Good Dukes Wear Black by Manda Collins

could likely pay my household expenses for a year solely on what he earns from the aristocracy alone,” Freddy said with a grimace. “Perhaps even two.”
    â€œBut surely a medical man would have an obligation to ensure that the accusations were true before he signed his name to such a writ,” Mainwaring argued. “I mean, if it were that easy then we’d see a whole spate of drunken uncles and temperamental aunts being taken up by the good doctor’s men on a daily basis.”
    â€œWho’s to say there isn’t?” Trent asked seriously. “It’s not as if the nobility are open about such matters. It’s an embarrassment to have a family member taken to the madhouse. Much easier to explain away their absence by claiming they’ve gone to Scotland. And no one would be the wiser. I can even imagine a grateful head of the family sending the doctor a gift of a few hundred pounds in gratitude.”
    Freddy whistled. “When you put it that way it does sound rather ominous. I’m glad my family never heard of this chap. It would be just like one of my brothers to have me carted off as a joke.”
    â€œYour family is odd,” Mainwaring said with a shake of his head. Turning back to Trent, he asked, “So, do you believe that this Maggie Grayson is indeed mad or that her husband lied to have her taken up?”
    â€œI know Ophelia, that is, Miss Dauntry,” Trent corrected himself, “believes that Mrs. Grayson is no more mad than you or I, but not knowing the woman myself, I cannot judge that. What I do know is that George Grayson was reputed to be a good officer, and I find it hard to believe that the man I spoke with at length this morning did such a thing.”
    â€œBut if not him, then who?” Freddy asked. “And where has Grayson gone? Surely his disappearance is suspicious if nothing else is.”
    â€œOh, it’s suspicious as hell,” Trent said, clenching his jaw. “If for no other reason than to see if my own instincts have degraded to such a degree than I can no longer tell the difference between sincerity and barefaced lies. And he’s a member of the Lords of Anarchy, so there’s also that.”
    â€œBecause you’re the president, you mean?” Mainwaring asked with a raised brow. “I’m not sure the past presidents would have been so conscientious.”
    â€œNeed I remind you that one of them is in exile and the other is dead? I do not believe either are examples I wish to follow,” Trent said wryly. “I swore to turn this club into something that its members can be proud of. And that means investigating the matter when one of the members appears to have acted in bad faith.”
    â€œWell, when you put it that way,” Mainwaring said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
    â€œJust don’t get yourself into trouble,” Freddy said, taking a deep drink of claret.
    â€œAnd if you do,” Mainwaring said, raising his own glass, “feel free to call on us for help. We’ve got a bit of experience in this sort of thing.”
    â€œI think I’ve got it handled,” Trent said, biting back a grin. “I did manage to go to war for a decade without your assistance. Surely I can handle a physician with delusions of grandeur and a certain demanding young lady.”
    At least he hoped so. Otherwise he was in for quite a difficult few days.
    *   *   *
    â€œWas that the Duke of Trent’s curricle?” asked Ophelia’s mother from the doorway to her sitting room.
    Ophelia had hoped to sneak into her own bedchamber without notice. Especially after that shocking kiss. Unfortunately her mother’s windows faced the front of the house and therefore gave her an unobstructed view of the street below.
    With a sigh of resignation, she obeyed her mother’s unspoken demand and followed her into the cozy parlor where Mrs. Dauntry spent most of her