by Kate Parker
The horses’ hooves hammered a staccato beat as they bore down on me, the driver cracking a whip over them. Time seemed to stand still. I couldn’t get my legs to move.
A tug on my sleeve sent me tumbling backward into a solid figure. He pulled me onto the pavement. Wind blew up my skirt as the carriage rumbled past as it brushed by. With a gasp, I watched the plain carriage disappear around a corner and then looked up into the concerned face of Mr. Sumner.
“He came out of nowhere,” I said, my heart pounding and my breath coming in gasps.
“I think I’d better escort you home,” he said.
“I don’t live around here. Perhaps you could go with me to catch the omnibus?” I was starting to tremble as I realized how close I had come to injury.
“First, I’ll rescue your shoe.” He bent over and snatched it from the gutter.
I pulled it on before I said, “Thank you, Mr. Sumner. Please, would you escort me to the omnibus?”
Mr. Sumner took my arm before he walked me across the street and down two blocks to where I could catch the bus. I made it home in time to serve dinner.
Noah gave me a speculative glance and I nodded. He knew about Lady Kaldaire and her crusades. I saw no point to tell him about my close call. It must have been a careless or impatient driver. Road accidents were common on London streets.
Annie seemed unaware of the tension at the table as she chatted on about the letter she had received from Matthew. Our little apprentice seemed to be opening up, going to school willingly and making friends with the children in the neighborhood. However, any question about her family sent her back into her shell like a turtle and no one would hear another word from her for two days.
Before, her silence had lasted a week.
Annie and I finished the dishes, and while she read, I sketched out an idea for a hat for a very tall industrialist’s daughter. A knock on the door made us all look up. When Noah slowly rose to answer, I waved him back. “You’ve been on your feet all day. I’ll get it.”
I hurried downstairs and looked out. It was my cousin Petey. “What do you want?”
“Gran said you’d talk to me like that.” He started to turn away before he added, “Grandpa wants to see you.” Then he disappeared into the night.
I trudged upstairs. “My grandfather wants me to come ’round. I won’t be gone long.”
“You shouldn’t go out on your own, Emmy.”
“I’ll find a hansom cab. I’ll be fine.” I certainly wouldn’t tell him now about my near accident. I put on my hat, cloak, and gloves, grabbed an umbrella, and set off.
I didn’t bother with the cab, but I did take the bus until I reached the warren of lanes around my grandfather’s house in the East End. All the time I worried. Had something happened to one of my cousins? An aunt or uncle? Gran?
When I knocked on the door, Uncle Thomas answered with “Petey returned ages ago.”
“He said Grandfather wanted to see me and ran off. I had to put on my hat and cloak before I could come over. What’s wrong?”
Uncle Thomas walked down the hall bellowing, “Petey!” I followed him in to where my grandparents, uncles, and cousins sat around the drawing room. Petey sat pressed up to my grandmother’s skirts.
“Leave the poor lad alone,” she was saying. When she saw me, she said, “What do you hear from your brother?”
“Annie got a letter from him today. He told her about his classes and the friends he’s made. His teachers are pleased with his work.” I looked around. “You all look well. Why did Petey tell me to come?”
“I said she’d say it was my fault,” Petey said to my grandmother rather than Uncle Wilbur, his father. Uncle Wilbur wasn’t any more likely to put up with Petey’s whining than any of the other male members of the family.
“You were supposed to escort her back here. She’s a young lady and shouldn’t be out alone after dark,” my grandmother said. That was the nicest thing she’d ever said about me.
That should have warned Petey not to continue, but he’d always been the slow one. “Young lady, ha! She’s just one of us.”
Rather than kick him as I would have as a child, I said quietly, “I think, Petey, Gran wants you to show me the same manners as you would show her. You’d escort Gran home after dark, wouldn’t you?”
Petey looked from me to our grandmother and said, “Oh.”
My grandfather rose, a smile on his face, and said, “Let’s go into the dining room, Pet.”
