'Yes. Odd that. You would think the outcry would be great. But I am determined to change this.'
Next to him, Leland nodded in fervent agreement. I had the feeling that the corrupt magistrates would meet their match in the Derwents.
I steeled myself to ask Sir Gideon if I might speak with Mrs. Danbury, but before I could inquire about her, the lady herself entered the room.
She looked at me without surprise; presumably, a servant had told her I'd arrived. She crossed the room and pressed a kiss to her uncle's forehead. 'Captain Lacey,' she greeted me.
As usual, Mrs. Danbury was cool and composed, comfortably elegant in a dark blue gown with a sash of light blue. Her hair, as fair as Leland's, was twisted into knot and bound with a ribbon. I had risen from my chair at her entrance. I bowed over her hand politely, and her gray eyes met mine.
She flushed slightly and moved back to Sir Gideon. 'Aunt is asking for you. And she sends her greetings to Captain Lacey.'
Sir Gideon excused himself and hurried from the room, clearly worried about his wife. Leland stayed and pretended he wanted to chat, but I saw that he, too, longed to dash upstairs to see how his mother fared. At last Mrs. Danbury told him to run along, saying cheerfully that she'd keep me company.
Leland departed with relief, leaving the double doors open-me alone in a closed room with Mrs. Danbury would have been most improper. The room was so large, however, that if we spoke in low voices in the middle of it, no one passing would hear us.
As soon as Leland disappeared, I asked, 'How is Lady Derwent? In truth?'
Mrs. Danbury let out her breath. 'She will recover this, I think. But she grows weaker with every attack.'
She knew, as well as I did, that the day would come soon when Lady Derwent would not recover. 'Please give her my best wishes,' I said.
Mrs. Danbury nodded, and I could see she was pleased that I cared.
'I suppose you heard about Inglethorpe,' I said after a moment.
'Yes, my uncle told me of it. It is gruesome. Poor man.'
'Did you know him well?' I asked.
She looked up at me, surprised. 'Hardly at all. He was a friend of my husband's. My second husband, that is, Mickey Danbury.'
I raised my brows. 'He was your husband's friend, but you did not know him?' My wife had known all of my friends, whether she liked them or not, and Mrs. Brandon was well acquainted with Brandon's cronies.
Mrs. Danbury flushed. 'I rarely saw my husband's acquaintance.'
I did not pursue it. I knew that in many marriages in the ton, the husband and wife lived entirely separate lives. I found this attitude strange, but many in the upper classes married for financial reasons or for family connections. I wondered what Mrs. Danbury's reasons had been.
'I was surprised to see you at his gathering, yesterday,' I said.
'He invited me. I chanced upon Mr. Inglethorpe the other day in Grafton Street, and he asked if I'd like to attend. I was interested; I did not see what harm it would do.'
I drew my thumb along the handle of my borrowed walking stick. 'I wonder why he invited you, if he did not know you well.'
A spark of anger lit her eyes. 'I haven't the faintest idea, Captain. He simply happened to, that is all.'
I made a placating gesture. 'And you attended out of curiosity. What did you think of it?'
She hesitated. 'I found it most strange. I have never felt a sensation like that. Had you?'
'No. It made me forget myself.' I smiled. 'As you observed.'
Her flush deepened. 'And I as well. I was a bit ill afterward.'
'I must apologize for taking the liberty of waltzing with you,' I said. 'I cannot account for my lack of manners.'
She eyed me curiously. 'Why did you?'
'I beg your pardon?'
'Why did you waltz with me?'
I remembered hearing music in my head, a tune of a fine waltz, and looking down at her bright smile and curved waist. 'I wanted to,' I said.
Her cheek tinged with a blush. 'It was I who made a fool of myself. In front of Lady Breckenridge too.'
It surprised me that she should care for the opinion of Lady Breckenridge, even if Lady Breckenridge was a few rungs higher on the social ladder. Mrs. Danbury had prettier manners, but Lady Breckenridge wielded more power among the ton.
'I must also apologize for leaving you there when I dashed off,' I said. 'My only excuse is that I wanted to ask Lady Breckenridge a question before she disappeared. But I ought to have seen that you reached your carriage safely, at least.'
Mrs. Danbury seemed far more comfortable with my polite apologies than with my questions. 'Not at all, Captain. I left soon after that.'
'Perhaps you can help me, then. Do you remember what became of my walking stick? I left it behind far too carelessly.'
She stopped, thought. 'No, I am afraid I did not. I- ' She flushed again. 'I am afraid not.'
Her small hesitation disquieted me. Was she lying? And why? To protect someone? 'Are you certain? You must realize that the person who took it could very well have returned today and killed Inglethorpe.'
Her eyes widened. 'Good lord, why should they?'
'That is what my friend Pomeroy is trying to discover. Did you speak to Mr. Inglethorpe at all before you departed yesterday?'
'No. I took my leave quite quickly.'
'Good.'
'Why good?'
'Because I found Inglethorpe unsavory. It pleases me that your connection was not strong.'
She stared at me. I had no right, of course, to lecture her about her connections. In her world, I was nobody. But I told the truth-I was pleased that she had not known Inglethorpe well. He was not the sort of man I wanted nieces of my acquaintance to know.
'Do you remember which gentlemen remained when you departed?' I went on. 'One of them could have taken the walking stick.'
She shook her head, the ribbon moving on her neck. 'I couldn't be certain. I do believe Mr. Yardley and Mr. Price-Davies were there, but I really do not remember.'
'Do you know either of those gentlemen well?'
'Not well, no. I saw a bit of Mr. Yardley before I married Mr. Danbury, but I've spoken to him little since.'
I rolled the shaft of the walking stick between my fingers. 'Either of those men could have taken it. And returned with it the next day.'
'Good heavens, Captain. You cannot seriously believe that Mr. Yardley or Mr. Price-Davies would murder Inglethorpe. Why on earth should they?'
Her vehemence surprised me. 'Someone did, Mrs. Danbury.'
'Well, yes, but it must have been the work of a tramp or a madman. Gentlemen of Mayfair do not stab one another with sword-sticks.'
'They fight duels,' I pointed out.
'That is entirely different, and not all gentlemen condone duels.'
She gave me an admonishing stare, as though I ought to be above accusing other gentlemen of so sordid a crime as murder.
Her answers made me conscious of another difference between Mrs. Danbury and Lady Breckenridge. Lady Breckenridge, with her outlook on life nearly as cynical as my own, would have agreed with me. Mrs. Danbury, connected with the unworldly Derwents, refused to believe it.
'I know it is unpleasant,' I said. 'But it might have happened.'
'I am sorry you believe so,' she returned, angry. 'I can assure you, Captain, I saw neither gentleman take
