Forcing a smile instead, she replied, “I wouldn’t have missed the opportunity for the world.”
He raised his glass in salute. It held a crystal clear liquid that he quaffed in one gulp. “To a memorable evening,” he murmured. “Please help yourself to refreshments. I must have a word with the membership committee and our host about the coming ceremony. I shall join you shortly.”
“Of course, sir.” Arianna spotted Tipton and Gavin in one of the side alcoves. They were wearing white trousers and jackets, identical in cut to Concord’s clothing.
“But pray,” she added, “don’t let them keep you too long.”
Concord’s gaze flicked to her cleavage. “Just a few matters of business, and then we may move on to pleasure, Lady Wolcott.”
Arianna made her way to the far corner of the drawing room, where an array of drinks were set up on a gilded table festooned with bloodred candles. It was the one bright spot, aswirl with tongues of fire, licking up with silent laughter.
Insatiable, she thought, taking up a glass of burgundy wine. Men like Concord could never have enough.
The rest of the room was pooled in flickering shadows. She could dimly make out several other people standing together by the curtained windows, but the hooded robes they were wearing made it impossible to make out their identities. Whoever they were, they made no acknowledgment of her arrival.
Perhaps it was part of the ritual. She seemed to be the only one attired in evening finery. . . .
The soft swoosh of fabric suddenly intruded on her musings. Arianna felt a prickling of gooseflesh as a laugh sounded close to her ear.
“Nervous, my dear?” Lady Spencer was wearing a nun’s habit, fashioned out of coal-black cloth. A half-moon of white hung over her shoulders, reflecting the fire-gold glow of the candles up to her face. Even without the highlights, her eyes looked unnaturally bright.
“Perhaps just a little,” replied Arianna.
“It is only natural.” Two points of red glittered in the center of her dilated pupils. “You are about to enter a whole new world.”
“I—I am eager to experience a different life.”
“Yes, you appear to have an appetite for pleasure.”
Arianna answered with a little laugh.
“Speaking of which, your relative is a very delicious man.” A cat-in-the-cream-pot smile twitched on Lady Spencer’s lips as she drank deeply from a large fluted goblet. Her voice had an odd tempo to it—quick, yet strangely slurred. “That sour expression hides a feast of exotic flavors.”
“Indeed?” murmured Arianna.
“Oh, yes, his kisses are quite divine.” A wink hung for an instant on her kohl-rimmed lashes. “We had to put off a more intimate acquaintance for a bit longer, until he is fully healed. However, I am quite sure that his sword will prove magnificent when it’s unsheathed.”
Arianna took a small sip of her wine. “You don’t say?” A discussion of Saybrook’s sexual potential was the last thing she was looking for. Her concentration was all on Concord, and how she might coax some incriminating evidence out of him.
Lady Spencer did not take the hint and move away. “I confess, I am surprised you didn’t grab him for yourself. Don’t you find him attractive?”
How to answer? In her role as rapacious widow, eager for a taste of forbidden fruits, she must not stir any suspicions. “Oh, he has an undeniable physical allure. But there are . . . other complications. Family, you know.”
“Yet you aren’t closely related,” probed Lady Spencer. “The connection is only by marriage.”
“That is part of the problem.” She lowered her voice to a confidential whisper, knowing how much her erstwhile employer loved knowing other people’s secrets. “As the nominal head of the family, he wishes to manage my affairs, and I am heartily sick of having a man tell me what to do.”
“I don’t blame you,” said Lady Spencer with a knowing nod. “We are, after all, much smarter than they are. But never fear, Lady Wolcott. You’ll soon learn that it’s laughably easy to wrap men around your finger.”
Arianna looked up through her lashes. “I shall try to watch carefully and pick up a few tricks from you.” Flattery was a sure way to stay in the lady’s good graces. “Something tells me you have a wealth of experience in handling the opposite sex.”
