“That much?”
“He is fair to choking on it. He believes he is a failure,” Quentin said, his eyes taking on a faraway glow. I suspect it is for far more than that girl of his Penelope and her man found, what, two years ago?”
“Yes, it has been that long at least. But, he did not fail her. Her father was a vicar, and when he told Brant Faith had run off with a soldier, what else could he do but accept it? He had no reason to believe such a well-respected man of the cloth would lie to him.”
“No, he did not, but that does not stop a man from thinking he could have done more.” Quentin smiled at her. “We are what our nature makes us, love. We believe it is our duty to protect the smaller and weaker.” He laughed when she glared at him. “You can get as angry as you wish. It will not change that, either. I doubt you will find any man who would not believe what a vicar said but there will still be that little voice in a man’s head suggesting he could have done something else, asked one more question or done one more small thing that might have shown him the truth in time for him to save her.”
“Men can be such foolish creatures.”
“We can but can you honestly tell me that, if any harm had come to your son, you would not have had the weight of guilt upon your own heart? You could not have changed what happened. You could not have even guessed that that woman would try to take the boy.”
“I should have,” she said and then grimaced when she realized she had just proven Quentin right in his assumptions. He did not have to look so smug about it, however, she thought and then asked, “I know it is wrong to use our gifts in such a way yet cannot seem to stop myself from asking what else you saw. I so want to ease his heart and mind, foolish as that might be.”
“It is the guilt I see that weighs on him the most. It is as if he carries the ghost of all he believes he has wronged or failed. The man needs to learn to forgive himself.”
“But he has done no wrong.”
“No, he has not, but unless he forgives himself for not being right there, sword in hand to protect everyone close to him, that guilt will remain.”
“Bugger.”
Quentin laughed. “Now, tell me how my daughter is. I mean to go see Juno while I am in the country and should like to be warned if there is anything troubling her. And then you can tell me how your son managed to keep himself from being taken away by that demon that calls itself Fieldgate’s mother.”
Brant stared at Andras and then at the papers set before him before looking back at Andras again. “It is settled?”
“You must just sign the papers.” Andras smiled and Brant thought the man was a little too close to being beautiful when he did. “I had not expected it to go so smoothly, either. I went to our cousin Leopold. He works in the government, although not in such things as this. I but felt he could name someone I might be able to talk to, maybe even get some help from so that we did not have to drag this all through the courts. The man was far more than helpful.”
“I notice that you do not mention his name.”
“And I will not as I promised him to keep his part in this as quiet as was possible. He is barely gentry as he likes to say it and cannot afford to be seen to be using his knowledge or skills to aid in anything that interferes with the affairs of ones as high up as a countess.”
Brant nodded, still touching the papers that gave him care of Agatha as if he feared they would disappear. “It could end his career.”
“Exactly. He did not think helping in this matter would hurt him but he could not risk it. He means to marry soon, you see. And, it appears that one of those children you rescued and returned to their family was the son of his closest friend.”
“How fortuitous for me then.”
“Exactly, although I believe he would have helped me anyway. He said that even though you had, er, misbehaved of late there should never have been any question of who was head of the house, even as concerned the youngest daughter, your sister. You are, after all, the earl.”
“So how did he reverse all the decisions made?”