A/N: Happy Friday everyone. Thank you to everyone who had been reading and commenting. I hope you've all had a wonderful week.
Chapter 11
"So much for your ride, bother. Have you lost your faculties, what would drive you, of all people, into the society of strangers here and on an eve such as tonight?" Samuel asked when Mr. Shurley was seen leaving the inn and stepping into a carriage.
"He is a fool and we need to keep a very close eye on him. For God, he is very naive and I have a very great doubt that Tepes is coming here without the knowledge of the army that is awaiting him when he arrives," Dean answered as both he and his brother came away from the window.
"Naive or just completely disinterested?" Samuel asked with a snort of derision. "I see your meaning, however, and I suppose we must do as you have undertaken for us; for the greater good."
"Indeed we must, now I find myself very interested in the high society of this settlement," Dean said and smiled a knowing and mischievous smile at his brother. "Perhaps you should be inquiring after more of our kind to bring them here to be ready for a very great battle, as it sounds like the gentry here are very foppish and useless to the cause, but we must verify them as gentry and not the scourge."
"The prospects of a battle has you rushing ahead of yourself, though I do agree about the verification," Samuel warned. "Perhaps the vampires who are coming to the call of Tepes have other plans. What if they mean to kill him?" The younger bother asked in a seriousness that preceded his age and authority.
"Why would they, they fought with him at one time," Dean offered passionately.
"Exactly, and they take pride in it, improperly I will add, but pride none the less. If he comes to gain respite from God himself, he is abandoning their kind, and should I have been one of them, I would feel very angry that God raised him above all the rest of our kind; only to have them be betrayed by the leader who wishes for freedom from his cursed existence. Perhaps we should have pressed him about his relationship with Eve and why he chose one of her creations as power for Tepes."
"You make a very good point, brother, and we will get answers in due time, but for now we must prepare for a night in new society with the Westbrooks," Dean said excitedly. "I should think there will be many ladies there for our entertainment."
"We've not formally been invited yet," Samuel protested.
"God has invited us, and no one has higher ranking, not even the king, than God himself. I am certain we will be admitted into the company tonight and so I must look my best," Dean said with a mock salute and then rushed off before his brother could protest further.
"He's not wrong," Samuel said to himself, snatching his journal from among the books and took himself away to his own room.
Not long after his departure from the sitting room the invitations and wish to establish the acquaintance arrived from Mr. Cornelius Westbrook and at the appointed hour, the Misters Winchester climbed into their carriage and were conveyed in high fashion to the house of the Westbrooks.
Located on the outskirts of the village proper, the journey into the moorlands took several minutes but at last the gentlemen were greeted by Mr. Westbrook himself as he rushed out into the paddock to meet them. As gentlemanly as most would assume, and jolly in his ways, Mr. Westbrook showed the Winchesters into his home, and further on to introduce them to a parlour full of ladies who seemed captivated by Mr. Shurley until that moment when the very handsome young strangers arrived.
"May I be so bold as to introduce my wife Sarah and our daughters Anne, Jane, Fanny, Claudia, Charlotte, Margaret, Phylis, and last but not least, my son and heir, Philipe," Mr. Cornelius said proudly as the individuals in question were brought forward, all ranging in age from their early adulthood, the Miss Anne Westbrook, all the way down to the infant son Philipe.
"It is our very great pleasure to make your acquaintance," Dean spoke for the both of them as they bowed before the extremely large family.
"When Mr. Shurley told us that he had friends visiting in Whitby, it became our duty and desire to meet you boys and form an acquaintance," Mrs. Westbrook cried out gleefully as she jumped from her seat and moved toward them. "Come, allow me to introduce you to our little party," she added and took ahold of Dean's arm. "You must meet the Bellevilles and the Churchlys. As you see, and I do apologize, but we are quite the large congregation of ladies here tonight."
"I do not mind the company of ladies," Dean said as he flashed his smile, and was introduced to Mrs. Belleville and Mrs. Churchly.
Samuel followed along obediently and quietly observing the people around them, and to his surprise many of them carried about silver goblets and wore jewelry and gems made of the precious metal. It was a good sign considering the circumstances and in time he was able to rule out vampires among them all. Then again, with Mr. Shurley present, he should not have been so worried as he was.
Once all had settled and the dinner bell was rung, the brothers were separated and placed between eligible ladies and their elegant mothers. Dean faired well at dinner, as the oldest son, with his winning smile, soulful eyes and great fortune. Samuel sought out conversation and found it only with Mrs. Belleville at his right as the Miss Jane Westbrook was very dull indeed.
After dinner Mr. Shurley performed the reading of his newest collection of horror stories that shook many a young lady's countenance and left them gasping for more and were obliged by Mr. Shurley for he took great pleasure in their fawning over him.
