Category: Harriet and the Colonel

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“What other reason is there?” Edmund repeated as he took a seat behind his desk.

She held his gaze and tipped her head to the side, waiting purposefully for a minute before saying, “I want to know the truth.”

He shook his head as his brow furrowed. “I am afraid I do not know what you mean.”

She rolled her eyes. “I am not stupid! You know precisely what I mean, but since you will likely continue to pretend that you do not, let me elucidate for you. Our brother did not die by accident. Penny did not throw herself into the Thames. The colonel is not just visiting his relations in Hertfordshire. There are men who visit here but not at calling hours. Our cook and a few others such as Jimmy are men you worked with on the continent. I know it is all connected in some way, and I want to know what that is.”

“You cannot.” His expression was as stone-like as she had ever seen it.

She folded her arms and glared back at him. “I will find out.”

He flinched and his head shook just a bit.

“I found Andrew’s watch. It was stolen, which proves he did not just stumble and die.”

“It proves nothing of the sort,” he retorted. “Andrew could have fallen, died, and then, had his things stolen from him.”

She shook her head. “He was not in a normal location.” She uncrossed her arms so that she could count off the clues pointing to her conclusion on her fingers as she said them. “That was the first clue.” She held up a finger. “The theft of his watch and money was never mentioned.” She held up a second finger.

“That means you needed to be able to find the watch, and then, decipher who it was that had it.” She held up a third finger.

“That is not a clue,” he grumbled. “It is a supposition.”

Again, she shook her head. “It is a clue, which is why the store at which I purchased the watch is written on the paper in the bag with it. And, I am certain that is why you have already talked to Jimmy to confirm that bit of information and extracted from him what it looked like and the proprietor and all those sorts of things.”

She rested her hands in her lap. “If you have not, then, you are far less astute than I thought you were, and I will have you know that you are nearly the most intelligent gentleman of my acquaintance.” Here, she let herself smile teasingly.

He did not return her smile. “Nearly the most intelligent, you say? Those are dangerous words when you could be in severe trouble for all that you have done in the past twenty-four hours.”

He could glower all he wanted. She would not be intimidated. Her heart would beat loudly, and she would wish to fidget under his glare, but she would not show an ounce of trepidation. “Why is the colonel your best man?”

He blinked. “He is very good at what he does.”

“And he outwitted you often when we were younger.”

His head bobbed up and down very slowly. “So, you are saying that I am second to the colonel?”

“Yes.”

“Again.” He blew out a breath and shook his head. “So I am both no longer your favorite, nor am I the most intelligent fellow you know.” There was a note of sad resignation in his tone.

“It is very close,” she assured him softly. “In fact, you may be tied for most intelligent if you were to finally realize that I am capable of supporting Richard in his role as his wife rather than being some bit of feathers for brains that will always be an inconvenience and a liability.”

Edmund scrubbed his face with his hands. “Harry, there are things that you do not know, nor should you.”

“But I will know them, Edmund.” She held up a finger. “Wait. Richard is watching a maid. My maid ended up dead. Our brother was in an area where many vices can be had for a price.” She gave her brother a pointed look. “I think we both know what I mean by that without my having to elaborate.” She sighed. “Please, tell me that neither you nor Andrew have visited the females who ply their trade in that area.”

Edmund squeezed his eyes shut. “Harriet, you are treading on my last nerve.”

“These things are all related, and it has something to do with ladies of the night, shall we say?”

He shook his head as he jaw clenched. “There are things you must not know.” He pulled the blue pouch containing the watch from his desk drawer. “And it is not I who has determined that you are not to know them.”

“It is not you?” she repeated softly. “Then who?” She tapped her finger on her lip.

“I cannot tell you that, so please stop trying to figure it out.” He took the watch from the bag. “I am happy that this was found.” He held it up and turned it this way and that. “I was going to lecture you about sneaking around behind my back. I still should.”

“I know,” she admitted. “But it would do no good at all. Oh!” she said as a thought came to her. “Have all your men spent time on the continent?”

“If I promise to tell Richard that he can present an offer for you once what we are doing is done, will you cease and desist?”

“So they have,” she said triumphantly.

“Harriet, answer my question.”

“I cannot promise that curiosity will not overwhelm my good sense.”

