Brushed by Scandal (17 page)

‘All right, let’s not jump to conclusions,’ she said, knowing there had to be a logical explanation. ‘Just because we found the necklace here, doesn’t mean Papa took it.’

‘Then how did it come to be in his things?’ Peregrine asked.

‘Obviously, someone
put
it here.’

‘Who? No one else comes into his room,’ he said.

‘You
did!’ she reminded him.

‘Only because Edward asked me to. And I certainly didn’t put
this
here.’ He was silent for a moment. ‘What about the servants? They come and go all the time.’

‘But none of them would have an opportunity to steal a diamond necklace from the baroness,’ Anna pointed out.

‘And we
did?’
Peregrine demanded.

‘Of course not! But at least we move in the same circles. We have access to her house.’

‘But none of us would have taken it.’

Yet, the necklace was here. In her father’s wardrobe. Peregrine was holding it in his hands.

‘It really is fabulous, isn’t it?’ he said, staring down at it in fascination.

Anna didn’t want to look, but it was almost impossible not to. She had never seen such amazing stones. Even in the dim light, the sapphires seemed to glow with brilliant blue fire and the diamonds were as white as any she’d ever seen. Truly, it was a necklace fit for a queen.

‘A man would never have to work again if he owned something like that,’ Peregrine whispered. ‘He could buy anything he wanted. Go wherever he wanted. He’d never have to worry about money—’

‘Stop talking like that!’ Anna admonished, finally taking the necklace away from him. ‘This is going back to the baroness where it belongs.’

‘Back
to the baroness? But…aren’t you going to tell anyone you found it?’

She stared at him as though he’d suddenly sprouted a second head. ‘Are you
mad?
And have Papa implicated in a crime he didn’t commit? Not on your life! Whoever put this necklace here clearly intended to make trouble for Papa and I’m not about to see that happen,’ Anna said. ‘We have been unbelievably fortunate in finding the necklace before he got home. And I am going to return it to Julia at the first opportunity.’

‘I see.’ Peregrine crossed his arms in front of his chest. ‘And where, pray tell, are you going to tell her you
found
it?’

The question stopped Anna in her tracks. ‘Oh.’

‘Exactly. If you can’t come up with a logical explanation, you’re better off not giving it back to her at all. It will just make her suspicious.’

‘But the longer the necklace is missing, the more time someone has to spread lies about Papa’s having taken it,’ Anna said.

Peregrine glanced at the necklace and shook his head. ‘I
think you should tell Sir Barrington Parker. Isn’t he the one the baroness asked to look into the matter?’

‘Yes, and I’ll tell you right now, he is the very
last
person I intend to tell about this!’ Anna said fiercely. ‘Can you imagine what he would say if he were to learn that we found it here? He would think Papa took it.’

‘I hate to say this, but…’ Peregrine looked distinctly uncomfortable. ‘Are you absolutely sure your father
didn’t
take it?’

Anna’s mouth fell open in disbelief. ‘Peregrine, how
could
you?’

‘I’m not saying he did! It’s just that—’

‘I don’t want to hear it,’ Anna said, cutting him off. ‘There isn’t a doubt in my mind that my father is innocent. He would never do something like this.
Never!’

‘Then what are you going to do?’

‘I’ll tell you.’ Anna slipped the necklace into the pocket of her riding skirt, a plan already forming in her mind. ‘First off,
you
are going to take Papa’s watch to Mr Munts and make sure you get a receipt for it.’

‘A receipt,’ Peregrine repeated in bewilderment.

‘Yes. Then, upon returning home, you will give the receipt to Milford and make sure you tell him that Edward instructed you to take Papa’s watch in for repair, and that either Milford or James can pick it up when it’s ready.’

Peregrine’s heavy brows drew together. ‘Why am I doing all that?’

‘Because I want the reasons for your
being
in Papa’s wardrobe to be very clear. It’s possible that whoever put the necklace here intended that someone other than Papa should find it. Most likely a servant. And knowing how servants gossip, the culprit hoped news of the necklace’s discovery
in
Papa’s wardrobe would start making its way through society.