Uncle Thomas and I followed him in and sat at one end of the table. I was surprised when Uncle Thomas began. “I had a visitor at the pub. Jeb Marlowe.”
I watched him closely. A number of people went to Uncle Thomas’s pub. Some of them went strictly for legitimate purposes. I suspected Marlowe went there primarily to get me into trouble.
Grandfather explained, “Jeb Marlowe is better known as Lucky Marlowe.”
Oh. I knew with that tone I was in trouble.
“He wanted to know what your interest is in a couple of his customers. Imagine his surprise when I didn’t know as much about your visit as he did,” Uncle Thomas told me.
“And he came to see you because he guessed with my last name, that I’m part of the family and he wanted to know what kind of a con I was playing on him.” It seemed like a good guess.
Uncle Thomas nodded. “That and he said you look like a Gates. Who was the big bloke with the scar down the side of his face? Jeb asked me, and I told him I didn’t know him.”
“His name’s John Sumner. He works for the Duke of Blackford, who knew where to find Lucky Marlowe’s club. The duke didn’t want Lady Kaldaire and me to go there alone, so he sent Mr. Sumner and a retired police sergeant named Adam Fogarty with us.”
“I remember Fogarty,” my uncle said.
“We may yet need to make Mr. Sumner’s acquaintance,” my grandfather said, giving Uncle Thomas an unreadable look. “You’d better tell us what this is about, Pet.” He wasn’t smiling.
I told them why I had gone to the Marlowe Club and what little I had learned so far about the two deaths. When I finished, both men shook their heads.
“Helping Lady Kaldaire will lead to nothing but trouble, Pet.”
“If my customers find out that I’m related to the notorious Gates gang, they’ll go to other milliners. It’s not like I’m the only one in London.” I was hurt and frustrated, and my anguish poured out with my words.
“But you’re the best,” Uncle Thomas said. He had no idea if I was or not, but it was sweet of him to say so.
“Do you want us to nose around and see what we can find out?” my grandfather asked.
“No. This is my problem, and I need to find the solution.” Then I looked at Uncle Thomas. “Did Jeb Marlowe say anything that might help? Mention any friends of Lord and Lady Theodore Hughes? Mention anyone angry with them?”
“He said one strange thing. He said, ‘Instead of asking me, why doesn’t she talk to the Archers or Lady Beatrix and her nameless friend?’”
Chapter Eleven
Uncle Thomas couldn’t tell me any other details, and it was getting late. At least I still had a business that required me to be ready to face customers in the morning. So far, Lady Kaldaire hadn’t found a reason to carry out her threat.
This time, Cousin Garrett saw me home. We discussed family news while carefully never straying into my investigation or their illegal activities.
I worked hard the next morning, designing hats and convincing customers that we had the perfect hats for their new spring outfits. At lunchtime, I left Jane minding the shop while I hurried to Mayfair to see Lady Kaldaire.
Passing Lyle, her butler, as soon as he opened the door, I walked in and looked around the main hallway as I said, “Is Lady Kaldaire here?”
“Yes, Emily,” she called out. A minute later, she came down the stairs. “Have you learned something?”
“Do you know who the Archers are or Lady Beatrix and her nameless friend?”
Lady Kaldaire stared at me for a moment. “Should I be acquainted with them?”
“I hope so. Lucky Marlowe went to see one of my uncles after we left to ask what we were doing there. He told my uncle that Lord and Lady Hughes’s friends, so far as he knew, were these people.”
“I’ve never heard of them, but still, well done, Emily. Come over at tea time and we’ll see what the gossips know.”
“I must get back to work. I’ll close the shop at five and come back here afterward.”
She looked up at me, her brows raised. “That won’t leave us much time.”
“That’s the best I can do.”
She rose. “Very well. Let me walk out with you. It’ll be shorter for you to go across the park. Then maybe you’ll return earlier.”
Lady Kaldaire could be generous when she tried. And it suited her.
She unlocked the gate and we walked along the path toward the gazebo. This was the first time I’d seen it since that awful morning when I found the woman referred to as the notorious Lady Roxanne. Now there were children climbing over and under the bench and jumping off the base onto the grass.
