Flicking through the document, Devil nodded. “I’ll get them onto it immediately.” He grimaced, then refolded the will. “Makes one wonder what became of the English language.”
Laying the will aside, he reached for a fresh sheet of paper. “I’ll add a note to the effect we want the answer with all speed.”
“Thank you.” Michael rose. “Is Honoria in?”
A faint smile lifted Devil’s lips. “She is, and I’m sure your presence within her purlieu will by now have been reported.” He looked up at Michael and grinned. “She’s probably waiting to pounce the instant you leave this room.”
Michael raised his brows. “I’m surprised she hasn’t simply waltzed in.” It wasn’t like Honoria to stand on ceremony, and Devil had no secrets from her.
Devil’s grin only deepened; he looked down and wrote. “I think she’s trying to restrain herself from prying into your love life—the effort is probably killing her.”
With a laugh, Michael turned to the door. “I’d better go and relieve her.”
Devil raised a hand in farewell. “I’ll send word the instant I have any news.”
Michael left. Closing the study door, he headed back along the corridor to the front hall.
“I do hope”—his sister’s crisp, unquestionably duchessy tones reached him the instant he set foot on the hall tiles—“that you intend to come up and call on me?”
Michael swung around, looked up the grand staircase to where Honoria stood on the landing. He grinned. “I was on my way up.”
He took the stairs two at a time, then swung her into a hug, which she, smiling delightedly, returned.
>
“Now,” she said, releasing him and stepping back to look into his face. “Tell me your news. What are you doing back in town? Have you made an offer?”
He laughed. “I’ll tell you, but not here.”
She took his arm and led him to her private sitting room. Swinging around, she sat in an armchair, barely waited for him to do the same before demanding, “Now tell me. All of it.”
He did; there was no point doing otherwise—any hint of evasion and she’d have pounced, and either wrung it out of him or out of Devil. The only information he omitted to mention, as he had with Devil, was the truth of Caro and Camden’s marriage. He didn’t specifically state that Caro Sutcliffe was the woman he’d set his heart on; he didn’t have to—Honoria made the connection with ease.
The news of the attempts on Caro’s life sobered her—Caro and she had once been close friends—but when he explained how they proposed to meet the challenge, she merely nodded. With three children whose welfare she supervised very closely, Honoria had too much on her plate these days to interfere. However…
“Bring her to afternoon tea.” Honoria considered, then said, “It’s too late today, but bring her tomorrow afternoon.”
Michael knew he could count on Honoria to take his side, to tactfully and covertly steer Caro toward accepting his proposal. He couldn’t wish for better support, but…it was a support that had better be informed. “I’ve asked her to marry me—she hasn’t yet agreed.”
Honoria’s brows rose. She blinked, then smiled, entirely comprehending. “Then we’ll have to see what we can do to help her make up her mind.”
She stood. “Now come and do your penance—your nephews and niece are in the schoolroom.”
With a smile, he rose, prefectly willing to pay her price.
Late July in London might be warm and muggy; it was, however, relatively free of unavoidable social engagements. Consequently, they gathered over the dinner table en famille—Caro, Magnus, Evelyn, and he; over the meal, they revisited the facts and refined their strategy.
“I’ve started on Camden’s diaries.” Caro grimaced. “He was incredibly detailed in his observations—it’s perfectly possible he might have seen and noted something that someone might now deem dangerous.”
“Slow going?” Michael asked.
“Very. I’ve started from when he first took up his post as ambassador to Portugal—that seemed the most sensible place to start.”
“What about his letters?”
“I’ll go through them later, if I find nothing in the diaries.”
Michael was aware that Magnus was restraining himself from demanding to help with the letters; he briefly described his visit to Devil Cynster, and Devil’s agreement to get his solicitors to examine the will.