Fortunately,
we
found it and can make sure no such rumours leak out,’ Anna said.

Peregrine frowned. ‘I don’t understand the reason for all the secrecy. We certainly aren’t going to say we saw the necklace.’

‘Of course not. And before this day is out, the necklace will be safely back in Julia’s hands. But if, for some bizarre reason, this does fall back on us, I want it made very clear that you went into the wardrobe looking for Papa’s watch because it needed to go to Mr Munts for repair, and that you did
not
see anything untoward while you were there.’

‘So if anyone asks, we’re going to lie,’ Peregrine said simply.

‘Precisely. It’s the
only
way we can protect Papa. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get dressed. I have a very important call to make!’

* * *

There was only one thought on Anna’s mind as she turned her phaeton into Mayfair a short time later. She
had
to get the necklace back into Julia’s house—and she had to do it without anyone seeing her!

It should be relatively simple. Once in Julia’s parlour, she would pass some pleasant time with tea and conversation before making an excuse to leave the room. A visit to the convenience would probably be the best. That would give her time to slip upstairs and make her way to Julia’s bedchamber.

Once inside, she would place the necklace on the floor beneath Julia’s bedside table, or better yet, under her dressing table, and then return to the drawing room to resume her visit. In the next few minutes, she would bring the conversation round to the necklace and casually ask if Julia had looked
under
the furniture in her room since jewellery could so easily slip off a night table or a dresser and become lost. If
Julia replied that she or the servants had already looked in such places, Anna would simply advise her to look again and casually change the subject; then, after a suitable amount of time, she would bid Julia a good day and leave.

Really, it was so simple. Julia would find the necklace exactly where Anna said it might be, laugh at herself for not having been more careful—and that would be an end of it. There would be no more stories about the necklace having been stolen. No more rumours about her father’s possible involvement. And no need to involve Sir Barrington Parker at all.

Anna almost felt like laughing as she walked up to Julia’s front door.

Unfortunately, her neatly laid plans began to fall apart the moment she walked into the house. As the butler opened the drawing room door and announced her, Anna was horrified to see Sir Barrington Parker sitting comfortably at Julia’s side.

‘Sir Barrington!’ she gasped, completely ignoring her hostess.

‘Lady Annabelle.’ He rose to greet her, his voice decidedly amused. ‘You look as though you’ve seen a ghost.’

‘Do I?’
Calm.
Above all, she had to remain calm. No one must know this was anything but a routine visit in the course of her social day. Easier said than done given the weight in the bottom of her reticule. ‘Perhaps just my…surprise at finding you here. I didn’t see your carriage in the street.’

‘It being such a lovely day, I decided to walk,’ Barrington told her. ‘A brisk walk is always good for clearing the mind.’

‘So I’ve heard,’ Anna murmured, wishing desperately for something that might clear hers. ‘Julia, how rude you must think me. I greeted Sir Barrington without even acknowledging you.’

‘No apologies are necessary, my dear,’ Julia assured her with a smile. ‘You probably came, hoping to have a cosy chat, and were surprised at encountering our mutual friend. I would have been similarly nonplussed.’

‘You are too kind in your forgiveness. But how well you look today.’ Anna flicked a cautious glance in Barrington’s direction. ‘Am I to hope you’ve had news concerning your necklace?’

‘In fact, Sir Barrington and I were just talking about it.’

‘Really?’ Anna felt her heart skip a beat. ‘What did he say?’

‘I was about to inform the baroness,’ Barrington said smoothly, ‘that I am following up on several leads and hope to have an answer for her very soon.’

Anna pasted a smile on her lips. ‘How encouraging.’

‘Yes, isn’t it?’ Julia said happily. ‘At this point, the only thing that matters is recovering the necklace. I really don’t care who took it—’

‘You don’t? I mean…it’s important that we know who
did
take it, of course,’ Anna said as two pairs of eyes turned to stare at her. ‘But surely its safe return is the more important issue.’

