Powder of Sin (25 page)

“The fountain inside is set up and working
beautifully,” the other one said. “Won’t you come see?”

“And the lanterns in the garden. We’ll get that
extra fountain going soon, you’ll see.”

“Of course.” She gave each of the designers a
dazzling smile. “Let me just bid my guest good-bye. Did you order a
carriage, Mr. Reed? You walked?”

Drat. She wasn’t going to abandon him to find his
way to the doorstep after all.

He considered returning under the guise of one of
the workmen, but they were finishing for the day. How long had he
been with Rosalie in the library?

He walked to his quiet, comfortable lodging less
than four blocks away. He’d already made sure Rosalie had his new
address. She could send along a message and summon him. So he would
wait, and he went out only to buy food from a pushcart peddler.

He waited to hear from her, but there was only
silence the rest of that day.

He lay in bed that night, wishing he had been less
passive in the hours after their tryst in the library. He hadn’t
made a move for the simple reason he had no idea what on earth he
should do—or even what he wanted to do. But the silence was
horrible. That had to end.

His instinct was to take charge. Very well; he
would. She would probably kick at that. He smiled at the thought of
how they might argue every time he’d try to assert himself as
master of a situation. The arguments would keep him alert, and
perhaps he’d learn some diplomacy.

He sat down to write a note and didn’t bother to
employ that diplomacy. He simply told her he’d be disguised as a
guest, but he had been serious when he promised to keep her safe.
He was going to turn himself into some sort of guard at this party
of hers. He didn’t think Beels the butler would be enough.

As he was trying to add something to the note about
his deep regard for her that went beyond the admittedly heady lust,
the landlady’s maid told him he had a visitor, and he bounded down
the stairs to find Dr. Leonard waiting for him.

“I have the proper place at last, and dear Miss
Ambermere has sent along the formal contract we agreed to. Shall we
approach her now and retrieve the glandular powder?”

Reed went back upstairs for his pistol and, after a
moment’s hesitation, the irons as well. Perhaps the doctor would
again try to attack Miss Amb—Rosalie.

The doctor gave a low whistle as they approached the
house. “This really does take the cake. I knew she had wealth, but
if she keeps up this kind of entertainment…” He squinted at one of
the men holding up a wreath of roses. “Wonder how many dozens of
flowers are in that?”

The house, set back from the street, had workmen
swarming over the front of it—some setting up rows of torches, some
apparently weaving bunches of roses over the elaborate
banisters.

When they pushed past them to the open front door,
no one met them.

“We’ll just go to the basement, then, shall we?”
Reed beckoned. He and the doctor walked down the hall and through
the bustling kitchen, where they were ignored.

Beels and a footman were near the bottom of the
stairs, counting bottles of wine in several cases.

The butler looked up, shocked. “I didn’t hear the
bell or knocker, sir. I’m so sorry.”

“The door was open, so we walked in.”

Beels was wiping cobwebby hands on an apron, which
he then whipped off and handed to the footman. “I apologize that
you had to find me. Most distressing.”

“We weren’t looking for you,” the doctor said
cheerily. “We have some business here. Down here.”

Reed recalled his manners. “Beels, this is Dr.
Leonard.”

“Yes, sir, we’ve met.”

Reed wondered when, but only said, “Miss Ambermere
is expecting him. And she knows we have something down here to
fetch.”

However, Beels had recovered from his chagrin, so he
resumed his primary role of guard dog and gatekeeper. He herded the
two men up and into the library, the one room barely unaffected by
the party preparation. “You will please wait while I find Miss
Ambermere.” It wasn’t a question.

The doctor wandered to the bookshelves, and Reed
stared at the settee where he and Miss—he and Rosalie had joined
together. The memory of it woke the hunger that lurked in his
body.

No consequences, she’d said.

She hadn’t been telling the truth when she said
there were no consequences, and he’d make certain she understood
how she’d affected him. He’d barely slept the night before, and
when he did, it was to dream of her, naked and on top of him. Such
behavior in a young lady. He grew hard thinking of it.

She stood at the door, and Beels must have told her
who her guests were, for she had a determined look on her face even
before she saw them. The smile wasn’t real, and she didn’t meet
Reed’s eyes. He understood and didn’t grab her and demand a kiss or
a curse from her—but dearly wished he could.

