A headache bothered her. “If you don’t want me to have a tumble with this Mr. North, then why meet him?”
Mama leant closer and whispered, “In case Mr. North decides he wants a more carnal meeting with you, I’ll organise everything so that he’llonlybelieve he had a tumble with you, but it’ll be an illusion, a magic trick. Still, he’ll be absolutely convinced he spent a night with you, and he’ll pay a hefty sum for the honour. In fact, I’ve never spent a night in bed with him. He believes he did, but it’s not true.”
“How?” She was so shocked she didn’t think straight anymore because she wanted to know what Mama had in mind.
“Dr. Bauer developed a few drugs to cure the maladies of the mind, a so-called alienist, and I learnt from him. With the rightmixture of drugs, the right technique, and the right dosage, I can make Mr. North believe he’s the queen. Hallucinogens are powerful allies.” Mama raised her eyebrows.
“Somehow, I don’t feel reassured. In fact, I might throw up.”
“Darling.” Mama took her chin. “I know what I’m doing. The whole procedure has been tested, tried, and perfected several times.”
“Good Lord.” Angeline put a shivering hand on her cheek. “You’ve been drugging unaware people to test Dr. Bauer’s drugs. Those people could have died. Honestly, every time I think you’ve reached the lowest of the low, you surprise me.”
“Tosh. Dr. Bauer supervised the dosage. In fact, we have a prolific partnership. He teaches me about the latest developments in the drug field, and I test the potions. Everything has always gone beautifully. The drug mixture has always worked to perfection… alas, with one notable exception.”
“The grand duke,” they said together.
Mama exhaled dramatically as if she were the wronged one. “The mixture of drugs, Dr. Bauer called it poly, quite unoriginal if you ask me. Anyway, the poly didn’t do anything to that blasted duke. What a pain in the neck. I had to really lie in bed with him. Not that he was a terrible lover. He had great technique.”
“Mama, please.”
“But I’ve never met a more unbearable man.” Mama shook her head.
Angeline sighed. “That’s true. He was such a— you’re distracting me. I have no intention of drugging and blackmailing Mr. North.”
“There won’t be any blackmailing, only the drugging,” Mama said in an outraged tone as if Angeline had said something offensive. “He has only to believe he was with you. That’s all.”
“No.”
“At least meet him.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“His income of fifty thousand pounds per year is a very good idea.” Mama fixed a wayward curl of Angeline’s hair. “Mr. North is a bumbling idiot, easily manipulated, the best kind of man. All you have to do is smile, bat your eyelashes, and he’ll fall at your feet. Also, he’s rather handsome, and as I said, you won’t have to do anything. He’ll pay a hefty sum for the fake privilege of being with you, and you two will go separate ways without him being any the wiser.”
“What if he tries to touch me tonight?” Getting out of the carriage was an idea that didn’t lose its appeal.
“Well, it’s up to you, of course. But he might want to touch you a little bit, be more intimate. Of course, you won’t allow him to do anything too improper.” For once, Mama’s tone sounded like that of a proper, match-making mama.
“Good heaven.” Angeline rubbed a tight spot between her eyebrows. “You promised you would stop. Instead, you simply changed your brand.”
Mama smiled. “Thank you. Every good business evolves.”
“It wasn’t a compliment.”
The carriage jolted to a stop, and a flare of panic caused her to still. Now she had to leave the carriage, enter Lady Redvers’s brilliantly illuminated house, and be in the same room as Mr. North.
She touched her scarred arm. “I can’t do this, Mama. I absolutely can’t do it. It’s wrong. I won’t discuss the matter further.”
The footman opened the door. “Madam, miss, Lady Redvers’s residence.”
Mama snatched Angeline’s hand and turned towards the footman. “Shut the door. We’ll be ready in a few moments.”
The startled man did as told.
“I love you, darling. I really do. That’s why I’m sparing you from a gruesome, hard life. When I became the mistress of several lords, I didn’t have any potion to help me out on long nights. I had to lie in bed with them even when they disgusted me.” Her cheeks flushed. “I did it for you, for us, to feed you, clothe you, and keep a roof over our heads. You won’t have to endure the smelly breath of a heavy man on top of you or experience the humiliation of being treated like nothing. Never. I don’t want that for you. I have never have. I’ll personally kill anyone who dares to hurt you. But you must help me. You must sacrifice a piece of your integrity to lead a life of safety and leisure.”
Angeline’s heart broke. Her mama had endured a miserable life all alone. First, her husband had hurt and abandoned her. Then she’d sold herself to earn money and keep her daughter alive. What really hurt Angeline was the fact Mama hadn’t told her anything. If it hadn’t been for the darned fire, Mama would have kept lying.
