Free Evermore by C. J. Archer Page B

father said as he stepped aside to
let her pass.
    Lady Preston gasped. "But the invitations
have already gone out."
    Nobody said anything to that. I suspect it
was too late to retract the invitations. Canceling the ball would
give the gossips the impression all was not well in the Beaufort
household, and that certainly wouldn't do.
    I strode past Lord and Lady Preston and
thought I'd gotten away safely, but Lord Preston's booming voice
stopped me. George stopped too and remained close, bless him.
    "I will be watching you at the ball, Miss
Chambers," Lord Preston said. "If you so much as whisper about
spirits or nonsense of that nature, you will be evicted.
Understand?"
    "I say!" George said.
    "Reginald, please. She is our guest."
    Lord Preston puffed out his thick chest.
"That doesn't give her the right to come here and use her devious
practices on you."
    "She is not a fraud," George said. "I can
vouch for—"
    "Be quiet. The only reason I tolerate you is
because you're of gentle stock and haven't tried to take money in
exchange for whatever it is you do. But be aware that I know all
about that so-called Society to which you belong, and I will shut
it down if a single member so much as utters anything of a
paranormal nature in my hearing. Understand?"
    "Perfectly." George didn't move and for a
horrifying moment I thought he might march up to Lord Preston and
punch him. The earl was built as solidly as a house. A physical
confrontation would not end well for George.
    I dragged him with me onto the landing and
down the stairs. The footman saw us out and into the waiting
carriage. It took me a moment to catch my breath and regain my
wits, by which time we were already moving.
    George sat opposite me, visibly seething.
"That man! Abominable! To speak in such a rude manner to his own
wife and daughter!"
    And to you and
me , I almost added. But I did not want to
add fuel to his ire. He was fiery enough. "Have you and Adelaide
really been writing to each other in secret?" I asked.
    He blinked and his temper seemed to dampen.
"I wasn't aware it was in secret until today." He sighed. "I'm
afraid I got her into trouble. Do you think she'll forgive me?"
    "I have no doubt she will."
    "But what of her parents? I didn't think Lord
Preston would like my writing to his daughter, but I had hoped Lady
Preston wouldn't mind. I didn't know Miss Beaufort was set to wed
Bertie." He pulled a face. "Nothing against the fellow, but he's
not an ideal match for her. Not a winter goes by that he doesn't
take to his bed for weeks. To think of such a vibrant, lovely
creature as Miss Beaufort being shackled to a weak character." He
shook his head sadly. "It's more than a shame. It's..." He
shrugged, as if there were no words to explain how terrible such a
future would be.
    "I'm surprised her mother wishes her to marry
him at all, if that's the case."
    "Lord Preston is the head of that household,
in every sense of the word. I suspect he has given them no say in
the matter and his wife must accept the marriage as much as their
daughter."
    "He does seem like the sort to disregard
everyone's opinions except his own."
    "Poor Miss Beaufort." He sighed. "She didn't
deserve such treatment when she only spoke the truth."
    "True. His nose is rather
ugly."
    That coaxed a laugh from him.
    ***
    We traveled to Camden Town and the address
Lady Preston had given me. It was a modest house, rather like my
own, in a middle-class suburb and the occupants were polite but
unhelpful. They didn't know where the Seymours had moved to. They
had not dealt with them so could not even give me a description or
a first name. It was as we suspected, but it was frustrating
nevertheless.
    "Now what?" George asked when we were back
inside the carriage.
    "Now we visit Mrs. White."
    "You've found her?"
    "My maid said she's governess to a family on
Grosvenor Street."
    "You think she'll be able to help us find
Blunt?"
    "We can only try."
    "We don’t even know if Blunt had anything to
do with