The Wicked Wager (23 page)

“Why does she not go to Prudence’s room and
inform her?” she asked.

“It would be too risky. She went today and
already William overheard the conversation. She must be aware her visit to
Prudence’s room will be questioned, if by no one else than at least by Mrs
Barker. Mrs Barker would not take kindly to her daughter being blackmailed. She
took a chance today, but she is a careful woman. I doubt she will be so obvious
again.”

“But the note … how is that a safe method?
What if someone else finds it?” Emma asked, puzzled.

“No one else but Prudence will have any
reason to look in her own work basket. Besides, Prudence will hardly air the
letter, considering she is being blackmailed for a dark secret,” the earl
explained patiently.

“Poor thing, I wonder what her plan is to
hide her condition,” Emma mused aloud.

“Escape to a remote village, I would
think,” Lord Raikes replied.

“We can do nothing more tonight. The only
way we can help the girl is by bringing proof to the duke,” the earl said
soberly.

“Agreed. Now, I would like to sleep,” Lord
Raikes said, stifling a yawn.

 The earl and Emma wished him
goodnight and departed. He did not sleep but lay awake a long time mulling over
the day’s happenings.

***

The next morning the duke took Mr Barker
and Lord Raikes hunting. The women stayed behind to finish a leisurely breakfast.

Emma and Catherine had donned warmer
pelisses and sat huddled by the fire.

“It looks as if the leaves are coated in
caramel,” said Catherine, glancing out of the window.

“That’s a wonderful way of putting it. I
can almost forgive the weather for turning,” replied Emma.

“Prudence does not seem to be getting any
better. She hardly eats anymore.”

“I do feel sorry for her. Mrs Barker is
almost rude to her daughter. She pushes her to enjoy herself, instead of
calling for a doctor.”

“Em, do you think I should ask the duke to
call for Dr Johnson anyway?”

“No!” Emma shrieked, and then continued in
a calmer tone, “I am sure she is pining for London. It must be dull for her
here after the excitement of the season. Besides, there are no eligible men
here for her to set her cap on. She has even stopped flirting with the earl.’’

“That may be it. Still, I worry about her.
She is the youngest here, and even though she is annoying, I cannot ignore that
misery in her eyes,” Catherine said worriedly.

“Give it a few more days. If she does not
improve, then I will mention it to the duke,” Emma replied, wondering how she
could keep the physician from being called. No one could know that the girl was
pregnant. It would ruin her.

They spent the morning pulling out shawls
and warmer dresses from boxes and cupboards.

Emma kept a sharp eye on Lady Babbage, who
looked as though she was suppressing her excitement. It could be the thought of
obtaining a large sum from Prudence, but Emma had a feeling that it was
something else.

That afternoon she came upon the duke and
Lady Babbage arguing outside the morning room. She heard her uncle issue a
vague warning before he strode off angrily. Lady Babbage had a satisfied smirk
on her face.

Emma curled her hands into a fist forcing her
disgust deeper. She schooled her features as she joined the rest for tea.

The hunt had been successful; they would
have a feast that night. The duchess wanted to make an occasion of it. They all
decided to dress up and invite some people from the village again.

The thought of entertainment brought some
colour back into Prudence’s cheeks, and Emma was glad for it. The invitations
were sent out, and replies promptly arrived.

The duke did not entertain much, and when
he did, the villagers considered it a privilege to attend.

Catherine was on her way to give some
clothes to the maid for ironing when Lord Raikes caught up with her. He pulled
her into the empty music room, “I need to speak to you.”

“I do not want to speak to you. Please let
me go, My Lord. I have a number of things to attend to before the guests
arrive,” she replied coldly.

He let her go without another word.

***

Emma insisted on taking her usual walk,
promising to help Catherine with the details of the party later.

Catherine, after a brief argument with
Emma, finally conceded defeat, and soon the two girls, along with Lord Raikes
and Lady Babbage, went outside for a quick stroll in the garden.

Emma caught Catherine’s eye meaningfully
and discreetly tilted her head towards Lady Babbage.

Catherine blinked back twice in reply.

A few moments later Catherine let out a cry
of anguish.

Emma paused and turned to eye her cousin.

Catherine winked, and Emma, grabbing Lord
Raikes arm in a deathly grip, forced him to walk faster.

“I have a stone in my slipper, aunt,”
Catherine replied to Lady Babbage’s query.

Lady Babbage was torn between staying with
her beloved niece and chasing the rapidly departing couple. Her love for her
niece won, and she decided to wait for Catherine, who seemed to be taking an
awfully long time finding the stone in her shoe.

“When did you plan that?” Lord Raikes asked
amused, after Emma explained to him that Catherine was simply hamming it.

“Just before we came out for a walk. I
wanted a word with you. I heard Lady Babbage arguing with the duke. I could not
catch the words, but she is up to something, and I do not think it has anything
to do with Prudence,” Emma replied.

“Hmm, I will watch her tonight as well. We
cannot do anything about any of her sinister plans, except find proof and
present it to the duke. We will have to steal that note somehow.”

“Richard forgot to tell you that we will
meet in your rooms at one in the morning,” Emma said, glancing back to see how
far Lady Babbage and her cousin were.

“What if the guests are still around?” Lord
Raikes asked.

“No one stays past eleven when visiting the
duke unless it is a ball. The duke likes to retire early, and everyone is aware
of that.”

“Your cousin is refusing to speak to me.
Don’t you think it’s time we told her what’s going on? I am sure she will agree
to keep your secret for just a few more days.”

