The Baffling Burglaries of Bath

by Leighann Dobbs

  All occupants in the carriage looked confused at the question. Pru narrowed her eyes as she looked at Katherine askance. The other woman perused the earring closely.

  “It isn’t mine,” Mrs. Oliver said with a sniff, turning her face away. “Perhaps ask Lady Dalhousie. It looks the sort of monstrosity she might favor. It matches well with her precious necklace.”

  With a small sigh, Katherine returned the item to her reticule. “I’ll ask her. Thank you for your help.”

  Mrs. Oliver leaned forward as the carriage stopped, her eyes gleaming. “Do tell, how did you come by it? Did you catch someone in the act of stealing it?”

  Katherine raised her eyebrows. “If I had, I’d know who the rightful owner was. Unfortunately, my dog, Emma, has a singular talent of finding things that ought not to be hers. She’s rather like a magpie that way.”

  Pru smirked as she leaned back against the squabs.

  Nudging her husband, Mrs. Oliver joked, “Did you hear that? A dog. Perhaps Emma is the thief of Bath!”

  Everyone in the carriage laughed except for Katherine.

  Chapter Three

  On the outside, the Assembly Rooms looked no different from any other building on the street. Rather plain, actually. Faint music wafted from within, so the clock must have struck six of the evening while they had driven through town. Katherine disembarked last from the carriage and instructed the driver to come for her at eleven o’clock that evening. She didn’t want to leave a moment earlier than anyone else, or risk missing a vital clue.

  She and Pru entered by the northwest door. If the façade was plain, the interior, by comparison held enough decoration to render the viewer breathless. Corinthian columns dotted the walls, with ornate swags carved between them and scrollwork decorating the perimeter. Niches held elegant painted vases. Light shone from the intricate chandelier overhead.

  Everyone in Bath seemed to be in attendance. As Katherine stepped inside so she wasn’t an obstacle to others, a footman dressed in a turquoise coat with gleaming buttons stepped into her path and held out a hand. “May I have your ticket, madam?”

  Perhaps she should have seen to it earlier in the evening. “I’m afraid I don’t have a subscription. How much will it be to attend the evening’s entertainment?”

  “Five shillings. Each.”

  Katherine had expected to have to pay some small amount in order to cover the cost of tea, but that number taxed the amount she carried in her reticule. Would she have enough? As she reached for the strings to root around inside the bag hanging from her wrist, the Marquess of Bath appeared with a smile as wide as his cuffs.

  “Lady Katherine, do forgive me, I meant to meet you outside the door but was detained a moment. You haven’t paid, have you?”

  “I was about to do so now.”

  Lord Bath waved off the notion. “Please, put that away. I’ve obtained tickets for both you and your guest.” He handed them over to the footman and offered an arm to both ladies. Katherine accepted and allowed herself to be led in. After the marquess’s cuff nearly caught on Pru’s front button, she gingerly accepted his arm, keeping a healthy distance between them.

  He deposited them both in the mouth of the left-hand arch. “Here is the ballroom. We’ll have minuets here until eight, and I hope to claim one.” He caught Katherine’s eye with a pointed look.

  How was she to investigate while dancing? Katherine forced a smile. “Thank you, but you know I don’t care to dance.”

  “Just this once. I won’t take no for an answer. You must tell me how your father is getting on.” He glanced anxiously around the entranceway. “If you’ll forgive me, I must find Grandmama and convince her to sit a moment. She’ll overexert herself. Ladies.” He inclined his head.

  Katherine curtsied in answer. “My lord.” By the time she straightened, he’d turned away and disappeared into the growing crush. Tarnation, Katherine hadn’t even known there were so many members of polite society in Bath!

  Pru looked every bit as dismayed. “How are we to find Sir Hugh in this?”

  “We aren’t,” Katherine said. “I am. I’m sure I can trust you alone for a few hours?”

  The other woman scoffed. “I’m two years older than you. I don’t need to be chaperoned.”

  “Good.”