‘It is to me,’ Julia said. ‘I was going to tell Sir Barrington that I won’t press charges if he feels that might encourage the thief to return the necklace to me intact.’

‘Oh, but that is exceedingly generous of you,’ Anna said, aware that matters were improving by the minute.

Or were until Barrington said, ‘It
is
generous of you, Baroness, but I doubt the authorities will agree. A law has been broken. Someone must be made to pay.’

‘But surely if Julia does not wish to press charges, there is no need for the authorities to be involved,’ Anna said, annoyed at his interference.

‘As I said, a crime has been committed and retribution must
be made. I suspect the baroness’s wishes will be taken into account, but I cannot guarantee they will be honoured.’

Anna abruptly stood up, her stomach twisting. ‘Julia, will you excuse me for a moment?’

‘Of course, Anna, but are you feeling all right? You’ve gone dreadfully pale.’

‘Have I?’ Anna clutched at her reticule. ‘Perhaps it’s the heat. I am feeling a bit faint.’

‘Then you must lie down.’ Julia immediately got to her feet. ‘I would suggest my room—’

‘Oh, yes, that would be perfect!’

‘Except that I have workmen repapering all the bedrooms,’ Julia finished. ‘I fear you would have no solitude at all.’

‘No, really, that would be fine,’ Anna assured her. ‘I just need to lie down for a moment—’

‘Then you must lie here on the sofa,’ Barrington interrupted, getting to his feet. ‘And I shall leave the two of you to some quiet conversation.’

‘No, please, that isn’t necessary,’ Anna said, seeing her carefully thought-out plan disintegrating. With workmen in the bedrooms and people coming and going, she wouldn’t have a hope of secreting the necklace in Julia’s bedroom without being seen. ‘I hate to see you leave on my account.’

‘Rest assured, I was preparing to depart when you arrived,’ Barrington said with a smile. ‘I only dropped by to apprise the baroness of my progress. But I do hope the next time we meet you are feeling more like your old self.’

Wondering if she would ever feel like her old self again, Anna murmured, ‘Yes, I’m quite sure I shall be fully recovered by then.’

‘If you will wait for me at the front door, Sir Barrington,’ Julia said, ‘I’ll fetch that list of names you asked for. Anna, will you be all right on your own for a few minutes?’

‘Yes, of course,’ Anna said, fighting back disappointment
as she sank down on the sofa. ‘I shall just…lie here and wait for you.’

She was aware of Barrington lingering in the doorway, but didn’t have the courage to look back at him. The man was too observant by half. Anna was terrified of what he might read in her eyes. As it was, she felt the necklace glowing like a beacon in her hands. But what was she to do with it now? She couldn’t take it away again. Not with the clock ticking on her father’s exposure. She had to make sure Julia found the necklace today. And if she couldn’t safely get upstairs, she would just have to leave the necklace somewhere in here. But where?

The moment the door closed, Anna sprang to her feet and started searching for a likely place. It couldn’t be somewhere immediately visible or Julia would wonder why she hadn’t seen it before. But if it was too well hidden, she wouldn’t find the necklace at all and the point of the exercise was to put it somewhere that it
would
be found.

Then, Anna spotted it—a large palm standing by the half-open French door. If the necklace was found in the branches, it could be suggested that during his escape, the thief had clumsily dropped it and it had landed in the tree. It was feeble, Anna admitted, but at the moment she had nothing better. And she was fast running out of time. She
had
to make sure the necklace was found in Julia’s house
today.

With that in mind she moved towards the palm, scanning for a likely branch. The necklace was too heavy to be supported by the uppermost branches, but it would be obscured if it was dropped directly into the base. She could, of course, put the bulk of it in the base and leave part of it trailing out…

Risking another glance at the door, Anna unfastened her reticule and reached in for the necklace. She would try it in several places and leave it in the one that looked best. Unfortunately, one of the claws holding the centre diamond
was tangled in the fabric, causing her to waste precious seconds extricating it. Finally, it came free and, with infinite care, Anna leaned forwards to place it amongst the thicker branches lower down on the trunk. She tried to arrange it in a manner that made it look as though it had fallen, but the dashed thing kept bending the branches and falling into the base.

