Still:Thank goodness, Elinor thought, and let her head drop for a moment against the warmth of Sir Jessamyn’s shoulder. That had been a too-close escape.
Taking a deep breath, Elinor eased closer to peer through the throng. Her aunt was leaning over the tall crystal punch bowl, while Lucinda stood beside her, sipping her own punch and looking faintly bored. As Lady Hathergill muttered to herself, words that Elinor couldn’t catch, Lucinda’s lips curled into an expression of pure contempt. It melted away only a moment later to be replaced by a politely expectant look as Lady Hathergill straightened, but Elinor’s breath had already caught and her eyes narrowed.
The last remaining traces of her own guilt melted away. Lucindadeservedto be trapped, and to pay for what she had done to Sally’s sister. Her actual thefts might have been forgiven, but Sally was right: no inner compulsion could excuse the way that she had treated other people…and the way she would continue to treat others if she wasn’t stopped now.
Lady Hathergill took a long sip of her punch…and the glittering diamond bracelet on her wrist slipped off her arm. It slid down her gown and landed just beneath the table.
Lucinda’s face sharpened, like a hunting dog on point.
Lady Hathergill said, “Do you know, I never thought you were a good friend for my daughter, although youwerealways good at flattering her. I must say I wasn’t at all surprised when—”
“Lady Hathergill!” Elinor broke through the crowd to stop her. “Won’t you come give me your opinion on something?”
Her aunt shrugged and tossed down a sip of punch. “I’m always happy to give my opinion nowadays.”
Lucinda’s eyes darted back and forth between Lady Hathergill and the table.
Elinor sent her a dismissive smile. “You won’t mind my stealing her away from you, will you?”
“Not at all,” said Lucinda. Her cheeks were flushed. She looked down into her punch glass, lowering her eyelashes, as if she were suffering from shyness in Mrs. De Lacey’s presence…but Elinor caught the motion in the corner of her eye as Lucinda reached out with one slippered foot and nudged the bracelet another careful three inches underneath the table.
Elinor took her aunt’s arm in her gloved hand and drew her away.
As soon as they were hidden from Lucinda’s view, though, she spun around. “Can you see the bracelet?” She stood on her tiptoes, but she couldn’t see under the table past the cluster of matrons who stood between them, feathered turbans and headdresses bobbing.
“I shan’t mind if I lose that bracelet,” Lady Hathergill said. “I always thought the stones were tastelessly large. But then, Sir John has never consulted me in the jewelry that he buys for display.”
“Of course not,” Elinor agreed automatically, as she peered past shoulders and waving fans. She would have to wait at least a minute or two to be certain; Lucinda, after all, would surely wait a minute to be safe before she took the risk of scooping up the bracelet.
If Lucinda was only holding it in her hands when she was caught, there would be no proof of her wrongdoing; she might well claim she had only picked it up to return to Lady Hathergill. She would have to hide it in her reticule or on her person to look incriminating. But if Elinor didn’t see where she hid it…
“Sir John has never listened to me about anything,” Lady Hathergill said, “but he did used to talk at me a great deal, back when I was too tired to disagree with him. Now that I’m able to share my own opinions, it’s remarkable how little he wants to see me at all. I must say, that really has been one of the pleasantest side effects of the greatchange.” She accented the word meaningfully.
“The great…what?” Elinor blinked, distracted for a moment from her search. Then her mouth dropped open. Heat spread across her face as she struggled for words. “I’m not sure…I don’t think you’re undergoingthe change,” she finally managed. “I mean, I don’t think this is a physical issue. That is…”
“What else could it be?” her aunt asked. “Come now, Sophia, it may be some years since we knew each otherwell,but even when you were a girl yourself, you never used to blush at discussing such matters. Surely you remember your own mother telling us about the change that happens in mid-life.”
“Well…” Elinor didn’t, actually—her own mother had been only thirty-eight when she’d died, and the subject hadn’t arisen between them. Elinor had heard only the vaguest of old wives’ tales about what happened to older women. Still, she was certain that none of those whispered changes were brought about by dragon wishes.
And she was suddenly miserably certain of something else, too: if she let her aunt go on thinking that this change in herself was natural, all the way to the doors of her confinement, she would be no better than Sir John himself. He might be the one who paid to send her to that cottage…but Elinor was the one who was at fault.
She stared at her aunt, caught in helpless silence. She couldn’t tell her the truth now, in the middle of the crowded ball—the news would spread like fire across the room, just like every other thought that entered Lady Hathergill’s head nowadays. But she couldn’t let her walk unknowingly into the trap that Sir John had set, either.
She reached out and laid the tips of her gloved fingers on her aunt’s arm. “There is something I have to tell you,” she said. Her mouth felt suddenly dry. She swallowed hard, trying to moisten it, but there was no way to soften the words she had to say. “Sir John thinks you’ve gone mad.”
“Oh, I know that.” Lady Hathergill snorted. “He would, wouldn’t he? As far as my husband is concerned, any woman or servant who doesn’t hop to his bidding must be entirely perverse. He was never in love with me, you know, even in the beginning. You were right when you warned me against the marriage. I should have listened instead of thinking you blinded by jealousy. I’m sorry for that.Heonly wanted a pretty ornament for the grand new estate he was building…but then, I married him for his money, so I suppose it’s only fair. I always did envy my younger sister marrying for love, even if she did have to bury herself in the wilds of Cornwall for it. But then, you and I would never have been allowed—”
“None of that matters right now!” Elinor shook her head, shaking away the paralyzing grief that wanted to snake out and trap her with the memory of her parents. “You have to listen to me. That physician who came—Sir John has paid him to declare you insane. He’ll be taking you to a cottage in the middle of nowhere, tonight, with a nurse to keep you solitary and hidden from everyone. His carriage is waiting behind the stables now. You haven’t any time to lose.”
For the first time in days, Lady Hathergill was silent. For a long moment she only stared.
Then she said, “Well, I should have expected it. This is exactly why I gave up all those years ago, you know. But I don’t care. I’m glad I had this week. I’m glad I finally told my husband exactly what I thought of him.” She downed the rest of her punch with a fierce swallow.
“He deserved it,” Elinor said, “but you don’t. You have to do something.”
“Do something?” Lady Hathergill let out a crack of laughter. “Easy for you to say, my friend! You’re a widow, with the right to your own money and decisions. Sir John is my owner in the eyes of the law. Even if he wanted to send me to the worst sort of madhouse, there would no one with a legal right to stop him, not even you or your fine London friends.” Snorting, she turned to walk away.
“There’syou,” Elinor said, and tightened her hand around her aunt’s arm, forcing her to stay. “And there are all of your neighbors, too. You know how much Sir John cares for his reputation. I can’t tell them myself—I had to promise to hold my tongue tonight. But you can tell anyone you want. You can make as much of a fuss as you want! Youmust. Make such a spectacle he can’t hide it. Embarrass him so much that he can’t stand it. Only, please…”
