Lady Matlock beamed. “There it is! Well done. Now I believe I must speak to your Faerie queen.”
SPEAKING TO VISCOUNTEversleigh came first, however. He seemed quite pleased with the idea of the soiree, although Elizabeth was more dubious. When Lady Matlock asked him if he had any suggestions, he raised his quizzing glass to look at her and said, “Lady Matlock, should there ever come a day on which I dare to offer you a suggestion on how to plan a successful entertainment, I pray you to be so kind as to send me to Bedlam, as it would be a sign I had completely lost my mind.”
It was no wonder he was so popular with ladies. Elizabeth hid a smile despite her disquiet with their idea. Mortals had been frightened of the fay for too long to be easily convinced to accept them.
“Lord Eversleigh, will you be able to conduct me to Faerie to speak to Queen Titania?” asked Lady Matlock.
“Sadly, if you wish to go today, I cannot assist you. I have overused the rings, and it will be several days before I can use them again. Miss Bennet is perfectly capable of taking you there.”
“I am?” asked Elizabeth.
“Certainly. Have Lady Matlock enter the ring before you, and when you enter, you must visualize the entrance to Titania’s bower. Your talisman will do the rest.”
“YOU ARE MARIGOLD MEADOWSWEET’Smother?” asked Titania.
“I am.”
“You are fortunate, then. I have no children, so I must borrow other women’s daughters. It might be different if more mortal men visited Faerie.”
Lady Matlock showed no response to this risqué statement. “That is something I hope to change. I asked to see you to discuss an idea for increasing contact between mortals and fay. Long ago, mortals honored the Sidhe, and it is time to restore that as the natural order.”
Titania leaned forward. “You have my interest.”
AFTER DISAPPEARINGfor most of the morning, Richard strode into the library where Darcy, Eversleigh, and Lord Matlock were discussing plans for dismantling Sir Lewis’s study. He tossed a sheet of paper onto the table in front of Eversleigh.
Eversleigh picked it up and examined it. “What is this?”
Richard scowled. “There are certain people I do not like being near. For lack of a better word, they make me queasy, the way I feel when I eat jellied eels. I always assumed I just did not like them. Sometimes it was someone who had made me angry, but mostly they had done nothing to me. Darcy knows about this.”
“Richard has spoken to me of it many times,” said Darcy. But why was he bringing it up now?
“When I was fifteen, I had a fight with my father. The next time I came back from school, I had that feeling about him, and I assumed it was because of the fight. It never went away, though, not until yesterday. I used to have that feeling about Cousin Anne as well, but not now. The Rosings servants, too. All gone now.” Richard pointed at the paper. “That is a list of every person I can remember who has given me that jellied eels feeling.”
Eversleigh ran his finger down the list. “There are several mages listed here.”
“It used to be a joke,” said Richard with some bitterness. “I went into the Army because Collegium meetings made me feel sick. That was what the fight with my father was about. He wanted me to study magery and become the next Master of the Collegium.”
Lord Matlock wiped his forehead, his expression grim. “That disagreement was not long before Sir Lewis’s death.”
“Which was when Lady Catherine placed the spell on you. I am not saying everyone on that list is under a spell. Perhaps none of them are. As I said, sometimes it happens when I am angry. Recently it started happening with a young girl who had disappointed me, but she is certainly not under a spell. I thought you should know.” Richard dropped into a chair.
Lord Matlock grabbed the paper from Eversleigh. “Good God. You cannot possibly be angry with all of these people. Mages. Ladies of theton. Even tradesmen.” He looked up at Richard. “Not a single officer.”
Richard turned his hands upwards. “I cannot explain it. It is simply what I feel. And I do not like it.”
Eversleigh peered at the paper over Lord Matlock’s shoulder. “How many of them have had contact with Lady Catherine?”
“None that I know of, apart from the servants and Mr. Collins,” said Richard. “She did not go out in society.”
“Some of them knew Sir Lewis,” said Lord Matlock. “Perhaps you react to the residue of a spell.”
“Then why does it not happen with you now?” Richard’s frustration was obvious.
Darcy came to look at the list. “Some of these he has mentioned to me. The servants here in particular.”
“How many of these people make you angry?”
Richard grimaced. “Very few. Unless I have a good reason, I tend to stay far away from people who make me feel that way.”
