Chapters (53)
- Cover
- About Alison Stuart
- Also by Alison Stuart
- Title Page
- Dedication
- Prologue
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgements
- Preview of The Goldminer's Sister
Nell nodded. ‘When we saw what it was, I told Sis to put the original back where she found it. He’d probably kill her if he knew what she’d done.’
Caleb held the paper to the light. Written in pencil in a loopy, childish hand he read:
Dear Miss Lewis,
It is my sad duty to inform you that your father, Sir Daniel Lewis, departed this earth on 6 September. Before his death he summoned me to his home and executed a new will, the terms of which I will relate below. He also informed me that, to the best of his knowledge, you and his grandson were alive and well and living in the Colony of Victoria and he had instructed his friend Mr Richard Barnwell to find you and pass on the enclosed letter to you.
Caleb looked up. ‘Was there another letter?’
Sissy shook her head. ‘No, just this one. It said “Miss Adelaide Lewis” on the outside so I guessed it could only be our Adelaide. Was I right?’
Caleb shrugged and continued to read.
The terms of Sir Daniel’s will were simple. He bequeathed half of his estate to be held in trust for his grandson, Daniel Lewis, also known as Daniel Greaves, until he reached the age of twenty-one. The other half he bequeathed to you for your life, after which time it would devolve on the aforementioned Daniel Lewis. Cognisant of the Married Woman’s Property Act of 1870, he appointed me trustee of the estate until such time as you married, after which your husband would become the sole trustee of both trusts. I request that you should make haste to confirm receipt of this letter and make passage for London to allow the legal process to finalise Sir Daniel’s estate in a proper and timely manner.
Your servant,
D Makepeace, Solicitor
Caleb let out a low whistle through his teeth.
‘You know what it means?’ Sissy asked.
‘It means our Mr Barnwell is not being entirely honest with Adelaide,’ he said.
Sissy glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. ‘We best get back. Lil’ll want to know I’m all right.’ She rose to her feet with a groan and straightened, her hands in the small of her back. ‘What are you going to do?’
Caleb looked down at the paper in his hand. ‘Can I keep this?’
Sissy’s lip curled. ‘It’s no use to me. I hope he rots in hell for the lying bastard he is,’ she said.
After the door shut behind the young women, Caleb stood at the table rereading the solicitor’s letter. As he understood it, any husband of Adelaide’s would wield considerable power and influence over Adelaide and Danny’s inheritance. He wracked his mind, trying to remember what, if anything, Adelaide had said about her father … Shipping?