“I’ve got it!” Clarissa said, forgetting herself as she clapped her hands and raised her voice above a whisper.
Lord Bolton did not seem to mind her outburst. He laughed excitedly as Clarissa walked across the room to the collection of uniform green spines on one of the shelves.
Lord Bolton followed eagerly and then chuckled. “Of course! A dictionary. How clever you are to think of it.”
Clarissa opened the dictionary to the required page but found nothing inside. They checked ‘today’ and ‘yesterday,’ but nothing else was forthcoming.
“Aha, these are out of order,” Lord Bolton cried, and his long fingers skipped along the tops of each volume. He was correct. Volume three was misplaced after volume five.
As he pulled it out, the next clue fell to the floor betweenthem. Caught up in the game, both leaned down instantly to retrieve it, and their hands clasped the note together.
Clarissa gasped, returning to her feet and blushing furiously as Lord Bolton did the same. He was rather more composed, and she was mortified by her easy blushes. He was all gentlemanly politeness as he handed her the note. As Clarissa took it, she could feel his eyes boring into her.
“You read it,” he said, his voice a little lower than it had been.
Your uncle’s brother is your father, but what is your relationship with your uncle’s sister-in-law?
Clarissa read it aloud. Once she finished, she looked up at him to find him already watching her. For a charged moment, their eyes locked. Neither of them looked away, even as they contemplated the answer. It was a complex puzzle, as one had to single out the father to discover the true nature of the final relationship.
They both hit upon it simultaneously, and Clarissa’s eyes widened as they said it together.
“The mother!”
Nicholas clicked his fingers and looked up to the library's second floor.
“Lady Edith’s portrait,” he said. He sounded like a schoolboy who had discovered a sweet shop. “This way!”
In an instant, Clarissa found herself running after him to the base of the beautiful spiral staircase in the library. They climbed to the balcony, which was stacked with yet more books. At the end of the staircase was an ornate oil painting of an elderly woman who looked very like Lady Eleanor.
“This is Lady Eleanor’s mother; it can only reference her. It could not be a mother of one of the players, for anyone could have found the clue.”
“You are right; she was a very stern-looking woman. Did youever meet her?”
“Only once. When I was a boy, she found me trampling all over the flowerbeds and clapped me about the ear for ruining her roses. I did not go back into the garden for six months.”
Clarissa could not help but laugh. As she did so, it occurred to her that she had not laughed or smiled so much in many months.
Lord Bolton's answering laugh and enthusiastic grin were all the more welcome. Clarissa felt her chest flutter as twin feelings warred within her. Annie stood behind them like the shadow of her lost reputation, and Clarissa was dismayed at how her feelings had changed. The day before, her solemn resolution had been to remain as stoic and reserved as possible. The idea of doing so now caused her some pain.
She greatly enjoyed Lord Bolton’s company, and it was becoming clear to her that in the short time of their acquaintance, he was one of the most amiable men she had ever met.
Is this what he was like with the women in Paris…with the widow that he entertained? Am I simply another pawn in a larger game?
Lord Bolton frowned at her as she felt the smile fade.
“Is all well?”
“Yes, quite well,” she said, rallying quickly. “I merely wish to ensure we win the game. Do you know of the prize?”
“I do not, but my aunt has a reputation for much opulence on such occasions. I have great hopes for us winning; we make a good pairing.”
Clarissa felt her cheeks burn and turned to the portrait, trying her best not to think of how pleasing it would be to be paired with Nicholas for more than just a trivial treasure hunt.
“Where might the next clue be hidden?” she asked.
“Try beneath the frame.”
And sure enough, as she ran her fingers along the edge of the frame, she came upon a small piece of paper wrapped in red and green ribbon.