He snorted in derision at that.

“However,” she continued, “it would remove one reason for my being so obstinate, and the crown will never need to know that I know you are working on some sort of sensitive assignment.”

His mouth popped open and then closed before his lips made that thin line expression from earlier. “I am not even going to ask,” he muttered after he had given his head a good shake. “You have convinced me. The next time I see your colonel, I will inform him that he is free to offer for you. For I would hate to have you entrusted to any other man, and frankly, at this moment, I would be more than delighted to have Richard deal with you rather than me.”

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“Jimmy says your brother is looking for you, miss,” Harriet’s maid, (name of maid), said to her the next morning when she came to help Harriet with her hair.

“Has he been to his study so early?” A smile of deep satisfaction settled peacefully on Harriet’s lips and in her heart. Edmund would not be able to say she was incapable of being married to a man involved in a secretive business.

“Apparently, he was there an hour ago with some gent – you know the sort. Though neither of us are to know that.” She winked at Harriet in the mirror. (name of maid) was an incredible asset. Not only could she care for clothes and pin hair, she was also excellent at gathering information to relay to her mistress.

“It does seem rather early for him to be welcoming callers of any sort,” Harriet said. “I wonder what it was about?”

“It’s hard to say, miss. Your brother likes to keep his association with some even more private than the rest of his business.”

Harriet would have commented on this, but a loud knock at the door kept her from it.

“I dare say that is him,” (name of maid) whispered.

“I am not presentable,” Harriet called out.

“Harriet!”

“It is most certainly Edmund,” she whispered to her maid as they both only allowed a short soft burst of laughter to escape their lips.

“I am not presentable,” she called again. “I will see you in the breakfast room in half an hour.”

“That is unacceptable,” he replied through the door. “I must see you as soon as possible. You will be in my study. In ten minutes.”

“Fifteen,” Harriet called. “And not a minute sooner, but possibly a few later.”

“Ten.”

Oh, he was testy this morning.

“Fifteen.”

“Harriet!”

“Fifteen. That is my final offer. I simply cannot be seen until my hair is complete, and I am wearing clothes. Why, what if you had an early caller, and I was thoroughly disheveled looking. The news of such a thing could get around town by next Tuesday.” She doubted anyone calling on her brother at such an early hour of the day would be the sort to gossip about how they had seen her without her hair tamed and in a dressing gown and slippers.

“Harriet.” The name rumbled through the door in a growl.

“Has something happened?” she asked. “You seem rather disgruntled with your state in life this morning.”

“Miss, you are wicked,” (maid’s name) whispered. “Teasing him as you do.”

She was fortunate that her brother was more long-suffering than some, and she knew it.

“I cannot tell you about itl,” he answered.

“Do you mean that you cannot tell me now because you do not wish to shout it through the keyhole? Or is it one of those things that you cannot tell me at any time and would rather leave for me to discover on my own.”

“Harriet, you go too far.”

“Thank you. My hair looks just right.” Harriet stood before the mirror and looked herself over from front to back before tip-toeing across the floor and swiftly opening the door. “You are in luck. I am ready before my fifteen minutes are up. However, I will need a cup of tea if I am to forego eating as I normally would at this time of day.” She stepped around him. “Shall I bring it to your study?”

“You will take yourself to my study without a cup of tea.”

Oh, he looked decidedly put out. Something was most certainly afoot. However, a lady who intended to convince her brother that she could face danger was not the sort to be cowed by a few harshly spoken words and a glower.

“That will not do. Would it be acceptable to have a cup brought to me in your study?” She fluttered her lashes.

“Have you always been this impossible?” her brother muttered.

“No,” she replied with a shake of her head. “I fear it is you who brings out the best in my ability to be…” She tapped her lip as if searching for a word. “Passionately independent.”

“Passionately independent?” he cried incredulously before blowing out a breath in exasperation. “Staunchly recalcitrant is more like it! You do realize that most ladies, who speak to their guardian as you have just now, do not do so without suffering for it.”

She swallowed. It was rare that Edmund threatened punishment. Still, she held his gaze without wavering. “Yes. But how else am I to prove to you that I am not the sort of lady who faints at the first sign of danger or flutters and flies about when touched by the smallest amount of anxiety?”