  When Katherine turned away, Pru caught her arm with a sly expression. She pulled her out of the doorway and into the ballroom. This long, magnificent hall was lit with more chandeliers, the principle decoration in the room save for the walls themselves. Square, intricate sections of Vitruvian scroll framed the mooring of each chandelier down the middle of the high ceiling. More scrollwork above the wainscoting and Corinthian pillars decorated the walls, culminating in a second-floor alcove with a delicate white railing situated in the center where the musicians had taken up their instruments. Several marble hearths were lit, shedding light and warmth on what looked to be five hundred guests or more. Men and women danced in elegant pairs down the middle of the room, adding little to the conversation humming along the perimeter and tiered rows of benches near the windows.

  Katherine was rendered speechless. A private ball couldn’t compare to the splendor; even Almack’s had competition. Fortunately, she had Pru to ground her in the present.

  “If you’ll be too busy dancing, I’d be happy to conduct an investigation in your place.”

  Katherine glared at her charge. “You will do no such thing. You promised.”

  “And you promised to make me undesirable. Why then are so many of the men staring at us?”

  Perhaps because we are blocking the door. Katherine bit the inside of her cheek and guided Pru a few steps further into the ballroom. As they sidestepped a group of mixed men and women, a man’s lowered voice reached her ear.

  “I don’t believe I’ve seen those two ladies before. Can anyone provide an introduction?”

  Sard it all! There was only one reason a gentleman would seek an acquaintance at such an event, and Katherine didn’t have the time to be dancing all night. Fortunately, she doubted anyone in that cluster of debutantes and suitors knew either of them.

  “I know the lady on the left. She’s the Earl of Dorchester’s daughter. I met her once in London.”

  Tarnation!

  “Lady Katherine,” called the woman.

  Pretending not to hear, Katherine quickened her step. She and Pru passed the second-floor alcove, drawing more attention along the way. The men looked them over but apparently didn’t find their attire as unappealing as Katherine had hoped, for she caught the scattered questions as she stepped past. Were they married? Chaperones? Did anyone know them? Katherine, at least, had the illusion of her duties as chaperone behind which to hide. Should anyone make introductions, however, Pru would be most unhappy — and would make Katherine equally so.

  As they neared the set of open doors leading to another room on the far end of the ballroom, her companion proved as much by hissing in Katherine’s ear. “This is unseemly. I have never been so ogled. Are you certain this dress makes me look unappealing?”

  Katherine’s vanity made her mutter, “Perhaps they’re looking at me.”

  Pru raised her eyebrows as if to say, In that dress? She pursed her lips and thankfully didn’t spout the words aloud.

  Nevertheless, Katherine needed three deep breaths before she could answer in a tone that wasn’t biting. “More likely, we’re oddities, being new to Bath. That must be the root of our apparent popularity.” The local gentry must lead a dull existence if the mere presence of two women caused such a stir, but Pru was right. They had both dressed plainly, in such a fashion as to avoid admiring looks.

  “How, then, do I convince them that I’m not worth courting?”

  “Act unladylike,” Katherine advised.

  “Yes, but how?”

  The door on this end of the ballroom opened into an octagonal chamber with a high roof and a single lustrous chandelier. The light glinted off the carved marble fireplaces at intervals,
each still lit to provide warmth for the early arrivals, but burning low and likely to soon be extinguished. Above each of these fixtures was a curious, ornate mirror in a shape reminiscent of a pumpkin. The wide expanse in between held round card tables, with another room to the left containing more.

  Katherine gestured to the Octagon. “Start with five-card loo, and if any other opportunity arises, seize it.”

  Pru smirked. “Now that, I should be able to do.”

  The moment she departed for the other room, Katherine squeezed in behind a row of matrons to seat herself on one of the chairs. Here, she was hidden enough to take a moment to get her bearings.

