Read Quick, Amanda for Free Online Page B

He
    barely knew the lady. Your niece certainly does not do things by
    halves, does she?"
    It was not her fault," Horatia said with touching loyalty.
    Vanneck lured her to that bedchamber."
    Who discovered them?"
    Horatia heaved another sigh of regret. Mister Drake, the nice
    young man who was on the verge of making an offer. He was
    accompanied by a companion. Naturally, there was no more talk
    of marriage after the incident. One could hardly blame Mister Drake
    for losing interest."
    Drake could at least have kept his mouth shut about what he
    had seen."
    I expect he did," Horatia said. But as I said, he had a companion with him that night. The other man was
    obviously not such a
    gentleman."
    Matthias released a deep breath that he had not realized he had
    been holding. I take it the incident, as you term it, put an end to
    the friendship between Miss Waterstone and Lady Vanneck?"
    Lucy took her own life the day after Vanneck was discovered
    with Imogen. She left a note saying that she could not endure the
    knowledge that her best friend had betrayed her with her
    husband."
    Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    Matthias considered that briefly. How did she kill herself?"
    She took a great quantity of laudanum."
    Then there is no question but that she committed suicide?"
    None so far as the rest of the world is concerned. Imogen is the
    only one who believes that Vanneck murdered Lucy. I fear my
    niece's view of the matter is clouded by her own dreadful experience at his hands. Perhaps she feels a
    measure of guilt. But what
    happened in that bedchamber was Vanneck's fault. I have no
    doubt of that."
    Matthias glanced at the empty doorway of the library. And
    now, three years later, Miss Waterstone has hit upon this crazed
    notion of avenging her friend."
    I thought she had put it all behind her," Horatia confided. But
    through her membership in the Zamarian Society, she corre
    sponds with a vast number of people. A few weeks ago one of
    them conveyed the information that Lord Vanneck was hanging
    out for an heiress. My brother had just died and left Imogen this
    house and its contents and your, er, promise to him. Imogen was
    suddenly inspired."
    Inspired is not quite the word I would have chosen." Matthias
    straightened away from the bookcase. He paused as he caught
    sight of a recent volume of the Zamarian Review. He scowled
    when he noticed the date. Damnation."
    Is something wrong, my lord?"
    No." He picked up the copy of the Review and flipped through
    the pages. This just happens to be the issue in which the editors
    Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    published two articles on the interpretation of Zamarian inscriptions. One written by me and one by I. A.
    Stone. The fellow haunts
    me."
    I see." Horatia busied herself with a funeral urn.
    For some reason, the editors gave Stone's article considerable
    attention even though any dolt can see that he is completely
    wrong-headed in his conclusions. I shall speak to them about it."
    You're going to speak to the editors about publishing I. A.
    Stone's papers?"
    Why not? I founded that damned journal. I have a responsibility to ensure that only the most scholarly
    articles are printed in it."
    I take it I A. Stone's conclusions about Zamarian inscriptions
    did not agree with your own, my lord?" Horatia asked very dryly.
    No, they did not. It was especially irritating because, as usual,
    Stone based his conclusions on the results of my own published
    researches." Matthias took a grip on his outrage. He generally
    regarded the work of other Zamarian scholars with complete
    disinterest and disdain. He knew better than anyone else that
    since Rutledge's disappearance, he had no equal in the field.
    There had been no real challenge to Matthias's authority on the
    subject until I. A. Stone had exploded upon the scene eighteen
    months earlier in the pages of the Review.
    To Matthias's increasing