The Exploits & Adventures of Miss Alethea Darcy Read Online Free PDF Page B

baskets and all that,” Miss Alethea had said. “Go on, take it. We might be separated, and I don’t want you alone and penniless in a strange country.”
    Alone in a strange country? Perish the thought. And no danger of that; she was going to stick by Miss Alethea’s side like she was her shadow. She felt in her pocket, where one of the notes was attached with a pin to the lining.
    That had been a tricky moment, though, going into Trimble and Kedges, jewellers to the nobility, with the diamond necklace and bracelet and hairpiece tucked inside her cloak.
    The jewellers were used to maids bringing in their mistress’s jewellery for cleaning or resetting, so the assistants took little notice of her, seeing to other, more important clients first and leaving her standing until one of the more junior attendants found himself free.
    She drew out the velvet box and laid it on the counter. Then she pressed the catch and lifted the lid. His eyebrows went up as he took in the quality of the diamonds lying there on their soft bed.
    â€œFor cleaning?”
    â€œTo be sold,” Figgins said boldly.
    His expression changed. “Sold? And how did you come by jewels such as this?”
    â€œThey belong to someone else, and she desires me to sell them on her behalf.”
    An older, more experienced man, hearing her words, came over to his junior’s side.
    â€œShe says she wants to sell these.”
    â€œI’ll call Mr. Kedge,” the older man said smoothly. “Leave it to me; you may go and attend that customer who is waiting.”
    Mr. Kedge was a lean, short individual with tufts of greying hair about a neat bald head. He glanced down at the diamonds, and then at Figgins.
    â€œOn your mistress’s behalf, you say?”
    â€œI do, and I have a letter to prove it.”
    â€œCome this way.”
    In the private room, he waved Figgins to an upright chair, and sat himself down on the other side of the table. “I don’t need to examine this set, I remember it well. Give me the letter, please.”
    Figgins unfolded the sheet and passed it to him.
    â€œThese jewels were not included in the inventory of Miss Alethea Darcy’s jewels at the time of her wedding. I believe they were left to her by a great-aunt, and were lodged with us for cleaning. When I mentioned the oversight to her, she laughed and said it was of no importance, she would tell her father to make sure they were added to the list.”
    Thank goodness Miss Alethea had never done so; by a lucky chance she forgot to mention them, and on her wedding day some instinct had led her to thrust them into Figgins’s hands, bidding her in a hurried whisper to take care of them for her. Which she had, and what a blessing that was, for running away without a penny in your pockets was a sure way to disaster.
    â€œThey belong to Miss Alethea, personal, and she wants to sell them.”
    Mr. Kedge was quite used to ladies of the highest ton who needed to sell jewels for cash in hand, usually for gambling debts acquired without a husband’s knowledge. In one or two cases he had known, the money had been needed to pay off a blackmailer. It was all the same to him. He recognised Figgins, who had accompanied Miss Alethea Darcy to the jewellers on more than one occasion. He knew all the Miss Darcys, as they had been, and was well acquainted with Miss Alethea’s father. Mr. Darcy had dealt with his firm for many, many years.
    If his daughter were in want of money, for whatever purpose, it was only right for him to help her out, in the interests both of business and of serving an old and valuable customer. As to Mr. Napier probably being unaware of the existence of the jewels and almost certainly ignorant of the contemplated sale, that didn’t bother him. He had taken Mr. Napier in dislike the one time he had met him, and owed him no kind of loyalty.
    â€œNormally, as jewellers, we advance only a proportion of