“I won’t be but a few minutes.”
True to my word, it took all of five minutes to rush up to my room and pull my papers from where I’d hidden them. I stared down at my brother’s handwriting and then at the message I’d decoded.
Would another set of eyes see a clue I had missed?
Chapter Eight
In the hallways just outside my room, Miss Hanson stepped in front of me, her arms crossed. “Trouble, Miss Nelson?” she asked, her tone sweeter than she’d ever used with me before.
“Trouble? No. What would give you that impression, Miss Hanson?” I asked, hiding my hand against the skirt of my gown. If she saw the papers, she would be sure to ask about them and I did not have a ready excuse.
“You rushed from Lady Leith’s sitting room in such a hurry and now you come running back with equal speed,” she said, her eyes bright with curiosity. “Is her ladyship unwell? Perhaps I ought to go with you as I do have more experience with these things.”
What was she trying to imply? Or was she trying to bait me into giving something away? “What exactly are you referring to?”
“Why, I have no idea,” she said, her eyes widening. She lowered her voice and leaned forward. “The dowager has begun to suspect Lady Leith might be with child, but is too delicate to suggest it, of course.”
So she was trying to get information from me. Resisting the urge to scoff, I shook my head. “Lady Leith has not confided such momentous news to me,” I said, keeping my tone as sweet as hers. “I’m sure if such is the case, she is keeping the news for when her husband arrives and then the rest of the household shall be informed. Is that not the case with ‘these things?’”
Miss Hanson’s chin rose. “Well, what else is it that sends you rushing about for Lady Leith? Such haste is unseemly and causes all to see it to wonder what has gone wrong.”
“That is between my lady and myself,” I said, stepping to go around her. “The dowager will be rising from her nap any minute now, will she not? Surely, she will require your assistance in some manner?”
The woman straightened her shoulders. “I do not need one such as you to remind me of what my duties are. Might I remind you that I have been at this longer than you have been alive?”
I couldn’t keep back a laugh. “I doubt the age difference between us is as extreme as that, Miss Hanson. You do yourself no favours making that sort of claim. Why, someone might expect you to retire in seclusion any day!”
She gasped and took a step back. For a moment, she stared at me, no sound coming from her throat. She then spun on her heel and strode away. Her hands clenched and unclenched as she marched along.
Breathing out a sigh, I hurried on my way to the sitting room. Lady Leith was only a few steps away from the door when I slipped in. “You were taking so long,” she said, her tone worried. “Did someone detain you?”
“I ran into the dowager’s maid, Miss Hanson,” I explained as I closed the door. “I believe she has been spying on me for her mistress. She thinks there is something afoot, but I think I’ve put her off for a while.”
“If there is one thing Hanson takes pleasure in, it is searching out any bit of gossip for the dowager.” Lady Leith shook her head. “Did she try to follow you here or did you manage to chase her off? I cannot count the times she has tried to push her way into something happening, claiming to have the experience to handle any problem.”
“She tried to convince me that since her years as a maid exceed my years alive, she would be better able to assist you,” I said, trying to hold back my amusement. “However, Miss Hanson took offense when I pointed out that using her age in such a way might not be beneficial to her.”
Lady Leith let out a giggle, but whether it was from genuine amusement or from nerves was a mystery. “She does not like to be reminded that she is long past the bloom of youth.” Her expression became troubled. “If she suspects we are conspiring, she will watch us even more than before.”
Which was exactly what I was afraid of. “With the arrival of your guests in a few days, I think she will soon be distracted.”
“What clue do you have to show me?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Of course. I’m interested to see what you think of it. This was found among my brother’s papers after he was killed and it was given to me while I was in Bath.”
We both sat on the settee and I brought out the cipher. Her eyes widened as she took in the numbers. Colour drained from her cheeks. “Oh. I see now why you believe the paper you found in the office was relevant.”
“Jonathan was working as an agent for the government when he was killed,” I explained so that she would know the whole of it. “He was seeking a traitor in English society who was aiding Napoleon. I did not know this until recently. I can only assume that the cipher was an encoded message he intercepted.”
“My husband may be in league with traitors?” Lady Leith’s tone was one of horror.
“It could be that Sir Horace worked with Jonathan and has continued the work after my brother’s death,” I said to reassure her. “I didn’t want to jump to any conclusions so you shouldn’t either.”
“Yes. Yes, of course, you’re right.” Lady Leith took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. “And please don’t think I have forgiven you for sneaking into my husband’s office and going through his papers.”
“The thought never crossed my mind.” Though I’d begun to hope my little escapade would not be brought back up again. “I’m sorry to have trespassed on your goodwill.”
She shook her head. “I do understand why you did what you have done and, as I also said, I may have done the same. When this is all over, however it ends, I do expect an apology.” Her smile lessened the sting of her words.
“I will happily apologize if my suspicions are unfounded.”
“Is there no other clue you’ve found? Anything that could give us a chance at solving this riddle.”
