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face and shrewd little eyes. The purple veins in his nose bespoke a fondness for gin and he seemed to have a perpetual cold during the winter months. He always wore a grimy scarf around his neck and snuffled a great deal.
    “Good afternoon, yer lordship. I see ye got my message.”
    “I trust this matter will prove more amusing than the last, Whistlecroft.” Sebastian sat down in the booth across from the Runner. “I am in the mood for something a bit more challenging.”
    “Yer too good at this sort o’ thing, that’s yer problem.” Whistlecroft grinned, displaying several gaps in his teeth. “Well, I got a new one that should interest ye. Same arrangement as before? I collect the reward from the suitably grateful party what hired me?”
    “The reward and the credit, Whistlecroft. Neither are of any use to me.”
    “Must be nice to be rich,” Whistlecroft said with a sigh. “And have a fancy title into the bargain. Don’t mind tellin’ ye, I still don’t understand why ye take such an interest in these little affairs.”
    Sebastian signaled for coffee. “I’ve explained that before, Whistlecroft. You provide me with an amusing hobby. Every man needs a hobby, don’t you agree?”
    “I wouldn’t know about that, yer lordship. Ain’t never had time for no hobby. Too busy trying to keep food on the table for me and mine.”
    Sebastian smiled coolly. “I trust you and yours are eating somewhat better since we began our partnership.”
    Whistlecroft chuckled. “That we are, m’lord. That we are. My wife’s getting plump and the five little ones is all filling out nicely. We moved into a little house just last week. Real pleasant, it is.”
    “Excellent. Then let me hear what you have for me this time.”
    Whistlecroft hunched forward and lowered his voice. “A little matter o’ blackmail and a nice bit o’ jewelry, m’lord. I think ye’ll find it amusing enough.”

Three
    hat do I know of Angelstone?” Hester, Lady Pembroke, paused with her teacup halfway to her mouth and looked at Prudence. “Only that he is not on speaking terms with his relatives and that he has an exceedingly dangerous reputation. All of which makes him extremely interesting, of course. Why do you ask?”
    Prudence smiled. Hester was an awesomely built woman of indeterminate years, whose size was exceeded only by her generous heart and her lively interest in the affairs of the
ton
. As she had once explained to Prudence, she had long been deprived of her natural place in the social world due to the mysterious disappearance of the famed Pembroke jewels a generation earlier. One could not move in the best circles of the
ton
without money, regardless of one’s pedigree.
    Now that she had money, Hester was happily indulging herself in all the pleasures of society that had previously been denied to her. She had concluded that she had an innate sense of style and when the
Morning Post
reported that gowns of lavender and violet hues were the most fashionable this season, Hester had redone her wardrobe accordingly. Today her stout frame was encased in a heavily flounced and ruffled lavender gown trimmed with pink lace.
    Hester was an old friend of Prudence’s family. She andher late husband had lived in an ancient, tumbledown manor house that was located not far from the Merryweather farm. The Pembroke ghost, which was almost as famous as the missing Pembroke jewels, had provided Prudence with her first real experience in the investigation of spectral phenomena.
    “I’m asking about Angelstone because Trevor has taken this ridiculous notion into his head that I must be very careful around the earl,” Prudence explained. “He seems to think the man is out to seduce me. Utter nonsense, of course, but Trevor is very agitated about it.”
    “As well he should be, I suppose. The earl is, as I said, most interesting, but there is no indication that he is casting about for a wife as yet. Therefore, we must assume that when he pays