The Corinthians Series: Rules of Masquerade

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

William had been expecting the carriages marked by the red and grey emblem for hours. To his disappointment the carriages conveying the earl’s brood still had not arrived while he welcomed his other guests into Moonhurst. Squinting, William saw four browns pulling a fawn colored carriage through the gate, dusts flying in their wake. When the carriage pulled up near the steps of the mansion William groaned as he recognized the standards of the Duke of Warwick, silver and blue painted upon the door.

Fair skinned, blonde haired and blue eyed daughters of the Duke, Hyacinth and Orchid stepped out of the carriage with the help of the footman. On other occasions William would have greeted the two sisters with enthusiasm but after spending an afternoon of bowing and smiling, his endurance was running thin to the ground. His savior had been Lorelei who proved to be a smashing hostess as she steered guests away from her petulant brother after polite introduction concluded.

All of the guests have arrived in Moonhurst Estate, save for the Earl of Markham’s brood, already ushered into their rooms for a much needed rest after the tiresome journey from London to Brighton. Including the two girls of the Duke of Warwick, the guest’s list included his good friend Paris Thornton the Duke of Arden, The Hon. Leticia Barrington eldest daughter of the wealthy Baron of Barrington Hall, Lady Samantha Williams daughter of the Marquess of Pemberley, the sons and daughter of the Earl of Markham, Viscount of Lovell’s daughter The Hon. Clarissa Dershingham and finally the newly established Earl of Winchester, Lord Brian Grey.   

Altogether the seven guests have arrived and William had been pacing in the salon nearest to the front door with its windows overlooking the driveway waiting for the lasts of his guests to reach Moonhurst. He does not understand this sudden restlessness and knotted anticipation of wanting to see Lady Charlotte again. He had last seen her a little more than a week ago, the day he hand-delivered the party invitation to the earl and explaining the reason for his plan to Charlotte's father and brothers. Reluctantly they had agreed to participate in his scheme with Charlotte's best interest at heart. 

If truth be told, the late arrival of Lady Charlotte and her brothers was not the sole reason that corrupted his mood today. William left his vigil by the window and headed to the chaise longue, sat down and crossed his ankles. His mood had been considerably dark of late, ever since the arrival of Emerson Crawford to Moonhurst. He could have driven the man out if he could, but since he could not, William had resorted to ignoring the man as he had done the rest of his life. Which was the best thing he could do considering the circumstances.

His grandfather had adopted Emerson some twenty five years ago when the boy was barely old enough to crawl out of his own cradle. William had always thought his grandfather as a lonely old man; his only child married an Irish Marquess and sailed across the sea, leaving him in the ancient ducal estate alone. His grandfather became an acquaintance of the Crawford’s during a long voyage to India where they met onboard and became fast friends with the young Lieutenant and his wife.

Unfortunately, not a week after the ship made port at the harbor of Bombay, the Lieutenant and his wife caught fever and died, leaving their young son to the care of his grandfather. The duke of Sheffield promised his young companions to bring the two year old infant back to England before leaving him in the care of the Lieutenant’s stepsister. But instead of doing so, the duke had taken a liking to the boy and decided to raise him as his own. William realized the existence of Emerson when he and his family returned to England during the summer when he was nine years old and Emerson started following him around like a puppy. Upon discovering that Emerson was someone whom his grandfather favoured, William immediately developed a strong dislike towards the boy.