“It is her father we are deceiving. I am
not sure her loyalty will allow her to aid us in this charade.”

“I think we should tell her,” he said
stubbornly.

Emma glanced at the resolute face in alarm.

“Speak to Richard tonight first,” she
pleaded.

“I am planning to.”

***

The evening was a success. They had all
needed something to take their minds of their private troubles. The duchess had
become the life of the party, holding séances with some of the older ladies
present.

Catherine avoided Lord Raikes, refusing to
dance with him even once. Annoyed, he watched her laughing with some young man,
whose name he could not recall.

Lady Babbage had given no hints of her
plan. She had behaved as usual, hiding amongst the drapes in her dull brown
dress. She had tried to encourage Lord Raikes to see Catherine as an
alternative to Emma. This left him with mixed feelings.

The last of the guests departed, and
everyone left for bed eagerly, each unaware of the numerous nightly activities
planned.

The duke strode around the silent mansion
fastening windows. Finally satisfied that the house was secure, he locked the
front door and pocketed the key.

He glanced at Pickering who had been
faithfully following him throughout the entire process. He gave a slight nod
and Pickering, understanding the silent signal, left to see to his master’s
task.

The duke then looked around one last time
before making his way to his bedroom.

***

The earl sneaked into Emma’s room that
night and the two spent their time canoodling. They were soon interrupted by a
knock on the door, and Lord Raikes’ voice sounded outside.

The earl cautiously let him enter.

“Forgive me for entering your bed chamber,
but I could not wait any longer. What if she falls asleep? She may already be
asleep. But I really need to talk to her,” Lord Raikes addressed the earl in
anguished tones.

“We are going hunting for the note, not talking
to her,” the earl replied in confusion.

“Why would you talk to her?”

“Why wouldn’t I? Why should you?”

Emma giggled and interrupted, “Lord Raikes
is talking about Catherine. Richard thinks you mean Lady Babbage.”

“Oh, well, I want to tell Catherine
everything. It is not fair. You have Emma, and your game is almost over. Can I
not tell her the truth?” Lord Raikes pleaded.

“He is right, Richard,” put in Emma
surprisingly, “She is a confused mess, and I do not like seeing her hurt. I
hate lying to her even more. Now that she is personally involved, I want her to
know the truth as soon as possible.”

“Em! I will name my first child after you,”
Lord Raikes announced happily.

Emma grinned in pleasure, while Richard
frowned, “But she will confess all to the duke. I cannot allow you to do this
just a few days before my win. All will be lost, after going through weeks of
torture.”

“I will convince her to remain silent,”
Lord Raikes promised rashly.

“I am not sure, William. Give me a day to
think it over.”

“No!” He exploded, “I am going to her now
,
darn it
!”

***

Catherine meanwhile tossed and turned in
her bed. She was burning with curiosity as to what the earl had wanted from
her. He had looked so tortured, and she felt terrible for behaving so badly
with him.

Her embarrassment was no fault of his, yet
she had perversely blamed him. He had not tried anything since the kiss, other
than being kind.

She spent considerable time analysing her
behaviour. She ruthlessly acknowledged to herself that she had used her anger
as a shield, to protect herself from the increasing attraction she felt towards
him. She lashed out at him to keep him at arm’s length and protect her heart.

But her own vulnerability was no excuse for
the way she had treated him. Her infatuation with him was not his fault.

The more she thought about her behaviour,
the more restless she became. What if he wanted to confide in her about
something to do with Emma? She was letting her cousin down because of her own
selfish reasons.

***

Lord Raikes entered his room in agitation.
He missed the figure arranged seductively on his bed until a feminine cough
alerted him.

He glanced up and saw Prudence lying under
the covers. It was clear she was wearing not a stitch underneath.

He was frozen in shock, unable to move
until a knock sounded behind him. He absently reached over to unlock the door
and found Catherine standing nervously in front of him.

She avoided his eyes and instead looked
straight towards the bed. She stilled and then said softly, “I am sorry to have
disturbed you. It seems you are busy.” She turned on her heel and left him
staring at her back.

He let out a whimper of frustration,
startling Prudence. He took a deep breath to calm himself, then making up his
mind, he picked up his robe that was lying on a chair and flung it in
Prudence’s general direction. He refused to speak to her or even look at her.
He left her there without bothering to see if she departed his room.

He chased after Catherine and forced his
way into her room when she tried to block him.

“We need to talk … NOW,” He bit out.

Catherine took one look at his face and
mutely agreed.

***

Meanwhile, Emma and the earl stole out of
their room to search for Prudence’s work basket. They tiptoed their way towards
the main staircase, when the earl suddenly pushed Emma behind a suit of armour.
They heard footsteps nearing them, and they held their breaths. Whoever it was
seemed to be in a hurry and quickly passed by them.

Emma heaved a soft sigh of relief and
peeked out. She noticed Mrs Barker’s back disappearing into the gloom. By
mutual consent they kept silent, keeping their questions for later.

They had taken a few steps down the
staircase when another figure darted past them.

Mr Barker must have been behind them all
the time. Yet he pretended not to see them as he rushed away. A dying candle on
the ledge had thrown enough light to identify him.

They stood frozen like petrified rabbits.
Emma wanted to run back into her room and hide, but her compassion for Prudence
won out in the end. They decided to proceed as planned.

Mr Barker may inform the duke of what he
had seen, but that issue had to be brushed aside for the moment. The note was
more important. They quickly made their way into the saloon. That was where they
had last assembled, and it stood to reason that Prudence would leave her basket
there.