Page 16 of The Unfortunate Debutante
“Have you read these?” Simeon asked.
“We have,” Lansdowne confirmed. “Other than sappy declarations of love, Lockhart says little else.”
“Perhaps he’s just a spurned lover and not the perpetrator,” he suggested.
Jonathon nodded. “There’s a chance, but my brother believes Lockhart is behind this.”
“Unfortunately, I am working a case right now,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll find another Bow Street Runner to—”
Lansdowne spoke over him. “It has to be you.”
Simeon diverted his gaze away from the agent’s gaze. He didn’t want this assignment. “I assure you that there are other, more competent—”
Beckett cut him off. “Please,” he stated in a firm voice. “Miss Emma Pearson is family, and we protect our own.”
Hearing that plea come off Beckett’s lips caused his resolve to crumble. How could he deny their request now? He sighed. “Fine. I will meet with Lord Downshire tomorrow to discuss the case, but I won’t make any promises.”
Both men broke out in wide, relieved smiles. Simeon almost smiled back at them… almost, but then he saw Mr. Boyle heading towards the door. He rose from his chair.
“I trust that you two can make it out of the rookeries alive?” he jested.
Without waiting for a response, he headed out the main door and pulled up the collar on his worn brown jacket. He watched as Boyle staggered back and forth on the cobblestone street, skirting piles of animal dung, and singing a jolly tune.
Simeon dealt with the scum of Society, and yet, he found that preferable to guarding a spoiled debutante. What had he gotten himself into?
“Don’t die,don’t die, don’t die…” Emma kept muttering under her breath over and over. Her white-knuckled fingers were gripping the edges of the bricks as she attempted to climb down the back of Eliza’s townhouse. It was still early, but the sun had risen brightly over the Lansdownes’s well-manicured garden.
Gritting her teeth, Emma ignored the sweat rolling down the sides of her face and the pain in her tired fingers. She was dressed in a white shirt, fitted tan trousers, and ankle boots. Moving her foot, she was having a hard time finding a foothold on the brick wall. Perhaps she wasn’t ready for this step.
No, I can do this, she thought, strengthening her resolve. After all, she had scaled up the wall to a second level window… multiple times, but she had wanted to challenge herself by climbing down from the third level. Attempting to stay calm, she replayed Eliza’s instructions in her head;Stay as close as possible to the wall and position your boots in the space between the bricks.
Eliza’s unconcerned voice came from the ground. “I’m impressed that you haven’t fallen, but you are taking entirely too long.”
The jovial voice of her friend, Lady Easton, came from next to her. “Ignore her,” she encouraged as she moved closer. “Eliza can scurry up a wall faster than any rats I’ve seen.”
“I can hear you, Josette,” Eliza said in a light tone.
Josette laughed down at Lady Lansdowne. “I’m just offering encouragement to my friend.” She turned towards her, appearing completely calm and oriented. “Look for bricks that are jutting out vertically and find your foothold. Make sure you check the bricks before placing your weight on them. A loose brick could cause you to tumble off the wall.”
Emma lowered her right foot until she found a brick that jutted out.
“Good,” her friend praised. “Now find a handhold.”
Tentatively, she began finding the nearest holds, alternating her feet and hands. “It’s much simpler climbingupthe wall,” she remarked, blowing out a puff of air.
“That it is.” Keeping pace with her, Josette stated, “Once you get the hang of it, then it really is quite simple.”
Once she was within a few feet of the ground, Emma dropped down, and was met with Eliza’s clapping.
“Well done,” the Marchioness of Lansdowne said. “Was I correct that it is much easier in fitted trousers?”
“It was,” Emma agreed as she wiped the sweat off her brow with her shirt sleeve. “I will have to thank Miss Cosette for the fitted clothing the next time I am in her shop.”
Placing a hand to her barely discernable protruding belly, Eliza said, “I won’t be climbing many walls until my babe comes.”
“If I recall correctly, Benedict forbade you from climbing walls this morning,” Josette remarked.
Eliza grinned. “Benedict tends to be a bit overprotective.”
