Chapter Fourteen
As the carriage trundled along toward Kent, Lord Chester watched the countryside go by.
“Are you sure this is a good idea, though?” Monroe asked him, taking a swig of brandy.
“It’s my only idea,” Lord Chester said. “I’ve told my family that I am invited to Lady Dudmore’s party and that I would go and charm Lady Beatrix out of her pique.”
“You were not invited, though,” Monroe very unnecessarily pointed out.
“That’s why I will hide. I will stay in the shadows and keep watch to see what I can do to make you look better and make Harrelston look worse.”
“How did you find out Harrelston was going anyway?”
“My valet overheard his valet mention it to my cook. In my own house, no less. Apparently, Harrelston’s man makes free with coming and going in the servants’ hall. They all find him amusing, as far as I can understand it.”
“Harrelston must have arranged a last-minute invitation,” Monroe said. “When I saw him at Lady Beatrix’s house he did not indicate he would go.”
“But then you indicated that you would go,” Lord Chester said. “Perhaps it would have been better to keep that under your hat.” Monroe was a fine enough fellow, but there was not much activity between his ears.
“I still do not know how you are going to hide without anybody seeing you.”
“I have a vague idea, if luck cooperates with me,” Lord Chester said. “There is an inn not too far from the lady’s estate. I will come and go, my plan must be fluid until I get the lay of the land. There should be unused outbuildings I can use. These old estates always have them.”
“But what are you to do?” Monroe asked.
“I cannot know that yet. Many of Lady Dunmore’s entertainments take place out of doors. As for inside, at night I might be able to look through the windows. Opportunities will present themselves, they always do for the ambitious.”
“Oh I see.”
“There is a large lake on the estate, in view of the house if I am not mistaken. It is where Lady Dudmore conducts her absurd regattas. After you let me off at the inn, meet me nearby the lake in three hours’ time. Claim you need air and must walk.”
“I will. But I do not see how somebody does not notice you are wandering round the estate.”
“The beauty of the ton. I’ve brought a very nondescript overcoat; I’ll blend in like some kind of tradesman or laborer. Think about how many you pass wherever you go. Could you go back and identify any of them?
“Oh I see,” Monroe said. “Because I never really look at them. I look through them and think no more about it.”
“Exactly.”
“You’re a good friend, Chester. Not everybody would go to such lengths to help a fellow out.”
“Right. Just don’t forget that when you secure Lady Beatrix’s dowry, you’ve got to bail me out until I can fix things with my earl.”
Monroe nodded.
Lord Chester hoped that signaled enthusiastic agreement on Monroe’s part. If it came to it, he would shake the money out of him. He was not putting himself to such trouble for nothing.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Mr. Feldstaffer had waved the family off to Kent. He had a very bad feeling about it, as he did about most things. As a usual thing, his bad feelings were like a mist that followed him around and could be hard to pin down, but this was easier to define.
Lady Beatrix was talked about. She was just now on her way to a house party that would be graced by the queen herself. Mr. Feldstaffer could not imagine a world where the queen would approve of a young lady who was talked about.
He decided, now that he was at his leisure, to walk the square.
Miss Sprite would have her beady eyes on Lady Caroline at all times, the household knew their work, so he was free to take some time to himself.
It was a fresh and brisk day and he really did not take in the air as often as he ought to.
It was midmorning and the square was rather quiet, just as he preferred it.
He walked the paths of the gardens, attempting to look on the bright side.
Mr. Penny looked on the bright side all the time.
That fellow lived a rather carefree life, bouncing along and imagining all the world would bend to solve his every difficulty.
Even when things went wrong, Mr. Penny kept smiling and counting on something, somehow, to come along and sort things out.
Mr. Feldstaffer used all his concentration to try to figure out how it was done.
It was no use. He could not help viewing the world with clear eyes. It was a world fraught with disaster and one could not smile their way out of it.
“Mr. Feldstaffer!”
He turned to find Mr. Harkinson hurrying to catch up with him. Here was another gentleman who always seemed to be enjoying himself. Of course, in Mr. Harkinson’s case it was usually at somebody else’s expense.
“I am glad I happened to see you out walking,” Mr. Harkinson said, falling into step with him.
