“No,” he responded. “She is just happy that I am getting married.”
Simone looked unconvinced but thankfully she didn’t press him. “My father is anxious to get me off his hands. Apparently, I am just a burden to him.”
“He said that?”
“Not quite,” she replied. “The word he used for me was ‘responsibility,’ amongst other things.”
Caleb didn’t like that Lord Hungerton was saying such hurtful things to Simone. “He was wrong to say that of you.”
Simone grew quiet, and he feared that he had said something that might have upset her. Finally, she spoke, “I had an interesting conversation with Juliette this morning.”
“Did you discover anything new?”
“She wanted to have a truce with me.”
Caleb thought that was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. “A truce?” he asked. “Is she mad?”
Simone pressed her lips together before replying, “If we don’t leave her be, she threatened to kill you.”
“I would like to see her try,” Caleb declared.
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
Simone sighed. “Juliette is a terrible person, but she isn’t completely incompetent. She has managed to live in England for years, undetected. She was only discovered when she went back to retrieve her brother.”
“You can’t trust her,” Caleb admonished.
“I don’t,” Simone said. “She even had the absurd notion that I…” Her words came to an abrupt stop.
Caleb gave her a curious look. “That you, what?” he prodded.
Simone looked hesitant as she replied, “Juliette is under the impression that I care for you, more so than just a friend. Which is ludicrous, is it not?”
Caleb felt a stab of disappointment at her words. He did care for her but it was evident that she didn’t feel the same. Before he could reply, they approached the gate for Bedlam and they both seemed to retreat into their own thoughts.
The carriage came to a stop in front of the large, three-story building. Despite the palatial pretensions, Caleb saw the exterior was faded and starting to crumble in many areas.
As he exited the carriage, a man with a bald head and protruding belly exited the hospital and approached him.
“Mr. Bolingbroke,” he greeted. “Your father mentioned you would be coming today. I am Mr. Stephen Radcliffe, one of the Bedlam Governors.”
Caleb reached back and assisted Simone onto the graveled courtyard. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with us.”
“Your father said the matter was most urgent, and I know he is not a man prone to exaggeration,” Mr. Radcliffe said in a hushed voice.
“You are right,” Caleb agreed as he moved Simone’s hand to the crook of his arm. “Perhaps we could discuss this inside.”
Mr. Radcliffe tipped his head. “That is a fine idea.”
Caleb led Simone into Bedlam and it wasn’t long before they arrived at Mr. Radcliffe’s office. They stepped inside the small, square room and Mr. Radcliffe closed the door behind them.
Mr. Radcliffe came around his desk and gestured towards the two chairs. “Please have a seat,” he encouraged.
Once Simone was situated, Caleb sat down next to her and said, “Allow me to introduce you to my fiancée, Miss Delacourt.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Delacourt,” Mr. Radcliffe said. “I read about your upcoming nuptials in the Society page.”
