She had forgotten about her encounter with the man in the kitchens, for she had been too busy thinking about Daniel. Now that she considered it, ithadseemed peculiar that he would suddenly appear when he was not a close acquaintance of Evan or Daniel.
“He was making a nuisance of himself in the refreshments room about an hour ago,” Olivia said, the color draining from her face. “You do not think that…” she tailed off, for the rest did not need to be said.
Phoebe braced herself, ready to scream the entire manor down until the wretched Baron was found, but before she could utter a word to her friends to begin a fresh search for Lord Harburgh, Joanna stepped in.
“Ellen does not like him anymore,” she said firmly. “After you explained why you did not care for the fellow, she decided to read some scandal sheets. Having seen his name there, she decided that you were right, but she did not want to tell you that you were right, in case it prevented her from ever meeting a gentleman.”
Phoebe stared at her sister. “And if he has kidnapped her because hestill likes her?”
“Why would any respectable gentleman do a thing like that?” Joanna rolled her eyes. “You are being ridiculous again. It is as the Dowager Countess said—she likely fell asleep somewhere and will be very apologetic when she finally awakens. I told you, she drank a great deal of punch tonight, and I suspect that someone may have poured something potent into the bowl.”
“Who has poured something into the punch bowl?” a voice asked from outside the circle of anxious searchers. “Moreover, who has been kidnapped? Are we to saddle the horses and give chase? Oh, please say so, for this ball is in need of some greater excitement. No offense to you, Lady Westyork, but there is very little for the younger contingent to do.”
Everyone turned at once, staring wide-eyed at the innocent face of Ellen. Shedidlook somewhat inebriated, her eyes glassy, but otherwise, she was exactly as Phoebe had left her.
“Where have you been?” Phoebe shrieked, throwing her arms around her sister and holding her tightly. “I was so worried that something terrible had happened to you.”
Ellen chuckled into her shoulder. “That I had absconded with the gardener, you mean?”
“Goodness, no. I know you are more sensible than that, but when you could not be found… I… I thought I was about to take leave of my senses,” Phoebe gasped, squeezing Ellen as hard as she could without hurting the poor girl. “Please, for the sake of my sanity, tell me where you have been.”
From close by, Joanna grumbled, “I told you she would be fine.”
“I think therewassomething poured into the punch bowl,” Ellen admitted, giggling. “I felt rather strange, so I decided to take some fresh air. The gardens looked beautiful, so I wandered for a while… but then I got lost. It was precisely what I needed, for I no longer feel as strange, and I have all the fresh air I could possibly desire in my lungs.”
Phoebe pulled back, searching her sister’s face. “How many times have I told you not to drink the punch?”
“It looked so refreshing,” Ellen replied shyly. “Please, do not be angry with me. I did not mean to worry anyone.”
Phoebe faltered. “You did not wander near the hedge maze, did you?”
“Mercy, no. If I had gone there, I would have been twice as lost!” Ellen said, her cheeks rosy from the cold and whatever some miscreant had poured into the punch.
“I ask only because I searched for you there,” Phoebe explained, her stomach twisting with guilt. “Indeed, I searched the gardens for a long while, and I did not see you. Where, exactly, were you wandering?”
Ellen shrugged. “I am afraid I could not tell you. If I had known where I was, I would not have gotten lost.”
“This is exactly what I said, but no one listened,” Joanna interjected, wearing the same look on her face that she used to put on when she was little, fighting over a doll with her sister. “I told you that if you just stayed here and let her return of her own accord, everything would be resolved more quickly, and that if you went searching for her, you would be more likely to miss each other. For once, I had a sensible solution, but you will not listen, Phoebe!”
Phoebe turned to Joanna, offering an apologetic smile. “I am sorry, Joanna. Ishouldhave listened. Had I done so, we might all have been spared from… our worrying.” She felt Daniel’s eyes on her but could not meet his gaze. “Now, I think I ought to put dear Ellen to bed, while the rest of you continue with your evening. I have troubled you all enough for one night.”
“To bed?” Ellen pouted. “Must I?”
“You will thank me in the morning when your headache is less severe,” Phoebe said, putting on a smile.
Joanna seemed pleased with the apology. “I think I shall have some of that punch and then, perhaps, I might dance.”
“You will have none of that punch,” Phoebe interjected quickly.
And I shall not stop you from dancing with him, for he has chosen you.
Joanna chuckled. “I was only teasing, Sister.” She sauntered up to Daniel, weaving her arm through his as she fluttered her eyelashes at him. “But I was not teasing about that dance if someone would ask me?”
“Of course,” Daniel said stiffly. “But just one more so that we do not set tongues wagging.”
Joanna beamed from ear to ear. “Let them wag.”
Unable to bear the sight of her beloved sister and the man she was falling in love with taking to the dance floor, where the rest of the ballroom would undoubtedly swoon at their mutual beauty, Phoebe put an arm around Ellen and steered her toward the entrance hall, and the staircase to the upper floors.
