A Bright Particular Star (5 page)

Half an hour later, when the covers had been removed and coffee had been served, Sophie had just poured out a cup and passed it to Theo when the landlord returned.

“
Yo
ur cousin is here,
m
iss
, and
asking to see you
.”

“
Please show my cousin in,
”
replied Sophie in a calm voice.

As John
son went out
, Sophie heard Theo
’s
shocked exclamation and risked a glance at his expression.
Her amiable lunch companion had vanished and a steely-eyed man had taken his place
.
Theo
’s
brows were drawn together, his countenance had darkened and she could see anger burning in his eyes.
Sophie guessed the conclusion he had come to.

“
How has he discovered your whereabouts so q
uickly?
”
Jumping to his feet, Theo
tossed his napkin down onto the table.
“
Let m
e deal with this!
”

“
But you don
’t
understand—
”

“
I understand perfectly!
Your cousin will be left i
n no doubt of my opinion of him.
”
When the door swung open,
Theo began in a curt tone,
“S
ir, I am glad you have come
…
”

His words died away
.
B
ef
ore him stood a slender girl
about the same age as
Miss
Devereux
.
A quiet elegance defined h
er despite her
outmoded clothes
.
She wore
a
sprigged muslin dress and a sober-h
ued
cloak, and a
chip straw hat covered her dusky curls.
In one hand s
he carried a
small
portmanteau.
Her smile of greeting
vanished when she saw Theo and her large grey eyes, se
t in a lovely
face, widened in
surprise
.

She
to
ok a step back, exclaiming
in a soft
voice
,
“
Oh!
I expected you to be alone!
”

Sophie laughed,
went to the girl and clasped her hands
.
“
Come in and allow me to introduce you, Olivia.
”
Indicat
ing Theo, she said,
“T
his is Mr
Theodore Cavanagh, the gentleman who helped me get to Bath.
He has been kind enough to stay with me until you arrived.
”

“S
o you escaped in the wa
y you planned after all, Sophie,
”
said Olivia,
still
staring.
“
I had my doubts it would be successful.
Were you hurt?
”

Sophie shook her head.
“
I am well, as you see.
”
She turned to Theo, whose look of surprise had been replaced by one of confusion.
“
May I introduce my cousin Olivia
,
Peregrine
’s
sister.
”

“D
elighted
to meet you, Miss Sloane
.
”
He bowed
,
giving Sophie a reproachful glance.
“
Miss
Devereux
hadn
’t
informed me she had such a delightful cousin.
”

“
Oh, have no fear of spe
aking freely in front of Olivia,
”
said Sophie gaily,
leading her cousin
over to the table.
“S
he
’s
my dearest friend and knows all my plans.
She
’s
nothing like her brother
—
or her mama, for that matter
—
and is under no illusions about them, notwithstanding her familial ties.
I arranged to meet Olivia here so she could give me the things I need. There was no other way to smuggle them out of the house.
Olivia, you see,
is
permitted to come to Bath, although Aunt Eudora believes she is here today shopping.
”

“T
hank you for helping Soph
ie,
Mr
Cavanagh,
”
sai
d Olivia,
as she sat down.
“S
he was desperate to get away.
”

“S
o I understand,
”
he said.
“
Have you come alone?
”

“
No, my maid is
outside, but she is discreet and can be trusted.
”

“
Have you brought everything?
”
asked Sophie
eagerly
.

“T
wo dresses, a nightgown, tooth powder and a few other necessities
.
It
’s
all I could manage to smuggle
out
,
”
she
r
eplied.
“
Y
ou look splendid in that outfit, Sophie
—
Mama and Perry would be speechless if they saw you
—
but
there is something I must tell you
.
Mr
Grey is in the hallway, in the company of ano
ther man whom I do not know, and
I believe he has se
en me.
”

T
he colour ebbed from Sophie
’s
cheeks.
“T
hat is
indeed a setback.
”

“
Miss
Devereux
, would you mind telling me what
the deuce
is going on!
”
said Theo
irascibly
, pushing his fingers
through his hair.
“
Who
is Mr
Grey?
”

“
An acqu
aintance of Peregrine
’s
.
Lucius
Gr
ey has been staying in Bath
and has been to Ludstone several times at Perry
’s
invitation.
He knows Olivia
,
and me, and will no doubt think it odd
to see Olivia here at this hour
, and carrying a
portmanteau
too.
Mr
Grey is
astute and misses nothing
…
it is unnerving.
”

“
But he seems generally amiable,
”
demurred her cousin,
“
and quite unlike Perry
’s
usual friends.
It
’s
true he
’s
taciturn, and strangely omniscient, b
u
t I do not dislike him
.
”

“
Mr
Grey is an un
usual man,
”
agreed Sophie,
“
but
there is something about him
that
does not ring true.
I don
’t
trust him.
”
She
gave
a
little
shrug of resignation.
“
W
ell, there is nothing we can do if he has already seen you.
We must hope he will not mention it to Perry, at least until I am on my way.
”
Sophie gave her cousin
’s
hand a reassuring squeeze.
“
I am concerned a
bout you, though, Livvy.
If Mr
Grey speaks to Peregrine, you could be connected to my disappearance and I wanted to avoid that.
Things will be difficult enough for you as it is.
”

“D
on
’t
worry.
I can take care of myself.
”

Theo listen
ed
to this exchange with a growing sense of
misgiving
.
“
Just where are you going,
”
he asked, his voice ominously calm,
“
and with whom?
It seems Miss Sloane is
not accompanying you.
”

Sophie put up her chin.
“
No.
I’m
afraid I did not answer your question earlier about a friend escorting me out of Bath because I did not want to lie.
There
is no such person.
Olivia
risked a great deal to bring my things here, and now her part is done.
She will go back to Ludstone.
I, on the other hand, am going to London
by stage
coach
. A
lone.
”

For a moment,
he
made no sound or movement until his exclamation rent the air, making
Sophie
and Olivia jump.

“
Have you
no
sense
?
”
he cried.
“
You cannot travel on the
stage
coach and without a chaperon
e
too.
You’ll
be prey to every ne
’
er do well between here and London!
You
’
ll be squashed into a rum-smelling
carriage
with a motley collection of people, and be more uncomfortable than you
’
ve been before in your life.
”

“
I
’
ll be perfectly alright,
”
she replied with spirit.
“
And some discomfort is preferable to what
I am leaving behind
. E
very minute
I am a
way from Ludstone makes me
more determined never to go back.
”

Frustrated, Theo appealed to Olivia.
“S
urely you cannot be in
agreement with this
?
”

“
I’m
not hap
py about it, but I also see
Sophie has no ch
oice,
”
she replied
.
“S
he wants to go to London
and
without the money to hire a post chaise, this is her only option.
The risks are worth it when you consider the alternative is marriage to my brother.
”

Theo let out his breath in a hiss of annoyanc
e.
“T
his will not serve at all!
”

“
I have sufficient funds to pay for my ticket,
”
said Sophie, watching as he began to stride to and fro.
“
When I called in at my lawyer
’s
office, he advanced me a small sum.
I purchased the clothes from Madame Lavalle with some of the money as I could not arrive in London dressed as I was.
The remainder I have in my retic
ule.
An inside seat on the s
tage
will cost fivepence a mile, and I have more than enough for that, and to pay for an overnight s
tay
.
”

Theo stopped and
stared
at her.
“
My good girl, it is not a question of money!
Your safety is more important an
d I cannot let you board the s
tage
when I have been resp
onsible for bringing you this far
.
”