“And just how do you plan to disguise yourself?” His mouth curved grimly. “As a tavern wench?”
“Why not?”
“Absolutely not.” He stopped smiling and gave her a narrow-eyed look. “I have absolutely no intention of introducing you to Smiling Jack.”
“But I might need his connections myself one day. Only consider how efficient it would be if we were both able to contact him. It would not be necessary for you to be inconvenienced whenever the need to consult with him arose.”
“Save your breath, Lavinia. There will be no introductions.” He must have noticed her mouth opening again to further her argument, because he immediately raised his hand for silence. “I suggest we get back to business. If you are determined to pursue this new venture, we don’t have time for one of our more spirited discussions.”
“You are attempting to change the subject, sir.”
“Not attempting, madam, I am changing it.”
Much as she disliked admitting it, he was right. They did not have time for a quarrel. She subsided reluctantly, propped her elbows on the desk, and rested her chin on the heels of her palms.
“We could use some assistance,” she mused. “I hesitate to say this, but I feel obliged to point out that this case provides both of us with an ideal opportunity to give our would-be apprentices a taste of this work.”
Tobias came to a halt in front of her desk and met her eyes. Neither of them spoke for a moment, but she was quite certain she knew precisely what he was thinking. This deep sense of responsibility they had each assumed for the younger people who had been left in their care was something they had in common, she thought.
She smiled wryly. “You are no more eager to teach Anthony your trade than I am to instruct Emeline in the business, are you?”
He exhaled deeply. “This is not the career Ann would have chosen for him.”
“But it was never Ann’s decision to make, was it?” she said gently. “It is Anthony’s choice.”
“The same can be said of you and Emeline. Her choice of a profession is not yours to make.”
“I know. It is just that I had hoped to establish her in the sort of life her parents wanted her to have. They naturally wished to see her safely and securely wed.” She frowned. “Although I must admit that the sight of Oscar Pelling on the street the other day was a sad reminder that marriage is not always a safe, secure institution for a woman.”
Tobias fixed her with a steady look. He said nothing.
His unwavering gaze made her uncomfortable for some reason. “Well, that is neither here nor there, is it?” She sat forward determinedly and pushed aside the piece of paper on which she had been making notes for the advertisement she planned to write. She reached for a pen and a fresh sheet of foolscap. “Please sit down, sir. It will be helpful if we outline our plan, will it not?”
“Perhaps.” He sat down across from her. “In addition to determining the identity of the bracelet’s owner, we need to learn more about Celeste Hudson.”
She tapped the tip of the quill against the inkwell. “We can ask Howard some questions.”
“No offense, Lavinia, but I’m not at all certain one could rely upon his answers.”
“Are you implying that he would lie about her? Why would he do that?”
“If he is not a murderer, as you insist, then the best that can be said is that he was blind to his wife’s true nature.”
“You may be right on that last point,” she said, “but he would certainly not be unique, would he?”
“No,” Tobias admitted. “I doubt if most of the men in the ton know their wives any better. And vice versa.”
“How do you propose to learn more about Celeste, in that case?”
He smiled thinly. “I shall do precisely what you suggested one ought to do when one sets about selecting a competent mesmerist or investigator. I shall consult her references.”
“What references?” She suddenly recalled the conversation in the street two days earlier. “Oh, you mean the ones she mentioned in Bath? Lord Gunning and Lord Northampton?”
“Yes.”
“Are you acquainted with them?”
“No. But Crackenburne will no doubt be familiar with them. If he is not, he will know someone who is acquainted with them.”
“That reminds me. You have mentioned Lord Crackenburne on several occasions. He seems to be very useful to you.”
“He knows virtually every gentleman in Society and a sizable number of those who hang around the fringes.”
“I should like to make his acquaintance.” She gave him her sweetest smile. “Surely you can have no objection to introducing me to him. As you just pointed out, he is a gentleman.”
“I have no objection,” Tobias said. “But it is unlikely to happen.”
She stopped smiling. “Why not?”
“Since the death of his wife, Crackenburne hardly ever leaves his club. Which is what makes him so useful, of course. He hears rumors and gossip before anyone else does.”
She glared. “He must go home sometime.”
“Not that I’ve noticed.”
“Really, Tobias, a man cannot live at his club.”
“He can if he wishes. A club is a gentleman’s home away from home.”
“But-”
He glanced pointedly at the tall clock. “I do not believe that we have time for any more digressions, do you?”
She felt her jaw tighten but she knew that he was right. Reluctantly, she returned her attention to the piece of paper in front of her.
“Very well, sir,” she said. “If you insist upon being rude.”
“Of course I insist upon being rude. I have a talent for it.” He sat forward and glanced absently at one of the papers she had moved aside. His eyes narrowed in a faintly puzzled expression.
“What’s this?” he said, reading aloud. “Superior and exclusive services provided to persons of quality who wish to commission private inquiries}”
“Hmm? Oh, yes, I believe I mentioned that I intend to put a notice of my professional services into the papers. I am making a list of striking words and phrases that appear in advertisements.” She reached for the sheet of paper he was examining. “That reminds me, there was a particularly effective bit of writing in this morning’s paper. I had best jot it down before I forget it.”
He frowned at what she had written on the sheet of foolscap. “I thought I made it clear that I do not recommend putting an advertisement in the papers. You will likely attract all sorts of odd clients. In our line we are better off relying upon word of mouth.”
“You are free to operate your business in an old-fashioned manner if you wish, but I am determined to try a more modern approach to obtaining clients. One must do something to attract attention.”
He angled his head to read another line. “Confidential and effective devices for gentlemen of intrigue}’”
She studied the words with a sense of satisfaction. “I thought it had a very attractive ring to it. I especially like the phrase gentlemen of intrigue. It is very… well, intriguing, don’t you think?”
“Very intriguing, indeed.”
“Naturally, I do not wish to imply that I provide services only for gentlemen of intrigue.”
“Naturally.”
“I want to appeal to ladies also. I am thinking of substituting the phrase persons of intrigue.” She paused as another notion occurred to her. “How does this sound? Private and confidential services provided for ladies and gentlemen of intrigue.”
There was an acute silence from the other side of the desk. She looked up sharply. The corner of Tobias’s mouth was twitching. She knew that twitch, she thought. She did not trust it for a moment.