“Of all the stupid things, Harriet.” He pressed his lips together so firmly that they formed a thin line. She had well and truly pushed him to the limits of his patience. However…

“My tea. How shall it be retrieved?”

“I will have it brought to you, but I will not call for it until you are seated in front of my desk. Do I make myself plain?” His shoulders were lifting and lowering noticeably, which normally would be her sign to desist, but she had a point to carry.

Therefore, she patted his cheek and smiled at him. “A simple, ‘we will have tea in my study’ would have sufficed. I am not slow of understanding, and there is no need to overexert yourself.” She turned toward her open bedchamber door. “(maid’s name) could you please see that a cup of tea finds me in Edmund’s study when you are through with my room?” She turned back to Edmund. “There. It is done. Now, if you would offer me your arm, we could reach your study before (maid’s name) is done with her work.”

“Harriet,” he rumbled in a low and somewhat dangerous tone as he extended his arm, “I ought to…” He shook his head.

“What? Lock me in my room?” she asked as they began a quick march towards his office. “Banish me to the country? Require me to drink only watered down port for three days and not else? You are no longer in the army, my dear brother, and flogging one’s sister is frowned upon.”

“I was not going to say have you flogged. What kind of monster do you think I am?” The words were said with some force and a hint of hurt.

Harriet chuckled, though it was a forced thing. “I know you would never be so cruel to me. However, that being said, I am also aware that I have pushed and prodded you to a place where, if I were not your beloved sister, you might have considered it.”

“Why must you torment me as you do?” he asked in a pleading tone. “I do not remember you ever being so obstinate for Andrew or Father.”

She leaned into his arm so that her shoulder bumped his. “Father died before I had to wage a campaign against his opinions about whom I was allowed to marry, and Andrew? Well, you were on the continent for a time, so you do not know how I tried him on the topic, and, as it turns out, he is not as stubborn as you are.”

“Then, this is all about my reluctance to allow Richard to present an offer to you?” he asked.

“That is the main reason, but it is not the only reason.” She released her hold on his arm so that he could open his study door for her.

“What other reason is there?”

She shook her head. “Some things should not be discussed in the corridor,” she whispered before entering his study and taking a seat.

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Harriet moved from one case of pretty baubles to another and again, peeked over the shoulder of the person ahead of her to see if anything caught her interest. Shopping was not her favourite activity unless it was shopping for clues, which is what she was doing today.  That is not to say she despised the activity. Oh, she tolerated it quite well, but it was a whole lot better than tolerable when the mission was not just to acquire a fan or string of pearls or the like but was instead a covert mission.

“May I be of assistance,” asked a gentleman who was dressed a bit better than the other clerks behind the cases. “We are quite busy today, and I would be very much saddened to see a lady of quality such as yourself leave my shop without being waited upon.”

His shop? Did he mean that he was the proprietor and not just an employee?

“It is a lovely establishment that you have set up for yourself.” She watched his features for how he would respond to this. As she had hoped, he smiled and inclined his head while his chest puffed a bit at the complement.

“I am most pleased to hear you say so. Now, is there anything with which I might assist you? Was there something in particular that you were looking for?”

She opened her reticule and withdrew a hair comb that had been her mothers and was far too lovely to wear as an everyday accessory. As she did so, she made certain that the few pounds she carried were visible. “My father had a pocket watch that matched this in its design. The flowers and leaves that is. It did not sparkle as this does for who needs a watch to shine when it is tucked in one’s pocket?”

The shop owner nodded his head, looking quite attentive, as she spoke.

“My sister’s husband has a birthday in just a month, and she has commissioned me to find him a watch as a surprise. He has always admired my brother’s watch – which as you might have guessed used to be my father’s watch. Would you have anything that would come close to this?” She turned the hair comb this way and that as if admiring it. It truly was a pretty piece of jewelry.

“I have a few watches in a box in the back.” He glanced around the store. “They are not new,” he said softly. “They were accepted on tick, if you understand my meaning.”

“They are not pilfered goods, are they?” She asked the question in a whisper.

“Oh, goodness, no!” The shop owner assured her. “They are simply a means for someone to pay a bill.”