Dr. Leonard had come forward, hands outstretched.
“Miss Ambermere.” The doctor vigorously pumped her hand in both of
his until she pulled hers away, still with the fixed smile. The
only one of her smiles Reed didn’t like.

The doctor held up his fingers and ticked off facts.
“We have the tools in place in my laboratory now. I’ve discovered
independent funding necessary to do any work—academic, I assure
you! So you don’t even need to worry about that aspect of the
business. And I have your contract signed and witnessed.” He pulled
out a sheaf of papers. “Everything is in place for our work to
begin.”

“I’m delighted to hear that,” she said evenly. “I’m
sure Mr. Reed could lead you to the spot where it’s stored?”

She was backing away now, still not looking at
him.

“Of course,” Reed said. “You’re well, I hope?”

“Perfectly.” She glanced at him, and a slow, dull
red filled her face. She was remembering.

He gave her a wide smile, probably a manic grin, so
she couldn’t miss the fact that he was delighted to see her. He
wanted to do whatever he could to make her smile real. She’d said
he scowled too often. Other people had. This was as far from a
frown as he could manage.

Her fixed expression didn’t falter. “I wish I could
offer you refreshment, Doctor, Mr. Reed. But I have a great deal to
do today,” she said. “I hope you’ll excuse me. I-I…” She cast him
one more look, nodded to them both, and then hurried from the
room.

“She looked almost angry. What do you suppose is
going on?” the doctor asked.

“I’m afraid I don’t know,” Reed said and reflected
he knew but needed to discover how to make it better. He’d find a
way too, as soon as he could—though the start of a huge party was
perhaps not the best place to demand they speak of the matter. He
left the room, the doctor on his heels. Beels met them at the
basement door.

“Good morning, sirs. Miss Ambermere says I am to
offer any assistance you might require.”

“We don’t need anything. No, wait. Keep watch up
here, would you, Beels? We’ll go out the lower back entrance. If
anyone expresses interest…” He decided to be honest. “If
anyone—especially Mr. Clermont—expresses interest, I’d be grateful
if you’d neglect to mention our visit.” He slid a few coins into
the butler’s hand.

The butler cleared his throat. “He has visited,
sir.”

“Did he go downstairs?”

“I couldn’t say, sir.”

They thumped down the stairs, and the doctor slid on
thick leather gloves before lifting the hatbox from under the coals
where Reed had hidden it.

“Feels the right weight,” the doctor said, hefting
the box experimentally. Someone was coming down the stairs, and
Reed pointed to the back. They fled out the kitchen door, through
the thick gate, and into the mews.

“I’d feel better if you had your gun ready,” the
doctor said as they walked along the alley.

Reed obliged but didn’t pull it from his jacket
pocket. “You should check to see if it’s in there.”

“Not until I have this in a safe place.”

“The outer wooden box affords protection. You should
stop and look.”

The doctor only sped up.

A hansom waited for them out front. “I hired him for
two hours,” the doctor said after they climbed in. “I thought I’d
have to do the greeting and polite stuff for a while.” He leaned
back in the seat, panting slightly. “Rather sad I didn’t have to,
come to that. She’s straightforward, Miss Ambermere. I think I
admire that in a woman. Very pleasant body too. If only that
ridiculous effect of the powder hadn’t been so obvious that day. I
could have made a better job of my attempt to seduce her.”

“Seduce her? She’s a young lady, not a lightskirt.
And she knows about you and your maid.” Reed wasn’t sure of the
situation in the doctor’s household, but the way the maid had
hovered over the injured doctor that day spoke volumes.

“Yes, that was a mistake too, wasn’t it, telling
Miss Ambermere about that?” The doctor apparently didn’t feel the
waves of hostility emanating from Reed. “I don’t just mean seduce
her for a single episode, though that would have been enjoyable, no
doubt. I should have had my eyes on the ultimate prize. It just
never occurred to me that a young lady like her was interested in
marriage, but I’ve heard she’s considering Wentworth.”

That name again. “Who is he?”

