Perdita (13 page)

"They weren’t bought with
your
money.”

“I am perfectly sure you talked that greenhead of an Alton into footing your recent bills. Really, the outfit on April . . ." He shook his head in consternation.

“If I could get five hundred pounds, would you leave?” I asked. It was coming to seem five hundred pounds was not too steep a price to pay to be rid of this persistent rake. Had I had such a sum in my possession, I would have given it to him, but of course I had not. “Perhaps John can arrange something.”

"John,
is it? Very chummy. I am somewhat confused about the relationship existing between the three of you. Is it possible he is
your
lover? He don’t seem jealous enough of April to be hers.”

“Jealous? Of course he is not jealous! He came here to offer for Miss Grifford. And he is not my lover, either; he is only a greenhead of a boy.”

He looked unconvinced. “True, but some greenheads prefer older women. You are hardly long in the tooth yet. I am surprised you have forsaken your prime calling so early in life. I assume you started out like April.”

“Assumptions like that about a decent woman can get you into a deal of trouble, sir. If you don’t stop pestering us, I’ll . . ."

His lips stretched into a slow, lazy smile. “I am perched on the edge of my chair. What dire fate impends?”

“I would like to whip you.”

“I am not much given to violence myself. I leave it to the lower orders. Nor do I like shows of ill-bred manners in polite company, either. We shall talk again,
very
soon,
very
privately, Molly. I am off to join the dancers. I hear a fiddle scraping, and the hammering of an out-of-tune pianoforte. It must quite take you back to Tuck’s. Is April to perform for the company tonight?”

I was too overwrought to reply to this taunt. I let him go to the dancing room, though I intended following very soon. A local fellow, Mr. Leveson, came forward and asked me if I would care to dance, giving me an excellent opportunity to do so.

There was a country dance forming lines down the two sides of a room that was too small to hold the party properly. John stood at the head with Millicent Grifford opposite him. Halfway down was Perdita with one of the squire’s sons, the handsomer one. Stornaway was leading the squire’s daughter into the set, and I stood at the end with my partner. Leveson was a mature, sensible-seeming man of provincial accent, but good manners.

I enjoyed the remainder of the evening about as much as anyone enjoys a visit to the tooth drawer. Perdita behaved in a rowdy, loud fashion she had never followed at home. I don’t know whether it was her being amongst strangers that accounted for it, or her recent experience with the actresses, or whether Stornaway in some inexplicable way goaded her on. I know he was at her side as often as he could be, and she was worse when she was with him. He fed her a good deal of wine too, more than she was accustomed to. Over all, I suppose it was having a whole bunch of gentlemen to lord it over that set her up in her own conceit, that and the absence of her father, who could always tame her with a single glance.

On top of worrying about her making a show of herself, I kept a sharp eye peeled to see if Stornaway accosted John, whom he certainly watched like a hawk, as I did myself. I used the excuse of a waltz to have some privacy with John.

"Damme, I don’t want to waltz with you, Moira! Millicent won’t be jealous of an old crow like you.”

“Never mind that. We must talk. Has Stornaway said anything to you?”

“Yes, he asked me if I had given up all thoughts of being a member of the FHC, after being rigged out with the outfit,” he answered with a dismal frown. “He is going to have me kicked out, and it is all Perdie’s fault. I
told
him I ain’t a bit interested in her, and the cretin took into his head I favor
you.
Begins to look as though the fellow has a couple of tiles loose. He wants to talk to me tonight, in my room.”

“He might ask you for five hundred pounds. I don’t suppose you happen to have five hundred you could spare, John? I begin to think it is the easiest way to be rid of him.”

“Yes, the easiest way for
you!
Where the deuce would I get a monkey? Can’t ask Papa for it. Already let me trade my grays in on the bays, and outfitted me for the FHC. I’ll never get to wear my striped waistcoat, and the dotted tie.”

“We must leave here as soon as possible. Tomorrow morning.”

