Lord of Endersley (The Endersley Papers) by S.A. Meade

Author:S.A. Meade [Meade, S.A.]
Language: nld
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

The borrowed horse snorted and shied

at the rolling leaves. I sat deep in the saddle

and kicked him on, wanting to find refuge

from the relentless October drizzle. The

innkeeper’s directions had sent me along a

straight, muddy lane across open fens,

exposed to the bite of the north wind. I

huddled down into my coat, swore and gave

the horse another kick, urging it on. It

lurched forward with a long sigh of protest

and stumbled into a reluctant trot.

I stared across the black and empty

fields, towards a tidy stand of poplars rising

out of the fen. The swaying trees scarcely

veiled the house that stood beyond them.

Thin, pale streaks of smoke streamed away

from the chimneys and I hit the horse once

more, asking for a quicker pace. It bucked

once, lowered its head and fell into a canter.

This had to be the place—it was the only

house of a decent size for miles around. It

tied in with the innkeeper’s description, a

blank grey block of a place, surrounded by

an almost treeless fen. Even the avenue of

poplars leading to it failed to give it any

appeal or charm. The only hints of life were

the lit windows, glowing a soft amber in the

grey chill of morning.

I pulled the horse up in front of the

house and dismounted. A lad ran from the

back of the house and took the reins, leaving

me to walk up the steps to where a butler

waited.

“Can I help you, sir?”

“I’ve come to see Captain Billington.” I

handed him my card. “He’s not expecting

me.”

He surveyed my card in the dim light,

then stepped back to admit me. “If you’d

care to come with me, sir, I shall go and see

if the Captain is at home.”

I followed him into a small antechamber

off the main foyer, nothing more than a

space for a couple of chairs and an empty,

cold fireplace. I couldn’t help compare the

welcome I had received to the one callers

received at Endersley. Evans would’ve taken

them to a room with a fire and offered them

some refreshment. I listened to the wind

hurling rain against the window and waited.

The butler returned a few moments

later. “The Captain will receive you in the

drawing room.”

“Thank you.” I rose and handed him my

coat before following him along the hall, our

feet clicking on the black and white tiles.

The house was cloaked in silence and a grey

chill hung about the place. If Marcus was

living here, he would surely be miserable.

“In here, sir.” The butler paused beside a

closed

door.

“I

shall

bring

some

refreshments shortly.” He rapped lightly on

the door and opened it. “Mr Jacob Endersley

to see you, sir.”

I took a deep breath and walked into the

room, bracing myself for an uncertain

reception.

Marcus stood before the fireplace, hands

behind his back. His eyes gave nothing

away. Only his lips, pressed together in a

thin, tight line, gave any hint as to his state

of mind. We stared at each other in those

few, brief seconds before the butler

departed, closing the door behind him.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Every word was delivered with a measured

chill, scarcely concealing the anger beneath

them.

“I wanted to see how you were.”

“So you travelled halfway across the

country and turned up unannounced?” He

remained beside the fire, his hands deep into

his pockets.

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