The Season

twenty

Sneaking across the gardens to Blackmoor House felt very different by the light of day from how it had been when Alex was skulking around in the darkness the night before. In fact, it rather felt more like an afternoon walk than a clandestine activity. This could have been attributed to the fact that there were gardeners hard at work mere feet away who took absolutely no interest in their activities, or it could have been the fact that she hadn't just overheard a horrible conversation, but Alex had a suspicion that it was more Ella's glee at their activities. And her inability to keep quiet about it.

"How do we get into Blackmoor's study? Did you climb in?"

"No, he lifted me in."

"Hmm. Right, then. Vivi will have to give us a boost up."

"She will, will she?" from the booster in question. "Well, how else do we sneak in?"

"I rather thought that we could knock on the front door and have Bingham let us in," Alex said matter-of-factly, referencing Blackmoor's ancient butler, as she led the trio around the corner of the house and toward the main entrance.

"What? We can't do that!" Ella stopped, indignant.

"Whyever not?" Vivi asked, following Alex. "It seems a perfectly acceptable way to enter. In fact, I believe I've been entering houses that way for my entire life."

Seeing that she had been outvoted, not to mention left behind, Ella scurried to catch up to the other two as they made their way to the door. "And what do you expect we’ll say to him that Will end in his leaving us in the house without a chaperone?" she whispered rather indelicately as Alex knocked on the door and put a finger to her lips, calling for silence.

"I imagine I’ll think of something." The door opened, and she turned a brilliant smile on the older gentleman behind it. "Bingham! Good day!" She pushed through, Vivi and Ella hot on her heels. Once inside the house, she untied her bonnet, not all owing for a response. "Blackmoor asked that we pop over here and pick up some books from the study that he meant to bring over for my father before he left to go hunting with my brothers," she said quickly.

"I find him to be very forgetful, don't you?"

As the butler began to speak, Vivi jumped in, picking up on the game, "Oh, I do as well — why, the other night, he left his walking stick at the Worthington House dinner. Nick had to return it the next morning, remember?"

"Indeed. So silly." She threw up her hands in a ridiculous gesture. "You don't mind if we just pop in and pick them up, do you, Bingham?" Alex was already moving toward the study, leaving the poor old man looking rather dumbfounded. "There's no need for you to wait for us. He gave us a rather long list. Didn't he, Ella?"

Ella turned surprised eyes on her. "He did?"

Vivi sighed, feigning exasperation. "Ella, you're almost as forgetful as Blackmoor. You put the list inside your journal, didn't you?"

Alex turned wide eyes on her friend. "You did bring the list, didn't you? Or do we have to go back?"

Ella caught on. Finally. "No. No! Of course not. I have it right here." She went digging into her reticule and brought out the book, opening it quickly and tearing out a page. She waved it under the nose of the butler, who was looking from one girl to the next, as if watching a game of lawn tennis. Ella buried her nose in the "list," saying, "Agrarian Trends in the Counties of Essex and Staffordshire, 1750—1790. Good Lord! Your poor father. Hopefully there's a novel somewhere on this list."

Vivi's mouth twitched in a desperate attempt to hold back the smile threatening to break across her face. She affected a feminine whine and said,

"Let's go, Ella. The ribbon shop on Bond Street is receiving a new shipment of silks today. I shouldn't like to spend all day with Blackmoor's musty old books." Turning a wide, brilliant smile on the butler, she said, "Which way, Bingham?"

The butler pointed mutely in the direction of the study, and the three girls were off and through the door before he could say a word. Once inside, Alex called out, loudly enough for him to hear from his spot, "It's rather drafty in here. Ella, be a dear and close the door? I should hate to catch a chill."

The door closed firmly, leaving the poor old man on the other side, staring speechlessly at it, wondering at the silliness of females and thanking his maker that his masters had never had daughters, before taking himself off to continue his afternoon duties.

"The poor creature never had a chance of survival," Alex said, walking toward Blackmoor's desk. "You were both excellent."

"Although Ella almost ruined our chances," Vivi pointed out with a smile.

"Indeed," Alex agreed, "some investigator you make. You did rally, however. I confess I was quite impressed with Agrarian Trends. Nice touch."

"Thank you. I thought so, myself." Ella nodded in appreciation.

"We had better start finding a pile of books to carry out of here. We wouldn't like Bingham to think we were being untruthful." Vivi moved toward a bookshelf and started to do just that as Ella and Alex chuckled.

The girls tackled separate parts of the room working quickly but carefully, making sure to leave things exactly as they were found. Vivi checked the shelves as she searched for books that might seem relevant to the Duke of Worthington to anyone who cast a discerning eye, building a pile of them by the door that would topple if someone were to open it, to warn them that they were about to be discovered.

After several minutes of searching and turning up nothing, Alex sat in the earl's chair, announcing, "Everything here has been looked at, picked over, and considered. If there were something to be found in this room, it would have been found."

Ella blew a stray lock of hair from her face and closed a cabinet she had been searching through. "Agreed. But, then, where would it be?"

"I don't know, but we're not going to look for it now," declared Alex. "I promised you access to Blackmoor's study. Nothing else. We should go — as it is, when he discovers that we were here, we're going to be in a mountain of trouble."

"This is interesting," Vivi said from across the room, where she was holding a leather-bound book in her hands. "Someone has peeled the endpaper from this volume."