“Dash it, I can’t leave tomorrow. It is Millie’s birthday. That is what they are using for an excuse for this party, her birthday. They ain’t mentioning it’s her twenty-third, so don’t twit her about it. They don’t want to admit she’s so ancient. I must stay, and you will have to stay, too, for you can’t strike out on the roads alone with Stornaway on the loose. We’ll leave the next morning. Tony is leaving then. I’ll decide tomorrow whether or not to offer for Millie.”

“Are you really thinking of marrying her?”

“What’s the matter with her?” he asked, so hotly that I understood it was only pique that Tony had beat him to it that prevented his speaking tonight.

“Nothing. She is very nice. I like her.”

“Had the sense to send Tony off with a flea in his silly ear, at least. You’ll have to keep a tight rein on Perdie tomorrow, keep her out from under my feet. Millie don’t trust her above half. Lord, as though I would ever care for Perdie Brodie, the hussy.”

John was certainly enjoying his last evening as a bachelor, or experiencing it; he had little enjoyment, to judge by his frowns. It was a great pity he had to choose this time to become entangled, but that is unfair. The pity was that
we
should have intruded our problems on him at such a time.

A supper was served after the dancing interval. Stornaway was at Perdita’s side, with a squire’s son at her other side, and equally attentive. John sat with Millicent, while I had the pleasure of Mr. Leveson’s escort, which saved me from the ignominy of eating with the oldsters. There was talk of the morrow's activities. The Griffords were having a picnic at the seashore in the afternoon, with a birthday dinner and dance in the evening. I expect their hope was to announce their daughter’s engagement as well. As I observed Perdita juggling her two beaux in loud glee, with Stornaway casting furtive and troublesome glances from John to myself between smiles at her, as I considered the rake’s firm declaration that he did not mean to leave without either the girl or his money, and that we had not the money, I was in some doubt as to smooth sailing through the next day and evening.

Chapter Eleven

I rather expected to see John come to breakfast the next morning with a black eye, or a bent nose, from Stornaway’s threatened late night visit. The reason he did not was soon explained. “With all the extra company landed in on them—you and Perdie and Stornaway—the Griffords asked me to share my room with Tony Hall. They
had
put me in the best guest suite in the place, can’t imagine why. Millie was out-of-reason cross when I had to be moved, but a lord after all, they could not stable him with that yahoo of a Tony Hall. Stornaway got my suite. Tony tells me there was a rare dust-up when someone busted into old Mrs. Peachum’s room and found her unplugging her false teeth and untying her stays. It was certainly Stornaway, looking for me.”

It was delightful to envisage Stornaway pouncing in on an unsuspecting widow, in mid-toilette. Before the image faded from my mind, we had the rake-lord in person to observe. He came to the table at nine o’clock, immaculately garbed, shaved, combed, and so on. His elegance made one acutely aware of the plain provincial jackets of most, and the foppish raiment of the temporary citified bucks such as John. The noble guest made a bow, expressed a few pleasantries about the felicity of the weather remaining good for the planned picnic, then began looking around the table to select a place. He was soon advancing to that end where John and I sat conversing. Alton was not tardy to arise and begin making his excuses to leave.

“I am to meet Millicent for a ride this morning,” he mentioned.

"You won’t forget to leave a half hour free for
me,
Mr. Alton?” Stornaway asked, in a seemingly polite tone, but when one knew what to look for, the menace beneath was not hard to find.

“Oh, certainly. I want to talk to you again about the FHC.”

“I want to talk to you about a different matter. Shall we say—half an hour before luncheon, in the saloon?”

“Fine, I’ll be there.”

“Don’t disappoint me.” Then he turned his dark eyes to me. “I hope you slept well, Molly?”

“My name is Miss Greenwood. I slept very well, thank you.”

“I am so happy to hear it, Molly. April as well enjoyed a good night’s rest? I don’t want the girl looking hagged.”

“Miss Brodie enjoyed a good night’s rest.”

“What time can we expect her to arise?”

“She arises when she feels like it. Apparently she does not feel like it yet.”

“I can wait. I am taking her for a drive in my curricle this morning.”

“The three of us will be squeezed, milord. Don’t think you are taking her alone anywhere, for you are not.”

