His Lady in Breeches

XLIII. A Lady Always Is

"Gramp, what do you think of what the Trilbys did to the Everards?" Valerie asked.

Eddie raised his brows as he continued to stare at the sky above him. Their grandfather had always loved watching the stars.

"They did many things, horrible ones in fact," he slowly said, "that I feel I do not have the stomach to count them all."

"But were they truly evil as pictured in Gram's books?" Violet asked.

Their grandfather Eddie rolled his head to the side to look into his granddaughter's eyes. "Some of them were, yes."

"Amelia?"

They thought their saw their grandfather shiver. "The vilest, I tell you."

"Will you tell us more about them? How their plans turned out?"

The old man sighed. "It shall take us a very long time to discuss my family," he said. "But I am not the best person to do it, I tell you."

"Why?"

"Because I was not there to witness it all."

They all fell silent. The twins were not certain if they wanted to learn everything about the Trilbys at such a short period of time. Their grandfather was right.

"Tell us one thing though," Valerie said. "Was Amelia lying when she said that Fiona—err, gram, I mean—is not Noah's daughter?"

Eddie simply smiled. He grunted as he braced himself on the chair and stood up. "It is rather cold out here in the veranda," he said. "Would love to have a cup of tea."

"Gramp!" the girls cried.

Edmund Trilby paused and looked down at them. "Amelia Trilby may have been vile, but she rarely lied."

*****

"Felicitations to us both, brother," Nicholas said to Ralph, raising his glass of brandy. "We are two of the few men who regained membership in this damned place after a scandalous banishment."

Ralph rolled his eyes. "I would share the joy if you can convince your dear Tania and that Veronica chit to join us."

Nicholas frowned. "You bloody know why they are staring at us like two vultures waiting for a meal! I could imagine them picking our brains first and flying it out of a hole to eat aboveground!"

Ralph sighed and shook his head. "I am starting to believe I have nothing to find here. And I do not think their hunger will be satiated with your brain. You barely have one." He braced his head as Nicholas smacked his head.

Scowling, Nicholas added a kick under the table. "Brother dear, you simply have lost hope of the women here. You cannot urge one to take you to her chamber simply because you are a bloody guard. And you are correct. You cannot find anything here because your bloody profession is a hindrance. While I, your handsome and great brother, can very well do the job you cannot! Call me brainless all you want, but I am your only hope in this damned place."

"Overly confident, are we not?" Ralph dryly uttered. He looked up and his brows rose in surprise. "Bloody hell, Samuel, what are you doing here!"

Nicholas snapped his head around and found Samuel Theobald walking toward them with a defeated look on his face. Beside him was another young man dressed as boring as him.

"Whyever are you here, Samuel?" Nicholas repeated Ralph's question.

"Gentlemen," Samuel greeted dryly. He motioned at his dark-haired friend, the other boring lad, and said, "Hastings, Everard brothers. Everard brothers, Hastings."