“That is what Hadleigh says.” With an impish grin, Livy said, “Let us get ready upstairs.”
They headed to Livy’s spacious sitting room, where a table had been set up with a generous supper collation. Beneath her cloak, Charlie had on dark, masculine attire suitable for the mission, and Livy quickly changed into a similar outfit. This left them with time before Devlin arrived. He and Hadleigh would be escorting them to Brompton’s. The plan was for the men to divert the guards whilst Livy and Charlie searched the building.
“Aren’t you going to eat something, Charlie?” Livy asked.
“I am not hungry, dearest.” Charlie poured herself a cup of tea. “Please help yourself.”
Livy brought a plate over, joining Charlie on the settee. “Are you all right?”
Charlie had made it a rule not to lie to her Angels.
“No,” she admitted. “But you needn’t worry. My personal affairs will not interfere this eve.”
“By personal, are you referring to Mr. Granger?” Livy ventured.
“I would prefer not to discuss it.”
“But discussing it might make you feel better.” Livy popped a bite-sized sausage roll into her mouth, golden flakes raining over her plate. Swallowing, she said, “That was true for me when Hadleigh and I were first getting together.”
Charlie smiled. “You were a debutante in the first blushes of love; it was natural for you to solicit the advice of friends. I am a widow, however, a woman of experience who should be able to handle her own affairs.”
“A woman needs friends at any age,” Livy said stoutly. “You’ve taught us that sisterhood is key. Being independent doesn’t mean being an island; it means being strong and wise enough to rely on your friends when needed.”
Charlie bit her lip; Livy was right.
“Even though you are my mentor, Charlie, you are also my friend,” Livy went on earnestly. “I would trust you with any knotty issue, and I hope you feel the same about me.”
“I do.” Charlie sighed. “It’s complicated. Between Mr. Granger and me.”
“Love is seldom anything but,” Livy said sagely. “I know this from personal experience.”
Because she knew that Livy’s road to love had had its share of twists and turns, Charlie gave in to the need to confide. She gave a condensed but accurate version of her relationship with Jack, from the first time they met to the last.
Livy’s eyes were rounded. “Do you believe Lady Judith Fayne’s claims about Mr. Granger?”
“He did not deny them,” Charlie said flatly. “Except the charge of assault. To which he replied,She wanted it.”
“I see.” Livy furrowed her brow. “How old is Mr. Granger?”
“Thirty-five. What does that matter?”
“Well, I am trying to understand the timeline of events,” Livy said in her logical way. “The way I do with a case. It often gives me insights I might have otherwise missed. If Mr. Granger is currently thirty-five, then when he and you met he was, what, twenty-three?”
Charlie nodded slowly.
“When did Judith pass away?”
An unpleasant tingle crossed her nape. “A year before Jack and I met, I believe.”
“And the letter she wrote. When was it dated?”
“That same year. 1838.”
“Right. And at that time, Mr. Granger would have been…”
“Twenty-two.” The realization rammed into Charlie like an oncoming carriage, knocking her breath from her. “He was only twenty-two. And in the letter, Judith claimed he’d left a year before that.”
“Which made him twenty-one when the affair ended. Since she wrote that their relations lasted for five years, it must have started when he was sixteen.”
