Grace sighed inwardly. They were wasting their time here. If Caroline had come to see Mrs. Hodges, then it was for nothing more than a restorative.
"They work purely on the obstruction," she continued. "To re-establish the natural balance."
"Are there any risks involved?" Grace asked. The word obstruction niggled away in the back of her mind. The pills provided a means to rid the body of some sort of impediment. But why would Caroline be interested in that?
"They are risk-free. But are not to be taken if the lady is enceinte."
Evelyn sucked in a breath. "And if the lady is with child and is unaware, what happens then?"
Mrs. Hodges' mouth formed a thin line. "Then the lady is sure to suffer an expulsion."
"Expulsion?" Evelyn asked.
Graced turned to her. "Mrs. Hodges means it will result in the loss of the child." As the words left her lips she choked back a sob, her airways narrowing, restricting her breath.
It all made more sense now. Caroline had invited her to stay with the intention of telling her something important. She was with child and had come to Mrs. Hodges to … to …
"I can see you need more time to consider your options." Mrs. Hodges said in a sympathetic tone. "The remedy is not suitable for everyone. With the obvious risk, it is not a decision to be made lightly."
"Thank you." Evelyn inclined her head as Grace struggled to speak. "We will not waste any more of your time."
The woman rose slowly from the chair and escorted them to the door. "If you decide to return, you must not leave it too long," she said glancing down at Grace's stomach.
Grace nodded but could not raise a smile. To deny a child a chance of life was a criminal offence. No wonder the assistant had appeared a little frantic.
Once they had settled back into Elliot's carriage, she felt she could breathe a little easier.
"Do you believe your sister is with child?" Evelyn's voice sounded calm despite the gravity of the comment.
It was as though the dam suppressing all her feelings had suddenly collapsed under the pressure, and a torrent of emotion burst forth.
"Oh, Evelyn. She must have been utterly desperate, to visit such an awful place. Why didn't she tell me sooner? I could have helped her. We could have talked it through. What if she has taken those terrible pills and something has gone wrong? What if she's lying somewhere, so cold, so alone?"
Evelyn crossed the carriage to sit at her side. She took Grace's hand and cupped it between her own. "Think about it, Grace. Mrs. Hodges didn't recognise you. She did not even give you a second glance. She made no mention of you having been there before, or that you looked remotely familiar. If Caroline had bought any of those pills, surely Mrs. Hodges would have made the usual assumption and asked how you fared with them."
Grace swallowed and tried to calm her racing heart. "You mean Caroline may have changed her mind?"
"Perhaps she acted on impulse. Perhaps she arranged to go there but couldn't go through with it."
Grace looked down to her lap. Caroline never faltered once her mind was made up. "We are no closer to finding her than we were an hour ago."
"No, but it is all starting to make a little more sense now. I think we need to concentrate on who could have fathered the child. Who was her latest beau? Who paid the rent on her house in Arlington Street?"
Evelyn made it all sound so simple.
"And how are we supposed to do that?" Grace implored.
"We will discuss it with Alexander and Elliot. But I suggest you stop pretending that you're Caroline. I suggest we go out into Society and tell everyone you're her sister. You're a widow so no one will question your friendship with Elliot."
"But what will that achieve?"
"People love nothing more than gossip." Evelyn patted her hand. "I expect you will hear all sort of tales about her, some complete and utter lies but some truths, too."
"I do think Lady Sudley knows much more about it. I should like the opportunity to talk to her again."
Evelyn smiled. "That settles it then. I shall speak to Alexander and arrange for invitations to the most popular event this evening. With us being so recently wed, every hostess in London is happy to extend their hospitality to the new Lady Hale."
A stab of guilt hit her in the chest. "I'm sorry you're embroiled in all of this."