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Kitty took an uncertain step toward the top of the stairs. Mr. Lazarus had barely looked at her. She wasn’t sure if she was dismissed properly yet, or whether he had more of a tongue-lashing in store. If only she’d not been so foolishly prim and proper. She realized he’d put her to some enormous test, and she’d failed miserably, but she had not known of London ways and how quickly one was expected to reach certain points that in the country were advanced toward at a far more leisurely pace.
As she started to descend the stairs, the handsome, light-haired young man whom Mr. Lazarus had addressed as Lord Silverton stepped forward to block her path. He executed a flourishing bow. “Allow me to convey you to wherever you’re going. I fear you might lose your way if you are new to the city.”
Kitty didn’t respond with more than a nod as she stumbled past him and the young ladies eagerly awaiting their turn. She heard a few titters and speculative whispers, which only increased the weight of the world already resting on her shoulders. Her one opportunity to prove herself as a consummate actress had ended in disaster.
Blinking in the sunlight, she regained her senses when Lord Silverton, now at her heels, asked for an address. She thought his name sounded familiar, but she felt too burdened by other matters to try and sift through her memory. Her father often spoke of Lord this and that, as he mixed with so many of them. Kitty had always longed to mix with this other illustrious world. Unlike Lissa, she had no intention of doing so from the subservient position of governess. No, Kitty wanted to entertain them, be feted by them, orbit within their hallowed ranks, but that now looked highly unlikely.
Still too downcast to pay much attention to his Lordship, she nevertheless told him Mrs. Mobbs’s address and thanked him when he handed her into his carriage, resting her chin on her hand as she stared listlessly out of the window. For a short while, she’d thought the blaze of connection between handsome Lord Nash and herself had been a significant moment in her life. It had seemed part of her life’s pre-ordained plan, fo
r wasn’t he the handsome nobleman with the scar beneath his right eye who would sweep her off her feet while she was London’s most feted actress?
“I hope you don’t mind traveling in a phaeton. That will certainly give you a bit of fresh air and show you the sights.” She realized Lord Silverton was talking as he leaped up first into the equipage before reaching for her hand, and before she even knew what was happening, was swinging her up beside him.
She let out a squeal. She’d never seen such a strange conveyance, yet it certainly looked smart and exciting. She smiled at him with new appreciation as he picked up the ribbons, saying, “So you live in Black Cat Alley, eh? That’s a salubrious part of town. Do you enjoy the area?”
Kitty shrugged, not prepared to voice her reservations for Mrs. Mobbs had been good to her. “I’ve only just arrived, but now I fear I’ll have to return home if I can’t find work.”
“Come now; you’re far too pretty to look so glum.” He frowned as if considering something. “Let me show you some of London. You’re dressed for it, and I suddenly find myself at a loose end due to a canceled engagement.”
The thought flashed through Kitty’s mind that she ought not to be consorting with young men without a chaperone, but as she’d already run away to London, she supposed there was little worse she could do. No one from her village knew she was here, and neither did her family, and the offer was very tempting.
“Do you like animals? I could take you to the Tower?” he suggested, signaling to his two fine bays with a flick of the reins to move on. “Yes, the Tower of London and the British Museum. What say you to that? I’ve nothing better to do.”
It sounded suddenly rather thrilling, and Kitty responded with a smile and a clap of her hands as she straightened. “Splendid. I want to see London and learn London ways, and tomorrow I’ll do whatever Mr. Lazarus wants me to do if I’m to please him enough to be part of his new play. What did you say your name was?”
He looked a little startled. “Lord Silverton, at your service. And I’m happy to show you London ways and prepare you for your audition tomorrow. We shall have lots of fun, Miss Hazlett; I promise you. I’m sure being new to London can be quite daunting, but it would be a pleasure to help you feel... less unworldly.”
“That is very kind of you, Lord Silverton,” Kitty said, liking his face, and deciding that being less unworldly would certainly be an advantage having failed to impress the one man who held the key to the future she desired—Mr. Lazarus. “Proceed to show me London, my Lord!” It was exciting she thought, though she’d have to prod him a little so she might recall where she’d heard his name, and she was still a little disappointed he wasn’t the fantastically handsome, raven-haired Lord Nash who’d shown such interest in her earlier.
The ride in Lord Silverton’s phaeton was an excitement in itself, and Kitty felt very grown-up and flamboyant as she held onto her bonnet and, at one point, Lord Silverton’s knee when rounding a particularly sharp corner.
“Got you, Miss Hazlett!” he cried over the sound of clopping hooves on cobblestones, as he threw his arm about her shoulders and literally saved her from being bounced onto the cobbles to a certain death.