And then, the unthinkable happened. Hearing a movement behind her, Anna turned—and blanched.

Sir Barrington Parker was standing by the door, watching her.

D
amnation! Caught red-handed—and by the last person on earth she could afford to be caught by!

Seconds dragged by like treacle in winter. Barrington didn’t say a word, but she could tell from the look on his face that this wasn’t going to be good.

Then Julia’s voice, saying, ‘Sir Barrington, where are you?’

Anna gasped—and in that split second, Barrington moved. Launching himself across the room, he pushed her aside and scooped the necklace out of the palm, dropping it into an inside pocket of his coat. Barely had it disappeared than the drawing-room door opened and Julia walked in. ‘Ah, there you are, Sir Barrington,’ she said in surprise. ‘I thought you were going to wait for me by the front door.’

‘I was until I suddenly remembered there was something I wished to ask Lady Annabelle,’ Barrington said, as calmly as though he had been sitting in one of the chairs reading a magazine. ‘So I came back and found her up and moving around.’

Julia glanced at her friend. ‘Are you feeling better, Anna? Your colour certainly seems to have returned.’

In point of fact, Anna’s face felt like it was on fire. ‘I am, thank you, Julia. It must have been…the tea.’

‘I’m so glad. I’ve always sworn by it as a restorative. Here is the information you wanted, Sir Barrington,’ Julia said, handing him a folded piece of parchment. ‘I hope it helps.’

‘I have a feeling it will go a long way towards solving the case,’ Barrington said, remarkably composed in light of what had just happened. He turned and gave Anna a bow, nothing on his face to indicate that he had just found her depositing a stolen necklace into the heart of an ornamental palm. ‘I’m quite sure I will be seeing you again very soon, Lady Annabelle.’

Far too soon, Anna reflected after he left. She had botched the job as badly as it was possible to botch it. She could only imagine what was going through Sir Barrington’s head at that moment.

* * *

In point of fact, Barrington had so many thoughts running through his head he hardly knew where to begin. Lady Annabelle Durst had come into the baroness’s house in possession of the missing sapphire-and-diamond necklace. She had been attempting to hide it in the base of the palm tree when he had unexpectedly walked back into the room and caught her.

Who was she trying to protect? An unusual question given what he had just seen, but in truth, the possibility of
her
having stolen the necklace had never crossed his mind. She had absolutely no motive and likewise no opportunity. It was also highly unlikely that she had simply stumbled upon the necklace and gone to the baroness’s house intending to return it to its rightful owner. If that had been the case, she would
have given it to the baroness the moment she’d walked into the room.

But she hadn’t. She had held on to the necklace; upon finding herself alone, she had taken it out of her reticule and tried to conceal it in the base of the palm. A place the baroness
would
eventually have found it, though not, perhaps, today.

Obviously Anna hadn’t wanted the baroness to discover that
she
was the one returning it. That would have necessitated a series of explanations that would have been awkward to say the least. But having been caught red-handed, what kind of explanation would she offer
him?

Barrington found himself looking forward to that discussion.

The next question was where to conduct the interrogation? He couldn’t do it at her home. Her brother or Peregrine Rand might be present, and possibly her father as well. Nor could he do it at his own house. If he invited her to call on a matter of business, it might raise questions in other people’s minds. But if she wasn’t calling on business, it was morally inappropriate for her to be there at all.

For that reason, as soon as Barrington got home, he wrote Anna a note, asking if he might take her for a drive in the park that afternoon. Being a lovely day, he suggested using the open carriage and assured her that, if she wished, his secretary could come along as chaperon. He doubted she would elect to speak in front of her maid, given the delicate nature of what they would be discussing.

Her response came back with equal promptness. Yes, she was available for a drive, and, no, she would not bring her maid. If chaperonage was required, she was happy to have it provided by his secretary, who had been very pleasant to her on the occasion of their last meeting.

