Page 15 of The Scholar's Key
Percy stuttered for a few moments about a necklace that she admired on a woman across the room. It appeared she felt that, in this instance, the truth was best. Her cousins wouldn’t stop asking to which woman she was referring until Noah realized that they were perhaps missing an opportunity – the opportunity to determine just who the woman was, and whether the jewels around her neck could be those that they were looking for.
“The woman over there – the dark-haired one in the crimson dress with rubies about her neck,” he said. “Who is she?”
Percy shot him a look as though he was giving away too much, but the taller cousin leaned in with a gleam in her eye.
“Sheis Mrs. MacNall.”
“Mrs. MacNall?” Percy repeated, raising her eyebrows.
“She is…” The two sisters looked at one another.
“How do we say it?”
“In a polite way.”
“It is almost shocking she is here, we shall say that.”
“I can hardly believe she was allowed in.”
“Enough,” Percy said, likely louder than she intended. “Neither of you is any less innocent than I am, so you might as well just say what you mean instead of skirting around it.”
“Very well,” the shorter one said, rolling her eyes. “Mrs. MacNall is a…” She dropped her voice. “A fallen woman.”
“But a well-kept one,” the taller one – Evangeline? – said with a tilt of her head.
“Don’t get any ideas,” her sister murmured.
“Of course not!” the other trilled.
“Is she attached to a man?” Noah interjected, and they looked at him almost as though they had forgotten he was there.
“I believe she is. She has her own house, just off Kingston Road. Oh, who was her protector again, Elizabeth?”
Elizabeth. He had been close on the name.
“Lord Chesterham, maybe?”
“Oh, yes, that’s him.”
“He is married, is he not?”
“He is.”
“Scandalous.”
“That she is here. Not that he has a mistress. Everyone does.”
“Yes, that’s right,” the tall one — Elizabeth, said. “He does not make a secret of it.”
“No,” Rebecca said, shaking her head in disapproval. “One should keep such a woman behind closed doors.”
Noah took a step back from the chattering women, seeing that Percy was doing the same thing. She stepped around her cousins to come over to his side.
“We need to speak with her,” she said in a loud whisper.
“I think you should do it. She is far more likely to speak to another woman.”
“I’m not sure,” Percy said, nibbling on her bottom lip, which Noah tried to ignore as it was causing him to feel all kinds of things that he really should ignore. “She might be more inclined to speak to a man.”