“I’m afraid nothing definite,” I said, shifting the papers so the second note was revealed. “This one I solved with a sonnet by Shakespeare, but so far I have not found the key to solving the other. The one that was solved was signed with only a letter: H. So there is that.”
Understanding filled her expression as she sat back. “And that’s why you suspect my husband. Because his name begins with that letter.”
“Yes. My brother, as far as I knew, knew only a handful of people who had a name that began with that letter of the alphabet.” With a sigh, I shook my head. “However, it is likely I do not know every friend Jonathan had. It has been made clear I didn’t know him as I thought I did. He was involved in something I never would have imagined.”
Leaning back, Lady Leith tapped her fingers on the arm of her chair. “I see. So there was more reason for you to come here than to escape the Dunbars.”
To my relief, there was no judgement in her tone. “It was providential you offered me the position. I thought if I could rule out one friend, it would be something. One step, however small, toward the truth.”
“I assume you have compared this unsolved note to other Shakespearean sonnets?”
“What few I know by memory. I have not found any success.”
“Well, if you are willing to accept help, I will apply myself to the task of deciphering it. I will find some reason to spend time in my husband’s office and search out what I can find. Between the pair of us, we ought to discover the truth behind this horrible conspiracy.”
We both stood up and faced each other. “Are you sure?” I couldn’t help but ask. “You may not like what you discover.”
“Miss Sinclair, you could have discovered that those rumours about your father were true. As it is, you have learned things about your family that would alarm any person.” Lady Leith raised her chin. “I can do no less. I am prepared to learn whatever truth about my husband there is for me to find.”
“Well then, in that case, you must call me Juliet. When we are away from all others,
of course.”
Her face brightened with a genuine smile. “And you may call me Celia.”
WITH THE TIME FOR DINNER approaching, I left the unsolved ciphers with Celia. Despite my confession, it was still necessary for me to keep up the pretence of being her maid. Just when I had become accustomed to it, I’d just added a new level of difficulty. I had to keep my new found familiarity from being noticed.
When Celia came into the dressing room, there was a moment of awkwardness. “This doesn’t feel right,” she said, her right hand rubbing her left arm. “You are my equal and should not be in the position of serving me.”
“Well, as you said, there is no other way for me to remain here.” I held up the dark green evening dress up for her perusal. “Is this what you were thinking of wearing?”
“Oh, yes,” she said, barely giving the gown a glance. “Whatever you think appropriate.”
“Did you see any pattern in the ciphers after I left you?” I asked as I laid the gown down. Stepping over, I began to undo the button of the walking dress.
“I did not,” Celia said. She allowed me to pull the gown over her head as she continued talking. “I believe it may be necessary for us to make a thorough comparison to every Shakespearean sonnet until we find one that begins to make sense. I can think of no other plan.”
“And if the cipher isn’t based on any of Shakespeare’s works, we’re left with no leads at all,” I added, laying the gown on the back of the dressing table chair. The thought has been in the back of my mind for several weeks. I just hadn’t given voice to it, clinging to hope.
“True, but I think between us we’ll be able to work it out,” Lady Leith said as I lifted the evening dress up. “I refuse to believe that my husband is a traitor to Britain. I’ve decided if he returns and we haven’t made any progress, I will simply ask Horace for the truth.”
“He may not tell you anything.” I couldn’t keep from giving the warning as I started on the buttons. “My father and brother kept me from the truth and it took their death and five years before I learned what Jonathan was doing. I don’t even know if my mother was privy to the truth when she was alive.”
Lady Leith heaved a sigh. “Men do have the habit of believing ladies are too fragile to know the truth.” Out of habit, she sat in front of the dressing table. “When, really, nine out of ten times, their version of protecting us only leads into more trouble than the truth would have been.”
We shared an understanding glance in the mirror and I set about ensuring her hair was in place. “In any event, I intend to know what he does and where he goes when he leaves me here for weeks on end,” she said firmly. “I will not tolerate that mystery or secrecy any longer.”
“Do you know which necklace you would like to wear tonight?” I asked, tucking one last stray strand of hair back into place.
“I am satisfied with my locket,” she said after a moment’s pause. “With no one but myself and the dowager at dinner, I see no need to bring out the emeralds or any of the more ornate pieces.”
When I thought back to the times when she’d insisted on the full formality for dinner, the change in attitude was surprising. Celia caught my eye in the mirror once again. “It is my home and I am determined to be comfortable.”
“Of course, my lady.”
She chuckled as she stood up. “I’ve tried for so long to live up to the dowager’s expectations for a baronet’s wife. I haven’t done a very good job of it, so now I think it’s time for me to set my own rules and expectations.”
“Now you sound like the lady of the house,” I said with approval.
Lady Leith tilted her head, facing me. “Is this what you did for the other young ladies you worked for? Finding ways for them to be confident in themselves?”
With a slight laugh, I shook my head. “Well, Miss Dunbar was beyond my help.”
“But you did help Miss Anderson and Mr. Melbourne notice each other, did you not? And Miss Burnham found her Mr. Landon while you were in the Burnham household.”
