Willard continued to laugh as he led away his pack. He disappeared down an alley, and with him, any hope Neville had of retrieving his brother’s ring. His only comfort? Most of the group were too drunk to remember much of the encounter, so no one else but he and Willard were likely to deduce the ring’s significance.
Not yet.
He glanced back up at the dark windows of D’Acre House.
Millicent was, right now, behind one of those blank panes, unaware she’d become a pawn.
He vowed anew to defeat Willard. He’d done so before, when he’d rescued Asquith from Willard’s torture when they were back at school. Only this time, things weren’t as simple as teaching a boy to fight. But he had a witness. And, if she identified Willard at the theater tomorrow night, he’d have the means to start planning a trap.
With so much more at stake, he could not fail to best the blackguard again.
Chapter Three
Millie had beenfully prepared to take notes regarding potential furniture placement for her sister Eliza’s upcoming ball, but as she trailed Eliza, and Eliza’s step-mother-in-law, Mrs. Vane, around the combined rear parlors of D’Acre House, the ladies repeatedly deferred to one another on every issue without making a single decision.
Which begged the question—was everyone in Millie’s life conspiring to try her patience?
So long as her sister and her sister’s predecessor continued to praise one another, not even the basic layout for Eliza’s first soiree as marchioness would be settled., The ball might never happen.
Not that Millie cared. By late April, she intended to be safely back in the country.
“Well, Eliza,” Mrs. Vane said, “just becauseIpreferred the Broadfield in the North Parlor doesn’t meanyoucan’t move it to the South.”
“But, Caroline, you are a much more experienced hostess. Besides, Adrian trusts you completely.”
“Where Emily is concerned, yes,” Mrs. Vane acknowledged. “But Adrian trusts you, too. And I doubt he has a strong opinion about pianoforte placement. Besides, this is your home now, and you should decorate for the upcoming ball exactly as you see fit.”
Millie would have rolled her eyes if the mirrors on the wall weren’t present to pick up her reaction. “Perhaps,” she cut in impatiently, “you could move the piano now, see what it looks like, and then make a decision?”
Two pairs of exasperated eyes moved in her direction.
She stiffened. “Aren’t humble scribes permitted commentary?”
“Your tone suggests we are wasting our time,” Mrs. Vane replied. “May I remind you that a newly married lady’s first ball iscrucialto her success?”
“Andyouvolunteered to transcribe our ideas,” Eliza reminded. “If you are finding the process tedious, you are welcome to entertain yourself in another fashion.”
“I do believe I will.” Millie handed back her paper and pencil and turned toward the main hall.
A half hour on hypothetical piano placement? Surely her impatience had been justified.
Why, just last Season, Eliza would have rolled her eyes at such a protracted discussion, too.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Eliza had always been the sister with whom Millie had shared witty, under-breath mocking while their other sisters went to ridiculous lengths play-acting at being ladies and having beaus. Now, all Eliza could talk about were dance areas and decorations, guest lists, and proper vendors.
Millie huffed.
Of late, she didn’t recognize Eliza at all.
Millie rounded the corner only to pause on the morning parlor’s threshold. Inside the room, Lenora, Nettie, and Emily huddled together on the sofa exactly as they had been during the morning’s calls.
Asquith had come, much to Lenora’s delight. Blackwell, too—to Nettie’s. Ladies had filled the room…all of them curious,Millie suspected, to see if Lord Willard would make an appearance.
He had not.
Millie still wasn’t sure how she felt about his absence. A tad anxious, perhaps? Slightly let down, though certainly not in any devastating way.