Elizabeth pouted. “But I can’t do housework, and Anabelle is a lady’s maid. We must hire a staff as soon as we marry. Or perhaps your father might send us some of his servants from the plantation.”
He blanched, just as she suspected he would, and avoided eye contact. Mr. Finch was hiding something, and she intended to find out what it was.
She batted her eyes, playing the part of the most spoiled belle she could imagine. “Surely on such a large plantation he can spare one or two slaves.”
He looked out the window. “Why aren’t we moving yet?”
Since he looked ready to bolt after Father, she threw out another bone. “Father hinted to me that he might make you a partner.”
Mr. Finch’s head snapped back. “He did?” His lips curled into an insufferably smug smile.
Though it galled her to play the role, this was her moment of opportunity. “Yes, indeed.” She threw a twittering giggle in for good measure. “How fortunate since Mother’s family has given the inheritance I was to receive to another member of the family.”
All color drained from his face. “Surely you are mistaken. Your father indicated that they approved me—that is, your decision to accept my proposal.”
Aha! So Mr. Finch knew of the inheritance all along, just as Charlie suspected.
She inched that smile a little higher, playing the role of the addle-brained fiancée. “At first they did, but my great-aunt informed me tonight of their change of heart.”
His gaze narrowed. “Impossible.”
“You may ask her yourself.”
“Where is she?” He scowled at Anabelle. “I expected her to join us.”
“A headache.”
He smirked. “How convenient. I couldn’t help but notice you waited until your father left to tell me this. Could it be, dear Elizabeth, that your ardor is not as great as you would have me believe?”
Elizabeth hoped her momentary panic didn’t show. Charlie and Aunt Virginia had given her enough to work with. She must put it together in a way that convinced Mr. Finch he stood to gain nothing through this alliance.
“How can you question my affection now,” she whined, “after I agreed to marry you? I’m simply expressing my appreciation for the depth of your love. Many men would walk away from a woman with no dowry or prospects.”
His eyes darted this way and that, attempting to verify the truth of her statements. “Your father is well-off.”
“Alas, he is not.” She dabbed at her eyes. “All his savings are gone, spent on my brother’s care. Poor Charlie! We will, of course, take him in. He will need a woman’s care, and Father is too busy at the office to spend time with him.”
“Your brother is nearly grown.” Mr. Finch stopped trying to hide his exasperation.
“He is crippled.”
“But not our responsibility.” He was beginning to look panicked.
“But he is. He would not be crippled if I hadn’t insisted we walk to the harbor that day. I will carry that responsibility the rest of my life.”
The inner battle played out on his face. “That is why the inheritance would help—to care for your brother. Surely your mother’s family understands that. It’s all the more reason to settle the money on you.”
They understood Charlie’s needs completely, though not in the way Mr. Finch anticipated.
Elizabeth took a deep breath. Sometimes a chess move had an uncertain outcome. Her information was sketchy, based only on what she and Charlie had surmised and Aunt had confirmed. Lacking proof of Finch’s involvement meant she must send forward her rook with no backing.
She forced a smile, as if apologizing for what she must tell him. “Apparently there was some silly little matter pertaining to a document that went missing. Let me see . . . Aunt told me, but I have no mind for business. It had to do with shipping.” She scrunched her brow as if struggling to remember. “Ah! A bill of sale, I believe she said. For Father. He owned a share of the Victory, you see.”
Elizabeth didn’t mention the ethical conflict of interest. Father, who always adhered to a strict code of ethics, should not have represented the owners in admiralty court once charges of collusion had been leveled at Rourke. In the past, he had railed against any attorney who didn’t withdraw from a case when he had a vested interest, yet he had done just that. As angry as that made her, she must concentrate on the task at hand.
Without breaking her smile, she added, “Apparently Aunt brought the document with her from Charleston, but it disappeared from her possession.”
The smirk never left his face. “It probably fell overboard when the ship wrecked.”
“Oh no.” This was where her information got sketchy. “You see, her trunk was latched, and the document was secured inside a pouch. When she examined the pouch later, the other papers were inside but not that one.”
“Then she misplaced it.”
Elizabeth shook her head and leveled the part that was pure conjecture. “That does not explain how it ended up in your room at the boardinghouse.”