With a start, I realized I recognized Lady Juliet among the children.
Then, coming down another path, I saw the Duchess of Blackford and another lady. Lady Kaldaire led the way toward them.
The duchess did the introductions while I stood, amazed. The blonde with the duchess was without doubt the most beautiful woman I’d even seen. She was a few years older than me, with blue eyes, flawless features, and creamy skin. I felt every blemish down to my toes.
I would love to design hats for someone as lovely as this woman. She’d make any hat look brilliant.
I expected her to be another duchess.
Suddenly, I realized where I’d heard her name before. “Mrs. Emma Sumner? Are you married to Mr. John Sumner?” He was scarred. Dangerous looking. And she was as beautiful as a stained-glass window.
It was as if the sun had lit up her face. “You’ve met John? Oh, of course you have if you’ve met the duke.”
“Emma was my shop assistant before she married John,” the duchess told me, “but we’ve been friends for longer than that.”
“What sort of work does Mr. Sumner do?” I wondered if he was the butler.
“He’s a writer. He writes novels.” Mrs. Sumner and the duchess looked at each other and grinned. “Gothic novels. He writes under the name of Mrs. Hepplewhite.”
I blinked, silenced by shock. Then my enthusiasm won out. “I love her books. Well, his books, I guess.”
Anything else that might have been said was lost as a very young boy toddled over at high speed toward us, his nursemaid right behind him. The child crashed into the duchess, who picked him up. “It’s fine,” she told the nursemaid before she said to us, “this is my youngest, Will. Say hello to the ladies, Will.”
He buried his face in her bodice.
“And the other children?” I asked.
“You’ve met Juliet. Miss Gates is the milliner I was telling you is making Juliet’s hat for the party.”
Mrs. Sumner nodded.
“The very dirty boy in the blue short pants is the future Duke of Blackford, called Jamie. You can’t tell by looking at him now, can you?”
“That’s probably for the best,” I said, earning a sharp look from Lady Kaldaire. I stared back at her. “Children should enjoy their childhoods.”
“The other two ruffians are my sons, Matt and Luke,” Mrs. Sumner said. She didn’t sound upset in the least that they were as dirty as a future duke.
“Matt? Matthew? That’s my brother’s name. He’s fourteen,” I told them.
“My Matt is only seven. Luke is four.”
“They’re wonderful children,” I said, enjoying their enjoyment of their games.
“Is Annie your daughter?” the duchess asked.
“No—she’s, well, I guess she’s my apprentice. We found her the winter before last bedded down in the hay with our horse. She won’t tell us who her family is, and we weren’t going to send her to the poorhouse. So…” My voice drifted off. I really didn’t know how to explain how hard we’d tried to find her family or how much she’d come to mean to Noah, Matthew, and me.
An odd look passed between the duchess and Mrs. Sumner.
Before I could say anything more, Lady Kaldaire reminded me that I needed to get back to work.
With a smile and more curtsies, we left. When Lady Kaldaire opened the far gate for me, I thanked her and looked back. The women were sitting in the gazebo while the children still played around them in the grass, overseen by their nurse.
* * *
I put in a busy afternoon taking orders for spring hats, working on a few new designs, and conferring with my business partner, Noah. He and our hat makers worked in the factory across the alley and did most of the work on the orders, but I never admitted that to my customers. They were aristocrats. They preferred to think I did everything especially for them.
Telling Noah what I was doing after I closed the shop for the day was my hardest task. He was livid. “It’s too dangerous.”
“Sitting in a drawing room sipping tea and listening to these aristocrats talk is dangerous?”
He took a few steps away from me before returning. “Why do I waste my breath? Go chase after these killers. Just be back in time for dinner.”
I gave him a smile and crossed the alley to get back to work in the shop.
I’d worn a lovely dove-gray gown with dark blue accents that carried over to my hat that day, almost expecting I’d have to follow Lady Kaldaire’s lead and find these unknown people in the hunt for a killer. After I saw Jane off and closed the shop, I just needed to pin on my hat, pull on my gloves, and pick up my umbrella.