  She had two aims tonight. First, she had to find the owner of the earring Emma had filched so she might return it. However, with the way Mrs. Oliver had joked that Emma — or worse, perhaps Katherine — was responsible for the string of thefts, Katherine hesitated to ask those staying at the hotel outright. Although she would be able to convince the authorities that she wasn’t responsible, being that she had recently attended the Earl of Northbrook’s house party, so she wasn’t even in Bath when the last theft happened. But if she were even suspected because of the earring, her investigation might become infinitely more difficult. The very reason she masqueraded as a matchmaker was so that her suspects would find her unassuming enough to speak in her presence. Therefore, she had no choice but to seek out the owner of the earring without seeming to do so.

  That promised to be a Herculean task in itself. How was she to find the handful of people staying at the hotel amidst these hundreds of guests? She had to try. Perhaps, if she was lucky, she might be able to use the overwhelming amount of people to coax out gossip about the Burglar of Bath. Beginning her investigation was a far more important task.

  Her decision made, Katherine waited for the music of the song to fade. Hoping to use the influx of people from the dance floor as camouflage to avoid anyone who wished to flirt with her, she slipped off the bench at precisely the wrong moment. Her heart skipped a beat as Lord Bath entered from the Octagon with his grandmother hanging on his arm.

  The old woman’s face lit up as she spotted Katherine. “Oh, Lady Katherine, there you are!”

  Bally! Of all the people… Katherine couldn’t possibly be so rude as to turn away, especially not when Lord Bath had arranged for her entrance into the event. Biting back a sigh, she fixed a smile in place.

  “So nice to see you, my lord.” She curtsied. “My lady.”

  Grandma Bath narrowed her eyes with a sly smile. “No need to stand on such formality. Ernest is so fond of your family, I think of you as an extension of ours. Please, call me Grandmama, as he does.”

  She would never do that.

  Her smile wavered, but she tried not to show her sudden trepidation. “Thank you. I fear I don’t have time to chat. I seem to have misplaced my charge. I make for a frightful chaperone, don’t I?”

  Lord Bath answered her smile with a warm one of his own. Stop it! Didn’t he see that he would only encourage this sudden delusion his grandmother had cooked up?

  “Don’t discredit yourself. We saw her but moments ago at the card tables. She seems well off, deep in luck, it seems. Why, I even saw her correct Annandale’s hand. They’re in plain view, no harm to come of it.”

  It seemed that Pru had found a way to make herself undesirable to Lord Annandale, after all. Katherine had yet to meet a man who enjoyed being corrected.

  “Nevertheless, I should collect her before the gossips start a hum over this.”

  As Katherine tried to sidestep the pair into the Octagon — silently apologizing to Pru for having to interrupt the game — Grandma Bath stopped her with a hand on her elbow. For such a frail old woman, she had a frightfully strong grip. Katherine swore she heard her bones creak.

  “Miss Burwick can tend to herself. She is a sensible woman. Why don’t you enjoy yourself? This is the first time I’ve seen you in our lovely town. Enjoy what it has to offer!”

  “It is the first time I’ve been in Bath,” Katherine admitted. Her family spent the bulk of their time in London or among their estates. “However, I’ll have to enjoy it with Miss Burwick. I’ve been hired to find her a husband, I’ll have you know.”

  “Ernest knows every eligible gentleman in town. Why doesn’t he tell you while you dance a minuet? I’m afraid I’m feeling faint and need to sit down for a spell, in any case.”

  Concern overtook Lord Bath’s friendly expression. “I was afraid this would be too taxing an excursion for you. Let me fetch you some lemonade.” He helped her to the nearest bench, immediately vacated by its occupant, who moved with her companions farther back in the row.

  Grandma Bath waved her hand. “No, I won’t hear of it. You’re too often caring for me and forgetting to enjoy yourself. I don’t wish to be a burden. Why don’t you dance with Katherine, and if I’m still feeling poorly in ten minutes, I’ll have you fetch me that drink.”

  With a shrug, the lord turned to Katherine. “You did promise me a minuet, my dear.”

  Actually, she’d never promised, but Katherine didn’t want to insult one of her father’s friends. She capitulated with a graceful incline of her head. “Only one, then I must reunite with Miss Burwick.”

