Oliver nodded. He felt somewhat foolish for panicking over laudanum, but seeing Kate on that bed in Emilia’s room senthim back to a darker time—a time he didn’t care to relive. He bid the doctor goodbye and sat with Kate for a few minutes before kissing her lightly on the forehead and going downstairs. He instructed his servants to cease preparing for the dinner party immediately and sent Kate’s lady’s maid upstairs to sit with her until she awoke. After sending out a messenger with the appropriate cancellation and apology messages to his dinner guests, he had a word with his butler.
“I need to go out and tend to some urgent business. See to it that Miss Harrington’s bags are packed and that she leaves this house before my return. Elspeth must remain with Kate until Miss Harrington has left the premises, do you understand?”
“Yes, my lord. I’ll see to it myself.”
“Excellent,” Oliver said.
Five minutes later, he climbed into his black and gold carriage, bearing his family crest.
“Where to, my lord?” The footman asked before closing the carriage door.
“Cleveland Street.” Oliver sat back in the buttoned leather seat. “The Lyon’s Den.”
The morning followingLord Knox’s visit to her office, Bessie Dove-Lyon crossed St. James’s Street and entered the white three-story building that was home to Boon’s Gentleman’s Club.
“Hello, Baxter. How are you today?” she greeted the doorman as she entered. “I’m here to see Mr. Boon. Is he in his office?”
“He is, Mrs. Dove-Lyon. I’ll escort you upstairs.”
“Never mind, don’t bother leaving your post. I know the way.”
He nodded and she made her way up the stairs to the first floor of the building. Since it was before noon, the gaming rooms were not yet open, and the building was calm and silent, which was quite a different atmosphere from what it would be like a few hours from now. The rooms would be filled with smoke and gentlemen gambling—some increasing and some losing their livelihoods.
She approached Henry Boon’s office door where another doorman stood. “Good morning, Six,” she said. “I’m here to see Mr. Boon.”
“Certainly, Mrs. Dove-Lyon. Mr. Boon always has time for you.” He rapped on the door with his knuckles and then pushed it open. “Mrs. Dove-Lyon is here to see you, sir.”
“Is she, indeed?” Bessie heard Henry Boon’s unmistakable throaty voice. “Well, send her inside.”
Six held the door open for Bessie and then closed it behind her as she stepped into Henry Boon’s lavish office. He stood to greet her. He was a short, portly man, with a bulbous nose and face full of scars that looked like the result of a childhood pox.
“Do take a seat Mrs. Dove-Lyon.” She sat on a chair across from his desk as he settled back in his chair and clasped his hands together. “Tell me, to what do I owe this honor?” he asked.
“I have a thorn in my side that needs extracting,” Bessie said.
Boon raised his eyebrows. “And you cannot extract this thorn on your own?”
“Unfortunately, he’s been banned from my club and so is out of my reach.”
“Mmm. And does this irritant have a name?”
“Middlemarch. Lord Maximus Middlemarch. I believe he’s been frequenting your establishment since I banned him from my club.”
Boon stroked his chin. “A peer. I see.”
“He’s a baron. Will that be a problem?”
“Is his estate entailed?”
“Yes. But if you leave him with nothing else but that which will eventually amount to a crumbling ruin in Kent, then I will consider the job done.”
Boon nodded. “This could be a dangerous operation. Cheating is a serious offense. If anyone got a whiff of that, my place could be closed down.”
“That won’t happen. I have magistrates and plenty other powerful men who are indebted to me, so if anything goes wrong—and I am assuming nothing will go wrong because you are an expert at what you do—the allegations will be swiftly quashed.”
Boon inclined his head. “Still, the risk is all mine, so I’ll want seventy percent of the proceeds.”
“We’ll do a fifty-fifty split,” Bessie said firmly.
