Page 31 of Fortune Favors the Frivolous
“Please, Mrs. Gascoyne, that is not at all the way matters were,” Venetia protested, close to tears. But it seemed Mrs. Gascoyne had fashioned herself into Venetia’s savior rather than critic, her narrow face alight with the pleasure of moral vindication.
“The poor dear girl has been hoodwinked by a libertine,” she hissed as her husband entered the room, closing the door behind him at her command.
“I haven’t,” said Venetia. “Not by Henry. Of course I was by Lord—”
“And now the young man has abandoned her. He is not here, is he? He’s left you, my dear Miss Playford, having spent the night in this room with you while pretending upon departure that he was a man of honor.” Her eyes nearly bulged out of her head as she said it, her voice dropping to a scandalized whisper. “Oh, Mr. Gascoyne—” she gripped his arm, her lips pursed, “—that young man will have to do the right thing. Wherever he is, we will find him before any of this comes to light. It’s the least I can do for my dear friend, Mrs. Pike, who is probably sick with worry about your whereabouts.”
“No, she’s not sick with worry.” Venetia opened her mouth to say that her evil aunt had in fact facilitated the means by which Lord Windermere had kidnapped her, but Mrs. Gascoyne spoke over her as she entreated her husband. “You will speak to him, Mr. Gascoyne. Oh yes, you will tell that young man that if he isnot to be pilloried, and his name blackened and every institution set against him—because you have power in high places, indeed you do—he will do the honorable thing and marry this poor innocent. This poor young lady who had no idea what was happening when he insinuated he’d be a gentleman and then fell so far short.”
Mr. Gascoyne’s eyes narrowed further with each of his wife’s pronouncements and his jowls quivered with indignation. “If that young man I saw earlier has indeed been guilty of what you say he is, my dear, then I shall leave no stone unturned before I find him.”
Mrs. Gascoyne clenched her bird-like hands into fists as she turned back to Venetia. “Your secret is safe with me, my dear. But of course, your fate depends upon us running this scoundrel to ground. If it is the last thing I do, it’s to honor my friendship to your poor dear aunt, by ensuring your virtue is protected at all costs. Mark my words, when Mr. Gascoyne sets his mind to it, he can do anything. And finding Mr. Henry Ashworth is what he will do.”
Her bosom heaved, and she looked fiercely at Venetia as if expecting gratitude, her thin nostrils flaring with each breath.
Venetia didn’t know how to respond. She only knew that if being kidnapped by Lord Windermere had seemed the worst that could happen to her twenty-four hours earlier, this was a close second.
And then hurried footsteps sounded up the stairs in the distance, coming closer as they traversed the corridor, while Henry’s cheerful voice called out as he opened the door to step into the room.
“Venetia! I’m back! And you’ll never guess who I’ve brought with me!”
Venetia thought she would expire on the spot as she watched Henry’s cheerful expression melt away while Caroline, dressed in some strange, colorful garb, appeared at his shoulder.
Then Mrs. Gascoyne drew herself up to her full, albeit modest, height and pointed an accusatory finger at Henry.
“Mr. Ashworth,” she intoned, her voice quivering with righteous indignation, “we have been waiting for you.”
*
“Oh Henry, whatwill we do?” Caroline burst out as they watched the Gascoyne carriage disappear a short while later. “They talk of rescuing Venetia from evil influences—meaning you—but they’re taking Venetia straight back to her aunt!”
Henry shook his head. Then, squaring his shoulders, he took her hand and squeezed it. Not with loving tenderness, but with the bolstering energy that reminded Caroline of when they were children. “We need proof of Lord Windermere’s evil deeds,” he said grimly. “And we will find it! We will discover why Windermere wishes so dearly to marry penniless Venetia and why her aunt is up to her neck in skullduggery.” Then, with a sigh, and a touch less heroism, he added, “Though, truth be told, I don’t know where we’d begin. Mrs. Pike is Venetia’s only relative. Her father and mother are dead. And so is anyone who knew them, it seems.”
Caroline caught her breath. “Oh, Henry! I’ve just remembered. Just before I left home, my maid made mention of Mr. Rothbury, saying she’d been told by another of the servants that Mr. Rothbury’s father had been bailiff to the Playford family. Of course, Mr. Rothbury would have only been a boy—”
“Capital!” With admiration written across his face, Henry dipped his head to kiss Caroline on the lips. “There hasto be something about Venetia that makes Lord Windermere want her, and if Mr. Rothbury can throw any light upon the matter, then we’ve got a start. You never were one to miss an opportunity, my clever girl. We made a fearsome duo when we were children. Imagine how unstoppable we’ll be when we’re married!”
Chapter Sixteen
Caroline was exhaustedby the time she and Henry arrived back in London, yet joy and elation were her primary emotions as she stepped out of the hired carriage and hurried up the front steps to her brother’s home.
They had been delayed by necessity. First by Henry’s insistence that they formulate a proper plan before confronting the web of lies surrounding Venetia, and then by Caroline’s need to change out of her theatrical costume once they had reached Henry’s home and entreated Charlotte’s help in the matter of a change of clothes.
When Caroline had assumed Henry would accompany her to explain matters to Frederick, he had suggested that his presence after so long an absence on Caroline’s part might prove a liability.
“Remember, your mama is likely to be tearing her hair out with anguish and no doubt will have relayed all her fears and suspicions to Frederick. Thanks to my sister, we hopefully will have provided you with an alibi. Charlotte was very ready to say, if asked, that you had spent the night with her, having hurt your ankle after you slipped away to supposedly visit her. My presence will simply muddy the waters.”
Accepting Henry’s wise counsel and buoyed by the fact that during their final hour of planning they had settled upon a strategy to discover Windermere’s motivations, Caroline was notexpecting all hell to break loose the moment she walked through the front door.
“Where have you been these last twenty-four hours, Caroline!” Her brother Frederick emerged from his study before the butler had even closed the front door. “I thought you had grown up, but it appears you are as wayward and thoughtless as you ever were. Do you ever think of anyone other than yourself?” he raged.
“Please, Frederick, I—”
“I don’t have time to hear it! Poor Amelia has been sending discreet notes to anyone who might be able to throw some light on your unconscionable behavior—or should I say disappearance. In her condition, she has better things to worry about than my thoughtless little sister, who thinks only of her own pleasure!”
Caroline’s heart constricted at the accusation. To think that Frederick—who had always been her champion—viewed her as nothing more than a selfish child was almost unbearable. “Please, Frederick, it wasn’t like that at all!” Finally, Caroline managed to interject as she was propelled down the corridor and out of hearing of the servants. “I was trying to help Venetia. A terrible thing happened—she was kidnapped by Lord Windermere, who wants to marry her for reasons unknown.”
“Caroline, are you feverish?” Amelia had appeared in the doorway, shadows under her eyes making her look pale and wan. “Frederick, please don’t shout,” she entreated, running the back of her hand across her forehead before sinking into a seat by the fireplace. “I know you are out of your mind with worry, as we all are, but surely Caroline has some acceptable answer for what has happened.”
