Page 52 of Mercedes

‘The letter talks mainly about her hope that Mercy might one day be able to claim her inheritance and take her rightful place within the Alfaro family, should she wish to do so. But then she goes on to talk about the locket Mercy was wearing when she came to me - the same locket Reinhardt attempted to steal yesterday. She was adamant it had to be protected at all costs as there was something inside it that would prove Mercy’sidentity…’ He paused with a grimace, adding, ‘Clearly it should have been in a safe all these years.’

‘She told me never to take it off,’ Mercy whispered. The Earl nodded, giving her a tired smile before continuing.

‘The letter refers to a key that would open the locket. It has to be the same key that Flossy found, though God knows how Reinhardt got hold of it.’

He hesitated then, before addressing his next words directly to his eldest daughter. ‘Your mother wanted me to wait until you came of age before telling you any of this. But now, I’m to tell you that once you open the locket, you’ll have a choice as to whether you wish to reveal yourself to your Mexican relatives or not – and she asks that I abide by whatever you decide.’

Mercy stared back at her father. ‘So how the devil did Reinhardt come to have the key and the letter?’ she asked, anger and grief clearly evident in her voice.

The Earl shook his head with a sigh. ‘We’ll never know, sweetheart. He was an acquaintance of your mother. Likely he stole them before she could send them to me.’

‘Or her illness overtook her before she got the chance to send them,’ Nate commented. ‘The information you got from the nuns would suggest that Reinhardt had found the letter, but didn’t know where she’d put the key.’

‘And that’s what he was trying to force her to tell him when she was on her death bed.’ Christian agreed grimly. ‘Clearly he succeeded.’

‘So, once he had the key, why didn’t he just steal the locket years ago and open it himself?’ Mercy asked in anguish.

‘It would have been useless without you,’ her father answered. ‘I think that whatever is inside the locket will confirm your identity to the Alfaros. The inheritance belongs to you - that’s why Reinhardt was so desperate to wed you.’

‘So, are you going to open the deuced thing and put us out of our misery?’ Augustus Shackleford demanded impatiently.

Mercy looked down at the locket around her neck, back where it had been since the day her mother gave it to her. It was large, and quite heavy, but she’d become used to the weight over the years. She’d had no idea that a part of it could be opened.

Nobody spoke as her father handed her the tiny key. Nate removed the necklace for her and for a moment she held them both in her hands. Then turning the locket around, she fiddled with the back, finally managing to slide the small covering to the side, revealing a tiny lock. After glancing up at her rapt family, she took the key and inserted it into the minuscule hole. With the only the slightest effort, she was able to turn it quite easily. The locket parted, and an emerald the size of a pigeon’s head fell into her lap. This was the reason the locket was heavy. It was also her mother’s way of giving her a choice.

Instinctively, Mercy looked over at Nate and gave a small impish grin before murmuring, ‘I bet she’d have got out of bed for this.'

Epilogue

Ironically, Reinhardt could simply have stolen the locket had he known what it contained. All his efforts to force Mercy into wedlock had been entirely unnecessary.

How Flossy had known where Reinhardt’s cabin onboard the ship was - or indeed found the key - was a mystery they would never solve. According to the Reverend, the little dog clearly had a nose for rot.

By the time the Duke and Duchess of Blackmore arrived in London, the whole havey cavey business had been put to bed.

After listening incredulously to the whole story, Nicholas had professed his disappointment at missing all the excitement, before declaring that of course had he been with them, it would not have taken nearly as long to find the correct lodging house, since the shed storing cloves at the top of the jetty actually belonged to him...

On meeting Nate, both the Duke and Duchess proclaimed the Viscount a more than acceptable addition to the family – even more so after overhearing him declare to Mercy that if she thought he was going to wear a mustard waistcoat decorated with large purple roses to their wedding, she was entirelymistaken - only for them to enter the church on the day of the ceremony to see him uncomfortably attired not only the suggested mustard and purple waistcoat but a rather striking violet jacket to match. Ruby naturally sported an identical mustard and purple vest which she’d already managed to cover in something noxious.

Clearly, Mercedes had chosen very well indeed.

THE END