A Vicious Machination: A Regency Cozy (Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries Book 12) by Lynn Messina

Author:Lynn Messina [Messina, Lynn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Potatoworks Press
Published: 2024-06-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

By nine-thirty the next morning, the duke’s steward had not only found Alicia Beveridge’s address but also gathered a dozen relevant facts about her, which he compiled in a brief report: She was two and thirty and of the Essex Gielguds. She had been married to William Beveridge for eleven years and had served as a supervisor for Fortescue’s for three and a half before ignominiously resigning with her fellow members of the board. She had two children, both girls, ages five and nine, and was distantly related to Lord Castlereagh through her mother’s side. She had been presented to society by Mrs. Pardoe and received five proposals of marriage.

Finding this detail extremely dubious, Bea raised her eyes from the sheet Kesgrave had handed her upon her arrival to the breakfast room. “How could Stephens possibly know the number of marriage proposals she had? He is just making up things now, is he not? He fears falling short of your outsize expectations and thinks it is better to write any old thing than to present a sparse account.”

Untroubled by the accusation, he refilled his mug with coffee before procuring a slice of gammon. As he passed the platter to her, he said, “One of the pleasures of employing a competent steward is not having to question the competence of my steward. If you doubt the accuracy of the information, then you are encouraged to question him about his sources. But do leave me out of it. Stephens knows exactly what I expect of him, and it is in line with his abilities.”

“Yes, your grace, I noticed your use of the passive ‘are encouraged,’ as though it were not you who offered the encouragement,” she said with a lilt of amusement. “Your fear of offending the servants has been well documented and does not require mention.”

“And yet you persist in mentioning it,” he replied with an air of disapprobation. “Whatever Stephens’s methods are for gauging the social success of a young woman, I am sure they are impeccable.”

Bea, whose queasiness was most intense upon rising, decided she could stomach the ham and placed a thin slice next to her shirred eggs. “Did his research reveal the ideal time to call on Mrs. Beveridge or are we to try our luck with a morning visit?”

The duke, dabbing gently at the side of his mouth with a serviette, said the latter. “The report notes that her activities remain curtailed by the scandal, although not as severely as when news of it first became public, so I think we may reasonably expect her to be at home.”

“Yes, I see,” Bea said as she glanced down at the sheet and perused the next item on the list. “She enjoys a regular Wednesday evening game of whist, at which she takes an average of eight tricks. Eight tricks, Damien, really?”

Kesgrave returned her skeptical gaze with a blank stare for several seconds before gesturing to the envelopes at her elbow. “You have missives from your aunt and Tilly.

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