By the time they drew to a halt outside the Tower of London Kitty was visibly shaking: from excitement, cold, and fearful exertion. Lord Silverton lifted her down from his sporting vehicle with a wry smile. “I fear I nearly frightened you to death, but it’s preparation for the amazing sights you are about to behold if this is your first time in London.” With a flourish, he signaled the great White Tower before them. “My favorite is Old Martin, gifted to King George from far across the sea, a place called Hudson Bay. And who is Old Martin, you ask? Why, a grizzly bear. And what is a grizzly bear? Take my arm, Miss Hazlett, and I will show you.”
It wasn’t long before any residual misery Kitty felt over her audition with Mr. Lazarus was swept away by wonder and amazement at seeing so many exotic creatures, some of which she’d never even heard about, much less seen.
Lord Silverton was a charming companion, allowing her plenty of time to marvel, if she chose. By late afternoon, Kitty had forgotten all her cares, and only felt a pang of her earlier dismay when she stopped to exclaim at how low the sun was in the sky.
“Time to move on to other entertainments, eh, Miss Hazlett?”
Kitty smiled at him. He really was rather charming, the way he quirked his mouth in that humorous manner he had, and his very blue eyes twinkled at her. And he did indeed cut a fashionable figure in his buckskin breeches, Hessians, and superbly cut blue superfine coat, which stretched across a well-built chest. His hair was fashionably cut, his brown curls slightly longer on top and brushed forward framing a high brow above a strong nose, high cheekbones delineated by a thin line of sideburn, and a very nice-looking mouth, though Kitty quickly looked away—quite surprised at herself—when that thought popped into her head.
“I really should be getting back to Mrs. Mobbs.” She glanced down at her pink and cream walking dress with its two rows of flounces, worried it might have become soiled when she had no choice but to get further wearings out of it before it was laundered. She doubted Mrs. Mobbs would be as assiduous as she was when it came to ensuring it received the care it required. With a pang, she thought of practical Lissa who didn’t worry about such things and who was no doubt industriously toiling away in some dark and dingy attic.
But just as she was starting to feel quite sentimental about the sister who was so different from her, they rounded a corner and almost collided with a couple, strolling arm in arm, the lady occasioning more astonishment and indeed fright in Kitty’s breast than any of the animals. For, lo and behold, it was the young woman she’d viewed so enviously from afar on so many occasions, her half-sister, Araminta.
Lord Silverton greeted the pair with surprise and pleasure. “Lady Debenham, what a pleasant surprise. You look blooming.” He nodded at the gentleman. “Debenham, it’s been a week you since you had the devil’s own luck playing Hazard at Lady Renton’s.”
Kitty was too busy to pay attention to how Lord Debenham responded. She was transfixed by the very large belly sported by the beautiful Araminta, at the same time as she suddenly realized where she’d heard Lord Silverton’s name. Good lord, he was the man she’d overheard Mr. Cranborne denounce as being so often in company with Lord Debenham and another man, Smythe, regarded by the Government as potential plotters. Traitors. She put her hand to her mouth to stifle her gasp as Lord Silverton said, “Allow me to introduce a young friend, Miss—”
“La Bijou,” Kitty blurted out hurriedly. “It’s my first visit to London, and his Lordship has kindly undertaken the task of showing me the sights.” She noticed the faintly derisive look Araminta sent her, though it appeared her sister did not recognize her. Nor would Kitty have expected her to, which was one of the reasons she despised her. Araminta was so self-absorbed, she’d never have noticed her sitting every Sunday in a pew farther back in the church than the district’s first family, Lord Partington, his wife and two daughters, vain, spoiled Araminta and her younger, plain and placid sister, Hetty.
Lord Silverton sent a faintly amused glance at Kitty before corroborating her new identity. “You will see much of Miss La Bijou in the future for she arrived yesterday with the sole purpose of taking London by storm.”
Kitty was unsure how to respond, but decided to stay silent in the face of Lord Debenham’s faintly snide laughter and Araminta’s raised eyebrow, which was accompanied by only the hint of a smile.
“So you are an actress, Miss La Bijou,” she said in tones of the greatest condescension. “Indeed, I shall look forward to seeing you on stage.” The way she said it, tugging at her husband’s sleeve as if it were now imperative to move away from the contamination of such a lowborn creature, sent the blood rushing to Kitty’s head together with a renewed determination that she would secure the prize role, and she would do whatever—save compromising her virtue—was necessary to do so. Perhaps the charming Lord Silverton would champion her, though it was worrying that he was obviously such a skilled actor to hide the fact he was a dastardly traitor to his country. The idea was horrifying and thrilling in equal measure. Kitty ought to despise a man who would compromise his own country however he exuded enormous charm. Yet, she determined with a burst of patriotic fervor, she would not be swayed from doing her duty, no matter how charming he was. If she stumbled upon evidence he was a traitor, she would immediately alert Mr. Cranborne, even if that did mean Lords Silverton and Debenham would rot in an English cell.
