An Unwilling Earl by Sharon Cullen

Author:Sharon Cullen
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Entangled, Amara, Gothic romance, serial killer, Widower, Victorian romance, newly inherited earldom, Scotland Yard, British historical, Historical romance, Romantic suspense, Aristocrats
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2019-08-06T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

Charlotte entered Jacob’s office and stopped short.

The two men stood, Jacob shifting from one foot to the other. Bringing Chadley into this was a calculated risk, and he had been aware that Charlotte would be angry, but after his discussion with Lady Morris, he also knew they needed more help than he could offer.

“What are you doing here?” She directed her question toward Chadley but glared at Jacob, his betrayal clear in her angry look.

“Lord Ashland asked me to come,” Chadley said.

“Why?”

“I think we need help,” Jacob said.

She looked at Chadley again, then back at Jacob. “You told him, didn’t you?”

Jacob hesitated. “Yes.”

Tears filled her eyes. “How could you?”

“I spoke to your aunt this morning.” He spoke quickly.

“You did what?” Her whispered words came through bloodless lips. “Is there no end to your deception?”

“Charlotte—” Chadley said, but Jacob held out his hand to stop him.

“I had to know,” he said to her. “Sometimes knowing your enemy is the best defense, and I needed to know more about her.”

“I know all there is to know about her and about her son.”

“She’s claiming that you are feeble-minded and not fit to take care of yourself.”

Charlotte hesitated but did not seem surprised. “I was afraid she would do something like that.”

He told her all of the conversation just like he had told Chadley. Both he and Chadley were concerned for Charlotte’s safety, and the marquess agreed that something needed to be done about it. Something drastic.

“She is going to try to convince people that I am a raving lunatic, and they will force me to return to her, and she will make sure that I am forever silenced,” she whispered.

“That is why I asked Lord Chadley to help us. You have no one to defend you. She kept you away from everyone for so long that there is no character witness we can use.”

Her fingers were folded into fists at her sides. “This proves more than anything that I need to leave England. I’ll be much safer in America.”

“We don’t think that is a good idea,” Chadley said.

“Excuse me, my lord, but you have no right to your opinion about me or what I do.”

“I want to help, Charlotte. I want to make up for everything my family did to you.”

“I don’t need your type of help.”

“Charlotte, please,” Jacob said.

She passed a shaking hand over her eyes. “The only help I need is to get a new identity, reference papers, and passage to America.”

“I can’t believe you would leave him to keep killing,” Jacob said, disappointed in her for once. She was a fighter, but this seemed to be one fight she wanted to walk away from.

“That’s not fair,” she whispered. “I’m trying to save myself.”

“You’re putting more women at risk. If the killer truly is Edmund, then he must be stopped.”

“And if I come forward, my aunt will have me labeled as incompetent and a fool, and no one will believe me.”

“We have a solution to that,” Chadley said.

Suddenly Jacob’s hands were sweating and his heart was pounding.

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