“He has no food at his house,” Violet said.
Elizabeth opened her mouth, but her husband squeezed her arm.“Before this one starts asking more questions, perhaps I could be introduced?”
“This is Violet Sommerset.Violet, this is my friend and business partner, Matthew Reeves.And I guess you know his wife, Elizabeth?”Rhys made the introduction.
“Yes,” Violet said.“She has been very kind to me on a couple of occasions.It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lord Griffen.”
Matthew grimaced.“I tell you what, I won’t call you Lady Sommerset if you don’t call me Lord Griffen.Deal?”
Violet smiled.“Deal.”
Elizabeth slid into a chair across from her.“How are you?We heard about your husband.”
Rhys took her hand under the table and gave it a squeeze.
“As my mother said to me, fate has given me a boon.”Violet glanced over at the other table, but the dancing girls were clearing their plates and moving to set them on the far counter by the sink.Relieved, she spoke more candidly.“The night it happened was a nightmare.And I feel guilty, but I am relieved that he is dead.My father-in-law will continue to take care of me until he finds out if the baby is a boy.I have begun to hope that it is a girl so that I do not have to be tied to the duke for the rest of my life.”
Elizabeth frowned.“I can understand that.Matthew asked me to look into the duke’s dealings.Are you still interested?”
Rhys leaned forward.“Yes, I still have a promise to keep concerning the Duke of Lavensham.”
“Well, I found out that he has been entering dogs to fight at Red’s Tavern, which is despicable.He has been seen in the audience at these fights.Though my source said he is very reserved and sits in the back with a couple of other toffs.”
“It’s probably the new popular diversion for the ton, slumming it at the dogfights.Just another way to wager,” Matthew sneered.
“The other piece of information I was told is purely gossip, but based on what we know about your late husband’s behavior, I found it to be alarming if it is true.I was told that in the last ten years, all of the duke’s mistresses have died.Five in total.”
“What?”Violet gasped.
“Each in a different way.All suspicious but plausible causes of death.One drowned in the bath; one slit her wrists, with her death deemed a suicide; and one was strangled by a supposed intruder.Anyway, this pattern is certainly frightening.”
“Where did you get this information from?”Rhys asked.
Elizabeth arched an eyebrow.
“I’m impressed,” Rhys said.“Just curious how you always find out this kind of gossip.”
A small smile played around Elizabeth’s mouth.“I have many sources, but in this case, my grandmother’s lady’s maid was a fountain of information.She pays attention and enjoys telling what she finds out.”
Rhys frowned.“I wonder who his current mistress is?”
“I know,” Violet said.“Lady Awbrey.She is a widow who lives over in Portman Square.She has been under the duke’s protection since last summer.She often entertains with him because she knows everyone in society, as her late husband was the Earl of Awbrey.But come to think of it, I haven’t seen her in several weeks.I wonder if they have broken it off.”She exchanged a look with Rhys, and his frown deepened.“What are you thinking?”
“Nothing.Just something I missed in all this.”His frown stayed in place.
“How’s the leg?”Matthew asked him.
“Oh, fine.”Rhys waved a hand dismissively.
Violet turned to Rhys with alarm.“Oh dear, I didn’t even think of it.”She had sat on his lap and probably pressed on his wound.“I didn’t hurt you, did I?”she said in a low voice.
“No, sugar.”He pressed a kiss to her temple.
Across the table, Violet didn’t miss the other couple exchange curious looks.Good Lord, what must they think of her?She lowered her gaze to her hands.Here she was, in the middle of the night in the kitchen of a gaming hell, only days after her husband’s funeral.
Then Elizabeth’s hand covered hers.“Hey, this is the last place where you need to worry about propriety.Trust me, we don’t judge.We are simply nosy friends.”
Violet relaxed her shoulders and returned the other woman’s smile.
