Epilogue

Epilogue

London, England, 1816

L ily and Maximilian did go to London. They were accompanied by Alicia and went with the blessing of both her parents and the duke and duchess. Everyone was thrilled at the news of the engagement, and the drawing rooms and salons of the county – once so full of vitriol against the rakish heir – now sang the praises of a fairytale romance. In London, Lily's mother welcomed her with open arms, and it was a tearful reunion for them both. Lily, Maximilian, and Alicia remained in London, making preparations for the wedding – there was a great deal to do, and Lily was enjoying being a bride to be…

"I think it's lovely, Lily. It really is," Alicia said, as Lily stepped down from a large, red plush stool, where the modiste had been pinning up her dress.

She and Alicia had been shopping, and they had visited a dozen dress shops on Bond Street that morning, where Lily had tried on all manner of dresses, settling on a modest design, with lace sleeves, and a high neckline. It really did look very pretty, and with just a few alterations, it would be ready.

"I'll take it," Lily said, and the modiste looked up at her and smiled.

"It's a big decision to choose a dress, miss," she said, and Lily smiled.

"But an even bigger decision to choose a husband. I'm very happy with both," she said, and the modiste laughed.

Having placed the order, and changed back into her own dress, Lily and Alicia left the shop and climbed into their waiting carriage. As they emerged, Lily noticed a woman across the street, casting furtive glances this way and that. She recognized her as Lady Montague Scott, a socialite, well known for her loose favors…

"Do you know her?" Alicia asked, as Lily peered out of the carriage window with interest.

"I know a great deal about her, yes, though I don't know her personally," Lily replied.

Alicia raised her eyebrows, and Lily continued to watch, as now, a gentleman came sidling up to Lady Scott, slipping his arm around her and kissing her on the cheek. It was a bold and brazen move, and Lily gasped, recognizing the man as Sir Douglas Fairfax, a man whose wife was very much alive.

"Goodness," Alicia said, her eyes growing wide.

But Lily turned to her and smiled, shaking her head, as she realized what she had been about to think.

"Oh, let them get on with it. I don't care. It's not my business to write about such things," she said, as the carriage drove off.

Alicia shook her head.

"You really have changed, haven't you, Lily?" she said, and Lily nodded.

She had promised her mother as much, but she had promised herself, too. Making money out of other people's downfall had left a sour taste in her mouth, and having experienced it for herself, she was no longer interested in the thought of inflicting it on others. There were others who would do so, but it was their business and not hers, and if a scandal now presented itself, she would do just as she had done then, and remind herself it was none of her business.

"It's one thing to write about scandals, but quite another to find yourself at the heart of one," she replied.

Maximilian had been called away on business that morning, but when they arrived back at the house, he was waiting for her, a grave expression on his face. Lily had been excited to tell him all about her chosen dress, but as she put her arms around him, he sighed, taking her hands in hers and looking at her anxiously.

"Lily… I'm afraid I've got some bad news for you," he said, and she looked at him curiously.

"What's happened?" she asked, and he led her into the drawing room, where her mother and an official-looking gentleman were sitting by the hearth.

The gentleman rose, holding out his hand to Lily, who took it, glancing at her mother in confusion.

"Is something wrong? Has something happened?" she asked, looking back at Maximilian, who sighed.

"This is Mr. Wexford , Lily. He's the governor of Lambeth Gaol. He's come to…offer his condolences. It's your father, Lily. He's dead," Maximilian said.

Lily faltered. She did not know what to say or how to feel. She had not seen her father since that fateful day at Burnley Abbey. He had been returned to prison and appeared before the magistrates in connection with the attempt on Maximilian's life. His prison sentence had been extended indefinitely, and Lily had heard nothing from him, nor had she made any attempt to contact him. She stared at Maximilian in disbelief.

"But…he wasn't sick, was he?" she asked.

The governor offered his condolences.

"Consumption, Miss Edge. He died of consumption. He'll be buried tomorrow," he said, reiterating his sorrow at her loss once again.

Lily sat down on a chair by the door, and Alicia put her arm around her.

"It's all right to be upset, Lily," she whispered.

There had been a time when the death of her father would have meant the death of all Lily's hopes and ambitions. She had idolized him, but now…

"I didn't know him. Not really. He wasn't the man I thought him to be. I can't mourn for someone I didn't know," she said, glancing at her mother, who sighed.

"Your father was…a man no one really understood. He wore many masks, Lily, and we were all taken in by them. We can only off him to the merciful hands of God," she said, and Lily nodded.

She would not hate her father, but she hoped he could now be at peace. He had brought misery to many and had set out only for his own gain and revenge. She would not mourn him, but tears still welled up in her eyes at thought of what he could have been, had bitterness not choked the goodness from him. Maximilian came to put his arm around her.

"I'll come with you tomorrow," he said, and Lily nodded.

She would go to the funeral. She would see her father buried, and that would be the end of the matter. He would leave no lasting legacy, and there would be no one to shed a tear for him, even as Lily brushed her own away.

"It feels strange to think of him gone," she said, as the prison governor took his leave of them.

"It does. He was a man who held sway over many – and always for ill, I'm afraid to say," her mother said.

The two of them had made their peace, and Lily had told her mother how sorry she was for the things she had said, and the way she had always sided with her father. But he had been a master at manipulation, and her mother had told her she held no animosity for the past. They would rebuild their relationship, and her mother could not have been gladder at the prospect of her marrying Maximilian.

"Then we say goodbye to him," Lily said, looking up at Maximilian, who nodded.

"I'll write to my father and tell him. I'm sure he'll be…interested to know," he said, and Lily could only imagine the relief at Burnley Abbey, when the news of Connors' death arrived.

"Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great mercy to take unto himself the soul of our dear brother here departed: we therefore commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ…" the curate was saying, as they stood around the grave.

It was raining that day, the gray clouds skidding across the sky above, and the four of them – Lily, her mother, Maximilian, and Alicia, were standing in the far corner of the churchyard, in the place reserved for the burial of criminals. The prisoner governor had come out of respect, and was standing a short distance behind the clergyman, whose white surplice stood out starkly against the dark clouds behind.

"I don't feel anything," Lily said, after the final commendation had been made.

She tossed a handful of dirt into the grave, the others doing the same, as they turned to walk away. Maximilian put his arm around her.

"Perhaps you've buried more than the dead today, Lily," he replied.

Lily did feel as though she had closed a chapter of her story – and that of many others, too. For as long as her father had remained alive, his shadow would have cast itself over them all, and the threat of exposure remained. Lily did not know why he had not revealed the truth about William and his lineage. Perhaps deep down, a sense of guilt having overtaken him, or perhaps he had realized there was nothing more to be gained from it. She hoped it was because her father had wanted her to be happy – a final act of contrition over a secret he now took to his grave.

"I think I have. You must feel relief," she said, but Maximilian shook his head.

"I only feel whatever you feel, Lily, and if you're glad he's gone, I'll be glad, too. But he was your father, and I know you can't entirely hate him. It would be impossible to do so," he said, and Lily nodded.

She could not be glad at her father's death, but neither could she mourn him, either. Lily preferred to look to the future, and the happiness she would enjoy, without the shadows of the past looming over her.

"I think I'm ready to go home now – we've got a wedding to get ready for," she said, and looking up at him she smiled, knowing a new chapter in their lives was beginning.

Maximilian and Lily explored the lengths one will go to uncover the truth and find solace in the arms of an unlikely companion.

But what about Alicia? Can a selfless soul find a happy ending in a world where love is constantly tested by deception?