No Place for a Lady Read Free Page B

blunder after this Lord Harris, Penworthy. If my usual contacts cannot discover the culprit's identity, then I shall pay Ballast for the information. The worst Lord Chadwick can do is make the true villain more confident, thinking you have hired a bumbling idiot to chase him."
    "Fantine," said Penworthy, his voice weary and soft, "you are not being helpful."
    "And you are being ridiculous," she answered as she folded her arms. "You cannot think a starched-up popinjay could do more than bungle the entire affair."
    Marcus held back a caustic retort, knowing she was baiting him. He was aware as well that despite the harpy's ramblings, Penworthy knew his true value. Still, he could not resist questioning the other man. "Do you seriously intend to allow her to investigate?"
    Penworthy shrugged. "I know no one better."
    "You know me."
    "You have not said yes."
    Marcus looked down, idly swirling the amber liquid in his glass. "My mother reminds me that when she was my age, her sons were entering Harrow."
    Penworthy nodded. "An excellent school. I made many lifelong friends there."
    Marcus did not respond, knowing that his mentor understood the problem, but was too polite to comment. The difficulty, of course, was that his mother wanted grandchildren. And his father wished Marcus would do his duty to continue the family name. That meant finding a wife and setting up his nursery, not embroiling himself in another sordid drama, especially one that might endanger his life, limb, and ability to procreate.
    Then his eyes chanced to fall on Fantine's shapely leg. Her gown was in tatters, artfully designed to advertise her attributes without showing too much. She was clearly canny at her trade, whether actress or whore, and Penworthy would not put his faith in her for no reason. If she were remotely competent, he could refuse Penworthy with good conscience.
    But the thought of William Wilberforce, a name synonymous with Christian piety, placing his life in her soiled hands frankly turned his stomach. At best, her blundering about would cause countless political embarrassments. At worst, she would expose herself to the villain.
    The risks to Wilberforce and the nation aside, he could not allow her to take on the task. She would be killed within a week.
    "Very well," he said. "I shall do it."
    "Excellent," cried Penworthy, not nearly loud enough to drown out Fantine's groan. Then he returned to his desk, as if dismissing the entire matter from his mind. "I trust the two of you will not kill each other while coordinating your activities?"
    Marcus looked up abruptly. "Coordinate? You cannot mean she will continue."
    "Of course I shall continue!" she snapped. "I am your only hope of remaining alive." Then she was once again on her feet, stepping directly up to his friend. "Penworthy, please do not be a fool in this. He is a lord and an MP," she said, gesturing toward Marcus. "Surely he has someone who cares for him. His mother, if no one else. Do not put him into a situation he cannot handle. It is too dangerous."
    It was some moments before Marcus understood she referred to him, and another moment before he realized that Penworthy appeared to be seriously considering her words.
    It was too much, the perfect coup de grace on a ruined afternoon. It was bad enough to be insulted, harangued, and mocked by an actress who could not decide whether she was a strumpet or a lady, but to finally circumvent his principles in the interest of saving a cheap bawd only to have Penworthy think of pulling him off... It was insupportable!
    "Penworthy," he said, setting down his glass with a click. "I will not work with her. I will not speak with her. In fact, I heartily intend never to look upon her again. Do not even think I shall budge on this."
    "And I," she said, matching his bearing with her own arrogance, "will not risk either Wilberforce or myself with him strutting about!"
    Her cry echoed through the room, but it did nothing to diminish his own position.