“Yes.” Allegra firmly linked their arms, and they walked over to their stony-faced hostess. “Thank you for an enjoyable evening, Lady Isobel.” Allegra turned to Aragon. “And thank you for the invitation.”
“It was great fun!” Aragon said. “We should do it again soon, don’t you think, Mother?”
CHAPTER13
The last thing Carenza wanted to do on the day after the dinner party was to traipse over to Mrs. Mountjoy’s. Her inclination was to hide in her bed and not see anyone, but Allegra had other ideas. She marched into Carenza’s bedchamber full of determination and unwilling to listen to excuses.
“You can’t stay in bed. I’ve invited Miss Cartwright to visit us this morning.”
“You’re perfectly capable of dealing with her yourself,” Carenza pointed out.
“But I need you to be there.”
“Why?”
“Because your opinion is important to me.”
Carenza groaned and flopped back onto her pillows, but Allegra didn’t go away.
“Come on, Carenza, don’t be such a wet blanket. We’ve faced far worse than that obnoxious Lady Harriet.”
“Don’t forget Lady Isobel.”
“Yes, I got the distinct impression that she had no idea that her son had invited us to dinner.”
“I suspect you’re right.”
Carenza’s maid appeared in the door and smiled at her mistress. “Lady Allegra said you’d be wanting your bath, ma’am. It’s all ready for you.”
“Thank you.” Carenza gave her sister a look of loathing as she got out of bed. “You are far too managing.”
“Someone has to be.” Allegra smiled triumphantly. “I’ll see you in the small parlor at ten. Miss Cartwright can offer us only an hour of her extremely valuable time.”
Carenza deliberately lingered over her breakfast and arrived at the parlor at five minutes past the hour to find Allegra already in conversation with Miss Cartwright. Her sister looked at the clock as Carenza came to shake Miss Cartwright’s hand.
“Now we can get on.” Allegra opened her notebook. “I hope you don’t mind, Miss Cartwright, but I have a few questions about your charity.”
“My brother is more knowledgeable about the financial standing of our endeavor, but I will do my best to answer you.” Miss Cartwright clasped her hands together on her lap and sat up straight. She wore a plain black gown with no adornment apart from two silver buttons at the throat. Her bonnet was also black but had weathered in patches to a dull gray where it had no doubt been much exposed to the weather.
Carenza had yet to see her smile, but she had a calmness about her that spoke of a determination Carenza could only admire.
“Can you tell me where the initial funding for your charity came from?” Allegra asked.
“I’m not sure how that is relevant to our current discussion,” Miss Cartwright said.
“How can it not be relevant?” Allegra raised her eyebrows. “A firm financial footing is essential for any foundation.”
Miss Cartwright sighed. “My brother received an inheritance from a relative.”
“And that was sufficient to buy your current premises and begin your work?”
“Not quite. I also received a payment in lieu of a dowry from my father.”
“How on earth did you manage to persuade a man to do that?” Allegra asked.
A small smile flickered on Miss Cartwright’s lips. “Downright disobedience and a refusal to participate in society. My parents have two other daughters to marry off. In the end, I believe they were quite happy to see the back of me and my brother, who is the third of four sons.”
“That is something of an accomplishment,” Allegra agreed. “I don’t think our father would agree to such an arrangement, do you, Carenza?”