“Men are primitive creatures. Most of the time they think with their cocks and not their brains. So you must use that knowledge to your advantage.” Lady Spencer took another thirsty gulp of her drink. “I like coaxing out their deepest, darkest secrets when their guard is down.”
Whatever was in the glass, observed Arianna, it appeared to be loosening the lady’s tongue. Her own senses sharpened. She, too, was experienced in using the same strategy. “I imagine you are very, very good at that.”
“Oh, I am, I am.” She sidled a little closer, her shoulder kissing up against Arianna. “Take Saybrook—I shall of course enjoy swiving the big, black devil. But I also intend to diddle some information out of him.”
“Really?” drawled Arianna. “But he seems like such a bore.”
A laugh gurgled in Lady Spencer’s throat. “What if I told you he’s in charge of a secret investigation for the government.”
“No!” exclaimed Arianna, exaggerating her disbelief. “Impossible.”
“Shhhh.” Lady Spencer touched a finger to her lips. “Oh, I assure you it’s true,” she whispered. “It happened at my house. The Prince Regent took ill, and they think he was poisoned.”
Arianna gasped.
“Yes, yes, take my word for it.” Lady Spencer paused to fan herself. “Lud, is it warm in here?”
“Quite.” Taking the lady’s arm, she led her deeper into the alcove and opened one of the brass-framed windows. “Surely the earl doesn’t suspect you of the crime,” she whispered, quickly steering the conversation back to the Prince.
“He’s been terribly closemouthed about the whole thing. But I shall soon be in a position to pump him for information.”
Two could play at that game, thought Arianna. Leaning in a little closer, she whispered, “One could hardly blame you if you chose to poison the Prince in a fit of jealousy.”
“Jealous of that fat turd?” Lady Spencer chuffed a laugh. “I was sleeping with him merely to coax him into using his influence for me.”
“In what?” probed Arianna.
Lady Spencer turned her flushed face to the wafting of cool air. “A lady has to look out for herself.”
“Oh, yes. Yes,” she agreed eagerly. “But it isn’t easy, is it?”
There was a moment of hesitation, and then came an answer. “I was hoping that Prinny, like his brother York, might be willing to indulge in a little bimble-bumble concerning a business matter. Things were going well, until the slimy little slug of a French chef went and ruined everything. I suspect . . .” Lady Spencer turned, and though her eyes were dangerously bright, there was still a sharpness beneath the glitter. “Perhaps we can help each other, Lady Wolcott. You know, use our feminine wiles to the benefit of us both.”
“Oh, I should like that very much. How?”
“I could twist Saybrook into doing what you want.” Lady Spencer hesitated for a fraction. “While you could do me a small favor. . . .”
“Gladly,” said Arianna. “The men make all the rules in this world. But that doesn’t mean we have to play by them.”
The remark drew a throaty titter from Lady Spencer. “I think we are going to be very good friends. The thing is, can you keep a secret?”
Arianna crossed her heart.
“Good.” Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. “This is all hush-hush, but I am involved in a business deal with Concord and several others that promises to be very profitable.”
“What sort of deal?” asked Arianna quickly.
“Oh, some shipments involving military supplies,” replied Lady Spencer. Her speech was growing more slurred. “I had lent one of the men—let us simply call him Mr. K�
�some important papers to help with the financial calculations, and when he returned them, he also included some documents I wasn’t supposed to know about.” A girlish wink. “You see, the Prince wasn’t the only one I was sleeping with. In bed, I got Mr. K to admit that he was working on something bigger than the military deal, and if it all worked out, he would be able to cut Concord out of the new deal.”
“What sort of deal?” urged Arianna.
“I don’t know, but it looked important.” Her smile returned. “And I could tell that Mr. K was very nervous that I had seen the papers, so I was making a little extra blunt from him for keeping quiet about it.” She lowered her voice even more. “Concord has a nasty temper and tends to turn violent if he thinks he is being cheated.”
Kellton was cheating Concord? Arianna gave an inward grimace. That didn’t seem to make any sense. But given Lady Spencer’s state of inebriation, perhaps she was getting things garbled. It seemed clear that she knew nothing about the New World trading company.
