Star of the East: A Lady Emily Christmas Story (Lady Emily Mysteries) by Tasha Alexander

Author:Tasha Alexander
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 2014-10-28T04:00:00+00:00

* * *

“I had hoped we would be well on our way home by now,” Colin said, fastening studs to the stiff front of his evening shirt as we dressed for dinner. “Benton is coming for dinner, but I do not expect to learn anything beyond what he has already told me, which was not much.”

“I do not think he would have taken the diamond,” I said. “He knew about the curse, and anyone familiar with it would never have separated it from the bangle.”

“Emily, my love, curses are not real.”

“Correct though that may be—and I assure you I am not arguing the point—I would not take one without the other. Had I stolen the bangle and returned the diamond, if something bad ever did happen to someone who decided to flaunt tradition and wear the diamond alone, I should blame myself, even if it is irrational, and I believe that most people would feel the same.”

“So you believe whoever took the jewels was unaware of the curse?”

“I do, and, as I said before, I think he—or she—returned the diamond hoping that no one would care about the still missing bangle.”

“It is a fair theory,” Colin said, “but misses one point. No one in this house was unaware of the curse.”

“Lady Emily?” A housemaid poked her head into the room. “There is a Mr. Capet here to see you.”

“Capet?” Colin asked. “Sebastian Capet?”

“I don’t know, sir, would you like me to inquire?” the maid asked.

“No, no,” he said. “Lady Emily will be right down.”

“How on earth did he manage … ?” My voice trailed. Colin had agreed that sending an advertisement to The Times was the best way to contact our friend, but neither of us could comprehend why he would have arrived at Darnley House before the notice would have appeared in the paper.

“Unless, of course, he has had his eye on the maharaja’s jewels from the time the boat docked in Southampton,” I said, as we made our way to—oddly enough—the ballroom, where we found Sebastian holding court. How he had managed to persuade my mother that this was an appropriate place for drinks before dinner I could not imagine, and I would prefer not to inquire. He was fawning over her, making a disgusting spectacle of himself.

“I expected to see you wearing a beard,” I said, looking critically at his clean-shaven face.

He took a step back from me and grimaced. “A beard? I understand that you do not admire beards, my darling Emily, and I should never want to do anything to lower the esteem in which you hold me,” he said, making a great show of kissing my hand.

“I do not think it would be possible for such a thing to occur,” I said. “One can only go so low, Mr. Capet.”

“Do not force me to beg you to once again use my given name. You are not so cruel, are you?”

“Why did you not tell me you have such a charming friend, Emily?” my mother asked.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.