'Did Pagan send you to me?'
'Please lower your voice,' she returned. 'Pagan didn't kill your son,' she repeated. 'He saved him. Colin's very much alive.'
A long minute elapsed before the Duke reacted. His face slowly turned a blotchy shade of red while he stared at her. His eyes turned so cold, she thought he might cause frostbite.
Before he could shout at her again, she said, 'I told you I had proof. Are you willing to listen to me or
is your mind so set…'
'I will listen,' he returned. 'Though if this be some sort of cruel jest, I swear I'll hunt Pagan down
myself and kill him with my bare hands.'
'That is a fair exchange for such cruelty,' she agreed. 'Do you remember the time when Colin had climbed up a giant tree and couldn't get down? He was four or five years old then. Because he was
crying and feeling very cowardly, you promised him you'd never tell anyone. You also convinced him
that it was quite all right to be afraid, that fear was not a sin, that…'
'I remember,' the Duke whispered. 'I never did te' anyone. How did you…'
'As I just said, Colin told me that story. Many others, too.'
'He could have told you these stories before he was killed,' the Duke stated.
'Yes, he could have, but he didn't. Pagan fished Colin out of the ocean. Your son was in sorry shape.
Do you know the physician, Sir Winters?'
'He's my personal physician,' the Duke muttered.
'Don't you think it odd that he disappeared?'
The anger was slowly easing away from the elderly man's expression. 'I do think that odd,' he admitted.
'We took him,' Jade explained. 'He was needed to tend to Colin. I thought it important that your son have his family physician. He was in terrible pain, sir, and I wanted him to have as many familiar comforts as possible.'
Jade nibbled on her lower lip while she contemplated another way to convince him. He still looked disbelieving to her. 'Colin has a birthmark on his backside,' she suddenly blurted out. 'I know because
I took care of him until Jimbo and Matthew could take Winters captive. There! Is that proof enough for you?'
In answer to that question, the Duke slowly leaned back in his chair. 'Proof was sent of Colin's death.'
'By whom?'
'The War Office.'
'Exactly.'
'I don't understand.'
'I shall explain after Colin comes home,' Jade answered. 'Will you explain something to me before I continue to try and convince you?'
'What is it?' he asked, his tone weary.
'Do you happen to know why Colin would make me promise not to tell Caine he was alive? I've learned to trust your eldest son, and I don't understand the reason behind this promise. Colin was half out of his mind at the time, however, and perhaps his mumbling about the Bradley brothers wasn't…'
Caine's father bounded out of his chair again. 'Colin is alive.'
'Please lower your voice,' she ordered. 'No one must know.'
'Why? I want to shout it to the heavens. My boy is alive.'
'I see I've finally convinced you,' she countered with a smile. 'Please sit down, sir. You look faint to me.'
She waited until he'd resumed his seat, then asked, 'What was it that made you realize I was telling the truth?'
'When you said that Colin didn't want Caine to know…' He stammered to a stop, then whispered. 'Lord, the Bradley brothers. I'd forgotten that incident.'
Now it was her turn to look confused. 'Why?' she asked, unable to keep the worry out of her voice. 'Doesn't he trust his own brother?'
'Oh, no, you misunderstand,' he replied. 'Colin idolized Caine. I mean to say, he idolizes him. My God, this is difficult to take in.'
'But if he idolizes Caine, why would he make me promise not to tell him? You've still to explain. And who, pray tell, are the Bradley brothers?'
The Duke of Williamshire let out a deep chuckle. 'When Colin was just eight or nine years old, he came running home with a bloody nose and cut lip. Caine happened to be home. He demanded to know who'd done the damage, and as soon as Colin said that the Bradley brothers were responsible, Caine went charging out the door. Colin tried to stop him, of course. He hadn't told him the number of brothers,
you see. A half hour later, Caine came home as bloody as his brother.'
'How many brothers were there?' Jade asked.
'Eight.'
'Good heavens, do you mean to say all eight brothers attacked Colin and…'