She really had read my references and done her own investigation of Julie Nelson’s background. “Miss Anderson made her own decisions. I merely encouraged Mr. Melbourne not to make the wrong one,” I said, correcting her. “Their choice to pursue a relationship with each other had nothing to do with me.”
“You may lie to myself, but you cannot deny that you knew they would be good for each other.”
I couldn’t keep from smiling, remembering the letters I’d recently received. “I hoped they would be a good match. That is an entirely different matter. I would never claim to be a matchmaker.”
Shaking her head, Lady Leith left the dressing room, and I picked up the walking dress to put away. Trusting her with the truth had been the best decision I’d made in a long time.
OVER THE NEXT TWO DAYS, nothing out of the ordinary occurred. Lady Leith and I settled into a new routine. Instead of me going about my duties alone in the dressing room, she invented excuses to be there to review the ciphers with me.
She located a volume of sonnets and, one by one, we went through each one. It would only take a few minutes to know whether either of the ciphers would make sense with the first word pulled from the sonnet. None of them resulted in any success and I would make a note of it so that we did not forget which ones we had used.
Instead of being discouraged, Lady Leith began to search the shelves of the library. While I cared for my responsibilities—the ones I could not put off and were necessary to continue in my pretence—she scoured book after book for anything that would make sense of the numbers.
Miss Hanson became like a shadow whenever I stepped foot out of the dressing room. Her presence meant I could never say anything beyond the most mundane of observances.
While I was considering how I would go about escaping the woman’s keen eye, Lady Leith swept into the room. “You seem satisfied with yourself,” I dared to comment, seeing the smug expression on her face.
“Well, I sent Mr. Stone off on a wild goose chase since he was so stubbornly remaining in the office,” Lady Leith said, her tone filled with pride. “I wished to find my husband’s hiding place for his papers for myself.”
“Poor Mr. Stone. He’ll never get his work done with the pair of us disrupting him.” I wove my needle into the hem of the gown I was repairing. “Did you make sure you closed the ink? I hear he is particular about such things.”
“I had no need to touch the ink, and he can have no reason to complain. I have as much right to be in there as anybody on this estate.” Lady Leith paced the room, her smugness fading away into nervous energy. “I never would have believed Horace had kept all my letters to him. We were betrothed for nearly a year before we were married, you know. A week would not go by without me penning a letter to him.”
Actually, I hadn’t known such a detail. Lady Leith cherished her privacy, and I had never met her or her husband before Bath. Sitting back, I kept quiet as I watched her move around the room. She clearly wished to air her thoughts out.
“Isn’t it more a woman’s habit to keep letters?” she asked, her tone thoughtful. “Why would he keep them hidden away in such a place?”
“I would imagine he kept them for the same reason you and I save letters.” I’d kept my fair share of letters, most being clandestine ones from Henry Bladen. Did I still have them? I could not remember, but if I did, I would have to consign them to a fire as soon as possible. “They must be important to him.”
“I suppose that could be true.” She sounded unconvinced. Did she really doubt her husband’s affection that much? “I wish I could be certain. What if he kept them out of sight because he does not wish to be reminded of my sentimental behaviour?”
I couldn’t keep from laughing. “If that were the case, he could have simply destroyed them. I think you must simply accept that he kept the letters because he wished to do so. Did you find anything else of interest in Sir Horace’s office?”
“Only that Mr. Stone is
in dire need of a better system of organization. I have no idea how he can find anything in there, let alone see when something is out of place.”
The door of the dressing room opened, making Lady Leith spin to face it. “Excuse me, my lady,” young Fanny said, bobbing a curtsy. “Mr. Jenkins wished me to inform you that a carriage is just pulling up.”
“That would be the first of my guests,” Lady Leith said as she smoothed the front of her gown. “Thank you, Fanny. Please ensure the dowager is informed as well. She will want to be on hand to greet them with me.”
Curtsying again, the maid hurried to fulfil her task. “I do wish I hadn’t given into the dowager in this,” Celia said in a low tone. “If I’d waited just a little longer, I could have invited ones we could learn something from and this party could be more than an awkward, uncomfortable affair.”
“Well, since we are not so fortunate, we can only make the best of it. Who do you imagine has arrived so early?”
“As nothing has gone to plan, I can only assume it is the dowager’s friends she insisted be invited.” Lady Leith caught my hand. “I hope you understand how much I will rely on you to help me keep my sanity.”
“I shall do my best.”
At least with guests in the house, it would be nearly impossible for Miss Hanson to spy on me and I would be able to keep my sanity.
Chapter Nine
A guest’s entrance into a large house was one of calm welcome. Footmen took charge of luggage, which maids then unpacked if the lady arriving had not brought a personal attendant of her own. Tea was on hand in the kitchen in case the new arrivals were in need of some refreshment after their journey.
All of this went on without any assistance from me. I could hear the footmen and maids passing through the hallways as I went about my own work. In a smaller house, I may have been required to see to the needs of the lady guests, which would have been an interesting though unwelcome experience.
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