Belladonna (Belladonna #1)(92)

“You likely have more reasons to harm me than I can count,” Elijah began, ticking them off on his fingers. “It’s no secret you want Grey’s, but perhaps it goes deeper than that. Perhaps it’s because of what Lillian meant to you. Perhaps you killed her because you were tired of seeing her with me. Or perhaps you wanted me to feel the same hurt that you did when she chose me. Or perhaps—”

“Enough!” Byron gripped the edge of the table, knuckles bone white. Signa sank low in her seat, wishing to disappear. Family arguments were a new experience, and certainly not her forte.

“The fact that you would even suggest…” Byron’s words trailed off with the shake of his head. “It’s true I loved Lillian, as it’s true that I want Grey’s. But that’s because you’re running it into the ground, Elijah. Did you know that Percy came to my home last summer, begging me to speak with you? For you to believe that I would harm your family is ridiculous. I love those children, you fool.” He did not have the same passion or fervor that Elijah had, yet Signa found herself believing every word.

“It’s unlikely I will ever marry or have children of my own,” Byron continued. “To me, Percy and Blythe are as close as I will ever get to that. Percy and I especially have grown close, as you’d see if only you opened your eyes. When you dismissed him, it was me he confided in. I want him to succeed. I want to see him take over Grey’s, to marry, to be happy. I would never lay a hand on him.”

“But you would lay a hand on a woman.” Signa wanted to pinch herself for speaking.

Byron’s attention snapped to her, as if noticing her for the first time.

Elijah’s jaw ticked. “You were the one who hurt Marjorie?” Signa hadn’t realized that he’d noticed. “Why?”

Byron set his walking stick to the side. “You’ve been alone for too long, Elijah. I know you had feelings for the woman once. I thought that perhaps you might still.”

Elijah’s laugh was bitter. “You thought what? That if I bedded her, I might forget the death of my wife? That I might revert back to my old behaviors and begin to work at Grey’s once more? It’s you who’s the fool, brother.”

“There’s a lady at the table, Elijah—”

“Then she can cover her delicate ears if I offend her. You’re too old-fashioned, Byron. It’s no wonder Lillian never loved—”

“Finish that sentence,” Byron hissed, leaning forward to wag his finger at Elijah, “and you’ll be sorry.”

“Will I? Heavens, how I tremble to think—”

“Oh for the love of God, I’ve heard enough from you both.” Signa slammed her chair back and stood, unable to withstand a moment longer of them squealing like pigs. “You are behaving like children. If you can’t have a civil conversation, then sip your tea and I’ll ask the questions.”

So similar were the two men with their blanched faces and owlish eyes. Signa could see their resemblance now, in a way she never had before. The same stern brows and cut jawline. Tawny skin, a few shades darker on Elijah. Byron was more severe, like Percy, with a longer nose and sharper angles, though they were remarkably alike.

“We don’t know if Marjorie was acting alone, and we need proof of her involvement,” Signa began, keeping her words snappy and precise. “Poison upon her fingers isn’t enough. Byron, if you know why she’d poison the Hawthornes, you must tell us.”

Byron’s bark of laughter was the last thing Signa expected. “You truly think Marjorie would make them ill? You’re a fool, girl. That woman would never harm Percy.”

Elijah brushed two fingers down both sides of his lips, smoothing his returning scruff. “Tell me about the journal you found, Signa. The one you confronted her with.”

“She wrote about a time she found you in the stables,” Signa answered. “She wrote that she told you of her feelings, and you rejected—”

“Whatever you’re speaking of did not happen.” Of this, Elijah was firm. “Are you certain it was me she named?”

“Of course I am! She said she wanted to have the family she was always meant to have. She said… She said…” Signa realized then that, no, Marjorie had never once referred to Elijah by name as the one that she loved. But she’d seen the way the woman touched him, and how freely she spoke while in his presence. So if not him…“Was there someone else? Someone else here that she loved, and felt she owed the truth to?”

Elijah’s pallor was so apparent that Signa feared his soul had already departed his body before she could get an answer. Byron’s face followed suit, and the two shared a look that Signa could not for the life of her interpret.

The night before, she’d been so sure of what she’d read. So certain that she’d started to piece the puzzle together. But from the expression on their faces, she was more doubtful than ever.

“There’s someone else she might have been referring to,” Elijah finally answered.

“Elijah—” It was the first time, in her memory, that Signa had heard a protective edge in Byron’s voice as he watched his brother.

“It’s fine, Byron. Though I’m not certain whether this girl is an angel or the devil himself, she has saved my children more times than I can count. Besides, if what she says is true, it’s not like he doesn’t already know.”