehow caused these headaches?”

Alaric set his jaw, and something like anger flashed in his eyes. “I am,” he said. “Think about it, Your Grace: The headaches, fatigue, and irritability all began shortly after Christopher returned. But not right away. Only after Christopher had secured a large sum of money from His Grace in order to pay off his debts, which, I have since learned, are not insignificant, and which he owes to a dangerous crime family in Edinburgh.”

“What?” Cassandra stared at him. “I did not know that.”

Alaric grimaced. “Christopher has been most unwise, Your Grace. And I fear that he has become desperate. This family, the Fergusons, are known to exact blood prices from those that owe them money.”

“But Ewan agreed to pay it!”

“For now,” Alaric observed. “But what happens when Christopher goes back to his old, gambling ways, and accrues a new debt? Your brother made him swear that he would quit gambling, but you and I both know that Christopher will never reform. He is too far gone. What he needs is not a lump sum of cash to cover his debts, but a steady source of reliable income so that he can continue in his degenerate ways.”

Cassandra’s heart was in her throat. She felt cold and clammy all over.

“The dukedom,” she whispered. “You think he is after the Dukedom of Calder.”

Alaric nodded slowly. “When Christopher lost you, he did not just lose a wife and a dowry,” he said. “He lost the chance of a title. His Grace had sworn that he would never remarry, and I have every reason to believe he would have kept his word, had Christopher not disappeared and he been obliged to marry you. Which means that in lieu of a son, the dukedom would have passed to Christopher after his death. Now, he fears that he will lose it. At least, that is what I suspect. You have married his brother, and you very well could bear him an heir. You may already be carrying this child.”

Cassandra thought, with dismay, of the coldness of her marriage bed, but of course, she said nothing about this to Alaric.

“If you are, then I would also begin to fear for your safety,” Alaric continued. “I cannot be sure, but after watching Christopher give His Grace this tonic, and thinking back to the last few days, I am beginning to suspect —that Christopher may be poisoning His Grace.”

Cassandra gaped. She could barely even wrap her mind around it.

And yet…

Christopher had been serving Ewan glass after glass of wine. He had always insisted on being the one to pour it, making a big show of thanking his brother for his hospitality. And Ewan had been imbibing more than usual. Not enough alcohol to cause these problems, but if the alcohol had trace amounts of poison in it…

She stared down at the vial still in Alaric’s hands. The sediment at the bottom looked innocent enough, but how would she know the difference between something that was safe and something that was poisonous?

And Alaric was right about Christopher. He had lost everything when she had married Ewan.

His attentions from the past few days suddenly came into a new light. He was not trying to steal her from Ewan. He was possibly trying to get close enough that he could poison her, too.

She shivered again. It could not be… It was too horrible to contemplate.