“You — you will not allow him to court you or any such thing now, I hope?” Bridgette asked, recalling the way that a spiral of fear had whirled its way through her simply by being in Lord Chesterfield’s presence. “Truly, I do not think it a wise connection.”
“No,” Lady Madeline answered, with a toss of her head. “No, indeed I shall not.” She drew in a long breath and gave Bridgette a small if not rather tight smile. “Your judgement is appreciated and I shall not turn from it. No, Lord Chesterfield shall not have any favor from me. I shall give my heart to someone who is more worthy of it, should the time come.” A laugh shook her frame and Bridgette marveled at how quickly Lady Madeline could throw off such a disappointment. “Then again, I am meant to be entirely against matrimony.”
“That is quite true,” Bridgette agreed, with a smile of her own. “Thank you for accepting my opinion, as hard as it must have been to hear.”
“I appreciate your candor,” Lady Madeline said, briskly. “Now, I can see that some of the guests are removing through to the next room, perhaps for a little dancing.” Her eyes lit up. “Should you like to attend?”
Bridgette nodded. “Very much,” she said, feeling a good deal more at ease now. Walking with her friend, she did not notice the way Lord Chesterfield watched them both depart, his eyes narrowing as they lingered on her, until she stepped into the next room and out of his sight.
Chapter Eight
Sebastian put his head in his hands and let out a groan of frustration. “It has been a long time since I have felt myself so confounded,” he muttered, barely lifting his head as he spoke. “I do not know what Miss Sarah wished to speak to me about, what she was afraid of and I dare not go back to Madame Bereford for fear that she will know, somehow that I know where Miss Sarah is at present.” He looked up and saw the surprise in one or two of the gentlemen’s faces.
“You do not truly understand the gravitas that comes over oneself when one is in the presence of Madame Bereford,” Lord Hearst said, gloomily. “Her eyes seem to pierce your very soul.”
A little relieved that someone, at least, seemed to understand what he meant, Sebastian let out another long breath. “Indeed,” he said, heavily. “Lord Hazelton’s death, thus far, is just as much of a puzzle as ever.” He cleared his throat and lifted his head a little more. “In addition, whilst I did not want Lady Callander involved in any further way, she now has Miss Sarah in her own townhouse. I need to ensure that she is protected.” He looked about him hopefully, seeing three or four gentlemen nodding.
“The house will need to be guarded at night,” Lord Watt said, as two of the four men lifted their hands. “I thank you, gentlemen.”
The other two men, who had not yet lifted their hands, put their heads together for a moment before agreeing that they also would relieve the first two men at some point, so that they did not exhaust themselves. Appreciative of the support of the League, Sebastian was about to say something more, only for a small scratch to come to the door. One of the gentlemen opened it a crack, before smiling and opening the door wider. Lady Callander stepped inside, looking a little lost.
“Lady Callander!” Lady Franks was on her feet in a moment, her hands outstretched. Sebastian could not help but smile as Lady Callander’s face lit up and she reached out for Lady Franks, her eyes shining with a wonderful light. “I am so glad to see you.”
“As I am you,” Lady Callander replied, embracing her friend. “I did not see you at the soiree last evening.”
Lady Franks shook her head. “I was not able to attend after all,” she said, with a warmth to her voice that Sebastian knew came from the knowledge that new life was growing within her womb. “But I shall explain all later.” Gesturing to the gentlemen and the other few ladies that had joined them, Lady Franks quickly introduced the gentlemen that Lady Callander was not acquainted with, before hurrying her into a chair.
“We were just discussing Miss Sarah,” Lord Watt said, quietly, his eyes on Lady Callander. “How is her condition?”
Sebastian hoped that Lady Callander would beam with delight and state that all was quite well, only for his hopes to be dashed as she dropped her head.
“She is not at all recovered,” she answered, quietly. “The dressing has been changed and there is no more bleeding, which is a relief, but she is still very pale and wane. She is drifting between unconsciousness and sleep and as yet, I have not been able to have any sort of conversation with her.” Sighing, she rubbed at her forehead, her eyes pained. “I have heard her moan and mumble but she says nothing comprehensible.”
Sighing, Sebastian’s lips twisted. “How unfortunate.”
“Indeed,” Lady Callander agreed. “We can only continue to pray that she will recover fully, in time.”
“And in the meantime, we are quite stuck,” Lord Hearst said, frowning, his voice filled with regret. “We cannot speak to Madame Bereford, we cannot even communicate with Miss Sarah and….” He looked around the room. “Has anyone found out anything about the gentlemen involved in shipping?”
There was a few murmurs and, after a moment or two, Lord Windsor stood up.
“Lord Cambleton, the baron from Scotland, has some involvement in such things,” he said, with a small shrug. “Except that, by all accounts, he has come to London to escape such matters for a time. I myself have not seen him in London before, but I have noticed his presence at a good many social events.”
“I believe Lord Banister has come to London for much the same reason,” Lord Fitzherbert added. “His estate is close to the sea so his business is also in such things as that. Not that he gains much enjoyment from it, I understand.”
“There is also —”
“What about Lord Chesterfield?”
Lady Callander’s voice broke through the group’s conversation, making every gentleman present turn to look at her. She clearly noticed this for, as they waited for her to continue, there was a hesitation there, a slight pause before she began to speak
“He….he spoke of it last evening,” Lady Callander continued, slowly. “I ought not to have been listening to his conversation but I was attempting to speak to him so that I might ascertain his character in order to help Lady….” Closing her eyes tightly, she shook her head. “That does not matter, of course.”
“What was it that he said, Lady Callander?” Lord Franks asked, as Lady Franks patted Lady Callander’s hand. “What did Lord Chesterfield say?”
Again, there came that hesitation, that slowness of manner that spoke of an uncertainty on Lady Callander’s part. Sebastian quickly realized that she did not know the truth as to why they were looking into the fellow.
“We have been told that spies are being brought in from other countries — enemies of our country — on ships,” he explained. “The ships are checked, of course, with the crew numbers counted and tallied but that does not seem to be making any discernible difference.”