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Beast
    he is. Got her with child, he did. Used her for his own lecherous purposes. But instead of doing the
    proper thing and marrying her, he cast her aside . T'weren't no secret. Just ask anyone around the
    district."
    Aunt Effie and Felicity were silent in stunned disbelief.
    "Oh, my God." Harriet sat down abruptly on a small, padded bench. She realized she was clasping her
    hands so tightly together her fingers hurt. She forced herself to take a deep, steadying breath. "Are you
    quite certain of this, Mrs. Stone? He really did not seem the type, you know. In fact, I… I rather liked
    him."
    "What would you know of the type of man who would do such a thing?" Aunt Effie asked with
    irrefutable logic. "You have never had occasion to meet one of that sort. You did not even have a Season
    because my brother, rest his soul, did not leave us enough money to finance one for you. Perhaps if you
    had gone to Town and been exposed to a bit more of the world, you would have learned that one cannot
    always distinguish that sort of man at a glance."
    "You are probably quite right, Aunt Effie." Harriet knew she was obliged to admit that what her aunt was
    saying was nothing less than the truth. She really did not have any practical knowledge of the kind of man
    who would ravish an innocent young woman and then abandon her. "One hears stories, of course, but it
    is obviously not the same as having direct experience of that sort of man, is it?"
    "You would hardly wish for practical experience," Felicity pointed out. She turned back to Mrs. Stone.
    "Pray, continue with the tale."
    "Yes," said Harriet morosely. "You may as well tell us all, Mrs. Stone."
    Mrs. Stone lifted her chin and looked at Harriet and Felicity with watering eyes. "Like I was sayin',
    Gideon Westbrook was the second son of the Earl of Hardcastle."
    "So he was not a viscount then," Felicity murmured.
    "Of course not," Aunt Effie put in with her usual air of authority on such matters. "He held no titles at the
    time because he was only a second son. His older brother would have been the viscount."
    "I know, Aunt Effie. Do continue, Mrs. Stone."
    "The Beast wanted my sweet Miss Deirdre the first moment he saw her when she made her come-out in
    London. The Reverend Rushton had scraped together everything he had to give her one Season and the
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    Beast was the one who offered for her first."
    "So Rushton decided he'd better grab what he could get, was that it?" Harriet asked.
    Mrs. Stone glowered at her. "The reverend told Miss Deirdre she would have to accept the offer. The
    Beast had no title but he had money and family connections. It was an excellent match, he said."
    "All things considered, it would seem it was," Effie murmured.
    "In other words, she was going to marry him for his money and the chance to form a connection with a
    powerful family," Harriet concluded.
    "My Miss Deirdre was always a good and obedient daughter," Mrs. Stone said woefully. "She agreed to
    do as her papa wished, even though Westbrook was only a second son and as ugly as sin. She could
    have done better for herself, but her papa was afraid to wait. He could not afford to keep her in London
    for very long."
    Harriet looked up, irritated. "I did not think him ugly in the least."
    Mrs. Stone grimaced. "Great, monstrous creature. What with that dreadful scar and all, he looks like a
    demon straight from the Pit. Always did, even before his face was ruined. My poor Miss Deirdre
    shuddered at the sight of him. But she did her duty."
    "And a bit more on the side, from the sound of it," Harriet muttered.
    Aunt Effie shook her head dolefully. "Ah, these silly young girls who will insist on following their hearts
    instead of their heads. Such foolishness. When will they ever learn they must keep their wits and their
    virginity about them until they are safely wed if they do not wish to find themselves ruined?"
    "My Deirdre was a