Miss Bridewell then proceeded to expose a bizarre and shocking truth, and gave Antoinette the exact address in London where that truth was to be found: a house in Lambeth.
You must visit this house and gather the proof. If you take the story to those in power, then Lord Appleby would be ruined.
The governess really was a marvel. There was still the problem of giving Appleby’s spies the slip, but she would try as soon as possible.
Raised voices caught her attention.
Cautiously, she crept out of her room and into the gallery and peered over the polished ebony railing. Lord Appleby and Madame Aphrodite stood below her.
“Do you really imagine you will get away with this?” The fury in Madame Aphrodite’s voice was audible.
Lord Appleby seemed amused by her emotion. “Why not? You know, Madame Aphrodite, you really will have to learn to get along with me. Remember, I am your partner now.”
For a moment Antoinette thought the woman would strike him across the face. Her hand was raised, while her body quivered like a bow. Lord Appleby’s mouth tightened and he leaned toward her, daring her.
“Do it. But I’m warning you that if you do I’ll close you down by the end of the week. You will be on the streets, where you belong.”
Madame Aphrodite seemed to sag, dropping her hand, turning her face aside. Her voice trembled. “I have friends. They will speak on my behalf.”
Appleby snorted. “You are a courtesan, Madame. Who do you think they will listen to? You or me?”
“Your name is spoken of in the same breath as the Crystal Palace. You are in the public eye, my lord. People recognize you in the street. But such fame is a two-edged sword. There is always gossip, always those who will seek to pull you down.” Her glittering black eyes lifted to his. “It is whispered how your young mistress was in your arms, bold as brass. Soon it will be all over London.” She smiled. “The royal couple do not like men of poor moral character. Do you think they have heard the whispers?”
Appleby gave a scornful laugh, as if he didn’t care. “You are clutching at straws, Madame,” he mocked.
“We will see!” was her parting cry.
Two days later he came back from a visit to Buckingham Palace and called Antoinette down from her room.
“You are going away for a little while,” he said, when Antoinette was standing reluctantly before him, her head held high. “I have a house in Devon. As much as I dislike Madame Aphrodite, she was right. You will stay in Devon until the gossip is forgotten, and when you come back you will marry me.”
“I want to go home. Why can’t you send me home?”
“Because I don’t want you to go home,” he imitated her voice. “I want you where I can keep an eye on you and you can’t get up to any mischief. Remember, I have Cecilia. If you don’t marry me, I will lock you away and take Cecilia in your place. She is quite a beauty, isn’t she, your little sister?”
Shock made Antoinette’s throat close over. Her sister in the hands of this wicked man? She couldn’t allow it to happen. Frustration surged through her. She had the letter, but she was so closely watched, she hadn’t had a chance to use it. And now he was sending her away.
“You will leave within the hour.”
It made her physically ill but she begged him. “Please, my lord, let me stay. I—I can’t bear to be sent away.”
A puzzled frown creased his brow but he wasn’t swayed. “No, Antoinette, it isn’t possible. I can’t risk losing royal patronage, not now. All these years I have worked toward making my fortune, and now I am on the verge of major success. My name will be famous, and orders will come in from all over the world.”
Did he want her to admire him? Congratulate him? Antoinette could only wonder at such single-minded selfishness.
“Now go and pack,” he said briskly, rubbing his hands together. “You have fifty-five minutes.”
She turned and left him, but at the door he spoke again.
“Who knows, my dear, I might come and visit you.”
“And risk the royals finding out?” she retorted with distaste.
“Devon is a long way away.” He smiled, his gaze examining her in a way that made her cringe inside. “Cecilia may be a beauty but you are quite fetching yourself, Antoinette. Odd, I hadn’t realized it. I think we could deal quite well together.”
She didn’t answer. She didn’t think she could. Bad enough that everyone believed her to be Lord Appleby’s mistress, but to be so in fact!
Antoinette made up her mind that she would do anything in her power to prevent it from happening, even if that