I rode an omnibus to Mayfair, glad the day was pleasant and dry, and walked the last few blocks to Lady Kaldaire’s. As soon as I rang the bell, Lady Kaldaire nearly knocked Lyle over in her haste to be off. “We’re going to Blackford House. I talked to the duchess after you left. She’s invited us and some others she thinks may have some knowledge of Lord and Lady Theo’s friends.”
Lady Kaldaire marched down the block and around the corner to the massive residence, where she strode up to the front door. I trailed behind. The Duchess of Blackford was a kind person, but I still felt unequal to the task of sitting in her drawing room, drinking tea and speaking as if I belonged there.
We were escorted up the stairs to what I guessed was the main drawing room. The chairs were in gold satin, the sofas in blue, the tables in the style of Queen Anne. Still, the room had the free and uncluttered feel of modern décor rather than the crowded style favored during Queen Victoria’s reign.
Half a dozen women sat facing each other. I recognized the duchess and two of my customers. Drat. They were both middle-aged and gossipy and likely to ask me difficult questions.
The duchess rose and walked up to us. “I’m so glad to see you both.”
I gave her a curtsy and murmured, “Your Grace.” I had no idea how to obtain the information I wanted in a gathering of aristocrats. Would they even speak to me? Suddenly, my lovely afternoon gown seemed shabby.
“Georgia, how good to see you again. Thank you for inviting us,” Lady Kaldaire said.
“Come have a seat. I asked if anyone knew the Archers, and received an interesting reply. Ernestine, if you’d tell Lady Kaldaire and Miss Gates what you thought of. It’s so clever.” The Duchess of Blackford gestured for us to sit as she spoke to Lady Trampwell, one of my most gossipy customers.
“Are you familiar with the Ravenbrook family crest? It’s a stylized version of two archers standing back to back. During the time of one of the early King Henrys, the original Ravenbrook stood with his back to Henry and shot down the king’s enemies sneaking up behind with his bow. Rescued the king from a nasty situation in the middle of a battle, for which the original Ravenbrook was made a baron.” Lady Trampwell smiled benevolently and then took a sip of her
tea.
“And it’s the current Ravenbrook and his wife who refer to themselves as the ‘Archers’?” the duchess asked, prodding the lady to come to the point.
“Yes. Not socially, you understand, but when they get involved with that racy crowd at the Marlowe Club, they call each other by their chosen nom de guerre.”
“So, the Ravenbrooks call themselves the Archers. Who calls herself Lady Beatrix?” I asked.
“What is your interest in the Marlowe Club?” Lady Trampwell asked.
Blast. “Two suspicious deaths have occurred at Wallingford House. Lady Kaldaire, being a good friend of the duchess, is concerned something terrible may befall her friend. We hope to speak to Lord and Lady Theodore Hughes’s friends to see if they can shed any light on certain details.”
I thought my reply sounded good, but Lady Trampwell was having none of my fine words. “Why should they talk to you? Why not the police? Does the Duchess of Wallingford want you nosing around in what should be their family business?”
“She’d much rather deal with Emily than with the police. And she’d rather feel safe in her bed at night instead of not knowing how certain parties might have entered her house to kill her son.” Lady Kaldaire stared at Lady Trampwell until the other woman was forced to look away.
“The most daring woman in London, now that the notorious Lady Roxanne is dead, is the Countess of Westkirk,” the Duchess of Blackford said into the silence. “You might find out if she and Roxanne were friends.”
I wondered if two women as wild as Lady Theo was reported to have been could ever be friends. I didn’t want to be the one to ask.
Chapter Twelve
“Who is the Countess of Westkirk? The name isn’t familiar to me.” I looked around, hoping someone would tell me.
The women looked at each other out of the corners of their eyes. Finally, the Duchess of Blackford said, “She’s a young woman married to the much older Earl of Westkirk.” She didn’t sound pleased.
“A withered old Scotsman,” someone murmured.