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Just how was it circulated?”
    Nerves frayed, Hope couldn’t help herself from blurting, “If you would stop interrupting me, I will tell you!” Hope sat up, ramrod straight, and clasped both hands over her mouth. She was mortified.
    “Oh, Lady Lancaster,” Hope mumbled from behind her hands. “I am so-o-o-o sorry. I do not know what came over me.”
    “Oh, pish tosh,” Lady Lancaster said with a wave of her hand. “In this instance, you were completely in the right. I should have let you speak uninterrupted. Therefore, it is I who should apologize to you.”
    With that, Hope saw Michael sit up in apparent astonishment. It was a rare person indeed who garnered an actual apology from the dowager Duchess of Lancaster.
    And suddenly, a tiny smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
    For the first time in her recollection, Hope had stood up for herself in a manner such that the person she was speaking to felt the need to apologize to her . So many times in the past, when confronted by a rude comment or snide remark, Hope had either forced herself to smile and say nothing or she would say something but in such a way that it sounded as if she were the one apologizing. But not today. Today she pushed back when pushing back was the right thing to do…and the person she pushed back against acknowledged that she was wrong. What an incredible feeling!
    “As I was saying,” Hope began again, “the rumors spread today were much more detailed than normal, and that coupled with the French officers throwing billets to the same effect, everyone seemed much more willing to believe the lies. As a result, the government security values soared.”
    “French officers,” Lady Lancaster exclaimed. “Michael, what is she talking about?”
    Michael leaned forward. “What she said is correct, Eliz—, ah, Lady Lancaster.”
    Hope looked sharply at Michael and then at the duchess. He was about to refer to Lady Lancaster by her first name. Hope wasn’t even sure she knew the lady’s first name, but if Michael did and, furthermore, was comfortable using it, then there was even more between Lady Lancaster and Michael than she had even fathomed.
    Neither Michael nor Lady Lancaster acknowledged her suspicious looks. Michael simply continued with what he was saying. “There were two men dressed as officers riding through town on a post-chaise, throwing pamphlets to the people declaring Napoleon dead.”
    “And how is it you happened to be there to see this, Michael? I thought you had gone off to handle business at one of your country estates,” Lady Lancaster questioned.
    Michael ignored the astonished look Hope threw his way as he answered Lady Lancaster’s question with the details of the day.
    “I see,” Lady Lancaster said absently, her mind clearly at work as she digested the information. “And you suspect the charade was meant to manipulate the stock prices?”
    “Well,” Michael confessed, “I must admit, I had no idea what all the activity meant. It was Miss Stuckeley who put it all together.”
    Hope gave Michael a nod of appreciation for the credit, but she couldn’t quite shake the feeling of duplicity, even though she tried to tell herself that whatever relationship Michael and Lady Lancaster had was none of her business. It felt like her business, dash it all! And try as she might, she could not reconcile her feelings about the two of them being so close. All she knew for certain was that she didn’t enjoy feeling like an outsider with these two particular people.
    “Very good, Hope. I applaud your deductive reasoning. Now we just need to find out which stocks are involved and who made any suspicious trades of said stocks. I will see what I can find out. Surely a committee of some sort will be called to investigate. Why don’t you two return tomorrow morning to discuss what I have found?”
    Michael replied immediately, “I will be here. I have information for the officials about this imposter, if nothing