Elisabeth closed the door behind her, leaving a confused Lucy staring at Katherine. “Didn’t you already—”
Katherine leaped off the chaise. “Yes, yes, but going to the kitchen will delay her for a few minutes while I change. Now, if only Cook won’t mention that I have already spoken with her, I’ll pull this off neatly.”
“I don’t understand, Lady Katherine.”
“Of course you don’t. I don’t expect you to. I’ve got to prevent a tragedy from occurring. My sister is going to elope!”
Lucy’s mouth simply dropped open at that. She had heard the gossip among the servants concerning Lady Elisabeth and the young Lord Seymour as well as what the Earl had threatened to do if she should marry against his wishes.
“Shouldn’t you stop her, my lady?”
“Don’t be a ninny. I can’t stop her now without any proof of her intentions,” Katherine said impatiently as she unbuttoned her morning gown. “Quickly, I need your dress, Lucy!” Then back to her first thought: “It would be too easy for her to sneak out again when I’m not expecting it. And I can’t very well have her locked permanently in her room. I’ve got to follow them to the church and put a stop to it there. Do hurry, Lucy! Then I’ll take her home to Brockley Hall where I can better keep an eye on her.”
The maid didn’t understand at all, but she quickly stripped off her black cotton uniform and handed it over. “But why do you need—”
“Here, help me put it on, Lucy. You can change into my dress after I’ve gone. So I won’t be recognized, of course,” she said in answer to the maid’s question. “If she sees me following her, then she won’t meet Lord Seymour, and then I’ve no proof, and then I can’t do anything until she tries again. Understand?”
“Yes, no, oh, Lady Katherine, you really can’t mean to go out looking like a servant!” Lucy exclaimed even as she helped to button up the stiff dress.
“That is the whole idea, Lucy, to be in disguise. Even if Beth should see me, she’ll never recognize me in this,” Katherine said, trying to pull the skirt down over her many petticoats. It stuck at the waist. Lucy’s dress was more form-fitting. She wore only two petticoats. “This won’t do. I’ll have to remove some of these flounces and especially this bulky horsehair petticoat. There, that’s better.”
Four petticoats dropped to her feet, and the black skirt slid over her hips easily. A trifle long now, since Lucy was a few inches taller than she, but that couldn’t be helped.
“You don’t wear that long apron when you go out, do you, Lucy?”
“No.”
“I didn’t think so, but I wasn’t sure. Oh, why haven’t I ever taken notice of these things? What about a parasol?”
“No, my lady, just that reticule in the pocket—”
“This?” Katherine pulled out a little camel’s-hair bag with long tie strings. “Perfect. You don’t mind if I use it, do you? Good, I do want to look my part. I suppose these rings should go too,” she added, stripping off a large ruby solitaire and a cluster of pearls. “Now for a bonnet, quickly. A poke bonnet, I think. That will help to hide my face.”
The maid rushed in her petticoats to the wardrobe and returned with Katherine’s oldest bonnet. “This really is too nice, my lady.”
Katherine grabbed the thing and swiftly ripped off every embellishment. “Well?”
“As you say, my lady, perfect. You no longer look like a—”
Katherine grinned when Lucy blushed, unable to finish. “A lady?” she supplied, then chuckled as the girl’s blush deepened. “Never mind, my girl. That was the point.”
“Oh, my lady, this—this worries me. Men can be awfully cheeky on the street. You will take several of the footmen—”
“Heavens, no!” Katherine exclaimed. “Beth would recognize every one of them.”
“But—”
“No, dear, I’ll be fine.”
“But—”
“I must go!”
Lucy stood wringing her hands after the door closed on her mistress. What was she a party to? Lady Katherine had never in her life done anything like this. She didn’t really know what she was doing either. Why, just last week Lucy had been accosted by a big brute of a fellow only two blocks away, and she had been wearing that very dress. If a gentleman passing in a fine carriage hadn’t come to her rescue, she didn’t know what might have happened. But that fellow wasn’t the first to make indecent propositions to her. A working girl had no protection. And Lady Katherine was leaving the house looking like a working girl.
Katherine didn’t exactly look like a working girl. In her appearance, yes, but in her bearing, no. She was still an earl’s daughter no matter what she wore. She wouldn’t know how to act like a servant even if she tried. She didn’t try. That wasn’t necessary. All that was necessary was that Elisabeth not recognize her if she should happen to look back. And she did look back every few minutes, confirming Katherine’s suspicion that she was worried about being followed. Katherine had to lower her head quickly each time. But so far, so good.
She followed her sister down to Oxford Street, where Beth turned left. Katherine kept well back, the green silk gown ahead of her easy to keep track of even when the sidewalks became more crowded.
