Page 48 of Murder at Madame Chambon's
Elizabeth laughed, and Clara went on, “Victoria has sworn off nice young men since Dunstable, but what about you, Miss Tarot?”she asked.“Have you met a nice young man?”
Evelina stiffened as she prepared to answer, thinking of her mother’s opposition to Bellingham and suddenly afraid of declaring her heart engaged when she’d not heard from William in two days.“I have met many nice young men,” she said, warily.“London is full of them.”
“But perhaps one in particular?”Lady Elizabeth prompted with a speculative smile, obviously recalling the fact that Evelina had emerged from a storeroom alone with him.“Perhaps he will be at Lady Jervis’s ball.You are so beautiful you will have all the young men wanting to be your suitor and you won’t be able to make up your mind.”
“He just needs to be rich,” said Clara, but her sister reprimanded her.“He has to be moral and upstanding, too, Clara, and until you can understand that, you will not be putting your hair up and your skirts down.Now, good day to you, Miss Tarot.”
“Good day, Miss Tarot,” echoed Elizabeth.“No doubt we shall see you at Lord Dunstable’s funeral on Thursday.”
They were about to move on but stopped, turning in surprise when Evelina said, “Regrettably, I will not be attending.”
The opprobrium on Lady Victoria’s face made her squirm.“But… you and my cousin—” She stopped, glancing at Elizabeth and coloring.“I beg your pardon, Miss Tarot, but I thought you would be at Highgate Cemetery.Naturally, I understand if you have other more important matters to attend to that day.”
“No, please Lady Victoria, I wanted to attend very much but for some reason my mama is against the idea, though I have no idea why.”
Lady Victoria put her head on one side.Flanked by the two younger girls, Evelina felt very much under scrutiny as she continued to defend herself.“My mama insists that I attend a musical afternoon with Mrs.Farnley and her son.Really, she’s matchmaking, but I cannot go against her wishes.It is my greatest desire to attend Lord Dunstable’s funeral.Indeed, as much as I wish the evil perpetrator of the terrible crime was brought to justice.”
Lady Victoria, whose expression had become increasingly sympathetic, now raised her eyebrows at Evelina’s last words and said, “But have you not heard?Why, I can’t believe we’ve not mentioned the greatest news of all.The police have found the person who has done this terrible thing to poor cousin Dunstable.Finally!And you’d never believe it, but it was a … woman!”
“A woman?A woman killed Lord Dunstable?”
Lady Victoria lowered her eyes and said in a more chastened tone, “I think that is why we were reluctant to speak of it earlier for it is not very … ” She broke off, beginning again with, “Well… it reflects not so well on Dunstable and I didn’t want anyone to be hurt or … think worse of him for it.Not but that the truth won’t be revealed in good time.So, while it hasn’t yet appeared in the newspapers, naturally, being family, Clara and I were among the first to know.”
Evelina, whose anxiety to learn the truth had ratcheted up to enormous proportions, finally got a word in edge wise.“A woman?Why, what woman could possibly have done such a thing?How, and why?”
“All I know was that it was a woman by the name of … LuluBelle,” Victoria replied.
Evelina’s spiritsenjoyed no upturn as they continued along the curve of the path.Finally, Kitty said, “You can’t tarry any longer.Your ma is waiting for you, and you know how she has things to do.She won’t like to be kept waiting.”
“Why is she always in such a hurry?It’s not as if she has anything better to do than see me for the little time I’m in London.”Evelina knew she was whining but went on, “Why can’t Mama live like other people do?In a nice house with my father?And why can’t she bring along papa so I can see him after so many years?Is he ashamed of me?”
“I really couldn’t say, Miss, except that your ma ain’t so easy to live with and I reckon it’s hardly no surprise she and your da aren’t living together anymore.”
“How would you know if she’s easy or not to live with, Kitty?”grumbled Evelina.“The way you talk, you know everything about my mother.”
“I’ve worked for her, in a manner o’ speaking, so I knows what I’m talking about.She an’ Lady Perry are an odd pair, that’s for sure.I don’t reckon I trust that Lady Perry.Thick as thieves, they used to be, but now it’s just a useful service they render each other.Lady Perry likes her blunt, and she’d throw you under a hackney for it.Jest mind what she says and does.Reckon you can do that, Miss Tarot?”
As Kitty had predicted,Evelina’s mama was pacing their drawing room while Lady Perry took tea in a corner of the room.
“You do not believe in keeping to time, do you, Evelina?”
“I’m sure you don’t need to be anywhere in any great hurry, Mama, said Evelina.
Her mother grunted.“You, young lady, have very little time to do what you came to London to do, and that is find a husband.”
“And I’ve told you I’ve already found one,” Evelina said, sinking down onto the sofa and picking up the magazine lying over the arm in front of Lady Perry.Manners and Morals.If Lady Perry had been reading it, Evelina didn’t think she’d learned very much.Lady Perry was cold to the point of rudeness.What Kitty said was true.She sent Lady Perry a narrow look as the old woman began conversing in a low voice with her mama.
Clearly, they’d both decided that Evelina’s tantrum, as her mama would call it, was going to be ignored.
Evelina flipped open a page to a photograph of a pretty young girl dressed in rags.It was some uplifting moral tale about how a poor milliner named Liza had managed to keep a tidy household with some ridiculous number of brothers and sisters.Evelina peered at the two younger sisters who were wearing stylish little hats at odds with their patched pinafores.
Evelina wouldn’t mind wearing a hat like either of those.Vaguely, in the background, she heard the name LuluBelle and realized her mama and Lady Perry were talking about the woman who had killed Lord Dunstable.
It was truly shocking that he’d been murdered by a woman, she thought, knowing she ought to feel more considering that a few weeks later and Lord Dunstable’s death would have made her a widow.What would she have felt if she’d learned that a woman had been responsible for his death, then?she wondered.In truth, as each day passed, Lord Dunstable’s memory faded even more.One kiss.No, two.A trip to the zoological gardens, a few dances, and that was the sum of their association.He’d never told her he loved her.Certainly he’d admired her, but that had been more a compliment that indicated that she reflected well on him, rather than anything deep and sincerely spoken like Lord Bellingham.
Biting her lip as tears sprang to her eyes, Evelina wondered yet again at Lord Bellingham’s lack of communication.Dare she sent him round a note?
To hide her tears, she bent over the magazine to peer at the picture of Liza and her family and decided she ought to do the girls a service and buy a couple of hats.They really were very jaunty.
