Broken Dove

Broken Dove

Chapter 1

London had been crowded and filthy as usual. The streets littered with unsavory souls all seeming to move as one. Street thieves, prostitutes, peddlers, and the snobbish upper class all mingling. Detaching himself from the crowds was relieving in the least. Leaving behind the noise was no great hardship either. The city was a constant bustle of activity; Carriages rolled the streets all hours of the night always seeming to be in a rush. No one ever seemed to take a moment to relax and breathe. Of course with the stench that now encircled the city that maybe wise. Having spent most of his life on or near the sea had left Marcus with little tolerance for the stagnate smells London offered.

He preferred the quiet solitude of the country life and his newly acquired estate offered that. Harold house had been in the family for nearly a hundred years and his for the last month. It boasted a dozen bedrooms, two formal dining halls, a massive ballroom, several parlors and a massive literary collection. His uncle had allowed the once luxurious estate to deteriorate much like he had his other holdings though.

It had taken days of sorting with his own finical advisers just to learn who all his uncle owed money to. The past five days in the city just to track down the debtors and pay off the accounts. It had been quite a large sum of money but he wanted to clear the family name of any blemishes. Using the inheritance his own father had left him had felt right. It seemed to be a way of including his father in the restoration of the family.

Marcus was like his parent in business matters. Clear and directly to the point was the only way to manage such affairs. What his father had lacked in compassion he had made up for with sensibility. Having spent half of his thirty years learning the family shipping business had taught him that. If you altered from that you ended up like his uncle Randal. His bleeding heart had helped others while leaving him in debt.

Randal's books had shown that he had donated to several charities and extended large sums of credit to his people. Marcus had a heart but how could one provide for so many and not keep up one's own keep? The man had been nearly sixty years old, never married and no named children. His affairs, debts, estates, and vase array of problems fell into Marcus' lap. One of which he was headed to now.

A small hunting lodge was what the ledgers identified it as. It was not a large piece of land and this trip would determine if it was worth keeping. If not he would sell it and recoup some of his money. He did not have the time for the sport.

The coach raced along the winding road. They had left the main lane several miles ago for this rutted road. It rocked the passengers back and forth in a ungentle manner. Lazily the other passenger stretched his arms out almost touching both sides of the carriage.

Sitting opposite from each other the two friends were just that. Vance Montgomery or Monty as the Ton called him was Marcus' oldest friend. Where he was sturdy with tight muscles built over years of manual labor his school room friend Monty was long and slender. Monty's blonde curls and boyish looks contrasted against his pals black hair and sun kissed skin.

The pairs personalities were as different as their looks. Where one was loud and carefree the other took life seriously. His friend took no shame in living off his family's wealth and prestige. Having never worked a day in his life was a point of boast rather than shame for Montgomery.

"Remind me again why I am here with you?" Sleep still hung to his voice causing his words to come out rough and gravely.

"I do believe a certain chits father was planning on skinning you alive today." A hint of humor edged Marcus' words while a smirk slide onto his face.

"Yes I do recall you rescuing me but you do not have to be so smug about it." Smoothing back his blonde curls Monty lent forward to look out the window. A smile creep onto his face. "She would have been worth it..."