She made a show of blowing out a soft breath in relief. “In that case, I would be happy to examine them.”

“If you will follow me, we can look at them in my office.”

Harriet motioned to Jimmy who was standing near the door, and then, they both followed the man into his office where he proceeded to withdraw a box from inside a small mahogany chiffonier. Inside the box were four watches, all neatly displayed and cleaned. There was not a speck of dust on them.

“Oh,” she said as her eyes fell on the very watch for which she was looking. “They are quite lovely. I am sure that whoever had to part with them was quite sad to do so.” She put out a hand. “May I touch them?”

“To be sure. Pick them up and feel their quality. Inspect their design. We never accept any items, from any source, which are not of the highest workmanship.”  

First, she examined the gold watch next to her brother’s stolen silver one. She put her hair comb next to the engraving on the back and made a small tsking noise when it clearly did not match.

“That is a fine watch. Your sister’s husband would be proud to use it,” the shop owner encouraged. “But the one next to it might be closer to what you are looking for.” He lifted it out of the box and handed it to her.

Harriet ran a finger of the glass and then closed the front protective metal face over it. It clicked closed just as it should.

“Oh, it is covered in vines!” she cried in delight. “It is not just the same as this comb, but my does it not come close?” She looked up at the shopkeeper as she turned it over. “Is this the maker’s mark?” She asked when she saw the small G.P., which stood for Giles Philips – her father’s name, on the back.

“It must be,” the man said. “Although it is not one with which I am familiar.”

“He is very good whoever he is,” Harriet said. “Is it terribly expensive?”

“I am afraid I cannot part with it for less than fifty pounds for I must cover what I purchased it for and make a little to pay for housing it.”

Harriet sighed and turned it over in her hands. “My sister was hoping to spend no more than thirty, but I must say this one is exquisite and I do have a few pounds of my own. Are you certain you cannot take forty-five? I just that much in my reticule. The transaction could be complete this instant.”

That lit a gleam in the man’s eyes. “Forty-five, you say?”

Harriet nodded and held her breath.

“This is a private sale,” the man said with a pointed look. “I am no pawnbroker.”

“Oh, I understand. I will not say a word to anyone about where I found this, except for my sister, of course. She will need to know.”

The man’s head bobbed up and down slowly for a moment before he sat forward in his chair and smiled. “I think we have an agreement. Shall I wrap this for you?”

“Oh, no, there is no need. I have come prepared.” She took her money out of her reticule and then, pulled out a small blue velvet pouch. “My sister gave me this so that it would be easy for me to pass it to her without causing any suspicion since it is the bag she uses when she lends me earbobs and broaches.”

“That is very clever,” the man said as he accepted her money.

“Oh, it is, but then, my sister is far cleverer than I. I am sure I never would have thought of it. The things she came up with for us to do when we were young that had I been in charge of the planning we would have been in trouble for sure, but not with her.” She added a laugh at her own expense here.

“There is always one in any lot of siblings, or so my wife says.”

“Indeed, I fear your wife has the right of it from what I have heard,” she agreed as she placed the watch inside her reticule, and then handed the whole thing to Jimmy. “Thank you so much, sir. You have made both me and my sister very happy.” She dipped a curtsey and took her leave.

Would not Edmund be surprised when he found this on his desk tomorrow? Now, if only she could discover whom it was who had sold it to the owner of this shop.

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Harriet carried her shoes as she tiptoed past her brother’s room on her way to the servant’s staircase. If she was going to prove to him that she could handle danger and be allowed to marry her colonel before she was past her prime, she needed to get an early start on the project.

And early it was.

She yawned as she opened the door to the staircase, startling a maid who was scurrying down the stairs. It had been a late night, or was that better said an early morning, for both her and her brother. Balls, especially ones hosted by Samantha, never ended before the wee hours of the morning. And, on the day after such a soiree, Edmund never rose before ten, which was yet three hours away and that meant that she would be well on her way around town before her brother noticed she was not in the breakfast room.

“Miss Philips!” (Mr. name), the cook cried. “You don’t look like you’re set to scrub my pots.” He teased with a chuckle. “Is this another time when I am not supposed to see you but should offer you a bit of cheese and toast?” 