“I never object to being squeezed by women. I consider it one of life’s little joys.” We fell silent while his breakfast was served. When the servant left, he continued. "Alton hid on me last night, making it impossible for me to come to terms with him. But I begin to realize it is yourself who is in charge of business matters for the group. Have you spoken to him?”

“Yes, and he does not have five hundred pounds to spare, so you might as well go away and leave us alone.” The table was only half full, but we were sufficiently far away from the others that a private exchange was possible. For some reason, I preferred to hold our discussion within shouting distance of help.

"Recouping my money was really second choice. I would rather have April. In fact, to show my good will in this matter, I am willing to give you Daugherty’s portion of the finder’s fee as well, the half a thousand pounds I beat out of him. Actually four-fifty; he had spent some. Deliver April to me—say, at the edge of the village this afternoon. I shall leave with her, and you will not be bothered by me again.”

"What do you want with her?”

“What do you think?”

“She is only a
child!”

“I have not the least aversion to youth, provided it is accompanied by beauty. In fact, I am strange enough to prefer it.”

“Can you not even
consider
that she might be an innocent girl?”

“I
did
consider it, for all of sixty seconds, ma’am, and decided in the negative. She is so vulgar I question at times whether I even want her, but she is young enough yet to be trained properly. Not to disparage your efforts in that direction. I am sure you have improved her out of all recognition of her origins. It will be for me to apply the finishing luster only. Sharp as you are, Molly, one cannot expect a female of your sort to know the fine details pertaining to passing oneself off as a lady.”

"It is truly astonishing to me that a gentleman born into a noble family, with all the advantages of education, wealth, and perhaps even a
little
of native intelligence, should waste his time in such a degrading fashion. Can you find nothing better to do with your time and money than to squander them on the pursuit of fallen women?”

"I have several equally worthy avocations. I gamble, race horses, box, drive up to the bit, dance quite superbly. I shall give you a sample of the last named this evening, if the occasion should arise.”

"I shall take very good care that it does not.”

"C'est à vous
. I speak French too. I must give April lessons.”

"I wish you luck of that endeavor.”

"What, have you tried?” He set his head back and laughed loud enough that the other heads at the table turned towards us. "Good God, I would like to have seen it; the one-eyed leading the blind. As you are so ambitious for her, you ought really to welcome me, you know. I mean to turn her out in the first style.”

"No milord, in the Stornaway style, which I am convinced is well removed from the first style of anything but dissipation.”

"I am not a pervert after all! You won’t do better for her than me. I am quite an adept at pleasing a woman. I am not hard to get along with, am generous and considerate.”

"A pattern-card of polite behavior. You are ready to do everything for a girl but marry her. Excuse me, for some unaccountable reason, I have lost my appetite, but it would not do to suggest you have turned my stomach, milord.”

He arose and helped me from my chair. There was a self-conscious, almost an embarrassed look on his face. "I don’t need any help,” I said curtly.

“You are singularly able to handle your tongue certainly, but a
lady
usually accepts assistance in managing her chair. A tip for you, Molly.”

I glared hard at him, then strode upstairs to awaken Perdita.

When I went to her room, she was gone. The bed was unmade, had been slept in. Her evening gown was thrown over the dresser. Her pelisse and reticule were missing. She had left, sneaked out. There had been no response when I knocked on her door before going downstairs. Thinking she slept, and that asleep in her bed was the least troublesome place for her, I had not entered. She had not come down while I was at the table. She must have been gone already when I knocked, close to three-quarters of an hour before. I felt a tide of panic well up in me. John—I must see John!

My hope was that he had not yet gone to the stable with Millie. I encountered Mrs. Grifford in the hall belowstairs. “I don’t suppose you have seen Miss Brodie?” I asked, trying to keep the excitement from my voice.

“To be sure I saw her before the gentlemen came to pick her up,” she answered in a tone of sweet reason.

“Gentlemen?” I trembled inwardly at the awful plural sound of it. How many gentlemen had she set up an assignation with?

“The Manners fellows, Lou and Bob. They are taking her for a spin into the village, Miss Greenwood. You cannot mean she has not your permission? Had I thought it for a moment, I would have had you called.”