An Artful Deception (13 page)

At long last, she heard the butler greet Lord Philip and his companion at the door. Her nerves went tight as an over strung violin. Yet, she gathered her courage and rose to meet them while they lingered in the portico, unloading their wraps. Her uncle spotted her and she forced a smile.

She bestowed a curtsey, and said, “Good evening, Uncle. I am grateful to you for coming to clear up the confusion. I must take the blame for the unhappiness my pretense has caused. Pray forgive me for the inconvenience.”

Lord Graynor nodded and replied smoothly, “Why, Ginny, it is nice to see you again. You look well.”

Katharine frowned, feeling she must have not heard him correctly. She rushed to say, “My letter must have been a shock after you had believed me dead. And to see me now must seem very strange.”

“
It is not strange at all. I am glad to find you well. I trust you have been satisfactory service to her ladyship.”

Katharine assumed he referred to her pretension. “I am afraid I have done very ill, indeed, unprepared as I was for my duties. And I am eager to cast them off and have the truth be told. That is why you must tell Lord Philip that it is I, Katharine. Please, do tell him who I am.”

Lord Graynor pulled at his beard.

Philip spoke, his voice tense. “This girl has told me that she is your niece. Do you deny it, sir?”

“
Indeed, I must. I do not know why she would make up such a story. This girl was a maid at the manor, Lady Katharine’s maid, in fact.”

Katharine felt her knees go weak. “It is not true. Why do you say such a thing?”

Philip broke in, speaking to Lord Graynor. “It is obvious why she has made it up. She hoped to profit by the lie, to pass herself off as a lady and snag a fine husband.”

The disappointment on his face was more than Katharine could bear.

Lady Charlesworth had descended the stairs to demand an explanation.

Philip turned to Katharine. “Perhaps you would like to tell your mistress about the ticket you stole to Almack’s and how you have tried to pass yourself off as Lady Katharine, even to appearing in public shamelessly clad in her clothes.”

Lady Charlesworth gasped and looked as though she might collapse. “Is it true? No, it cannot be. She would never dare such a devious act.”

Lord Graynor shook his head and looked regretful. “It is distressing when a servant with whom we have become fond lets us down.”

“
It is not true,” Katharine insisted. She knew she was on the brink of becoming hysterical, but she could stand it no longer. Why was her uncle refusing to acknowledge her? Was it a punishment for having spurned Cedric? If so, she wished that he would see that she had suffered enough and take pity upon her.

She spun to face Lady Charlesworth. “I am Katharine Kirby, daughter of the late Marquess of Eastmoor. It was the wish of my parents that I marry Lord Philip, but I made up the lie because I did not wish to do so…”

She was cut off by the mistress before she could continue, “Nonsense, utter nonsense. Would your own uncle not know you? I am shocked by your reckless daring. In fact, I am feeling faint and fear I must sit down.”

She fanned herself with dramatic flails of her white-gloved hand. Katharine thought it more likely that she relished being the center of attention than that she was in danger of swooning. She clutched the banister and waited for Philip to take her arm and lead her attentively into the parlor.

Katharine faced her uncle “Why will you not tell them? I know I was wrong to deceive them, but I pray you will not continue this torture.”

“
Torture? My dear, I must insist that I have no idea what you are talking about. Since it is clear that you have upset the lady, I do not believe she will welcome your service any longer. I will tell her that I have generously offered to take you back with me to serve as a maid at my estate.”

Katharine felt the blood drain from her face as she began to understand at what game he was playing. He would return her to his estate, where she would be forced to marry Cedric. And without access to her father’s funds, she would have no money for escape.

“
I will not go with you.”

Lord Graynor raised an eyebrow. “No? I think you will find that you have little choice.”

Philip, having left his mother to recover upon the sofa, rejoined them and said, “I apologize for your trouble in coming, Lord Graynor. While I have found you amiable company, I would not have bothered you had I not been half-convinced this girl was telling the truth.”

He turned to Katharine. “You put on a compelling show at Almack’s. I nearly believed you. I wanted to believe you. Now I see that I should have made good on my threat and had you arrested.”

Lord Graynor nodded. “Indeed, you would be quite within your rights to do so. However, I have offered this scheming girl the opportunity to return with me. She is not likely to get into such trouble serving in the country.”

Philip gave her a severe gaze. “It is the best offer you are likely to get. Pack your things and be ready to leave with Lord Graynor. And, mind you, you will not be taking Lady Katharine’s clothes with you.”

Katharine swallowed over the immense lump that had formed in her throat. Philip’s disdain gave her more pain than the knowledge that she could land upon the Londonstreets with naught but the clothes on her back. Yet even if that should be her fate, as she could expect no quarter or sympathy from anyone in London, she was firmly resolved that she would not return with her uncle to become a pawn for his purpose. The thought of bearing him grandchildren brought a vile taste to her throat.

She bolstered a last flare of indignity and looked Philip squarely in the eye. “It is not I who lies to you now. It is my uncle who lies for his own purpose. So, I will pack my bags and gladly leave your house. But you are wrong. I am Lady Katharine. We played as children at your estate and I find you as distasteful now as I did then. So, I am glad to have been spared my part in the marriage.”

Katharine turned on her heel. She squared her slender shoulders and held her head erect as she marched to her bedchamber, fleeing one man who had proven more unscrupulous than she had imagined and another she had come to admire, even to love.

The tears coursed down her cheeks as she sank onto her bed. What would she do? She knew no one to whom she could turn for help.

