Chapter 25

Twenty-Five

M aximilian cursed. He had caught his thumb on a thorn, and it was bleeding. He raised it to his mouth, sucking at it, looking down at the roses he was pruning with a sigh.

Even beauty has its thorns, he thought to himself, glancing back towards the house from the rose garden.

To his surprise, he saw his mother hurrying across the lawn, and now she called to him, looking anxious as she approached.

"Maximilian, you've got a visitor," she said.

Maximilian narrowed his eyes, curious as to who it could be. If it was Lily, he would refuse to see her. He was too angry to be courteous, and as his mother entered the rose garden, Maximilian turned back to his pruning.

"I don't want to see anyone," he replied, but his mother caught his arm, an imploring look on her face…

"Please, Maximilian. It's not Lily, it's her friend, Alicia. She wants to talk to you. Lily's terribly upset," she said.

"And so she should be after what she's done," Maximilian retorted.

He had no doubt she was upset, but so was he. He felt betrayed, and he had the wound to prove it.

"Won't you talk to her? Won't you hear what she has to say?" his mother asked.

Maximilian sighed. He knew she would have no peace until he agreed, but the thought of another confrontation wearied him.

"But what does she want to say? Hasn't everything been said?" he asked.

His mother put her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek.

"I want you to be happy, Maximilian. Didn't Lily make you happy? I know she did a terrible thing, but it was her father…you know what Connor's like," she said.

Maximilian nodded. He understood just what Connor was like, and he could accept the possibility of Lily having been taken in by him. Connor was a wicked man who had tried to bring down the dukedom twice. To use his own daughter in such an attempt was surely to sink to a new level of treachery, and in that, Maximilian could find sympathy with Lily's plight. She had made him happy – more so than any other woman ever had – even as Maximilian was reluctant to admit it now.

"I do, Mother, and I feel a fool for having been caught up in his lies. I'll speak to her, but I doubt she'll change my mind," Maximilian said, and his mother smiled at him.

"Just speak to her, Maximilian. That's all you have to do," she replied.

They made their way across the lawn and back to the house, where they found Alicia in the drawing room with the duke and William. She looked up at Maximilian with a nervous expression on her face.

"You wanted to see me," he said, adopting what he hoped was a defensive tone.

But if anything, Maximilian was curious. He did care about Lily, even as she had done a terrible thing. He could feel sympathy for her. He did feel sympathy for her…

"Lily hasn't sent me here to plead her case. She's in a terrible state. Everything she believed in…it's all been destroyed. But I wanted to come myself. I wanted to tell you she's sorry, and ask you…well, to give her another chance. She loves you, and I think you love her, too," Alicia said.

Maximilian felt a sudden upsurge of emotion. He did love Lily, even as he could hardly bear to think of the betrayal he had suffered at her hands. But she had suffered betrayal, too, and in Connor, they had a common enemy, one now vanquished. Glancing at his mother, Maximilian sighed. He wanted to be angry, but all he could feel was pity.

"I…I do love her, but…what she did…" he said, shaking his head, as his father stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What Connor did, Maximilian. It was Connor who did this. He used Lily for his own wickedness. Just like he used William, and all of us, in turn. He's only ever wanted his own gain at the expense of others, and using his daughter in such a way shows he'll never change. Lily isn't the one to blame. And, of all people, you yourself should know what it feels like to be misunderstood," the duke said.

Maximilian sighed. He felt torn, but his father was right. For too long, Maximilian had felt himself unjustly treated. He had played up to his reputation, delighted in it, even. But it had not brought him happiness. Even when he had tried to change, there had been those who had not believed he could do so. They had thought him a rake, and that was that. But Lily had believed in that change. She had seen it for herself, and for that reason, she had held back publishing her scandal paper, willing to give him a second chance, even before the revelation about her father had come to light.

"I…yes, I do understand. But…won't she go back to London now? There's nothing to keep her here," Maximilian replied, as though clasping at a last reason not to give in to the feelings.

But Alicia shook her head.

"Not if you stopped her. Please…she made a terrible mistake, and I know she'll regret it for the rest of her life. She loves you, Maximilian, and you love her, too. Isn't that enough to leave the past behind? You've both made mistakes. Why not make a fresh start together?" Alicia said.

