“Notthat.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “Once we’re up in the public rooms, we’ll search for Ellis. Hopefully, we can find him quickly and get him somewhere private to interrogate him about Mary Brown.”
“As I mentioned when you and Lady Fayne cooked up this plan, I see no pitfalls whatsoever.”
“Sarcasm doesn’t suit you,” she said crossly.
He was saved from replying by the butler, who began herding them up the stairs to the party.
Reaching the main floor, Cull set aside the idiotic hammer and took Pippa’s hand, leading a methodical search. He noted that footmen stood guard outside each room, controlling the flow of guests in and out. He and Pippa went into the drawing room first. The lamps, topped with crimson shades, cast a lascivious glow over the guests, who were crowded around an Aubusson.
Upon the rug, two couples were giving a show.
Two naked women wearing identical blonde wigs were on their hands and knees, facing one another. They let out simultaneous moans as their male partners entered them from behind. Titillated murmurs rose from the audience as the men’s thrusting pushed the women’s lips together in a frenzied kiss.
Cull slid a glance at Pippa. She was staring at the scene, transfixed. Her throat bobbed above the vee of her robe. The depravity affected her senses, which was only natural. Watching his sweet Pippa get stirred from all the wickedness was also damned arousing. When she swiped her tongue over her lips, his trousers grew distractingly tight.
“Do you see Ellis?” he murmured.
Swallowing, she tore her gaze from the performers who were now tangled together, the women sandwiched head to tail, the men switching partners and resuming their vigorous screwing. Pippa ran her gaze over the guests, many of whom were inspired by the performance to engage in debauchery of their own. Clothes rustled to the ground, accompanied by moans and grunts.
“I don’t see him.” She sounded breathless. “Let’s move on.”
The music room featured similar entertainment. Lying on her stomach on a piano bench, a brunette Athena received the attention of two men, one at each end. The fellow behind her was Hermes, who winked at Cull and Pippa as he dutifully pounded away.
Mischief sparkled in Pippa’s eyes. “I guess he found what he was looking for.”
“Keep moving,” Cull ordered.
They searched the library, billiards room, and dining room with no luck. The latter had erupted into a free-for-all, with a chain of naked guests writhing along the length of the table, no orifice left unfilled. No sign of Ellis there either.
They followed a long corridor to the back of the house, where a pair of burly footmen were posted outside the doors to a conservatory. One was dark-haired, the other fair.
“Here to try your luck?” the dark-haired one asked. “Word of advice: put your best foot—and other body parts—forward.”
“The master and mistress are entertaining discerning guests,” the fair footman added. “They’ve tossed two sets of performers out on their arses. Said the show wasn’t ‘authentic’ enough.”
Cull shot Pippa a look of warning.
She ignored it. “We’ll take our chances,” she said.
The footmen opened the doors, releasing a blast of warm, humid air scented with citrus. Cull led the way and saw that the conservatory resembled his glasshouse. There were even birds, but they were kept in gilded cages. Potted orange and lime trees lined the steel-and-glass walls, oil lamps providing a muted glow. At the center of the room, wicker seating formed a ring around a mattress heaped with pillows. He counted two couples and a trio occupying the chairs.
“That’s Ellis,” Pippa said in a hush. “On the chaise lounge with the couple.”
Cull saw that Pippa’s sketch had captured the fellow to a tee, from the dark-brown hair worn dramatically to his shoulders to the sculpted bone structure that his silver mask didn’t hide. His gaze was the same cold shade as his mask. He was lounging on the chaise, his head in the lap of a voluptuous brunette, who had to be Lady Effingworth. Lord Effingworth was on her other side, his arm draped around her shoulders.
The host and hostess, Baron and Baroness de Tremblay, were sitting on cushioned wicker loveseats…although not together. The baron had a naked redhead draped over him while his wife had a muscular blond fellow sitting on the ground in front of her. He wore what amounted to a loincloth, his head resting against her knee.
“Well, well,” Effingworth drawled. “Looks like more entertainment has arrived.”
Lady Effingworth raked a gaze over Cull. “They seem more promising than the last group. I was starting to think we would have to entertain ourselves.”
“That comes later, my love,” Lord Effingworth drawled. “If we can get inspired.”
“I do apologize for the earlier performances. Nothing is more tedious than obviousness.” Baroness de Tremblay had an affected lisp. “Good help is so hard to find these days.”
“Get on with it, then.” The baron’s voice was imperious as he gestured to the mattress at the center of the circle. “Entertain us.”
Dash it all.Pippa glanced at the mattress. Like the arena of the famed Roman Coliseum, it was surrounded by a ravenous audience who wanted to see their sport. She and Cull could make an excuse and leave, but they had finally closed in on Vincent Ellis. Their target…who held the key to their investigation.
