The Bride Hunt Read Online Free PDF Page A

clerk responded. He offered her a small bow. “I bid you good morning.”
    “Good morning.” Prudence turned back to the door, only then realizing that Chastity was not immediately behind her. She went out onto the landing, pulling the door closed behind her, revealing her sister, who had been standing in the shadows behind the door. “Chas, why didn’t you come in?” she whispered.
    “It was so cramped in there,” Chastity explained. “It seemed better to stay outside. Did you mind?”
    “No. To tell you the truth, I didn’t realize you weren’t in the room,” Prudence said, still keeping her voice low as she descended the stairs. “Didn’t you think he was an obstreperous man?”
    “Yes, but you stood up to him beautifully. He obviously sees himself as Cerberus, guarding the gates to
his principal.
”
    Prudence chuckled, then shook her head. “I only hope he shows the papers to that
principal.
” She laid a hand on the handle of the street door, talking over her shoulder as she did so. The door opened abruptly, nearly knocking her sideways, and she reeled back, still clutching the knob.
    “Oh, I beg your pardon, I didn’t realize anyone was on the other side.” A male voice that was both well modulated and unusually quiet spoke above her.
    She looked up at the owner of the voice, too startled for a minute to respond. It was hard to get much of an impression in the dim light of the narrow hallway, but she thought his eyes were gray. “Sir Gideon Malvern?” she asked directly.
    “At your service, madam.” There was a questioning note to the courteous response. The gray eyes moved beyond her to Chastity, who still stood on the bottom step.
    “The Mayfair Lady,”
Prudence said, holding out her hand. “Your clerk will explain the situation.”
    “Indeed.” He took her hand, his clasp firm enough to be called a grip. “How intriguing.” He dropped her hand and consulted the fob watch that hung from his waistcoat pocket. “I would ask you to explain it yourself, but unfortunately I have to be in court in half an hour.”
    “Your clerk knows how to reach us,” Prudence said, smiling faintly. “Good morning, Sir Gideon.”
    “Good morning, madam.” He bowed and stepped aside so that she could pass into the street. He smiled at Chastity with the same inquiring air as she stepped down from the stair. “Two Mayfair ladies?”
    Chastity merely inclined her head, murmured, “Good morning,” and followed her sister into the street. The door closed behind them.
    “At least that will ensure that the obstreperous clerk won’t withhold the papers,” Prudence said, looking at the closed door, tapping her lips with a gloved forefinger. “Sir Gideon said he was intrigued, so he’s bound to ask what we were doing. His clerk can’t deny we were here.”
    “No,” agreed Chastity. “That was a good morning’s work. I don’t see what else we can do until we hear from him.”
    “I think we’ve earned coffee at Fortnum’s,” her sister declared.
    “It was an inspiration to use Amelia and Henry’s address,” Chastity said as they walked towards Chancery Lane. “No one will connect the Franklins with the Duncans of Manchester Square.”
    “Unless the barrister hires a private detective. He could discover the connection between Henry and Max in the blink of an eye. Politicians’ secretaries are not hard to trace.” Amelia Westcott and Henry Franklin had been the Go-Between’s first official clients. Now happily married and expecting their first child, they had kept close connections with the Duncan sisters, and Henry worked as secretary for Constance’s husband in the House of Commons.
    “He’s hardly going to go to those lengths,” Chastity protested. “If he wants to take the case, he’ll get everything he needs from us. If he doesn’t, why would he go to the trouble and expense of investigating us?”
    “There’s truth in that,” Prudence agreed. But she felt vaguely uneasy.