Page 41 of With Good Grace
‘And so the meek, behind the scenes, administrator sees everything but is often overlooked.’ Olivia widened her eyes. ‘Marcus deliberately exploited Miss DuBois.’
‘For a man with his physical attributes it would be the work of a moment to persuade her.’
‘Sounds like Lord Torbay speaks from experience,’ Parker said, winking at Olivia and making her smile.
Jake shook his head. ‘As I was saying, Miss DuBois was fiercely loyal to Madame Céleste, felt her talent was being thwarted because no one would risk backing her moreavant-gardeproductions and wanted to help change that situation.’ Jake shifted his position, leaned one elbow on the arm of his chair and stretched his legs out in front of him, crossing them at the ankle. ‘Your husband flattered her, seduced her, and for the first time in her life she had a priority other than Madame. Needless to say, Miss DuBois was then a slave to Marcus’s every wish.’
‘Poor Miss DuBois.’ Olivia sighed. ‘That was a very wicked thing for Marcus to do.’
‘She believed him when he said they would go off together when he had made enough money for them to live comfortably on, choosing to ignore the inconvenient fact that he already had a wife and child and so could not make an honest woman of her. She was still loyal to him after his death; until I explained what happened on the night Marcus died.’
‘That he took Miss Aspin in my bed.’ Olivia wrinkled her nose. ‘I suppose you had no choice but I feel very sorry that the poor, gullible girl having her illusions shattered.’
‘Therewasno choice, Olivia, but I have often heard it said that it is better to have loved and lost than…well, you understand, I feel sure.’ Jake sent her a significant look. ‘Suffice it to say that she was the one who supplied Marcus with the necessary information to persuade Miss Aspin and the others to join his agency.’
‘What did she have on them?’ Parker asked.
‘What did she not have?’ Jake shot Olivia an apologetic smile and spread his hands. ‘It’s all rather sordid, I’m afraid. Michael Danton, heartthrob and happily married man, actually prefers men.’
Olivia’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Miss DuBois has proof?’
‘Apparently, one disgruntled lover wanted to make their affair public when Danton ended it. Danton had Miss DuBois pay him off and threaten him with dire consequences if he came back for more, or said a word to anyone.’
‘What a thing to have Miss DuBois do!’ Olivia cried indignantly.
‘That’s the theatre for you,’ Parker said wearily.
‘Quite so. Miss DuBois had the foresight to have the man sign a disclaimer, naming both parties, and kept it in her possession.’
‘The quiet ones are always the most dangerous,’ Parker said with a wry twist to his lips.
‘Your friend Miss Aspin—’
‘She is no friend of mine,’ Olivia replied with asperity.
‘She started life in the workhouse as Mary Brown and was convicted for picking pockets when she was a child.’
‘Was she indeed!’ Olivia chuckled. ‘I am sorry she had to live in the workhouse and not surprised that she turned to thievery. That one is a survivor. Still, it is not the worst thing that could have happened to her. You hear such stories about the abuses that go unpunished in those establishments.’
‘Having Danton and Aspin in his stable was sufficient to attract other big names,’ Jake explained.
‘I dare say,’ Olivia replied. ‘But where is the blackmail material now? We have not found it and have run out of places to look.’
‘Miss DuBois either does not know or is not saying.’
‘Which implies that she still holds it.’ A small smile shaped Olivia’s lips. ‘Not such a lamb to the slaughter after all. Perhaps she did not trust Marcus as implicitly as she implied, Jake.’
Jake inclined his head. ‘The same possibility occurred to me.’
‘Do we know why all the actors stayed with Barber?’ Parker asked.
Jake executed an impossibly elegant one-shouldered shrug. ‘It has worked out well for them thus far. Perhaps they prefer not to rock that particular boat, or Miss DuBois wants them to remain where she still has control over which parts they take.’
‘Her loyalty to Madame has not waned,’ Olivia mused. ‘You seem to be right about that.’
‘Aw, lord save us, don’t be telling him he’s right.’ Parker threw up his hands. ‘We’ll never hear the end of it.’
Jake ignored Parker’s frivolous remark and smiled at Olivia instead. ‘I am sorry you have had your worst fears confirmed about the father of your child’s character.’
