commander his standing within the aristocratic circles was minor, his father had been a commoner originally after all. Regardless, his father’s powerful shadow had a long reach and there were rumors that Gregory might be granted a minor title in the future. Before we go on I have to confess, if I sound knowledgeable about the aristocracy it is not through any great knowledge of my own. Marcus had tutored me on our guests that afternoon with some help from his sister.
Master Pern was being led away by Lady Thornbear who seemed quite comfortable on the arm of a handsome young man. She winked at me as they went by. Meanwhile her husband, Lord Thornbear had stepped up to escort Lady Elizabeth Balistair, daughter of Earl Balistair. She was lovely in her own right, although I would have said her nose was a bit too long and her green eyes were unsettling. She was also excessively tall for a woman, probably near five foot eleven inches. Not that that was a bad thing, but being as tall or taller than most men would make finding a husband difficult, and finding a husband would be important to Lady Elizabeth. The Balistair family was rumored to be having financial difficulties.
I had little time to think on that though, my turn had come. Lady Rose stepped out of her carriage and greeted the ducal couple warmly, and then she turned to me. I offered my arm as I had seen done, and she slipped her gloved hand across it. Truthfully she was one of the most beautiful women I could recall, with long dark tresses and warm blue eyes. Well, she might not be quite as pretty as Penny, certainly her figure was a bit slighter, but she had a definite presence. Her father, Lord Hightower was the nominal head of the royal guard and commander of the garrison in Albamarl. Reputedly their family name came from the tall bailey their family occupied in the capitol.
We walked up the steps carefully. I felt awkward walking next to such a graceful lady, but I did my best to cover it. “Lady Rose I understand this is not your first trip to Lancaster?” I said. You would never guess I had a note card hidden in my pocket with a list of similar conversational phrases, thanks to Ariadne. Marc’s sister was very thoughtful.
“Oh! Yes, yes I have visited twice before, when my father came to discuss matters with the Duke.” She seemed distracted, her eyes scanning the crowd when I asked my question. I wondered briefly who she might be looking for.
“I hope your previous stays were pleasant. Did you make any friends of note while you were here?” That question wasn’t on my list of approved topics, but I figured I could improvise.
She looked at me carefully and I could see a sharp intelligence behind her blue eyes, “Why yes I did. I was just a girl at the time but I was quite charmed with young Ariadne.” Her eyes slipped away from me, and it seemed as if they lit upon Dorian for a moment as he stood duty by the front doors. It might have been my imagination though, for she returned her glance to me but a second later. “How long have you lived in Lancaster, Master Eldridge?” she asked.
‘All my life’ I nearly said, but I caught myself, “Not long, but I’ve visited many times before.” She was no longer looking directly at me but it felt as if she was staring at me intently regardless. As we passed through the doorway I gave Dorian a quick wink to let him know things were going well, but he didn’t notice. His attention seemed fixed on my companion. My curiosity was definitely piqued.
“Her grace introduced you to me as a scholar Master Eldridge… might I inquire what it is that you study?” she queried. I thought I could detect a subtle undercurrent of humor in her question. Worse I had let too much time lapse and she had turned the questioning back upon me. I was definitely getting into murky waters here.
“Mathematics, Lady Rose, although I fear the term ‘scholar’ does me too much credit. I still feel myself a novice compared to the great mathematicians of old.” See I can be quite erudite when I try.
“You do not seem old enough to be so learned,” she remarked.
“In faith I am young my lady. It is a fact which has done me no good service. I shall be glad when at last can display grey hair as proof of wisdom.” I was rather proud of that one, I might be a natural.
“You do not think we should revere the wisdom of the aged?” Ouch, she had neatly turned that one back against me.
“That was not my intention at all. I merely imply that in matters of mathematics advanced years are no guarantee of wisdom, nor does youth necessitate its lack.” We had reached the sun room and I felt relieved that I might escape. I was beginning to doubt my ability to keep up with Lady Rose in the dueling dance of our conversation.