“How exceedingly clever of you,” murmured Arianna. Keep talking, keep talking, she added silently. Saybrook needed to know all the details for his investigation, and she didn’t want to disappoint him.
Lady Spencer nodded. “Yes! But unfortunately Mr. K succumbed to a fit of apoplexy. And now I fear that Concord suspects I knew about the deception and didn’t tell him. So it’s possible that as a way to get back at me, he bribed my chef to poison the Prince.” She frowned. “Or he may have done it for a reason I don’t yet know about.”
Arianna thought for a moment. Concord had been in the corridor near the kitchen on the night of the poisoning . But he hadn’t been alone. Damnation—if only she had been able to make out the other man’s face in the swirl of shadows. Knowing his identity might help answer a number of questions.
Noting that Lady Spencer was watching her intently, she curled a cool smile. “Ah, I see what you mean. You would like me to see what dirt I can dig out of Concord.”
“You are a sly little puss, aren’t you?”
Arianna let out a little laugh. “I didn’t become a rich widow by being a sweet, biddable little girl.”
An answering cackle stirred the air. “Try to find out what his feelings are about me—men do like to talk in bed. And, by the by, try to find out where he’s getting this Devil’s Delight.”
“The Devil’s Delight?” repeated Arianna, pretending that she had never heard the name mentioned before.
Lady Spencer tapped her now empty glass. “It’s a special drug that will bring in a fortune from rich men who crave new excitement. If we can learn who his partner is, and how they get their supplies, we could demand to be part of the deal.” Her rouged lips curled up in a quick smile. “You would, of course, get a share of the profits. Do we have a agreement?”
“Oh, yes.” How sublimely ironic that the request melded so well with her own intentions. “Be assured that you can count on me.”
Lady Spencer’s low titter was cut off by a loud laugh. Concord was fast approaching, his boots clicking a staccato tattoo over the polished wood floor.
Smiling, Arianna quickly turned to greet him with a flirtatious look. “La, I hear you’ve been sampling a stimulating new treat. Aren’t you going to invite me to have a taste?”
“But of course.” His eyes were dilated, and his whole body seemed to crackle with a strange sort of energy. “I was just coming to ask if you would like to join me in a special toast before the real festivities begin.” He touched her arm, and she could feel the heat of him pulse against her skin.
Lady Spencer melted away into the shadows, but not before fluttering a last little wink.
“I would like nothing better!” Arianna didn’t have to feign a note of anticipation. At last, at last. After all the years of battling for every hard-won step, things were beginning to move at a dizzying pace. No wonder she felt a little breathless.
Concord’s grin stretched into a leer. “Then come with me.”
“You suspected this,” said Henning.
“Yes.” Saybrook checked the priming of his pistol. “Put Lady Arianna in a position to do something that should strike terror into the heart of any mere mortal, and one can pretty much count on her setting off in a flash.
The surgeon blew out his cheeks.
“Your man is sure that her carriage was headed out of the city?” asked the earl.
“Aye, he trailed it until he was certain of the direction,” answered Henning. “There’s something else you should know, though. He’s also positive that Lady Arianna was being followed by someone else.”
“One of Grentham’s spies, no doubt,” replied Saybrook matter-of-factly. “I caught sight of a fellow when I was leaving your surgery.”
“Well, your surveillance skills from the Peninsula seem as sharp as ever,” said Henning. “And yet you seem awfully calm about it. Isn’t the minister’s interest in the lassie cause for alarm?”
Saybrook didn’t look up from adjusting the flint. “There is no use speculating about Grentham’s motives in this case. The man is a cipher. He could very well be the one who ordered her lured to Wooburn Moor, or he could have other reasons for keeping a close watch on her.”
“By the by, how the devil did you know she was headed for Wooburn Moor?” demanded Henning. “Have you taken up reading tea leaves, or scrying the future in a crystal ball?”