As the evening wore down, the card tables were arranged, and at last the gentlemen were assembled together to gamble away some of their money while the ladies played at games more civilized then those of chance.
"And so, Mr. Winchester, what brings you to Whitby with your very great estate well established elsewhere?" Mr. Belleville began the conversation a new as Dean took another winning hand and the cards were dealt out once more.
"Adventure my good sir, I cannot sit idly, and as the estate is very well managed by my brother here, it runs nearly independently of myself. And as such, I have time to get into a spot of trouble," Dean spoke in jolly tones of deception and folly. "I am a single man in possession of a very good fortune, what more is there for me to do?"
"Ah, I see, so your brother does all the work with regards to your father's fortune and you reap all the benefits?" Mr. Churchly asked disapprovingly.
"That is generally the way of things when elder sons are involved, though my brother and I are very close and he would never want for anything so long as I am alive. As you see we are very rarely without the other," Dean commented haughtily. "And should anything happen to me, the estate will fall to him, until I marry, of course, and have sons."
"And in my brothers defence, I will say that with regards to his tenants and servants, though his butler might disagree, he is very generous, attentive, authoritative and good. He also takes great interest in local business and charities, gives of his time to those in need of it, and though he puts on airs because society dictates he must, as the eldest son, he is not without a great many merits. His work ethic is in all aspects of himself," Samuel stepped in to support his brother. "My dear brother is not bookish, however, and so I keep up with his ledgers and the like, but honestly he is very involved with the up keep and running of his realm. It runs so smoothly because he has forbade it to do otherwise."
"Dear Samuel you will make me blush," Dean said and won another hand.
"Should I tell them of your other behaviours to make them blush?" Samuel asked saucily.
"Only those which involve my labouring for the greater community, not the others," Dean answered with a wink.
"I can vouch for his goodness and kindness, I have even seen him work along side his tenants, and fellow man, when there was trouble afoot," Mr. Shurley added to the brothers banter to bring the conversation back to involving everyone at the table.
"Surely not, you have servants for those laborious jobs," Mr. Westbrook said with a laugh.
"I assure you, sir, I have been known to wield my own shovel, or axe, from time to time. I once assisted in the reconstruction of a rather picturesque retaining wall. I take great pride in my own brawn, you see, because I am not bookish as Samuel said. It is a very nice escape from the confines of more tedious society," Dean spoke as the hand ended again and the men around him grew shocked at his speech. "Or there was this one time when this great tree fell and had the audacity to blocked my lane into the village. I was very happy to assist in its removal as it caused nothing but wasted time by its falling across my road."
"He's good at card, wooing women, flaunting his station, and now we are to believe him a labourer, and humanitarian?" Belleville asked in shock.
"I am quite a catch, so say many a mother in my acquaintance," Dean said boastfully.
"And yet you are unmarried," Mr. Shurley added with a laugh.
"Oh yes, I am far too young and there is far to much adventure to have as of yet. I will marry when I am prepared to become a dull, doting, husband but not before," Dean commented.
"A scoundrel now, a flirt to come, and doting later, surely, are we to believe such things?" Mr. Westbrook asked, somewhat down trod knowing that the eligible bachelor was not interested in the marriage state as of yet.
"You may believe what you wish but I am a swords man, a very good shot, and a labourer if I chose to be," Dean said dismissively. "And you sir are clearly very light with your wagers and very cautious with your cards," he accused and received a roaring round of laughter from the other gentlemen.
"Surely not, sir," Westbrook stated and raised the bid.
"Truly I tell you, I am light, at least for this hand," Belleville said with a chuckle.
"And you should not think my brother so very refined as he pretends to be. He has the callouses on his hands to prove he knows hard work as well," Dean said as he laid his hand palms up on the card table and sure enough the callouses from the grave digging, only days before, were still visible on his palms. "Go on Samuel, show them that you too are just as involved as I claim to be."
Samuel did as he was told, to many gasped from the men at the table.
"Good lord, he speaks truth," Churchly said in shock.
"He does indeed," Mr. Shurley nodded.
"You said you shoot, sir?" Westbrook asked to turn the conversation again. "Perhaps you would be interested in some sport here on my land while you are our guest?" he offered.
"I would indeed, but tomorrow Samuel and I ride out for the next settlement. We have business there that should not take more than a few days and upon our return, we would be very happy to join you for a hunt," Dean accepted the offered for both himself and his brother.
"And you, Mr. Samuel, do you shoot?" Westbrook asked.
"I do whatever my brother deems entertaining, so yes, I do indeed," Samuel answered with an affirmative nod.
"Then it is settled, when you return to Whitby we will have ourselves a little sport," Westbrook said happily.
Shortly thereafter the party broke up and the carriages conveyed the Winchesters and other guests back to where they had hailed from.
