Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Happiness followed Ernest around over the remainder of the day and the rest of the week. He had done well to avoid his mother, for she was out in Society, chattering with anyone she could. Ernest knew she had heard of Graham's proposal to Lady Samantha, for he had heard the commotion from the parlour upon her reading about it in the gossip sheets.
But he had his own engagement to tell her about.
The day they were due to depart London came swiftly, and Ernest knew that day was his best chance to tell her. He did not want his mother to be left in the dark about his life, but he also did not want to risk her retaliating against Claire.
"Will you truly not say goodbye to me, Mother?" he asked in the drawing room doorway. Lady Katherine sat alone, her armchair positioned by the window, where it had been ever since she realized her plans had begun to slip. "You will not say goodbye even to Lady Florence?"
"I do not care for goodbyes," she said, her voice as cold as ever. "So simply leave me be, Ernest, and be on your way."
"Do not pretend you are sad to see me go. You have only ever cared about reclaiming Little Harkwell, and now it is yours to manage for the next couple of months. You shall be able to do it alone and invite whomever you please without any interruptions. I should think you are glad."
"Hmm."
"Is that all you truly will say?"
"I have no more to say to you."
She was angry at him for not pursuing Lady Samantha, for ruining her well-laid plans, and at Claire, for turning both Lord Simon and Magdalene away. Ernest knew his mother hated having no control, and knowing that was slipping from her would be a terrible ordeal to endure.
"Then, if that is the case, I have one last parting thing to say to you," he told her. "I am to marry Claire Gundry."
Lady Katherine went very still. Where she rested on the arms of the chair, her nails dug into the material as she looked around at him. "What did you say?"
"I am marrying Claire Gundry," he told her. "And that is all I have to say on that matter."
"Do not walk away from me, Ernest!"
"Did you not just tell me to?" he asked, raising his brows as if surprised at the contradiction.
"You are a fool. This whole family has bred fools! I tried to prevent it all from the start, Ernest, and I could have protected you. I tried to protect you—especially from that governess riddled with deceit. How could you marry her when you do not know her?"
"The only woman I do not know, Mother, is you!" he shot back. "Tell me the truth. All of it. About my father, your—your obsession with this legacy of the Bannerdown name. Tell me."
An evil glint in her eye unnerved Ernest as she stood and stalked towards him. "I wanted everything for you, Ernest. I left your father behind because I knew we deserved more. I had been a lovestruck fool and left it behind when I was younger. But as soon as I held you in my arms, I knew I needed to achieve better for you."
"I perfectly loved everything you gave me with my father," he told her, anguished. "I did not need a title or an estate to love and appreciate."
"Oh, but you did and look how much you have grown and achieved."
"Mother, I am not a child anymore," he argued. "I do not need to be spoken down to in such ways. I did not wish for this life. Tragedy befell your brother, yet you have not seemed to care at all. Lady Florence has craved a connection with us both, but due to your treatment of her, I also put up my walls. I wish I had not done so, Mother. This life fell into our lap, and sometimes, I wish it had not happened!
"It did not simply fall into our lap," she sighed. "Do not belittle it so. Sometimes sacrifices are necessary for greatness."
He paused. "What sacrifices? Do you mean leaving my father?"
Her eyes widened. "Y—yes, yes, of course I do."
"Mother," he warned. "Tell me what has happened. What happened to my uncle and cousin was an accident, was it not?"
"Of course, darling."
"Mother." His shout rolled through the room, catching her off-guard. "Tell me the truth once and for all."
"Ernest—please, you must understand. What I did was only for you. You deserved a better life than that townhouse and playing the role of a medic. I needed to rescue us both."
He stepped towards her. Her expression flickered. "How did you rescue us?"
He saw the moment his mother gave in. Her lower lip trembled, and she sagged against the chair she had been in. "When I learned of my brother's illness and terrible battle with consumption, he begged me not to contact Matthew or Honora. He said they would catch it and be at risk. He asked me to send for a physician at once." Her head cocked as she told her tale, and dread pitted in Ernest's stomach. "Instead, I simply sent for his son and daughter-in-law and did not send for a physician. I saw an opportunity when it arose. Ernest, tell me you understand why I acted in such a way. I did not think they would die. I merely thought that my brother would recover, and after seeing how well you would take over the estate while he recovered, he would see what a good choice it would be to let us live here once again. I quarantined with Lady Florence to protect her."
"Mother, did you know they would all die?" he choked.
But she shook her head. "I did not. I simply thought to have them all out of the way temporarily, to give you a chance to prove yourself."
He did not believe her. Perhaps, at first, she had not thought to be terrible, but over time, it was as though her choices had hardened within her, and she now claimed them as rightful. A meaningful sacrifice for him to take glory.
"This is why you push Lady Florence? Why you yell at her? And why you tried to force me into a marriage with Lady Samantha?"
She shrunk back, nodding.
"You have tried to control everything to alleviate your guilt." He shook his head. "Well, Mother, you have your wish. I am the earl, but I do not wish to be. I do not like this life. But Claire makes it bearable. I do not need your reconciliation in trying to meddle with my life. I am well old enough to choose my own paths. Do not attempt to contact me while in London, and do not expect to receive word from me for a long, long while."
"Ernest—"
He shook his head, turning to leave the drawing room. "Your tyranny must end, and I will keep Lady Florence and Claire safe from you. For good. I do hope this large, empty house is worth it during the next few months."
With that, he turned on his heel and walked away from her.