The Prince of Pleasure (Notorious 5)

"What sins?"

"That wasn't clear, but for some months she apparently had been sneaking out of the house, presumably to meet a lover. You cannot tell it now, but Miss Watson was said to be pretty. She was a poor relation who came to London to keep her ladyship company after Lord Castlereagh left for France last December."

"Could her lover have killed her?" Dare mused.

"Possibly. Miss Watson suddenly started wearing a rose-shaped pearl broach that was thought to be a gift from him. But the broach is missing from her possessions. And see, the collar of her gown is torn. She could have been wearing the broach the night she was killed. And why would she have ripped it off if she committed suicide?"

"It could have been taken from her body by whoever fished her out of the river-mudlarks, rookery thieves…"

"Perhaps," Lucian conceded. "But there is another coincidence that seems highly suspicious-and the reason I was called. Several of Lord Castlereagh's letters to his wife are missing. The girl could easily have taken them. Admittedly the odds are long, but Caliban could have seduced her in an attempt to gain state secrets and learn of Castlereagh's plans."

Dare frowned thoughtfully. Since the end of last year, England's foreign secretary had been in France, negotiating with the Allied Powers not only to ensure Napoleon's defeat but to begin discussions on how to settle Europe afterward-the most pressing issue being whether to put a Bourbon king back on the French throne.

"Caliban could not have been pleased by the recent treaty Castlereagh orchestrated at Chaumont," Dare observed.

"No. And doubtless he would like nothing better than to scuttle any future negotiations. England holds the purse strings, but Castlereagh controls those strings, which makes him nearly as powerful as Napoleon himself."

"You think Lord Castlereagh might be in danger?"

"I confess that worries me. I've sent a report to him at Chaumont, warning him to be on his guard. And I've put an agent of my own both in his London household and on his staff in France. But that might be inadequate." With a final glance at the poor girl's body, Lucian covered her again. "Come. I expect you've seen enough."

He led Dare from the room and nodded brusquely to the coffin maker, who scurried off to ready the body for burial.

Out on the street, Dare dragged in a deep breath. The London air was ripe with the usual odors of soot and refuse, but it seemed like perfume after the fetid stench of decaying flesh behind him.

Yet he thought he understood his friend's reason for bringing him: Lucian intended to drive home the seriousness of their mission-finding Caliban and putting an end to the death and destruction he orchestrated.

Dare waited until they had settled into Lucian's carriage and were on their way back to Brooks's Club before he asked the question that had struck him almost from his first moment of seeing Lady Castlereagh's companion's corpse. "Was Riddingham involved in any way with the Watson girl?"

"We have no proof he knew her, but he did attend a rout at Lady Castlereagh's last week. He could have seduced the girl over the past few months, before his visit to Yorkshire." Lucian met Dare's gaze gravely. "This is even more reason to hope your investigation of Riddingham bears fruit soon. I am having him watched, but my agents cannot be too obvious for fear of giving away our suspicions."

It was time to tell Lucian of his own scheme, Dare knew. "I'm planning to hold a house party at the end of next week and have invited Riddingham and some of his cronies. It might generate some new leads. I pressed Riddingham further about the dragon ring he wears-told him I wanted one like it and asked again about how he won it at piquet. He claimed he couldn't remember specifically who lost the ring to him, but he recalled some of his friends who were in the game."

"Indeed?" Lucian said thoughtfully.

"So I arranged to get them together. Riddingham intends to come, if only to keep me from worming my way into Miss Laurent's affections."

"Then your campaign to woo her is succeeding?"

Dare's mouth twisted wryly. "I wouldn't phrase it quite so optimistically. She is to be my houseguest at least. I made certain she will be there to give Riddingham an inducement to come. I mean to observe both of them more closely… perhaps search his possessions. When I was at Riddingham's estate last month, I never found myself alone long enough to examine the place or try to discover a vault."

"You should look for ciphers, names, anything that might lead us to determine if Riddingham has an alternate identity. Scrutinize his friends as well."

Dare nodded in understanding.

"As for your Miss Laurent…" Lucian added after a moment. "I've investigated her background, Dare. There's not even a whisper that she might be working for the French or have Bonapartist leanings."

"She claims to have no interest in politics, but I don't know that I can believe her or trust her avowals of patriotism. Caliban could have found some means to extort her cooperation. You've warned me often enough that blackmail is his specialty. Faith, your own wife and brother-in-law were caught in his clutches."

He felt Lucian studying him. "Miss Laurent's aristocratic heritage came as a surprise to me. Did you know she is a count's daughter?"

"Even more reason to be wary of her. Emigres make prime targets for bribery-forced into a life of exile with little or no income, dependent on the generosity of others. If Riddingham is Caliban, it's not beyond possibility that he corrupted her. She is certainly greedy enough to sell to the highest bidder."

Too late Dare recognized the bitterness in his tone and saw how his friend's penetrating regard sharpened.

"You once said you had offered marriage to a woman," Lucian observed slowly. "Is she the one?"

"Regrettably… yes." Glancing away, Dare stared out the carriage window to avoid his friend's scrutiny. "But our betrothal lasted less than a month."