Page 81 of An Uncommon Earl

“Forgive me, miss.” Alice was actually wringing her hands. “It’s Asher. I went t’ fetch the bathtub from downstairs, and when I went back t’ the nursery, ’e was gone. I’ve searched the whole ’ouse, and ’e’s nowhere to be found.”

Jane pushed back her chair and shot to her feet. “Is anything else missing?”

Alice swallowed hard. “The jar, miss. And the frogs. All that’s left in the bucket are the tadpoles.”

Jane swung around to face the dining room window. Heavy velvet drapes covered the glass. “Albert,” she said, panic creeping into her voice. “Pull back the curtains. Is it raining still?”

The footman pulled back the window covering and gazed outside. “There are drips coming off the roofline, miss,” he said, “but the rain has stopped.”

Jane’s fingers touched her throat as it suddenly became harder to breathe. “He’s taken the frogs back to the pond,” she said, conviction that she was correct settling on her chest like a lead weight.

Her father was on his feet. “Surely he would not attempt such a thing.”

“I told him we would do it when the rain stopped. He was worried about covering the frogs in the bucket with fabric and wanted to keep his promise to Lord Bloxley.”

“But it’s dark outside,” Phoebe said. “And he barely knows his way around.”

“Three-year-olds rarely think of such things, Phoebe,” their mother said. “They simply go.”

Jane clutched the back of the chair, desperately reviewing everywhere she and Asher had walked. “He may go through the orchard,” she said. “He knows the Bloxley land adjoins ours, and he’s seen the chimneys over the tops of the apple trees.”

“Gresham.” Mr. Hadford did not waste another minute. “I want every maid searching this house from top to bottom. The footmen are to search the grounds—especially the orchard. Send one to the stable to enlist the help of the grooms, and tell John that I want my horse saddled immediately.”

“Where are you going, Reginald?” Aunt Millward said

“To Bloxley Hall.” He had already started for the door. “We need to have men at the pond before our little boy gets there.”

“Thank you, Father.” Jane could barely choke out the words. Her father was treating the search for Asher with the same urgency he would if the child were truly his own son.

“Send word to me at Bloxley Hall as soon as you find him,” he said, and then he walked out, the echo of his rapid footsteps following him across the hall.

Chapter 26

The Bloxley carriage rolled to a stop opposite the front doors of Bloxley Hall. The torrential rain that had slowed Alexander’s journey from Norton Ripley had finally eased, and he exited the carriage grateful to have the distasteful assignments of the last few days behind him.

Toole had been invaluable throughout. By the time Alexander had returned to Norton Ripley after taking David and Elijah to the Foundling Hospital, the Runner had located and primed the local magistrate regarding the pending charges against Jasper Stanley. Alexander had needed to do little more than sign a few documents.

His time with the magistrate in High Brodmore had been more taxing. When Alexander had itemized the charges against George Stanley, the magistrate had been incredulous, and it was likely only because of Alexander’s standing in the community that the gentleman had deigned to take him seriously. It had taken only ten minutes with the butcher to seal the man’s fate, however. When the magistrate explained the reason for his presence in the shop, Mr. Stanley had become belligerent, and his disparaging remarks about the “filthy urchins” who stayed at his house were enough to convince the magistrate that the butcher had not treated the boys well.

Alexander had left the butcher in the magistrate’s care and had taken Charlie back to Norton Ripley to stay with his aunt. They were two more victims in the Stanley brothers’ scheme, and Alexander hoped that they would be a support for each other while the two men awaited their trial and sentencing.

Fink had the front doors open before Alexander reached them, and with a grateful nod, Alexander handed his hat and gloves to the reliable butler.

“Welcome home, my lord.”

“Thank you, Fink.” Exhaustion was hitting him, and he wanted only to close the door on the world and sit by the fire in his study with a glass of brandy.

“Shall I have Cook make up a plate for you, my lord? Lady Bloxley took her meal in her chambers this evening. She ate some time ago.”

“That would be much appreciated, thank you. I shall be in the study.”

“Very good, my lord.”

Alexander crossed the hall and entered the study. Walking over to the brandy decanter on the small table beside one of the chairs, he poured himself a glass. Then he reached for the pile of correspondence Fink had left on his desk and carried it with him to the chair closest to the fire. Dropping into the armchair, he laid his head against the back and closed his eyes. Four long, sleepless nights were catching up with him.

With a sigh, he sat up, set his glass on the table, and began sorting through the letters in his hand. When he came upon the lavender envelope, his breath caught. Jane. What could she possibly have to say to him that she had not already said the last time they’d been together? Setting aside the rest of his correspondence, he broke the seal and withdrew the letter.

Charwell Park