Augusta 's hand tightened into a small fist in her lap. "There must be a way."
"It has been my experience that in matters such as this, the best solution is silence."
"But it is not fair," Augusta protested.
"Much of life is not, my dear. On your way out, Augusta, would you please ask Scruggs to have one of the maids bring me my tonic?"
Quite suddenly Augusta's own problems faded into the background. A deep, helpless anguish gripped her. Sally's tonic was brewed from the juice of the opium poppy. The fact that she was calling for it this early in the day meant that the pain was getting worse.
Augusta reached out and took hold of one of Sally's frail hands. She held it very tightly for a while. Neither woman spoke.
After a time Augusta rose and went to tell Scruggs to fetch the tonic.
"I ought to paddle her backside so hard she could not sit a horse for a week. She should be locked up and not allowed out except under guard. The woman is a menace. She is going to make my life a living hell." Harry stalked across Sally's small library, found himself blocked by a bookcase, swung around, and stalked back in the other direction.
"She is going to make your life interesting." Sally sipped her sherry and did not bother to conceal an amused smiled. "Things have a way of happening around Augusta. Quite fascinating, actually."
Harry slammed his hand down on the gray marble mantel over the fireplace. "Quite infuriating, you mean."
"Now, do calm down, Harry. I only told you about the incident because you were demanding to know what was going on and I was afraid you would start making inquiries. When you make inquiries, you generally get answers. So I cut the process short by supplying you with the answers."
"Augusta is going to be my wife. I have a perfect right to know what the devil she's up to at any given time, damn it."
"Yes, well, now you know and you must let that be the end of it. You are not to interfere in this, do you understand? This is a matter of honor for Augusta and she would be most upset if you stepped in and resolved the issue for her."
"Honor? What has honor got to do with this? She was willfully defying me by flirting with Lovejoy and she got herself into serious trouble."
"Augusta is well aware she behaved somewhat recklessly. She does not need any lectures from you. This is a gaming debt, Harry. It must be settled. Allow her to do so in her own way. You would not want to injure her pride, would you?"
"This is intolerable." Harry came to a halt and stood glowering down at his old friend. "I cannot stand by and do nothing. I will deal with Lovejoy myself."
"No."
"A man is responsible for his wife's debts," Harry reminded her.
"Augusta is not yet your wife. Let her handle this. It should be over quite soon and I assure you she has learned her lesson."
"If only I could believe that," Harry muttered. "Damn Lovejoy. He knew what he was doing."
Sally considered that briefly. "Yes, I rather believe he did. And Augusta reasoned that out for herself, by the bye. She is no fool. It was no coincidence that he brought up the subject of her brother just as she was getting ready to quit the table and return to the ballroom. If there was one thing guaranteed to distract her attention, it was the matter of Richard Ballinger's innocence."
Harry drove his fingers through his hair in a distracted motion. "She was apparently quite close to that damned rakehell brother of hers."
"He was all she had left after their parents were killed in the carriage accident. She adored him. She has never stopped believing him innocent of selling his country's secrets and she would give anything to clear the stain on his reputation."
"From all accounts Ballinger was wild and reckless, just like his father." Harry stopped pacing and went to stand in front of the window. It was after midnight and it was raining. He wondered if Augusta was even now paying her gaming debt. "It is entirely possible he got involved in something serious simply because of the promise of adventure. Perhaps he was not aware of the nature of his actions."
"That branch of the Ballinger family has always been a bit reckless, but no one has ever accused any Ballinger of being a traitor. Indeed, Ballingers have always guarded their honor quite fiercely."
"Certain documents were found on his body, I believe?"
"So it is said." Sally paused." 'Twas Augusta who found him, you know. She heard the shot. Sound carries a long distance in the country. She went rushing out into the lane. Richard died in her arms."
"Christ."
"The documents were discovered by the local magistrate who was called in to investigate. Once everyone realized what had been found, Sir Thomas exerted every ounce of influence he had to get the facts suppressed. Obviously he did not have quite enough influence to stop all the rumors. But it has been two years now and most people have forgotten the incident."
"That son of a bitch."
"Who? Lovejoy?" As usual, Sally had no trouble following Harry's chain of thought. "Yes, he is, is he not? There are many like him in Society, Harry. They prey on vulnerable young women. You know that. But Augusta is going to get herself out of this predicament and, as I said, she has most definitely learned her lesson."
"Not bloody likely," Harry said with a resigned sigh. But he had made his decision. "Very well, I shall allow Augusta to repay her debt, collect her vowels, and keep her pride intact."
Sally cocked a brow. "And then?"
"And then I shall have a little chat with Lovejoy myself."
"I rather thought you would. By the way, there is one thing you might like to do for Augusta."
Harry looked at her. "What is that?"
Sally smiled and picked up the velvet pouch that sat on a table beside her chair. She loosened the thong that bound the pouch and allowed the necklace inside to spill out into her hand. Red stones sparkled in her palm. "You might like to retrieve her mother's necklace from pawn."
"You still have the necklace? I thought you sent it out to a jeweler's."
"Augusta does not know it, but I acted as her money-lender." Sally shrugged. "It was the only thing I could do under the circumstances."
"Because you could not bear for her to have to part with the necklace?"
"No, because the thing is not worth a thousand pounds," Sally said bluntly. "It is paste."
"Paste? Are you certain?" Harry crossed the room and plucked the necklace from Sally's hand. He held it up to the light, examining it closely. Sally was right. The red stones sparked attractively but there was no fire in their depths.
"Quite certain. I know jewels, Harry. Poor Augusta thinks the stones in that necklace are real, however, and I would not want her to learn the truth. The thing has great sentimental value to her."
"I know." Harry dropped the necklace back into the pouch. He frowned thoughtfully. "I suppose her brother pawned the real rubies when he bought his commission."
"Not necessarily. The workmanship on those stones is excellent and very old-fashioned. It was probably done many years ago. I suspect the real rubies were sold sometime in the family's past, perhaps two or three generations back. The Northumberland Ballingers have a long history of living on their wits and not much else."
"I see." Harry's hand tightened around the pouch. "So now I owe you a thousand pounds for a string of false rubies and fake diamonds, is that it?"
"Exactly." Sally chuckled. "Oh, Harry, this is all so very delightful. I am enjoying myself immensely."
"I am glad someone is."
6
Augusta, dressed in an emerald green gown with long, matching green gloves and a green plume in her hair, stood frozen in the theater lobby. She stared up at Lovejoy, whom she had just succeeded in cornering. She could not believe what he had just said to her.