Page 42 of Fortune Favors the Frivolous
“And did she say what reason Barnaby had given her?” Caroline could barely contain her agitation. She moved to the window, watching as a carriage rattled past on the street below.
“Only that he promised her five pounds for her performance and assured her it was merely a jest between friends.” Amelia’s expression grew serious as Caroline swung round. “However, I believe she knows more than she’s saying.”
Caroline resumed her pacing. “It’s all connected somehow. We know that. Barnaby’s accusations about Henry’s financial improprieties, this false princess, Lord Windermere’s persistent interest in Venetia, Mrs. Pike’s complicity… but what’s thelink?” She pressed her fingers to her temples, as if the physical pressure might bring clarity to her thoughts.
“Perhaps it’s money.” Amelia adjusted a cushion behind her. “It usually is, in cases like these.”
“But Venetia has none. That’s why her aunt was so desperate to marry her off.”
Amelia raised an eyebrow. “People’s financial situations can be more complex than they appear.”
Caroline stopped abruptly. “So… you are beginning to think what I’ve been suggesting all this time?”
“I certainly believe far more of what youhavebeen saying.” Amelia rose gracefully, smoothing her gown. “But now, as you said yourself, we have to find a motive. In any case, I’ve done as you asked. I found your mysterious lady and confirmed she’s no foreign princess. Now—” She hesitated. “You’ll be at the Masquerade Ball tomorrow night?”
Caroline nodded fiercely. “I need to be wherever Lord Windermere and Barnaby are if I’m to discover what’s… rotten in the state of Denmark.”
Amelia’s burst of laughter transformed her grim expression. “My dear Caroline, your mother would be impressed with your knowledge of Shakespeare.”
Caroline shook her head sadly. “My mother is only interested in my making the most advantageous match. Just like Aunt Pike, only at least I have you and Frederick to look to my interests.” She sighed, her responsibility weighing ever more heavily upon her. “Poor Venetia has only me to protect her.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Venetia sat quietlyat her dressing table as her maid arranged her hair for the ball. In the mirror, she watched her aunt inspecting the gown laid out for the masquerade. Good lord, Venetia had no idea what her aunt had been thinking when she’d directed the dressmaker. For the gown was a confection of bold red silk with black embroidery.
“Lord Windermere is looking forward to seeing you at Lord and Lady Ridgeway’s Masquerade tonight,” Mrs. Pike said, fingering the fabric.
Venetia’s stomach clenched as she glanced up at her aunt, meeting her sharp gaze in the mirror’s reflection. “I thought Mr. Ashworth would be escorting me.”
“Oh, he will be, of course.” Mrs. Pike’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “But Lord Windermere has been so kind, offering his support during this… difficult time. Such a gentleman.”
“A gentleman wouldn’t pursue another man’s betrothed,” Venetia said quietly.
Mrs. Pike’s expression hardened, the lines around her mouth deepening into crevices. “Watch your tone, girl. Lord Windermere has shown remarkable patience with your ingratitude. Mr. Ashworth’s reputation is somewhat tarnished and, unless he can redeem himself, you may find yourself thanking Providence that such a distinguished gentleman as Lord Windermere still shows an interest in you.”
“I would rather remain unmarried.” Venetia lifted her chin slightly.
“That is not an option.” Mrs. Pike’s voice was cold.
Venetia turned to her aunt. “Aunt Pike,” she said, steeling herself to betray no emotion but to sound, rather, businesslike. “I have no dowry. Mr. Ashworth’s offer is a generous one that benefits him nothing other than ensuring honor is maintained after—” she hesitated, “—after you know what happened when the Gascoynes misconstrued matters.” She drew in a shaking breath, afraid that she was going to fail in her bid to show Aunt Pike that she was not a feeble girl whom she could crush so easily. “You know this was after Lord Windermere took me away in his carriage. I tried to tell you what happened. But you have dismissed it. You, who are my guardian? My own mother’s sister?”
Now her voice really was trembling, as was she—from head to toe, like a jelly. Would her aunt really show no shame, no remorse?
It seemed not, for Aunt Pike merely shrugged one shoulder as she continued to finger the silk gown. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Venetia,” she said crisply. “You disappeared the other evening and my considerable alarm was hardly reassured by your return in ignominious circumstances by the Gascoynes before the opportunistic Mr. Ashworth stepped forward, pressured by them to propose. How do you suppose your ingratitude was felt by Lord Windermere who had showered his esteem upon you? Who feels such affection for you that he is prepared to take you without a penny.”
Venetia’s mouth dropped open, her lips parting in shock. “You truly intend to force me—?” She broke off as she sent her aunt a challenging look, daring her to go on. The maid, sensing the tension, quietly stepped back, becoming nearly invisible against the bedroom wall.
“You made your bed, Venetia, now you must lie in it… just like your mother.” Aunt Pike’s voice carried a chill that seemed to freeze the very air between them. A portrait of Venetia’s mother hung on the opposite wall, her painted eyes seeming to watch the scene with silent sorrow.
“And what is that supposed to mean?” Venetia flung back with the most defiance she had shown to date, her hands gripping the edge of her dressing table until her knuckles whitened.
“Your mother was a wanton creature who didn’t know how to resist the lures of a man. And you are just like her!” Her aunt’s face contorted with a bitterness long harbored, like poison finally released after years of festering. The shadows deepened the lines around her mouth, making her appear almost grotesque in her anger.
“What?” exclaimed Venetia. “My mother and my father made a perfectly respectable match. Why, if you want to split hairs, my mother made an excellent match—you have said it before! She married above her, and isn’t that what you aspire to for me? Money and status are everything in your eyes.”
Venetia tried to quiet her outraged breathing, so loud in the silent room.
“I would not normally encourage, much less countenance, such impertinence from you, but since you brought up the subject, you might as well hear the truth.” Aunt Pike took a step forward, her eyes narrowed, her mouth a thin line. “Your mother set her sights on a man far superior, and she made sure he was forced to marry her. Do you not wonder why you have no contact with your father’s family? Why they have shown no interest in you? No? Well, it’s because they were scandalized when their dear son was forced to give up the woman he truly loved in order to marry the one who had trapped him. The one who was carrying his child.”