His eyes sparkled with amusement. Of all the cooks she had ever met, he had to be the most personable and likely, the most carefree, for he seemed not to be even a little bit afraid of being reprimanded for letting her escape. Mr. Barlow, the butler, and (Mrs. Name) the housekeeper were less obliging, which is why she liked to make a quick exit through the kitchen when needed.

“A little lunch to carry would be lovely. Have you seen Jimmy?”

(Mr. name) crossed to the kitchen door in three long strides. “Jimmy,” he shouted. “You are needed.”  He turned back to Harriet who was buttering a couple of slices of bread. “He’ll be right with you, miss. Sally, get the young miss some cheese.” He took cloth from under his work bench. “Wrap it in this and take enough for Jimmy. We can’t have your protector become faint from hunger just so you can avoid your brother.” The last part was said with a pointed look.

“Are you going to tell him?”

(Mr. name) smiled and flicked his eyebrows upward. “Not until I see him. I do like my job well enough.”

“Where did you work before here?” Harriet asked when she noticed, not for the first time, that their new-as-of-last-autumn, cook walked with a slight limp.

“It’s in me papers, miss,” he answered.

She scowled. “And where would I find those papers?”

“I would imagine in the housekeeper’s room or your brother’s study,” he answered.

“Will you not just tell me?” she asked while wrapping the cheese Sally had brought her and the bread she had buttered in the towel (Mr. name) had given her.

“I know how you like a mystery.” He nodded his head smartly in greeting as Jimmy entered the kitchen.

A smile curled her lips and a chuckle escaped her. “What rank were you?” she asked. “Higher or lower than Jimmy?” Jimmy, she knew had been with her brother on the continent. That was why he was the groom she always asked to accompany her when she went out alone.

(Mr. name) laughed. “What makes you think I was in the army?”

“The way you nodded to Jimmy just now. It reminded me a great deal of how my brother greets Colonel Fitzwilliam.” Her brow furrowed. “In fact, now that I am thinking about it, my brother also greets you that way when he is down here pretending to get biscuits but doing something else which I have not yet quite figured out. However…” she tapped her lip. “I’d wager that what he is doing down here involves you, and that is why you do not fear being sacked as much as Barlow does. He was never on the continent with my brother you see, but Jimmy was, and I dare say so were you.”

(Mr. name) laughed again. “I’ve heard tell that you are clever. I thank you for the demonstration. I was a captain.”

“Which makes your rank higher than Jimmy’s.”

“It does,” Jimmy replied.

“Were you instructed to hide your connection to Edmund from me?”

The cook shook his head. “No, but your brother did think it would be a fun game to see how long it would be before you discovered it.” He nodded to Jimmy. “How long have you known Jimmy was in your brother’s unit?”

Harriet smiled as Jimmy groaned. “Just now. I knew he had been on the continent from his scar, but I had yet to confirm he was part of my brother’s unit.” She narrowed her eyes as she looked at Jimmy. “Is that why you would not tell me? Are you also part of this game my brother is playing?”

Jimmy nodded and smiled sheepishly. “He’s right proud of you.”

“That he is,” the cook agreed. “And I have to say, he said you’d have me figured out before a year was through. I was convinced I could get away with keeping my secret longer.” He tipped his head toward the door. “You should go before we’re discovered.” He put a hand on her parcel of food. “Take care to return safely because I do not want to have to face Colonel Philips as the one who let you escape if you do not.”

“That is why I have Jimmy.” She peeked to her left and her right before lowering her voice. “And a small pistol in my reticule.” The pistol had been a gift from Andrew after he conceded that he could not always see to Harriet’s safety, and therefore, thought it was best if she learned to defend herself.

Her brow furrowed. Had that truly been the reason? Or had Andrew known that trouble was outside the door so to speak. It had only been three months before he had died.

“Is there a problem, miss,” Jimmy asked from where he stood next to the door waiting for her to follow him.

Harriet shook her head. “No, I was just thinking about Andrew for a moment because my gun was a gift from him.” She smiled brightly even if she did not feel the expression. She couldn’t have these men worrying about Colonel Philips’s little sister any more than they likely were already tasked with doing. “Make sure dinner is exceptional, for I promise to return famished.” And with that, she stepped into the alley with Jimmy.