Barrington smiled. Obviously the lady had already considered

her options. If she was going to speak in front of anyone, she clearly preferred that it be his servant rather than hers.

* * *

He called for her at half past four and was not at all surprised to find her waiting for him. She had changed into a carriage gown of rose-coloured silk, the lace bodice threaded with deeper pink ribbons. Her hair was tucked up under another of her wide-brimmed bonnets and she carried a white parasol trimmed with deep pink ribbons. She looked absolutely enchanting—and completely innocent.

Surprising for a woman who had stepped so easily into the role of accomplice to a thief.

‘Good afternoon, Sir Barrington,’ she said as she walked down the steps to meet him.

‘Lady Annabelle.’ He smiled as he handed her into the barouche, ‘Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.’

‘I assumed there was no point in putting it off.’

‘None whatsoever.’ Barrington climbed in and sat down in the seat opposite. She waited until Sam flicked the whip and set the horses moving, the clatter of their hooves making it difficult for the conversation to be overheard, before she began to speak.

‘I suspect you wish to ask me about what happened at Julia’s this morning without my family being present for the interrogation. Just as well, since I suspect you intend to ask some rather problematic questions,’ she said.

Problematic. An understatement to say the least. ‘Shall we start with how you came to be in possession of the baroness’s necklace?’ he suggested.

‘Ah, but I was not in possession of it,’ she told him. ‘I was walking by the French doors and chanced to look down and there it was! Lodged in the base of the palm.’

‘Really. And how do you suppose it came to be there?’

The look she gave him was comprised of equal parts
surprise and disappointment. ‘Really, Sir Barrington, is the answer to that not obvious?’

‘Not to me.’

‘Clearly, the thief dropped it as he was attempting to make his getaway.’

‘His…getaway,’ he repeated blankly.

‘Yes. After he took the necklace from Julia’s bedroom,’ she said helpfully.

‘So he did not make his escape through her bedroom window, but came downstairs to the drawing room and slipped out through the French doors.’

‘Precisely.’

‘An interesting theory,’ Barrington said slowly. ‘And plausible, I suppose, had my timing not been such that I opened the door in time to see
you
removing the necklace from your reticule and carefully inserting it
into
the palm.’

‘Ah,’ Anna said, sitting back. ‘How unfortunate. Then it would probably be safe to say that you would find any attempt on my part to make you believe that I found the necklace quite by chance equally unbelievable.’

‘No. I believe you
did
find the necklace and probably by chance, but the question of import now is
where
did you find it?’ He sat forwards. ‘In your brother’s room—or your father’s?’

He watched her cheeks turn bright red as her mouth dropped open in an exclamation of surprise. ‘I cannot imagine why you would say such a thing—’

‘For what it’s worth,’ he interrupted, ‘I think you found it in your father’s room.’

She went rigid. ‘Why would you say that?’

‘Because Rand is still getting over his affair with Lady Yew and hasn’t the clarity of mind to plan something like this. Likewise, if your brother had taken the necklace, I suspect he would either have held on to it until things cooled down,
or he would have arranged to have it cut into smaller pieces that he could sell more easily. That leaves your father. Who, as it turns out, had both the motive and the opportunity to take it.’

‘Motive?’ Anna snorted. ‘What possible motive could my father have had for stealing Julia’s necklace?’

‘The same as claimed by so many gentlemen of the
ton,’
Barrington said softly. ‘Debt. In your father’s case, through losses incurred at the racetrack.’

‘How dare you! My father does not bet on horses!’

‘Ah, but he does, dear lady. And though he wins more than he loses, he did suffer an unfortunate streak of bad luck last year from which he has been struggling to recover. A necklace like the baroness’s would go a long way towards taking him—indeed, your entire family—out of dun territory.’

He knew immediately that what he’d told her had come as a complete shock. She’d obviously had no idea that her father had amassed such staggering debts, so the thought of him stealing a priceless necklace in an effort to clear himself had never occurred to her.

‘If what you say is true—and I am not saying for a moment that I believe it is,’ Anna said, ‘my father would surely have had other ways of raising the money necessary to cover his obligations.’