I started to excuse myself, but she held onto my arm for a moment, “Master Eldridge, relax. We’ve only just met. Let me give you some advice.” I looked down and her blue eyes caught me again. “You did well for a novice. In future don’t let your opponent have so much time to turn the questions to topics you would prefer to avoid.”
“Opponent?” I sputtered.
“Shush” she said quietly, then she smiled, a flash of white teeth under rose petal lips. “Don’t act so surprised, you’ll worry your friends.” She waved at Marcus for a moment. “Next time don’t let your eyes give away your thoughts so readily.”
Lord Thornbear came over suddenly so she let me have an easy out, “It was nice meeting you Master Eldridge, I hope we have a chance to talk more later.” She turned and began speaking with Lord Thornbear, seeming for all the world as if she had completely forgotten me already.
I took my chance and began making my way across the room, looking for Marc. I found him talking with Stephen Airedale. He saw me coming and excused himself for a moment to pull me aside, “Do me a favor would you? Devon has Ariadne cornered over there and I’m sure she could use a break, would you mind distracting him for a moment?” Me? It seemed that my friend was unaware of my status as a novice in the art of conversation, at least in these circles. But I couldn’t leave Ariadne without support, she was his sister after all, although she’d been a pain when we were younger.
I headed back the other way and spotted Ariadne. Sure enough she was deep in conversation with Devon. I took a moment to remember the proper address, by which I mean I consulted the note card Ariadne had made for me earlier. Lord Devon it read. Although he wasn’t the Duke of Tremont yet he had been granted a baronet already. Since ‘Tremont’ could be used to refer to the Duke of Tremont, his father, the usual way to call him was by his given name rather than his surname, hence, Lord Devon.
“Ariadne,” I called to her. She looked at me gratefully. I faced Devon, “Please pardon my intrusion Lord Devon, her grace asked me to see if she could be found, to assist with some arrangements.”
“Certainly,” he replied with a genial smile. Despite his friendly attitude the aura around him still made me uncomfortable. Hopefully the books we had found would help me to better understand these things. “I didn’t catch your name when we arrived…” he let the statement trail off, making it an obvious question.
“Ah my fault, I should have introduced myself directly to you, Mordecai Eldridge your lordship.” That pretty well exhausted the topics I was prepared to discuss with the future Duke of Tremont.
“Mordecai, what an unusual name, are you originally from Lothion? The name sounds foreign.” Wonderful, I didn’t even know the answer to that question, my father had found the name embroidered on the blanket I was wrapped in.
“Honestly I’m not even sure where the name comes from either, my mother had a love of foreign romances so she might have picked it up from one of her books. I was raised near Lancaster though, so I consider myself a true son of Lothion in any case.” Practice was honing my skills in the art of dissembling. Lady Rose’s advice came to mind so I attempted to retake the initiative, “My life must seem very boring to a man such as yourself, tell me about your family. Do you have any siblings?”
Devon’s eyes narrowed for a moment, “A brother, Eric, but he was lost in an unfortunate accident a year ago.” I have a knack for uncomfortable topics.
“Forgive me, I didn’t mean to remind you of such a delicate subject,” I replied.
“No harm done, he and I never got along, and there was nothing delicate about his death either. Passed out drunk in a bath and drowned.” Devon spoke casually, but I could feel him watching my reactions carefully.
“Was there any suspicion of foul play?” I asked.
Devon’s face never moved, but I saw the purplish aura around him flash for a moment, “No, there was no cause for concern in that regard. Eric was well loved by all, and the girl who found him attested to the fact he had been drinking heavily before entering the bath, a few of the other women in the ‘establishment’ confirmed her story.”
“Establishment?” I was confused.
“He died in a brothel.” Lord Devon answered. “Now if you’ll excuse me I need to refill my glass.”
“I would be happy to get that for you,” I said, glad to have something else to do. He proffered his glass and I
