''Yes, yes, oh yes please,'' Emily said, ecstatically.
''Mr. Dirksen, thank you for all you have done to secure my release, I will be forever in your debt,'' Emily's father said when he and the Bishop had caught up.
''Not at all, sir. I am pleased you are now a free man.''
''But how exactly did you secure his release?'' Emily said still slightly confused. ''My father was convicted by a court, how did you get the decision reversed?''
''That was easy. You remember your father built a large extension onto this house?'' Emily nodded. ''I still have all the paperwork including a letter from Mr. Benjamin Harvie the accountant that your father employed at the time,'' Edward spoke slowly and deliberately. ''In the letter, Mr. Harvie informed me that I should pay the invoice for the work done into a different bank account than the one I had originally been given. As the letter was from a firm of professional accountants working on behalf of your father, I duly did as he requested.''
''And?'' Emily interrupted eagerly.
''It was a very large amount, I believe it was the largest job your father had ever done.'' Emily's father nodded. ''When I heard what had happened to your father, I went to the authorities and told them how much I had paid and asked them to investigate.'' Edward looked to see if Emily was still following. She was nodding keenly so he continued. ''They found that the account was in the name of Mr. Harvie himself, not his company. They also had no record of Mr. Harvie ever having declared this amount, and many other amounts which had flowed into his account, to the taxman. Mr. Harvie was arrested for tax evasion two days ago, and your father duly released.''
Emily sighed with relief. ''I have just one more question,'' she said. ''You didn't know about my father's plight until I told you, is that correct?'' Edward nodded. ''Then in effect, you did this for me.''
''I suppose so. But don't tell your father,'' he said with a grin.
''I love you, Edward Dirksen.'' Emily said.
*****
THE END
A Rake’s Revenge – A Regency Romance
''Andrew, I am sick and tired of your lies,'' Oscar Hammond said as his son listened to him for the umpteenth time. ''Your mother and I have discussed your behavior, and we have come to the conclusion that the constant stream of women, who seem to enter and leave your life with alarming regularity, is having a negative influence on your children's behavior.'' One of Oscar’s beloved Springer Spaniels jumped up and tried to sit on Andrew's lap.
The two gentlemen were sitting in Oscar's study in Thorpe Hall, which had been in the Hammond family for seven hundred years since King John had bestowed it on Angred Hammond for slaughtering a group of men who had robbed his mail coach.
Oscar, at sixty-three, was a man of considerable wealth. He owned three thousand acres and had more than two thousand tenants in various villages scattered around the area. Tall and gray haired, he was a solemn man totally devoid of humor.
His son, Andrew, was twenty-nine and the proud father of three children. Agnes, John, and Sarah. Nine, six and four respectively.
Oscar and his wife had tried for many years to have children, and when Andrew was born, they'd been thrilled that, at last, they had an heir to the family fortune. Femke Hammond, the third daughter of a Dutch aristocrat, had pleased her husband by having two more children, Maurice, and Jacqueline.
''Our family has a reputation, and you seem to be doing you best to destroy it,'' Oscar added.
I'm only trying to find a wife, you despicable man, Andrew thought. Georgina, his lovely wife, had died while giving birth to Sarah and her loss had utterly destroyed him. Left to bring up three young children he had been out of his depth. After two years, he'd decided to look for a new wife, but he'd found it impossible to find someone as beautiful and talented as Georgina. In his quest, he'd invited many women to his house, all of whom proved to be less than suitable. Unable to find a wife to match Georgina, the process had turned Andrew into something of a sexual predator, with little regard for women and their feelings. Now he'd abandoned all hope of finding a new bride and was playing the field unashamedly.
Andrew had no trouble in attracting women. Georgina had always worried that he was far too handsome and that he would be seduced by some wanton woman. He was tall and had dark brown hair. Women were attracted by his eyes, which were an unusual color of turquoise blue. They also loved his sense of humor and his gentle and relaxed nature.
''Father, I am looking for a wife, as I have told you on so many occasions. As I haven't found anyone suitable, my search will go on.'' Andrew sat back in the armchair and crossed his lean legs.
''If you carry on like this, I will disinherit you. You are a disgrace. How is the search for a new governess coming along?''
''I am interviewing candidates at the moment,'' Andrews replied.