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    Lady Augusta Morwellan raised huge brown eyes to Alathea’s face and smiled trustingly. “I had a lovely time in the garden this morning, but Rose here”—she turned the doll so Alathea could inspect her—“has been fractious. Miss Helm and I think we should take her for a walk this afternoon.”
    â€œA walk? Oh, yes! That’s a lovely idea—just what we need.” Having settled her sartorial requirements, Mary, all bouncing brown ringlets and glowing eyes, was ready for the next excitement.
    â€œI’m starting to feel hemmed in with all these houses and streets.” With fair hair and doelike eyes, Alice was more serious and contained. She smiled at Augusta. “And Augusta won’t want us disturbing Rose with our chatter.”
    Augusta returned the smile sweetly. “No. Rose needs quiet.” Too young to share in the excitement that had infected the rest of the family, Augusta was content to stroll the nearby square, her hand in Miss Helm’s, and stare, wide-eyed, at all the new and different sights.
    â€œIs there somewhere else we can go—other than the park, I mean?” Alice looked from Alathea to Serena. “We won’t have our new dresses until next week, so it’s probably better we don’t go there too often.”
    â€œI would prefer that you didn’t haunt the park anyway,” Serena said. “Better to appear only a few times a week, and we were there yesterday.”
    â€œSo where shall we go? It has to be somewhere with trees and lawns.” Mary fixed her glowing gaze on Alathea’s face.
    â€œActually . . .” Alathea considered—just because she’d successfully recruited her knight didn’t mean she had to sit on her hands and leave all the investigating to him. She refocused on her stepsisters’ faces. “There’s a particular park I know of, quiet and pleasant, cut off from all the noise. It’s very like the country—you can almost forget you’re in London.”
    â€œThat sounds perfect,” Alice declared. “Let’s go there.”
    â€œWe’re going to Bond Street!” Jeremy pushed back his chair.
    Charlie and the earl did the same. The earl smiled at his womenfolk. “I’ll take these two off for the afternoon.”
    â€œI’m going to learn to box!” Jeremy danced around the table, thrusting his fists through the air, dealing summarily with invisible opponents. Laughing, Charlie caught Jeremy’s fists, then half-waltzed, half-wrestled him out of the room. Jeremy’s piping protests and Charlie’s deeper amused taunts faded as they progressed in the direction of the front door.
    Mary and Alice rose to follow. “We’ll get our bonnets.” Mary looked at Alathea. “Shall I fetch yours?”
    â€œPlease.” Alathea rose, too.
    The earl stopped by her side, his fingers light on her arm. “Is everything all right?” he asked quietly.
    Alathea looked up. Despite his age and the troubles resting heavily on his shoulders, her father, two inches taller than she, remained a strikingly handsome man. Glimpsing shadows of pain and regret in his eyes, she smiled reassuringly; she caught his hand and squeezed. “Everything’s going well.”
    He’d been devastated when he’d learned about the promissory note. He’d thought the sum pledged was much smaller—the wording of the note was such that arithmetic was required to determine the total sum. All he’d intended was to gain a few extra guineas to spend on the girls’ weddings. She’d spent some time comforting him, assuring him that although the situation was bad, it was not the final end.
    It had been hard for him to carry on as if nothing had happened so the children wouldn’t suspect. Only the three of them—he, she and Serena—knew of the latest threat or, indeed, of the perilous state of