  The marquess offered his arm as music wafted into the air again. As he led her onto the dance floor, she spotted several faces that she recognized from the hotel. Perhaps this dance was the very thing she needed in order to find the earring’s owner! Since she had already garnered a reputation for clumsiness while at Lord Northbrook’s house party, she didn’t see the harm in stumbling once or twice to get a better look at the ladies’ jewelry and find a similar style. Rarely did a lady purchase the earrings on their own. She had to have the matching accoutrements as well.

  They took their places in the line of dancers. Lord Bath adjusted his wide cuff before holding his arm aloft. Katherine rested her hand atop his as they began the elegant minuet. With her free hand, she dug into her reticule for the earring. As she palmed it, she realized that the marquess had said something to her.

  “Forgive me, I was woolgathering. What did you say?”

  “I asked after your father. I haven’t heard from him since the close of the Season. How is he?”

  “He was in good spirits when I left him. He keeps busy, what with visiting my sisters and their children.” Not to mention attempting to have another of his own.

  As she completed the next step of the dance, Katherine flung her free arm a little harder than necessary, whapping a woman in the collarbone. As she apologized with a simper, she compared the earring with the necklace the woman wore. It didn’t match.

  Lord Bath added his apology to the innocent dancer and returned his attention to Katherine with a frown. “Are you quite all right?”

  “I’m a trifle out of practice, I’m afraid. I don’t often dance.”

  He circled Katherine, and upon returning offered her a crooked smile. “You ought to amend that more during the Season next year. I’ll see it as my solemn duty.”

  Oh dear. Surely he was only being polite to a friend’s daughter. He couldn’t possibly share his grandmother’s aspirations. Katherine was not on the marriage market.

  Lord Bath added, “I’m certain your father would rest easier if he knew you were taken care of.”

  Katherine bit the inside of her cheek, grateful that the dance afforded her a moment to breathe. She compared the earring to a gaudy ring, having to stumble in order to come close enough to the woman to do so. They didn’t match.

  Lord Bath dropped her hand in order to steady her by the shoulders. “Forgive me, my dear. It seems I’m not the best dance partner.”

  In terms of conversation, not at all. The clumsiness was deliberate on Katherine’s part, but she couldn’t confess that much. Perhaps he would be so discouraged by the dance’s end that he would give up the notion of asking her to stand up with him again.

  “Not at all. The fault is all mine. Shall we continue?”
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  “Certainly. I’ll try not to arrange us quite so close to the other dancers.”

  Tarnation! She needed to be close in order to continue with her ruse. Although she had eliminated two potential owners, she still had several down the line, including… was that Lady Dalhousie? Most matrons opted to gossip rather than dance, but the woman’s profile was uncannily similar… Mrs. Oliver had fingered her as being the rightful owner. Katherine had to get closer.

  She and the marquess danced for a moment in silence before his previous statement festered too long. When she couldn’t hold her tongue any longer, she blurted, “Papa supports and encourages my independence. He gifted my dowry to me this past birthday, so I might have complete control over my finances and my future. I take care of myself.”

  Lord Bath pursed his lips. He circled her again before he said, “It appears I’ve offended. Please accept my apology, Lady Katherine. It was not my intention.”

  She inclined her head.

  Unfortunately, he did not let the subject rest. “Forgive me, but I cannot see your father being satisfied in his daughter taking up a profession such as matchmaking. Aiding a family member is one thing, but accepting money for the service… it’s rather bourgeois for a woman of your heritage.”

  “It’s good business sense,” Katherine answered in a clipped tone. “In fact, my father insisted on it.”

  Granted, he knew Katherine’s true purpose, whereas the marquess did not. Her matchmaking business was less a means to support herself and more a ruse to conceal her investigations. If Lord Bath didn’t approve of her matchmaking, he certainly wouldn’t approve of her detective work.

  Frowning, the marquess stepped forward to do another circuit. His cuff flung wide, catching on the necklace of a woman who had stepped closer with her partner. It was Lady Dalhousie! She shrieked as her necklace pulled tight against her throat.