Page 44 of Murder in Matrimony
Kitty must have come to the realization at the same time, for a small cry escaped her lips. “This means—it cannot be!”
“It is true. Lady Hamsted knows I am Lady Agony.” Amelia thought back to the theft at the Hamsteds’ house. “Only think of it. The day the ruby was taken, six people were present, six people concerned with its return: you, Oliver, Simon, the Hamsteds, and me. No one else at the musical was aware of its theft. With only six choices, Lady Hamsted could easily narrow it down to the two women in the group. Lady Agony is obviously a woman, some of the advice perhaps beyond the reach of a man. She knows you like a daughter and believes you are too good to dissemble. But me? She does not know me well, and what she does know proves I am an outsider. Just the sort of woman who could pen such a column.”
“What of Lady Tabitha?” asked Kitty, her voice agitated. “Lady Hamsted wouldn’t want to be in her bad favor. She is the doyenne of high society, and if anyone was to speak ill of you, she would be the first to come to your defense.”
“Which is perhaps why Lady Hamsted has gone to some length to disguise herself.” Amelia tapped her chin. “The handwriting. The hansom cab.”
“She really ought not to have been so careless as to drop her handkerchief, then. She never imagined you’d find it, I am sure, and even if you did, I would be the only person who could identify it.” Kitty clenched her fists in her lap. “Though as for that, she wouldn’t assume you shared your secret identity with me. She has no close friendships like ours. Her friends are limited to those who call between the hours of one and three. As if we would limit ourselves to such restrictions!”
“No, we wouldn’t, and I’m sorry for her. Everyone should have a friend as dear as you.” Amelia smiled, endeared to Kitty by her response. They were as close as two people could be. They did not keep calling hours, and they certainly didn’t keep secrets. She had been the first person to reach out to Amelia when she moved to Mayfair. When Edgar was ill, she forced Amelia to rest, taking her place at his bedside. As Winifred grew older, and Amelia had concerns, Kitty listened to them as any mother might, despite not being a mother herself. Andwhen a letter arrived for Lady Agony with which Amelia needed help, she was at her side, asking what she could do. Now, in what might prove to be Amelia’s last act as an agony authoress, Kitty was here.
Again.
“One thing is certain.” Amelia considered the positives of obtaining the information. “The day was so blustery that she cannot imagine I saw, let alone found, the handkerchief. That gives us a slight advantage of surprise.”
“Still, what are we going todo?”
“I confess I don’t know.” Amelia was at a loss. Any suggestion that came to her she immediately dismissed. The only way to save herself was to print Lord Drake’s name, and she refused to do that. She could confront Lady Hamsted herself, but that would only confirm her identity. No solution seemed viable. Any she considered would hurt someone she loved.
They sat that way for several moments, the carriage bumping along the London streets, echoing the difficulties forming in Amelia’s head. If Lord Drake came forward, his reputation would be tarnished forever, and he had enough problems with his ill father and crumbling Cornwall estate. She could imagine the angst he would face if he was known to be the thief who terrorized Mayfair this summer. A way must exist to fix this, satisfactory to all parties involved, but for the life of her, she could not come to a single conclusion.
Then she noted a small twitch on Kitty’s lips which eventually rose to a smile. “What? What is it?”
“I have it. I have the solution.”
Amelia waited.
“We shall tell Oliver you are Lady Agony.” Kitty revealed the idea with excitement.
“What? Kitty, no.” Amelia couldn’t comprehend why Kitty would think such an idea was viable or helpful. In fact, it would only compound the problem. If Oliver knew she was Lady Agony, he would never allow them to spend time together. As it was, he was suspicious when Kitty was injured in her company. Once, he’d asked her outright if she was two people: one a countess and one a harbinger of hazard. She had laughed offthe accusation, but he hadn’t realized then how close he had been to the truth. Now Kitty wanted to tell him.Gracious no!
“We must. It is the only way. If he knows of the problem, he will be able to speak of it to his mother. Imagine.” Kitty spread out her hands as if to calm the noise in Amelia’s head. “There is no one in the world Lady Hamsted loves as much as her son. If he asked her to, she would forget the entire debacle.”
“Think of it, Kitty.” Amelia couldn’t keep the dismay out of her voice. “We would never be able to go out again for the sake of a letter. Oliver already thinks me reckless. Now he will have a reason.”
She held up a single finger. “Precisely. Oliver is not an unfeeling man. He is reasonable and just. If he sees the objective to our outings, he will be more agreeable, not less.”
“Love makes you blind.” Amelia shook her head. “He will put an end to them forever.”
“He won’t. I wouldn’t suggest it if he would.” She touched Amelia’s chin, which had dipped low, and lifted it. “Trust me. He believes women’s voices are valuable and has done much in terms of his own research to interject them. He is not one of these tyrants who believes women should stay in their place. He might even be pleased with the news.”
Amelia agreed he was amiable as far as women’s independence was concerned, but where that independence involved Kitty, she wasn’t as certain. He could imagine no harm coming to her, and harm was possible, albeit unlikely, when they set off to find the truth of a letter. But would he ban their friendship if he knew her true identity?
It was a question they would soon find the answer to when they joined him in the drawing room. There he sat staring atThe Times, his glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose, hardly noting their arrival, except to say, “Can you believe this, darling? A prospectus has appeared for The United Kingdom Telegraph Company. Its object is to convey messages at a low and uniform rate no matter the distance. Remarkable.” When Kitty didn’t answer, he looked up from the paper and started. “Lady Amesbury. I didn’t expect you for a visit.” He folded his paper. “I apologize.”
“Good afternoon,” replied Amelia. “No apology necessary.”
Looking from Amelia to Kitty, Oliver took off his spectacles, placing them on top of the newspaper. He was observant to a fault, the consummate scholar, and suspected trouble at once. “I trust nothing is the matter?”
“To come to the point, we need to speak with you on a topic of grave importance.” Kitty sat on the settee. “If now is a good time.”
“Why, of course it is. Any time. You know that, dearest.” He joined her on the settee, searching her face for clues.
“It has to do with Lady Amesbury.” Kitty indicated her direction.
Amelia nodded solemnly from the striped, high-backed chair.
“Most things of grave concern involve Lady Amesbury.” He smiled but dropped the smile immediately when he saw Kitty’s reaction. “Is it that bad?”
