Page 60 of Surrender

“Has she refused you?”

“Three times,” Theo said grimly as he turned away from the two men to stare out the window again. After a long moment, Theo heard his uncle mutter an oath.

“You didn’t tell me she’d refused you multiple times when we were trying to develop a plan for you to convince her to accept your offer, Theo,” his uncle said with annoyance.

“I saw no point in doing so.” Theo shrugged as he bowed his head. “You know how stubborn Genevieve can be. She’s made up her mind. I went along with your plan so I didn’t have to argue with you.”

“Then she’s using her past as an excuse.” The disgusted note in Percy Rockwood’s voice indicated his frustration with his daughter. “I think it’s time I brought Rhea into the conversation.”

“No,” Theo exclaimed with more vehemence than he’d meant to.

Astonished by his reaction, both men looked at each other and then back at Theo. Aware he’d made a serious error with his response, he returned his attention to the ship being unloaded at the wharf.

“What else aren’t you telling me, Theo?”

Something in his uncle’s voice made his muscles grow taut as he tried to collect himself before turning around and lying to his uncle’s face. Any other time, a small lie to his uncle wouldn’t have been difficult, but his father was present, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to get away with deflecting the question or answering with some fabrication. But he also knew he’d go to his grave protecting Genevieve and her secrets. He continued to look out the window.

“Any secrets Genevieve has are hers to tell. If there’s anything she wants you to know, that’s her decision to make.”

“Christ almighty,” Percy Rockwood whispered. “Rhea was right. Ruckley did do something to Genevieve.”

“What do you mean?”

It wasn’t difficult to hide his horror at his uncle’s comment as he whirled around to stare at Percy Rockwood. If Genevieve’s adopted father already knew Ruckley had made Genevieve service men from an early age, she’d be horrified.

The one thing she’d not wanted was for her parents to know about her terrible past. Now, staring at the pain on his uncle’s face, Theo couldn’t be sure how much the man knew. Nor did Theo have any intention of admitting or confirming anything his uncle knew.

“Rhea has her suspicions, but nothing she can confirm. When we first brought the children home to Green Hill House, she tried to coax Genevieve into sharing what had happened.” Uncle Percy shook his head. “Genevieve denied anything was wrong, but we knew she was terrified. She was terrified of me, her uncles, every man who came near her, except for her brothers. We knew Ruckley was responsible, but Genevieve has never told us what the man did to her.”

Silence filled the office for a long moment as the three of them became lost in their own thoughts. After several minutes, Percy Rockwood suddenly stiffened and straightened in his chair.

“You said Wills works for the Crown. In what capacity?” The minute Theo hesitated, his uncle leaned forward in his chair with suppressed fury. “Goddamnit, man, answer my question.”

“He’s the foreign section’s surgeon.”

“And was he working in that capacity this past July?”

There was an intensity about Percy Rockwood’s question that made Theo realize Genevieve’s father suspected her shoulder hadn’t hurt because she’d slept on it wrong. Theo nodded, but didn’t provide any verbal response. His uncle reached for the almost empty bottle of whisky, this time foregoing a glass and drinking straight from the bottle.

As his uncle set the bottle back on the desk with a hard thud, he narrowed his eyes at Theo. Even before his uncle spoke, there was a silent warning on Percy Rockwood’s face that said the older man’s patience was thin as a string of thread.

“Think long and hard as to how you answer this next question, Lord Selbourne,” his uncle said. “Did Wills have to treat my daughter for any kind of injury a couple of days before we were at Callander Abbey for Aunt Matilda’s birthday?”

That Uncle Percy had resorted to using his formal title told Theo the senior members of the Rockwoods were going to wring his neck if he failed to answer the question his uncle had just asked. With resignation, he sank down into his chair.

“Yes.”

“And was that injury related to her shoulder?” His uncle narrowed his gaze as Theo hesitated. “Don’t even think about hedging the truth, Theo, or so help me god, you’ll be picking yourself up from the floor, bloodied and battered.”

“In a manner of speaking,” Theo said softly, hesitant to give Genevieve up to her father.

“Explain.”

“She’d been stabbed.”

“Sweet Jesus,” his uncle whispered in horror as he slumped back into his chair. “How bad was it?”

“Wills said it took almost twenty sutures to close the wound. It was…”Theo’s voice trailed off into silence as he came close to revealing the fact that he’d seen Genevieve’s stitches himself.