“The answer is far more mundane. I visited Lady Spencer this afternoon, and in the process of becoming better acquainted with her, she invited me to attend the same party.”
“You should have said yes. That way you could have kept a closer eye on Lady Arianna.”
“I’m not sure she would welcome the scrutiny.” Saybrook flicked a grain of gunpowder from the polished steel. “Besides, such a move might scare away our quarry. We’ve gone to a good deal of trouble to bring Concord sniffing around her skirts. It would be a pity to have all our efforts go for naught.”
“Isn’t that rather liked staking out a lamb to draw in a wolf,” groused the surgeon.
“Ha—if he tries to take a bite, he’ll break his teeth.”
“The lady is remarkably capable,” replied Henning. “But these men are ruthless murderers. I am surprised you aren’t more worried.”
“My feelings are irrelevant.” The earl began loading the second weapon of his matched set. “There appears to be a dangerous conspiracy threatening to do great harm to the country. We have a duty to expose it, Baz, and see the miscreants arrested, no matter the risks involved.”
“Sounds awfully cold-blooded to me.”
“On the contrary, Lady Arianna would likely carve out my liver if I were to interfere in her quest to bring Concord and his coconspirators to justice. As you learned from Ashmun’s revelations, she has personal reasons for wishing to see the men responsible for her father’s death locked up in Newgate.”
“I still don’t like it,” muttered the surgeon. “Ashmun—”
“Ashmun is no threat to her,” said the earl.
“How do you know that? You weren’t so certain at our last meeting.”
“Because I paid him a visit after my tête-à-tête with Lady Spencer. As you know, I’ve experience in interrogating prisoners. I’m satisfied that he is telling the truth.” His face was a mask of concentration as he methodically checked over the trigger mechanism. “Which means that, as I feared, Lady Arianna has been only partly right in her quest for revenge.”
Henning pursed his lips. “What—”
“Never mind that now. I am taking what precautions I can, and will do my best to keep her safe.” Click, click. The hammer cocked and released. “Speaking of which,” went on Saybrook, “do you have your troops assembled?”
“Aye. I’ve four laddies from the First Royal Scots Foot Regiment waiting to come with us in your coach. In addition, a half dozen of my friends from the Royal Navy are traveling by boat to the estate. They will hide themselves and wait for our signal to show themselves.”
> “They will likely make better time on the water than the coach will over the rutted country roads,” observed the earl. “Which is why I’ve decided to go on by horseback while you and your foot soldiers follow in the coach. Lady Arianna has a head start, but I should be able to make up the time.”
Henning made a face but didn’t argue. “Yer leg will hold up?”
“I can ride to Hades and back if necessary.” Saybrook tucked extra bullets and a flask of powder into his pocket. “I trust that your men are in fighting trim?”
“A few fingers and toes may be missing,” admitted the surgeon. “But the men are still crack shots and handy with their fists. I’d pit them against any foe.”
“Good.” He slid the pistols into a well-worn cavalry saddle holster. “We may encounter no trouble. But if all hell breaks loose, I would like to believe that we can beat the devil at his own game.”
Despite the sugar, the liquid was sharply sour, like dried lemons, and left Arianna’s tongue feeling a bit numb.
“Odd,” she murmured, regarding Concord over the rim of the glass.
“It’s an acquired taste. But you will soon be craving more,” he assured her. Smacking his lips, he quaffed the rest of his drink in one hungry swallow and then quickly poured a refill. “Come, let us drink to the Devil.”
She drew in a mouthful before dissolving into a fit of giggles. Covering her lips with her glove, she muffled the sound. “Ooooh, it tickles.”
He gave a wolfish grin, unaware that most of the libation was now soaking into the delicate kidskin. “I can think of lots more ways to bring a tingle to your flesh, Lady Wolcott.”
“You,” she teased, “are a very naughty man.”
His gaze turned lidded. “Guilty as charged.” Placing a hand on her hip, Concord steered her to a long, low divan set near the hearth.
Sweet Revenge Page 26
