Mistress - Amanda Quick [134]
“And rightfully so. It was extremely satisfying to see his expression yesterday when he learned that you had the power to deny him entry into the investment pool.”
“Do you think that it is wrong of me to take such satisfaction from my revenge?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You exacted retribution and justice. You are entitled to a sense of satisfaction.”
“Adam says that Dodgson will probably not be able to recover from his recent financial reverses,” Amelia confided. “Apparently he is too far under the hatches to crawl back out on his own.”
“I shall certainly not waste any sympathy on him. And I cannot tell you how delighted I am to know that you care for Mr. Manwaring. He has been attracted to you since the moment you met, you know.”
“I think I did know. I always felt a certain warmth toward him. But for some reason I could not allow myself to admit it. Then, yesterday, after I confronted Dodgson and watched him go down in defeat, I suddenly felt free to turn to Adam.” Amelia smiled. “Oh, Iphiginia, I do feel glorious today.”
“Excellent. Then you can help me deal with what I believe may be an extremely nasty case of wedding nerves.”
“Nerves? You? Iphiginia, are you telling me you are anxious about this marriage to Masters?”
“Yes, I believe I am. Remind me to take a vinaigrette with me to the preachers this afternoon. I would hate to humiliate myself by fainting at Masters’s feet.”
“I am astounded. I do not know what to say. You always seem so certain of yourself. I have never known you to suffer from nerves.”
“I have never been married,” Iphiginia reminded her. She smiled wryly. “But Marcus has. If I am anxious, only think what he must be going through.”
Half an hour later, feeling restless and more anxious than ever, Iphiginia wandered into her library with the intention of distracting herself.
She sat down behind her desk, opened a drawer, and removed several sheets of foolscap. She closed the drawer and reached for her pen.
Inspiration did not strike.
She took up a penknife and fiddled with the nib of her quill for a while. Then she put down the pen and contemplated several pieces of the statuary she had brought back with her from Italy.
It was no use. All she could think about was how her life was about to be irrevocably changed by a special license.
Teach me to break that rule, too, Iphiginia.
Marcus had as much as asked her to teach him how to love again. She had been so certain that she could do it.
But what if she was wrong?
Iphiginia got to her feet and started around her desk with no particular goal. She just felt the need to move.
The copy of Illustrations of Classical Antiquities caught her eye. Having nothing better to do, she picked it up to place it back in its proper place on a library shelf.
Idly she thumbed through it, seeking favorite scenes.
The tiny blob of black wax was stuck to page two hundred and three. It had obviously been dropped onto the volume by accident. It had dried there and gone undiscovered.
Iphiginia stared at the small bit of wax for a long time. Someone who knows everything and everyone in Society.
Then, at last, inspiration finally did strike.
“You’re certain of these facts, Barclay?” Marcus sat forward behind his desk and forced himself to be patient. Sound scientific investigation had to be done carefully and thoroughly. He must not allow emotion and enthusiasm to rush him into a false conclusion.
He had allowed Iphiginia to persuade him to abandon a few of the rules which had governed his personal life until recently. That did not mean he had abandoned the sound, sensible rules of scientific experimentation.
Nevertheless, Marcus could feel the familiar thrill of discovery and satisfaction welling up inside. It all made perfect sense, he thought. It was logical. With this bit of information all the rest of the pieces began to fall into place.
He could not wait to tell Iphiginia.
“Yes, yes, quite certain.” Barclay shuffled his papers and peered at his notes through his spectacles. “The original Dr. Hardstaff, whose real name was William Burn, sold his premises