Free Secrets and Sensibilities: A Regency Romance Mystery (The Lady Emily Capers Book 1) by Regina Scott

David
replied ahead of her. “Either he was hiding them to protect them, or he was
hiding them to sell them.”
    Hannah frowned. “Why would he have to hide them to sell
them? They were his to begin with.”
    He shook his head. “Apparently not. All the art work is part
of a trust, and the estate itself is entailed. Do you know what that means?”
    “I’ve heard the term,” Hannah told him. “Doesn’t it mean
that the entailed item has to go intact to the nearest male relative in direct
line descent from the previous title holder?”
    “Exactly. From what the solicitor and Asheram told me, the
condition generally applies to large tracts of land. The thought was to prevent
the division of great estates into successively smaller and smaller parcels
with each generation. That makes sense for Brentfield. But the collector of all
these lovely pieces of art, the previous earl’s father, couldn’t stand the
thought of seeing all his treasures go should his son turn profligate or start
gambling. So he set up a trust to prevent anyone from selling a single piece.
So, I’m land-, and art-rich, and money poor.”
    Another puzzling thing about Brentfield , Hannah
thought. Why would a father want to force his son to live frugally in the midst
of such wealth? “So, the previous earl may have wanted to sell things without
anyone knowing about it?” she summarized.
    She could see him nod. “Asheram has an inventory that came
with the house, claiming to be a full representation of every item. As you can
imagine, it’s a long list.” He glanced back to grin at her, the candlelight
throwing his face into profile and highlighting his lean nose. “We’ve been
checking off the pieces as we find them, but there are still a goodly number
missing.”
    “And you think they’re all up here?” She looked around her
at the widely spaced beams and plaster in between. Something caught her eye,
and she stopped. He stopped too.
    “There,” she said, pointing toward the supporting beam
across from her. “Something’s shining in the passing candlelight.”
    He leaned carefully over the space between them and the
wall. Handing Hannah the candle, he braced one hand on the beam while he
reached behind it with the other. Hannah held her breath as he drew a small
gold statue into the light.
    It was a woman with the head of a cat, holding a flail and a
crook and dressed in clothes that spoke to Hannah of the Nile. The statue was
no longer than her hand, but the eyes were of ruby and the ends of the flail
glittered with what were surely diamonds. Hannah let her breath out in a soft
puff of wonder.
    “Well done, Miss Alexander,” he murmured. “I’ve already
passed that spot twice and never saw this. You’ve earned your keep this day.”
    His praise warmed her. She glanced up at him and saw that he
was once more smiling at her over the candle. As their gazes met, the smile
slowly faded, to be replaced by an intensity in his sapphire eyes that made her
catch her breath once more.
    “Such hard work deserves a reward,” he murmured, leaning
toward her. Hannah swallowed, sure that she must have mistaken him. But he bent
his head and pressed his lips to hers.
    She closed her eyes as the sweetest of sensations rippled
through her. His lips were warm and gentle. They brushed against hers like
silk. For so soft a touch, they seemed to ignite a fire deep inside her that
left her trembling. As he withdrew, she opened her eyes and found him regarding
her with the most tender of smiles.
    “Let’s see what else we can find, shall we?” he murmured.
Hannah’s mind didn’t seem to be functioning correctly so she simply nodded. He
retrieved the candle and started forward, the statue held in one hand. It
seemed to her that his walk was less steady than it had been. She knew her own
knees were shaking.
    It seemed his lordship had been wrong. The passages were
dangerous, perhaps as dangerous as the singing of her heart.

Chapter Six
     
    David found