“A worthy. He’s our age, more or less, but acts
about a thousand years old. I’ve met him because he sponsors some
scientific lectures I’ve attended. Same echelon of society as hers.
You see his name everywhere as a patron.”

The doctor lapsed into silence, then said, “Someone
said she’s encouraging Wentworth, but she strikes me as a woman who
won’t allow society to dictate whom she should pick as mate. The
girl has a strong will, but that can be worked around. And I can
see she is addicted to expensive entertainments. Did you hear all
the birds twittering in that place? They’ll all be asleep by the
time the entertainment begins, you know. So much for that silly
expense. Never mind. She has the money, and I don’t mind the
occasional fete. I’d be generous about her parties as long as I
wouldn’t have to go to them all.”

He must have finally paid attention to Reed’s scowl,
because the ridiculous smile faded from his handsome face and he
sighed. “I know, no need to glare at me. I’m only daydreaming.
Can’t sue a fellow for that. That sort of female only marries more
money and status. Why, she didn’t even invite me to that party of
hers, even after I hinted strongly.”

“When?”

“This evening, of course. You saw how the place was
turned upside down.”

“I mean when did you hint?”

“Yesterday evening, when I stopped by to give her a
progress report. She was even more pale. I must say, I do like her
looks, though I’d insist she spend more time in the sun. But I
don’t suppose I have a chance with Miss Ambermere. If I ever had
one, I probably ruined it that first day when the powder affected
me and I tried to engage in intercourse with her too
persistently.”

Reed shifted in the seat, ready to explain the words
attempted rape
to the jackass, when the doctor went on. “My
memories of the day are slightly hazy, but you were there, later
on, of course. What do you think? Any chance I might convince her
to view me as a potential—”

“None,” Reed interrupted. “Believe me. No
chance.”

The doctor sighed. He patted the hatbox. “At least I
have this. It’ll make my name and fortune. Scientifically,” he
added quickly.

At his house, he showed the laboratory to Reed,
who’d seen it only briefly on the two previous visits. The safe was
ready, and the doctor showed him the strange breathing apparatus
he’d wear when working with the powder.

“So this is good-bye, then.” The doctor held out a
hand.

“Not yet. I want to make certain everything’s right
before I go. You need to check.”

The doctor twitched impatiently. “You can go wait in
the sitting room. Mary or Hughes will bring you some tea, and I’ll
be out in a minute.”

He came in a few minutes later, drying his hands.
“It was in there. But there could be a problem. I think…” He
hesitated. “I think some of the powder is missing. It’s at least
ten grams lighter.”

“Damnation.” Reed grabbed his hat. “I’ll send word
if I find the missing amount.”

“It’ll be a very small amount. The powder is dense,
heavy. So that’s probably about the size of, say, half a pea.”

“It doesn’t take much. That would be more than
enough to start an orgy in a graveyard, and you and I both know
it.”

“Oh?” The doctor’s brows went up. “You know it? Are
you saying you’ve been affected by the stuff too? Did you write
down your symptoms? I hope you have. It’s not too late, of course.
You should write down every detail you remember.”

“I have work to do,” Reed said as he headed for the
door. “Once I have that missing powder safe, I promise I’ll write
pages and pages.”

Hawes. He might have taken the damned aphrodisiac.
That would be less disastrous than any other possibility.

He returned to Rosalie’s house to discover that the
coachman had taken Miss Renshaw and Murphy on some sort of errand.
The house was filled with final preparations and was even more
crowded than it had been an hour earlier. He pushed through the
rooms, looking for Rosalie. He had to warn her.

Rosalie was in the larger drawing room, trying to
get the workmen to pay attention to her. Someone called her name,
and when she turned and saw Mr. Reed, she felt her face flush and
her heart beat faster.

“Miss Ambermere, may I speak to you a moment?”

He was so serious, his intensity drew her, and she
forgot all the dratted details of the day and the fact that she was
determined to remain cool near him.

She dropped the red material, and it made a soft
swish as it rolled on the parquet floor. “Yes,” she said
hesitantly. “But first, this problem has to be cleared up.” She
went to the back of the room, where a man in yellow trousers—one of
the decorator’s assistants—was arguing with a maid.