The Archduke raised a finger in silent command, his expression one of long-suffering amusement.
Drimmel nudged her. “Go.”
Her heart leapt. She seized her brush and shovel and stepped into the glittering room.
She knelt and began sweeping the shards.
Her hands trembled slightly as she gathered the glass into the pail, wiped up the spill and sprinkled salt on the red stain on the carpet. She pointedly avoided looking in the Archduke’s direction. Then, as quietly as she had come, she rose and withdrew to the antechamber.
There, she drew an unsteady breath. That had gone well. The others had not seen her. Not truly.
Not even Castlereagh had looked her way. If he had, he might have recognised her, the girl who had spied on him some weeks before. They had all ignored her.
All except one. One pair of eyes had followed her every movement, and she could feel them on her until she withdrew to the antechamber.
After all theguests finally left, it was well past two in the morning. She was barely awake, sleeping on her feet.
Drimmel nodded to her. “Very well, I can finish up. You may turn in for the night.”
She made her way down the corridor toward theservants’ staircase when a softly lisping voice stopped her. “Miss Philippa Cranwell. If I may have a word.”
She blinked and turned. “Yes?”
“Ah.” Standing in the middle of the corridor, with his quizzing glass dangling from his fingers and an enigmatic smile playing about his lips, was Prince Metternich.
“So you really are Miss Philippa Cranwell.” He looked immensely pleased at having caught her.
It took Pippa one horrifying moment before she realised she’d reacted to her real name.
“Oh no. It is Anna Braun,” she began, then realised it was an exercise in futility. Her shoulders slumped.
He stepped closer, one, two steps, a gleam of curiosity in his pale eyes. “We are well beyond that deception, yes? I believe it was August who gave you that utterly unoriginal name. He is a splendid fellow otherwise, and very loyal, but rather uncreative when it comes to these things.”
Dangle, dangle, the quizzing glass moved back and forth like a pendulum.
She moistened her lips and did not know what to reply.
“I understand he recruited you on the agreement that you would supply us with, err, intelligence. I believe you have done so rather more diligently than would have been necessary. The secret police has forwarded me some of your reports.”
Pippa blinked at him. “You remember what I wrote in those reports?”
“My dear child, I remember absolutely everything I read in every single report.”
“You read every single report personally?” But he must have hundreds of agents spread throughout Vienna, who supplied him with thousands of reports. Daily.
He smiled, pleased. “Indeed. I read every report personally. Your reports have been interesting, shall we say? And if I may add, rather verbose.”
Pippa racked her brain to remember what she’d written in her last report. Her nose wrinkled.
“In the secret meeting Lord Castlereagh had with the Duke of Aldingbourne in Archduke Leopold’s quarters,” he cited, “Castlereagh wore a wine-coloured waistcoat and a light blue coat, with golden cuffs, and Aldingbourne a dark blue coat, light breeches, silken stockings and buckled shoes.” He paused. “Followed by an elaborate description of the diamond-studded buckle that took up at least a paragraph.”
Pippa clasped her hands behind her. “Well. Yes. So I did.”
“Followed by a curt, one-sentence summary, I quote, ‘They talked about matters pertaining to the congress.’” The dangling stopped. “My dear Miss Cranwell,” he sighed. “Really?”
Pippa flushed.
“Then, if I recall correctly, you followed up with a list of rather interesting observations, like Hardenberg having a hole in his left stocking; that Lord Steward’s neckcloth was vermilion-striped with rose and tied in the mathematical style, though it was incorrectly tied, followed by a perplexing mathematical equation proving why such a conclusion was correct. Rounding it all up with the observation that he seemed to have forgotten to shave becausehe had a stubble on his chin. Profound observations, Miss Cranwell. Profound.”