Ella asked, "Which volume is it?"

"A History of Essex. I selected it because I thought it would seem relevant to the nonexistent Agrarian Trends of Essex that we are expected to procure while here. But the binding is loose and —" Vivi broke off as the back page of the book peeled up off the leather cover. She gasped as a crisp, white square of paper popped out of the book. When they saw, Alex and Ella rushed from their positions across the room to join her.

"What is it?" Ella asked excitedly.

"Don't get too excited, Ella," Alex warned. "It's probably nothing. Remember this room has already been combed for information."

"Not this shelf," Vivi disputed. "These books are all covered in at least six months of dust." She carefully opened the paper as the other two girls leaned in to look at its contents. There, scribbled in a strong hand across the crisp parchment were the words they'd hoped — and feared — they would find.

27 December 1814

I suspect plans are being made for more war, and there is an Englishman helping the plot. While I do not want to believe what I now to be

true, I must act now, before others becomes aware of what I have discovered. If this letter is found and I have failed, use the book as your

guide. Everything is at stake. Particularly the name. Keep it safe.

"My God." Alex breathed. "It's from the earl."

"We — We don't... we can't know for sure," Vivi said haltingly.

"We do know for sure, Vivi," Alex replied. "Who else would it be from? My God. He found proof of treason and was killed for it."

"'Everything is at stake, particularly the name'? What name?" Ella asked aloud.

"The Blackmoor name," Alex said quietly, almost to herself. She was recalling her conversation with Blackmoor from the previous night, one that took place in this very room. He had been concerned that her accusations about his uncle would risk the reputation of the Blackmoor name. Just as his father had been.

"My God, I was right," Alex whispered. She looked up and spoke quickly, grabbing the paper from Vivi's grasp and stuffing it back into the book, a feeling of dread coming over her. "We have to leave here. Immediately. I was right."

The words were barely out of her mouth when the books placed by the door toppled. The girls all spun toward the door, hoping it would be Bingham who was interrupting their conversation, praying it wouldn't be Lucian Sewell.

Their prayers went unanswered. There was a delicate straightening of all of their spines as he pushed his way into the room, looking distastefully first at the pile of books on the floor and then around the room until his gaze fell on the trio. Alex willed herself to smile and find a quick exit from this particular trap.

"My lord Sewell," she said brightly, "you gave us a fright!"

Vivi found her voice next. "Quite!" She rushed forward to the books strewn across the carpet and crouched to gather them. "I'm such a ninny. This was not the spot for a pile of books! Why, anyone could have knocked them over!"

Lucian's voice was slow and suspicious. "Indeed. An odd place for a pile of books. Odder even for a pile of books built by girls who are trespassing."

"Trespassing!" Ella laughed a touch too loudly, moving forward, A History of Essex clutched in her hand. "My lord, you are quite amusing, I assure you we would much rather be shopping for ribbon than picking up a selection of books for Alex's father that Blackmoor should have delivered himself. In fact, that is just where we are headed next." She took a stack of the books from Vivi's arms, adding hers to the pile before setting them on her hip. She turned back to Alex, saying, "I think that's all of them, don't you? shall we have Bingham send a footman to help us?"

Alex moved toward them, keenly aware of Sewell 's discerning eye and desperately attempting to appear nonchalant, "No. No. I don't think that's necessary. It will just take more time. We’ll miss the best part of the day as it is."

Vivi nodded her head. "Quite." Turning on her heel, she offered a low curtsy and a warm smile to Sewell, saying, "My lord, again, apologies if we startled you."

He lifted a corner of his mouth in a false smile of his own. "It takes more than a few girls to scare me, Lady Vivian, Lady Eleanor."

He nodded to both girls as they left the room, and Alex felt a chill race down her spine. Was there a double meaning in his words? She took a deep breath and dropped into a curtsy identical to Vivi's, willing herself to get out of the room without betraying all she knew. "My lord Sewell."

"Lady Alexandra. May I have a word?"

No! Her mind screamed, but what was she to do? She had to appear nonchalant, and the only way to do that would be to humor the despicable man.

Ella and Vivi were only feet away — how much harm could happen? "Of course," she replied with a look she hoped appeared to be curiosity.

He lowered his voice and spoke succinctly. "You care very much for my nephew, do you not?"

She nodded carefully and he continued, "Excellent. As do I. You seem an intelligent girl. You would do best to stop skulking about where you do not belong. You wouldn't want Blackmoor to get hurt because of you, would you? Or those lovely friends of yours who seem never to leave your side?"

"I — I don't know what you mean," Alex said, her voice wavering.

"Then this conversation was unnecessary," he said with an empty smile. "All the better." He moved past her, into the study, speaking as he went, "Have a lovely time on Bond Street."

She was terrified and furious and frustrated all at once. Terrified that he would follow them and somehow hurt them, furious that he would think to threaten those she held most dear, and frustrated because she felt so helpless and unheard. She turned to leave the room, her breath coming fast and hard.

"Oh, and one more thing, my lady?"

"Yes, my lord?" She willed the tremor from her voice, turning back to find him thumbing through a stack of correspondence.

"I so enjoyed myself at your parents' ball last evening. Do let them know, will you?"

"Indeed, my lord."

"And be sure to tell them that I was particularly enamored of the orangery."

Alex fled the room with a singular focus — to get Ella and Vivi as far from Lucian Sewell as possible. And quickly.