“I met him once,” added Perry. “And there’s a story there.”
“A dubious one, if he’s the DuQuesne I’m thinking of.” Max shifted in his seat.
“It is.” Perry stuck his thumbs in his waistcoat pockets. “Here goes. Many years ago, fortunes were being made—and lost—during the early Napoleonic invasions…Egypt and so on. If you knew the right investment to make at the right time? You won. Louis DuQuesne was rumored to have done just that, although his windfall came from a surprising source…the French.”
“Oh my goodness.” Kitty looked puzzled. “How on earth did that happen?”
“Well I cannot speak to the exact details, but at the time it was believed Mr. Duquesne leaned of Napoleon’s plan to take Egypt before the fleet set sail. He invested heavily in armaments. French armaments. There were agents crossing the channel all the time who could easily have accomplished that for a small fee.”
“But the British won that battle, Sir Peregrine.” Grace shook her head. “Wouldn’t that have meant a loss for DuQuesne?”
“If you put money into theproductionof weapons, Mrs. Chaney, what happens to them after they are installed doesn’t really matter.”
“I see.” She shrugged. “I suppose one could applaud him for taking money from our enemy…”
“One could, and he did. But there was still that taint of association with the French. It lingered. He never really found his way into Society, although he probably could have bought St. James’s and had guineas left over for a nice little country estate. He lurked on the fringes of both Society and some of the less pleasant parts of London. His reputation was not one of gentlemanly affection for his fellow man. Rumor has it he shot a rival to prevent him from purchasing a certain piece of land.”
“Oh dear,” said Grace. “Not a nice man, by the sound of things.”
“Reputation notwithstanding,” Kitty squared her shoulders. “We should speak with him.”
“Sadly, that is impossible,” said Perry. “He died three years ago.”
“So who is behind Kanehall Carriages now? Who took over from DuQuesne upon his death?” Max stared at Perry.
“A certain Mr. Dancey Miller-James.”
