Sophia scanned for the addressee, hoping the alliterative solicitors would catch her eye. And to her utter shock—shesaw it.
There, just beyond Caroline’s right hand, was a tidy square with a golden-brown wax seal somewhat messily applied. And there were the names they sought: Thompson and Tiddlethwaite.
Sophia cleared her throat and when Lady Marston glanced up, Sophia gazed with all her might at the offending letter.
That lady scooped up a careless handful of papers and packages, including the offending one, and set them at her left elbow. She sifted them casually until one fell in her lap. It was quickly done, and Sophia was reluctantly impressed. Maybe Sophia’s own skills as a pickpocket, which she had honed as a foolish seventeen-year-old, were actually inherited from her mother. Lady Marston continued to sort through the pile, which was diminishing.
The time had come for the necklace to be found, and Sir Mark scooped up one of the bags and palpitated it as if it were a beating heart. The necklace slide from his sleeve and into his hand as he loosened the strings.
“Here! I say, look, look!” He held up the necklace by one end, allowing its purple splendor to shine in the light of the lamps. “Here it is! The blighter shoved it into this bag.”
Smythe’s shoulders slumped in relief. He took the small pouch and cinched it up tightly again. “Yes, sir, you are right! Very good, very good. Do, all of you, leave the pile here, andIwill repack the bags.” There was sweat on his forehead despite the damp chill of the room. He wiped his forehead with relief. “Thank the good Lord,” he murmured, “that’s a’done do.”
“And one more crime to lay at Mr. Belvedere’s door,” said Caroline meditatively. “It seems to me odd that he would take such a risk if he already possessed the counterfeited bonds. And he must’ve known the theft would put us all on alert!”
“One can’t understand the mind of a foolish knave like that,” sighed Sir Mark. “Greed—it undoes a man.”
“I suppose so.” Caroline’s brow was still furrowed.
“I shall certainly relay this matter to the officers when I convey him to the consulate,” the captain assured Lady Marston. “You may press charges, although it will take some time for him to be sent back to London. And it is possible the Company will want first dibs on him—the East India Company is a force unto itself. But I shouldn’t wonder, with both these charges, if it isn’t Newgate for him! He might get deportation for one or t’other—but this together? No.”
“I certainlyshallpress charges,” said Lady Marston, plucking the necklace from her husband’s fingers. “I thank you all, and you, Captain Smythe, for your help.”
“Absolutely, ma’am. And I trust no complaint need be lodged with the Post Office—? You have your property back, and you can attest that I have done everything in my power to rectify matters.”
“Yes, certainly, Captain,” said Lady Marston. “Particularly as my own party was—er—not exactly innocent. Orhelpful.” She looked darkly at Sophia.
“Ma’am—”
“No, not another word. You have been foolish, but I know youthisfoolish. Captain, I thank you. I shall sleep easy tonight.”
21
Sophia did not sleep easy. In fact, she barely closed her eyes at all. Like the proverbial sluggard, she turned back and forth like a hinged door on her bed. Only it was not laziness that afflicted her, but guilt.
Her sheets were damp and unpleasant because it was a warm, humid night. She threw her covers off and then pulled them back, unable to get more than a moment or two of rest.
A sleepless night, full of most painful cogitations, regrets, and even prayers, rendered Sophia haggard and ill in the morning. There were bruised circles under her eyes, and in her small looking-glass, her lips were almost bloodless.
She had been so relieved when she received a letter from Lady Marston two months ago.
Dear Mrs. Scott,it had read, clearly stating the terms on which they would relate to one another,I find myself in need of a companion on a Journey of some months. I have heard that your late husband left you in Dire Straits, and I am willing to offer you employment. It should be understood that you will drop all acquaintances of the past years if you join me, and in return I will not require references. If our agreement issatisfactory, I will pay Twenty-Five pounds per Annum. Wait on me at Grillon’s Hotel, Friday, April 21.
Sophia had done so, and that interview had shocked her, for what Lady Marston needed was not a companion at all. She wanted an accomplice; a thief; a failsafe. But she had promised Sophia a handsome sum from Sir Mark’s inheritance, as well as a reference to help her gain other genteel employment. She could leave her sordid life behind.
And in return, Sophia would find and destroy one problematic letter, as well as doing anything else Lady Marston or Sir Mark required. Sophia had never dreamed Lady Marston would go so far as to kill a noisy pet, or worse, to set up an innocent man for the hangman’s noose.
All night Sophia had wracked her brain for a solution in which both she and Mr. Belvedere went free, and she could not find one. She was a good member of the Church of England—she was not one of those radical Methodists or mystic Quakers—but she prayed fora sign.She knew she ought to confess, but she could not quite bring herself to do it—the fear, the shame, the rage of Lady Marston…!
She simply must have a sign, and if she did, shewouldcome up to scratch.
Lisbon came in sight at midday, and all afternoon she and the other passengers—sansMr. Belvedere—stayed on deck to watch their slow approach to the Port of Lisbon. Other frigates, schooners, sloops, and brigs were also to be seen in the bay.
Those leaving the port had a favorable wind, but theLady Maryand the other ships entering it had to approach against that same wind. Captain Smythe decided it must be anchor-hauling, and so he dispatched two men in the dinghy to carry the anchor on ahead of them. When they dropped it, several men operated the large winch on deck, a giant wheel, which slowlydrew the anchor toward them but also drew the ship toward the anchor.
The Port of Lisbon was in the mouth of the Tagus river, Captain Wentworth explained, and one of the prime stops for many before the Atlantic crossing. Large, loud sea gulls and even several cormorants landed on the upper spars as they came in. The noise of out-going ships, raucous birds, and distant shouts felt loud and unusual after even a few weeks at sea. Anne and Caroline used parasols to protect themselves from the bright coastal sunshine.
Sophia could not enjoy it. When Lady Marston went down because she was “tired of the glare,” she drew Sophia with her quite firmly. In the dining room, with Mr. Belvedere’s silent locked door a visible reproach, Lady Marston gave Sophia’s arm a little shake. “Don’t even think about doing something stupid. We are almost there. Now, can I trust you to pack your own things, or must I keep you with me like a naughty child?”