Lizzy found her thus when she finished her kitchen duties. She ran to Katharine and threw her arms around her. “My dear Ginny, whatever is the matter?”

Hearing the assumed name only served to make Katharine cry harder. Lizzy held her and crooned softly, looking as though she might burst into tears of sympathy. When Katharine’s sobs ebbed into an exhausted trickle of tears, Lizzy asked, “Did you do something to displease her ladyship?”

“Oh, Lizzy, I have done something to displease everyone, even myself. How could I have gotten myself into such an intolerable mess? I can see no way out. It is quite hopeless.”

Lizzy patted her shoulder. “You must not talk that way. Nothing is hopeless.”

She handed Katharine a simple cloth handkerchief and said, “Wipe your eyes and tell me what has happened.”

Katharine accepted the handkerchief and dabbed at her tear stained face. “I have told a lie and it has turned out very ill. It is my own fault and I can blame no one else for it save my uncle, the horrible insufferable man.”

Lizzy laid a hand upon her arm. “I do not understand, Ginny. Perhaps you should start at the beginning.”

“
That is the point. I am not Ginny.”

Katharine proceeded to explain how she had come to be in such difficulty. Lizzy’sfrown grew deeper as she listened. At last she said, “It is a most fantastic story. I do not wonder that Lord Philip would have a hard time believing you, especially with the man you say is your uncle denying it also.”

“
My uncle wishes me to return with him for his own reasons. He has squandered his money and has little left for the upkeep of the estate. He lets out his previous small and ill-kept estate of Graynor, which he inherited upon the death of his wife, for she had no relatives to inherit it, but it provides him little income. If he can force me to marry Cedric, he will tell my solicitor that reports regarding my death were in error. Then, he will collect the money that Papá left me as a pension.”

Lizzy looked skeptical. “Is there no one who can identify you?”

“
Not in London. And I do not have the funds to travel elsewhere.”

“
What will you do?”

“
I do not know. I only know that, even if I freeze on the streets of London, I will not return with Lord Graynor. I am leaving here at daylight before I may be compelled to accompany him.”

“
You cannot simply disappear with nowhere to go. You would surely freeze.”

“
I would rather freeze than to return with my uncle. I only have a little money, but perhaps I can find a room somewhere.”

Lizzy twisted a lock of dark hair around her finger as she thought. At last she said, “I have an aunt in London. My mother often spoke of her. She lives in Cheapside. I only know her name, but I have heard she is a kind soul. If you mention me, perhaps she would take you in until this can be sorted through.”

Katharine felt a ray of hope, like a drowning person feels when thrown a rope. “Do you think she would, just until I have time to think? I could pay her a little.”

“
If you are determined not to return with Lord Graynor, I do not see where you have any choice other than to ask her. Yet, are you sure it would not be better to marry this Cedric? If you are a lady, you would live the life of a lady. If you go to my aunt, how will you support yourself? It will be hard to get work in a respectable household without the good references of Lady Charlesworth.”

Katharine shuddered. “I do not know how I shall manage or what I shall have to do. Yet, nothing could persuade me to place my comfort above my heart in a matter such as this.”

“
Then I shall help you in any way that I can.”

Katharine smiled at the girl. “You are a kind friend, Lizzy. Someday, I shall find a way to repay you.”

“
Repay me by proving the truth of what you have told me.”

Katharine looked into Lizzy’s troubled eyes. “Do you believe me, Lizzy?”

Tears welled in Lizzy’s eyes. “I do not know. Either you are telling the truth or you are quite mad. Either way, I believe you are innocent of deliberate wrong doing, for indeed, I could not believe you capable of it.”

Katharine gently squeezed her hand. “I am not mad, dear Lizzy and I shall prove it to you.”

They packed all the clothes and belongings with which Katharine dared try and escape into a reticule and a small trunk she borrowed from Lizzy. “Try to send me my large trunk, Lizzy. Lord Philip forbade me to take it, but it is mine and I must have it if I am to improve my position.”

“
I shall try.”

It was late when they finally got to sleep and Katharine knew that she must make an early escape. She allowed herself to doze until just before daybreak. Then, hidden by the shadows of pre-dawn, she rose and dressed. Lizzy sat up and rubbed her arms. With no fire yet in the kitchen, the room was chilly.

She got out of bed and lit a candle. In the dim light, she helped Katharine brush out her hair and neatly arrange the copper waves. When they finished, Lizzy dressed and helped Katharine carry the trunk out the garden gate and down to the corner, where a hired coach would spy her and she might buy a ride.

As she panted beside her, Lizzy told Katharine, “My aunt’s name is Rose. Rose Baker. She is a seamstress. Ask for her on Cheapside, for I am sure she will be easily known.”

Katharine shivered in the damp and foggy cold. “You had better go back before you are missed. I do not want to cause you to lose your position. With any luck, we will meet again soon.”

Lizzy embraced her. “God speed, Ginn…or should I say, my lady? I shall miss you dreadfully.”

“
And I shall miss you. I shall try to get word to you somehow.”

They parted as the clatter of a coach sounded in the fog. Lizzy pulled her cloak close around her head as she turned, waving once before she disappeared into the mist. Katharine waited alone until the driver spotted her. He pulled to a stop and asked if she required a ride. Katharine replied that she wished to go to Cheapside, causing him to eye her curiously before stowing her trunk. Why would she travel from Park Lane to a far less impressive side of London? She had the look of gentry, but he supposed one could never tell.