Maximilian had not thought about it like that. He had blamed Lily entirely, and yet the situation had been partly of his own making, too. Had he not behaved in such a rakish way, there would have been no scandal to report, and Lily would have had no reason to ingratiate herself with him.

Being a rake was necessary, he thought to himself.

"Think about it, Maximilian. Don't throw away your chance at happiness. We give you our blessing," the duke said, and his mother nodded.

"Give Lily a chance, Maximilian. She's not to blame in all of this. She's a victim of Connor, and we all know what it feels like to be so," she said.

Maximilian sighed. He would need time to think, but he was grateful to Alicia for what she had done. There was no doubting the strength of her friendship with Lily, and if the others could find it in their hearts to forgive her, perhaps he could, too.

"I can't promise anything," he said, and Alicia nodded.

"Please…you don't have to decide yet. But don't let her leave. You could both be so happy together," she replied.

Alicia left Burnley Abbey with mixed feelings. She had done her best to convince Maximilian of Lily's sorrow, even as he had not immediately followed her on an errand of mercy. There had been confusion in his eyes, and Alicia had the sense Maximilian felt torn between his head and his heart.

I can only hope he makes the right decision, Alicia thought to herself.

But when she arrived home, she found an uproar ensuing…

"I can't stay here any longer," Lily said, as Alicia hurried up the drive to where a carriage was being loaded with her possessions.

"But…Lily, you can't just leave. What are you going to do?" Alicia exclaimed.

"I'm going back to London. I need to make peace with my mother. I've written to her, telling her I'm sorry, but it's not enough. She was right about my father. She tried to warn me, but I wouldn't listen. I was stubborn, like him. But it's no good, I was wrong about him. I was wrong about everything," Lily replied, shaking her head sadly.

To her surprise, Alicia now noticed a small bonfire kindled at the side of the house, where piles of paper were smoldering, their edges curled and burned. It was the scandal sheets, and Lily now tossed another pile into the flames.

"But that doesn't mean you have to leave at once. I'll miss you," Alicia exclaimed.

"And I'll miss you, too. I'm so sorry for what I've done. I betrayed you, too – and your parents. You gave me a place to stay, and the hospitality of your home. But I was just using you. It's no good. I've got to go," Lily said, and she kissed Alicia hurriedly on the cheek, as the last of her bags was placed in the carriage.

Alicia's parents now emerged from the house, and Alicia looked imploringly at her mother, who shook her head sadly.

"We've tried to talk her out of it, Alicia, but she won't listen," she said, and her father sighed.

"It doesn't have to be like this, Lily. You did nothing wrong. It's your father who should be ashamed. He should've protected you. But instead, he used you for his own gain. You were a pawn in his game," he said, but Lily was not listening.

She climbed into the carriage, pulling the compartment door closed, as Alicia stood desperately looking up at her.

"Lily, please. I saw Maximilian, I talked to him. I think…" she stammered, even as she did not know what to think.

Maximilian had given no indication of a change of heart. He had shown no suggestion of forgiving Lily, even as he had listened to what his parents and Alicia had said. In truth, Alicia did not know what might be, and she could only plead with Lily to stay a little longer and give Maximilian a chance.

"But it's impossible, Alicia. I've done something so terrible. I've got to leave. I can't stay here. Not now," Lily replied, and calling out to the carriage driver, she instructed him to drive on.

Alicia stood back, and her mother put her arm around her as tears rolled down Alicia's cheeks.

"I tried to help her, Mother, I really did," she said.

"I know you did, Alicia. But I don't think she wanted you to help her. She believes she's the author of her own downfall, and now all she can do is flee. Isn't that what so many of those she wrote about did?" Alicia's mother replied.

Alicia watched as the carriage pulled away. Lily looked a pitiable figure, her head bowed, her face etched with sorrow. But as the carriage pulled out of the gates, a sudden, unexpected sight came into view. It was Maximilian, riding at full gallop on a horse. He reined it in, the carriage driver slowing the horses, as Maximilian blocked the way.

"Lily, I've got to talk to you," he cried, and Alicia gasped, as the compartment door opened, and Lily tentatively stepped out.