“My cousin Alfred has a friend who knows a footman in Lord Chester’s house and my brother has been courting a lady who works as a maid in Lord Harrelston’s house and, well, when I put all the news together it is alarming at the very least.
Mr. Feldstaffer stopped his walking. Here he had been, attempting to go on cheerful like Mr. Penny. And here they were, the fates pointing out it was a fool’s errand after all.
“First, Lord Harrelston is going to Lady Dudmore’s house party,” Mr. Harkinson said.
Mr. Feldstaffer attempted to find the bad news in that. It sounded rather good.
“Second, Lord Chester believes Lord Harrelston wrote that note to Annie Wister. You see, to expose Lord Chester and further his own cause.”
Of course Mr. Feldstaffer did see. They had forged a letter and now Lord Harrelston was being blamed for it.
They had hoped nobody at all would be blamed for it.
They’d hoped it would be a mystery, shrouded in fog.
Now that Harrelston was blamed, might not that fellow eventually wish to get to the bottom of it?
All roads might have once led to Rome, but in this case all roads led to The League.
Of course, Mr. Penny, that bright-eyed lunatic, would say, “Don’t fret over it! It’s bound to come right!”
“There is more,” Mr. Harkinson said.
Of course there was more. That was the salient point Mr. Penny always missed. Once the fates began rolling balls down a hill to trip a person up, they were never satisfied with just one!
“Apparently, Lord Chester has told his family that he goes to Lady Dudmore’s party, even though I have heard he was never even invited. What is to happen from all this?”
Mr. Feldstaffer did not know. He could only be certain it would be ghastly.
What had he been thinking in attempting to emulate Mr. Penny? No, he’d been right all along. The only way to survive this life was to expect one’s death at any moment. Anyone who did not go forward in such a manner would only be taken by surprise in their final moments.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
As the trip to Lady Dudmore’s estate was only a half-day journey, Corbyn might have easily ridden his horse. There were several things running against that idea, though.
For one, his carriage would have to come anyway as his clothes would not fit in panniers and even if they would they’d end wrinkled. For another, Farber hated being on horseback for long periods. And for another, Farber liked to have company. He said talking made the time go faster.
Had his valet been demanding company just as a preference, Corbyn would not have countenanced it.
However, he knew the real reason Farber needed somebody else in the carriage.
Conversation distracted Farber from his queasiness.
If his valet was on anything perpetually moving, be it carriage or horse or ship, he was queasy.
If it became too strong for him, the carriage would have to stop on the road so he could get out and walk for a quarter hour.
Farber had many excellent qualities, but he was not a sturdy traveler.
As they reached the outskirts of London, Farber said, “It’s hard to say precisely how the viscountess and dowager’s visit to Lady Beatrix went.
I did hear this—the dowager yelled at Lord Chester, something about congratulations.
Here’s the interesting part though, Chester has told his family that he attends Lady Dudmore’s party. ”
Corbyn sat up. “He cannot be invited. Lady Dudmore will know what he is and would never expose the queen to such a gentleman. Queen Charlotte has rather strong feelings on the subject of rakes. She feels it weakens the fabric of society.”
“But if Chester is not going to Kent, he must be going somewhere.”
“Probably going to try to make it up with Annie Wister. It would be an excellent excuse to get out of the house and back to his light o’ love.”
“Could be,” Farber said, “but my eyes stay wide open. It’s my opinion that Lord Chester is a rather unpredictable sort of person.”
“You do not think he would actually turn up and attempt to cause trouble?” Corbyn asked.
Farber shrugged. “I believe there is something that pushes him to be desperate. I do not think it is the situation with Annie Wister or Lady Beatrix. I just do not know exactly what it is.”
Corbyn leaned back in the rocking carriage.
He did not like this. He did not like not knowing what Chester was up to.
He would feel far more comfortable if they were all to stay in London.
Now he would be in somebody else’s house, where he would not be in control of his own movements.
He would be sent places he did not wish to be, to do things he did not wish to do.
Would Lady Beatrix be in any danger from Lord Chester, by way of rumor or otherwise? As they did not know why the fellow might be desperate, it was hard to be certain. What was not hard was taking Farber’s opinion seriously. The man’s instincts were rarely wrong.