The Timepiece

Chapter 1

Margaret Covington stood in the cemetery in front of her husband’s grave. It was October and the leaves had turned brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow. Although the sun was bright, the air was cool with a hint of the winter to come. A chilly wind blew bright colors across the spot where her late husband was laid. The long climb up the hill from the home she shared with her father and sons had allowed her time to think about the great love of her life. She had come here often since Daniel’s passing three years earlier. His loss still affected her, not with the feeling of soul-shattering sadness, but with mourning what could have been. She stood by the graveside while the wind blew her dark green muslin dress around her legs and lifted her skirts. Wisps of her blond hair escaped from her tidy chignon, flying around the delicate features of her face. With a shiver, she pulled tight the well-worn shawl she had thrown around her shoulders for warmth and clutched the timepiece she had worn around her neck since Daniel’s death.

“I don’t know what to do. I just don’t know what to do,” she murmured softly, as if in prayer. No one was around to hear her; the quiet was punctuated by a chorus of birdsong.

Two weeks earlier, her life had been upset by the arrival of Mr. Thaddeus Gill. He had introduced himself as the solicitor for the Earl of Bedford. He was a short man, no taller than Margaret. His brown hair was sparse in the front, and he was dressed simply in a black jacket with a black waistcoat and black trousers. The solicitor looked as if he possessed a formidable legal mind behind his stern demeanor and would serve the earl well. Gill told Margaret the earl’s given name was Percival Covington. The earl was the father of the Honorable Daniel Covington, and he had sent Gill to locate his son.

Margaret could not believe that, after nine years, Daniel’s father saw fit to seek him out. Although she was aware her husband had had limited correspondence with his father, Daniel had never explained a great deal to her concerning the break between them. He had told her that when his mother passed, his father had become more remote and increasingly authoritarian. Her husband had chafed at the rules and dictates. When Daniel left school, he decided to see the world, and America had been the first place he had come.

Margaret’s father, the owner of an import/export company, had an opening in his business, and Daniel had gratefully taken it. The job was to be a temporary fix to his financial problems, but the company had become home to him. It was through business interactions that Margaret and Daniel fell in love and, in time, married. To her knowledge, Daniel had had almost no correspondence with his father since their marriage.

Out of courtesy Margaret had sent her father-in-law a letter at Daniel’s passing but had never received any missives in return. She never expected any communication with the man. Interestingly, Gill stated the earl had not received the letter and was not aware his son had passed. The solicitor informed her the earl had suffered severe misfortune these past years. His son Michael had died two years earlier in the Peninsular Wars. His eldest son and heir, Percy, had died eight months ago from a wasting disease. Unfortunately, the heir had three daughters but no sons. Margaret informed Gill her husband had died three years prior of typhoid fever. The solicitor asked if children had been born from the marriage, and Margaret told him she had two sons. That was when she discovered her sons were the sole surviving heirs to the Bedford earldom.

“Mr. Gill, I have no idea what that means. My sons are American,” exclaimed Margaret, not only confused but also a bit curious.

“But your sons are Covingtons, ma’am. They are heirs to a fortune and several large estates.” Gill said this with a pomposity that indicated he felt she should be honored and excited to hear this news. He then explained the laws of primogeniture, the right of succession belonging to the firstborn male child. Margaret was vaguely aware of this feudal tradition, but never considered it would apply to her or her sons. She knew enough about Daniel’s background to know he had been well-to-do and his father had been an important man in his homeland, but the extent of that importance was news to her. She furrowed her brow as she considered what this might mean. Surely this could not be.

“Mr. Gill, my sons have never been to England. I have never been to England. I would not have the first idea what is required,” Margaret said.

The solicitor explained the significance of the earldom, that a great many people depended on the land and its administration. The earl also played a role in the government. Gill begged her to consider what her sons could lose if she did not give due consideration to the inheritance. It was his responsibility to deliver this news and take her back to England with him.

Margaret had had no idea Daniel’s father had been an earl, and she was not even sure what an earl was or what duties he performed. Daniel had told her his father was a man of status in his country, but, according to Gill, her father-in-law was extremely prominent, and the family very much desired to keep such a position. Only sons could inherit, however, which eliminated the earl’s granddaughters from inheriting.

Two weeks had passed since Margaret had received this news, and she still had made no decision concerning her sons’ future. Gill was getting anxious to return to England and to fulfill his duty to escort the earl’s daughter-in-law and her children back with him. Margaret was worried. Her head was swirling with questions compounded by a fear of what this change might mean for her sons.

Her background could not have been more different from that of an English earl. Margaret’s father, Seamus McClearn, had come to Philadelphia as part of the Scots migration from Ulster. He worked hard as a laborer in the Port Richmond section of the city, for a man who owned an import/export business, and eventually bought the business. Daniel quickly became a valuable asset to Seamus’s company.

“Oh, Daniel, why did you not tell me?” Margaret continued her solitary conversation. She pulled at her shawl and looked up to see her father climbing the hill to the cemetery. Seamus was huffing, his face red with the effort of the climb. He was hunched over in order to keep the chill from reaching his aching joints. Age was beginning to rob the old man of the energy he had when he first arrived on this continent. She fretted about him.

“Ah, darlin’.” You made your old Da walk up that hill.” Seamus tried to catch his breath.

“Sorry, Papa.” She reached out her hand to steady him. Her father was a big, burly man with red hair and piercing blue eyes. He was also a jovial, pleasant man, which she felt contributed to his success as much as hard work.

Seamus looked into his daughter’s light brown eyes and reached up with thick, work-worn fingers to place a strand of Margaret’s hair behind her ear. “Gill is pacing around the parlor like a caged animal. He is anxious to be on his way back. He said he has business that awaits him, and you must give him an answer soon.” Seamus knew she was concerned and wished he could help her with this decision, but it had to be her decision, not his.

Margaret held his eyes for a moment, then lowered her gaze to the stone engraved with Daniel’s name. She sighed deeply and said softly, “I know, Papa.”

“Tell me,” said Seamus, “did Danny ever say his da was mean or cruel?”

“No. Not that I can think of. Mostly he said he was—well—cold.” Cold and domineering, now that she thought of it.

Seamus shuffled a little, trying to stay warm as the wind tossed leaves into the air and the smell of autumn filled his nostrils. “When I met Danny, I thought he was runnin’ from the law,” he chuckled.

Margaret looked up quickly, startled by his remark. “Really, Papa! How could you think such a thing?”

“Think about it, daughter. A well-dressed Englishman with good manners and educated. Why would he come here? Why would he want a job with me?”

Margaret had been so taken with Daniel’s charm and appearance she hadn’t considered how others might view him. Daniel had been extremely handsome. He was tall and strong, and his dark blue eyes reminded her of a stormy winter day. His blond hair was full of curls that often tumbled down on his forehead, making him look rakish and carefree. He was well-spoken and dressed in the style of an aristocrat. She had fallen in love with him almost immediately.

Margaret wrapped her arm around her father’s elbow affectionately. “If you thought he might be a criminal, why did you let him work for you? Papa, you had him keeping your accounts!”

“Bah! I hated the books and hadn’t been able to find anyone I could trust to do them. The fact that I hired Danny to do the figures and track the stock didn’t mean I didn’t oversee his work. Then I could see somethin’ between the two of you. He was a bit too polished and pretty for me, but he suited you.” He chuckled as he drew her in closer and Margaret felt his love.

Margaret was too young at the time to consider all that, but her father had. She had been too swept away by Daniel to think clearly. The happiest day of her life was the day they married. She had adored him. She thought she had her happy ever after. Of course life is never that...