‘If he has, he has not availed himself of them. But let us not deviate from what we are here to discuss,’ Barrington said firmly. ‘The fact is,
you
came into the baroness’s house with her necklace in your reticule, therefore, I have no choice but to ask you
where
you found it and
how
it came to be there. Unless you also wish to be viewed as a suspect.’

He saw the indecision on her face and knew she was debating as to how much to reveal. To say too much was to condemn someone else. To say too little was to condemn herself.

‘Sir Barrington, if I tell you where I found the necklace, would you be willing to let it go?’

‘In all honesty, I don’t see how I can.’

‘But you heard what Julia said. She is willing to drop all charges as long as the necklace is returned.’

‘I understand that. But without a logical explanation as to
why
it was taken, we cannot know what the thief had in mind. At the very least, someone is getting away with a crime.’ Barrington leaned forwards so that his face was close to hers. ‘Someone took that necklace out of the baroness’s house, Anna. I need to know who it was and why they did it. Because if their intent was to incriminate the person in whose room it was found, it’s possible they may try again when they realise their first attempt has failed.’

‘Incriminate!’ Barrington saw the brief but unmistakable flash of hope in her eyes. ‘Then you’re open to the possibility that the person who
took
the necklace may not be the same person in whose room the necklace ended up.’

‘I am open to the possibility, yes,’ he admitted.

‘And to the idea that…foul play may have been involved.’

‘Oh, foul play has most definitely been involved, but who was the target? The baroness—or your father?’

His words fell into a strained silence. Barrington didn’t have to be a mind reader to know that Anna was waging a silent battle with herself, struggling with how much she should say. Once she told him where the necklace had been found, there was no going back. The guilty party would be exposed and she would have been the one to expose them.

But did she trust him enough to know that he was only interested in finding out the truth? Or would her natural inclination to protect the people she loved stop her from giving him the answers he needed?

‘Anna, I’m not out to condemn anyone,’ he said softly.

‘And what you tell me today will stay between you and me. No one else need know.’

‘But you told Julia you would have to contact the authorities—’

‘I said that because I couldn’t allow her to believe that the perpetrator of the crime would be allowed to go free. Not until I have more information. But if you know something that can put me on the right path, I beg you to make it known.’

He held his breath while she made her decision. It was within her power to compromise the entire investigation. If she refused to tell him where she’d found the necklace, he would have no choice but to make accusations that would ultimately force her hand. And in doing so, he risked sacrificing any chance of ever gaining her good opinion.

Fortunately, something in what he’d said must have got through to her. With a heavy sigh, she said, ‘The necklace was in Papa’s room. Peregrine found it when he went to retrieve one of my father’s watches. The necklace was lying next to it.’

Barrington wasn’t sure whether to feel relief or remorse. ‘Was it hidden away?’

‘No. It was inside a small leather bag, but the bag was in plain sight.’

‘So the thief intended that it be found easily,’ Barrington said, his mind working. ‘Does your father know you found it?’

Anna shook her head. ‘Papa went to the country three days ago. He knows nothing about any of this.’

‘Then we have no choice but to wait for his return to ask him about it. Either way, you must prepare yourself for the fact that word may leak out about the necklace having been found in his possession.’

‘But it can’t!’ Anna said urgently. ‘Papa would be disgraced!’

‘I will do whatever I can to keep this quiet, Anna, but other people are involved and we have no control over what they might say. If the necklace was planted in your father’s things, someone obviously wished to make trouble for him. The only way they can do that is by spreading rumours about where it was found. All
we
can do is work at uncovering the truth as quickly as possible,’ Barrington said.

‘But if you
believe
him innocent—’

‘What
I
believe has nothing to do with it. Opinions are just that. To unerringly affix blame, I must have proof.’

‘Then
find
the proof, Barrington,’ Anna urged. ‘Do whatever you have to, but find it. There is no question that my father is innocent.’

‘May I point out that you were equally convinced of Mr Rand’s innocence when it came to the charges levelled against him?’ he said gently.