“I never meant to imply—” Val began, only to be interrupted by Caro.
“I don’t believe there’s any other way to interpret—”
“That’s because you’re determined to—”
“The only matter I’m determined about—”
A piercing whistle from Eversham brought their bickering to a halt.
The rest of the room’s occupants stopped speaking to stare at him.
The detective shrugged. “A skill learned in my patrol days that comes in handy now and again.”
Val felt a pang of guilt at having provoked the other man’s response. He’d been brought up to be better behaved than to engage in arguments with ladies. Even those who were hell-bent on thinking the worst of him.
A glance at Caro told him she was feeling every bit as chastened.
“Thank you, my dear,” Kate said, patting her husband on the arm. She turned to Mrs. Spencer and Frank. “Are either of you in contact with Effie’s family? They might know of others who wish Effie ill will.”
Mrs. Spencer twisted the handkerchief in her hand. “I don’t believe she has much family. She said a foster couple raised her in Sussex, but they passed some years ago. She was never more specific than that.”
“It wasn’t a particularly happy upbringing,” Frank said miserably.
After a glance at Eversham, Kate said briskly, “Now, I think there are two directions in which to take our search for Effie. First, we should speak with Julia Todd at the Lyceum Theatre. If she was as jealous as you say she was, Frank, then it stands to reason that she may have hired someone to see to it that Effie misses her opening night tonight.”
From Val’s perspective, this was the most palatable—and probable—of the possible reasons to abduct Miss Warrington. A rival would have no reason to permanently harm the other woman. He didn’t say so aloud, however, because he didn’t wish to belittle his cousin’s very real fear. He’d known a similar fear, when Caro had come in contact with a killer at his Lake District estate. Though the situations were not nearly the same, he reminded himself.
“The other possibility is that Effie has been taken by an overzealous admirer, I suppose?” Caro asked, her eyes shadowed with worry. Everyone there knew the dangers a woman might face at the hands of a man unwilling to take no for an answer.
“I hope to God not,” Frank said grimly. “Some of those chaps are obsessed to the point of madness.”
“If you were so concerned about them, then I wonder you didn’t warn them off,” Val said.
Frank frowned at him. “I did, but they’re deuced determined. Ask Langham if you don’t believe me, Val. He’ll tell you.”
Val and his cousin had known the Duke of Langham since they were boys, though the older man had been closer to Piers than Val and Frank. “What has he to say to it?”
“He’s in the greenroom as often as I am. Ever since he—” Frank reddened and broke off before continuing. “That is to say, he is a great admirer of the theatre.”
Caro gave a familiar exasperated sigh. “If the duke is the protector of one of the actresses at the Lyceum, Mr. Thorn, you need not curb your tongue. We all know very well how such arrangements work. Effie was never missish about things like that with us.”
Frank, looking slightly scandalized, turned to his cousin with his eyes wide.
“I’m not foolish enough to set foot in this quagmire,” Val said, raising his hands.
“Never mind the reason the duke was in the greenroom, Miss Hardcastle,” Frank said, soldiering on, “but there are a number of men without honor who linger there. It’s them I’m speaking of.”
“And you believe if one of them has taken Effie, then she’s in real danger?” Kate asked.
“I’m more afraid than you can imagine, Kate.” Frank swallowed. “If only I’d not let myself be overpowered. What kind of man lets the woman he loves get snatched right out from under his nose?”
“The kind who is human,” Caro said softly, and to Val’s surprise, she sat beside his cousin, taking his hand. “You did the best you could. You weren’t expecting to be assailed in broad daylight. And certainly not so near your destination.”
As much as he resented how cold-blooded Caro had been when ending things between them, Val had to admit that she had an usually generous heart. Others might have lashed out at Frank for not protecting her friend, but instead she was offering him comfort. If only she’d shown as much generosity of spirit with his ill behavior. He’d been in the wrong, of that there was no question. But perhaps if she’d made an effort to understand why he’d acted so poorly, they might be together even now.
“My dear, since you’re organizing everyone so splendidly,” Eversham said to his wife, “why don’t you tell us what our next moves should be? Though I suggest that I go back to the Yard and get some men searching for Miss Warrington’s missing carriage.” Turning to Frank, he asked, “Are there any distinctive marks on the vehicle, Mr. Thorn? Something that would make it easier to distinguish?”
At his question, Kate giggled.
Eversham frowned. “What’s so funny?”
“It’s just that Effie’s carriage is a bit, er—” Frank broke off, smiling for the first time Val had seen that day.
“It’s a ‘gilt-covered monstrosity,’” Caro said baldly. “Those are Effie’s words, not mine. She said if society was going to treat her like a harlot for making her living on the stage, then she’d dash well play the part in one respect at least.”
“She thought it was a grand joke,” Frank said fondly. With a sideways look at Val, he added, “I did, too. Especially given my father’s likely reaction to our betrothal. Might as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb.”
Val had the good grace to feel ashamed of his family’s snobbery. What had Frank done that was so very terrible, after all? He’d fallen in love with a woman who made an honest living. He hadn’t cheated at cards or sired an entire family with his mistress as their Uncle Reggie had done. Confronted with Frank’s damning, if true, assessment, it was impossible not to think of his family’s snide remarks about Caro. He might have been too much of a coward to fight back all those years ago, but if faced with the same situation again, surely he’d react differently.
Then he remembered his conversation with his father only just that afternoon, and he flushed.
“That should make it easier for my men to locate Miss Warrington’s carriage, then.” Eversham nodded. “Unfortunately, I cannot set them to searching for her without my superiors hindering our investigation. Though we all know she hasn’t simply run off with another man to the Continent, there is a prevailing attitude that ascribes only the most selfish and flighty motives to any women but their own wives and daughters. And sometimes even them.”
“And the men who write to us about our column wonder why we’re always so angry,” Caro said, her tone more tired than anything else. “Are you really saying the Yard cares more about a missing carriage than a missing woman, Eversham?”
“The carriage is private property, so…” The detective shrugged. “I don’t condone it, Caroline. I simply wish to be as candid as possible. By the time I might convince my superiors that Miss Warrington did not disappear of her own accord, we’ll have lost valuable time. It will be much more expedient to conduct our own investigation first, and if we find the culprits, bring them to the Yard’s notice.”