65 A Heart Is Stolen

65 A Heart Is Stolen by Barbara Cartland Page B

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Authors: Barbara Cartland
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frightened.
    He told himself that it was because she was shy and unused to meeting gentlemen of fashion, but her voice was calm and composed as she greeted him,
    “Good morning, my Lord.”
    “Good morning,” the Marquis replied. “May I present my friend, Sir Anthony Derville?”
    She curtseyed again and Anthony, with a smile most women found irresistible, said,
    “This is the most attractive house I have seen in a long time, Mrs. Wadebridge. I can well understand why your grandfather was determined not to lose it.”
    There was an answering smile on her lips as she replied,
    “I see you have been told of the war that existed for so many years between the two estates.”
    “That is why I feel you must be surprised to see me,” the Marquis said.
    “It is, of course, a pleasant surprise, my Lord. Will you not sit down?”
    She indicated with her hand a sofa on the other side of the fireplace and the Marquis seated himself with Anthony beside him. “May I offer you some refreshment?” “No, thank you,” the Marquis replied. “We have not long had breakfast, but my friend and I thought we should call on you as early as possible, to discover if, by any unfortunate chance, you were a victim last night of the highwaymen.”
    “Highwaymen?”
    Her tone was one of sheer astonishment and the Marquis explained,
    “We arrived at Heathcliffe yesterday evening and, as it was a last-minute decision on my part to come here, nobody could have known in advance that it was my intention.”
    Ivana was listening to him attentively, her blue eyes with their long dark lashes fixed on his face.
    “While we were dining,” the Marquis continued, “a highwayman wearing a hood, not a mask, and two other men with him came into the dining room.” Ivana clasped her hands together. “How could they have done that?” “The window was open,” the Marquis explained. “Their leader came in from the garden, but the two other men were already in the house.” “I can hardly believe it!”
    “It is unfortunately true and they left taking with them some irreplaceable treasures including the snuffboxes that belonged to my father and were a unique collection.”
    “How terrible!” Ivana exclaimed. “It must have been a great shock.”
    “It was,” the Marquis answered, “even more so because Sir Anthony and I could do nothing to prevent the robbery as we were both unarmed and it would have been extremely foolhardy to have attempted to fight three men who were.” “I understand how frustrated you must have felt,” Ivana said. “Have you notified the Magistrates?”
    “Not yet,” the Marquis replied. “I thought I would first discover who else in the neighbourhood had seen this gang of criminals. But you tell me everything that was quiet here.”
    “Yes, indeed, but I am very grateful that you have warned me about them as there is only my old nanny and myself in the house and we should have been utterly at their mercy.”
    “I heard that your brother Charles is at sea,” the Marquis said, “but I was not told that you were married.”
    Ivana looked down and he saw the colour rise in her cheeks.
    “My husband is also a sailor, my Lord.”
    “And his name is the same as your own?”
    “I married a distant cousin. There are quite a number of Wadebridges. It is, as your Lordship is doubtless aware, a well-known name in Naval circles.”
    “I must offer you my condolences on your father’s death,” the Marquis said. “The Battle of the Nile was a great victory.”
    “It was indeed,” Ivana agreed, “and Admiral Nelson is a great strategist.”
    There was a little pause. Then the Marquis said,
    “I hope, Mrs. Wadebridge, that now after so many years, we have had the pleasure of meeting each other, we shall be able to behave as near neighbours in an ordinary friendly fashion.”
    “I hope so too, my Lord,” Ivana replied. “Will you be staying long at Heathcliffe?”
    The Marquis might have been unusually perceptive,

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