Page 31 of Snowy and the Seven Doves
“You would turn your own great-aunt out into the street?” Aunt Aurelia asked. “Wicked girl.” She flounced out of the room.
The butler appeared in the doorway as soon as she vacated it. “My lady, you have another visitor.”
Margaret sighed. She really could not cope with much more today. “I am not at home for callers, Bowen.”
“He insists on speaking to you, my lady. He says it is a matter of life and death.” The butler handed over a card.
Deffew? What on earth did he want?
“I had better see him. Pauline, would you mind?”
They went down together. Deffew was pacing the entry hall, his eyes wide and worried, his hair mussed as if he had brushed his hand through it in distress. Even as they descended the stairs, he did it again.
“Mr. Deffew?” Margaret said.
“My lady, I need Mr. White. Ned needs him. Please, can you tell me where I might find him?”
*
“Mr. White?” Tommy,the doorman, stopped Snowy as he walked in the House of Blossoms. “Her upstairs wants to see ya soonest. Tell ’im to come up immeejit, she said.”
Snowy nodded and headed for the stairs. It was late in the afternoon, and the house was buzzing with preparations for the evening. On the first and second floors, servants made ready the rooms that would receive guests—dusting, cleaning, and polishing, putting out fresh flowers and filling decanters in the reception areas, laying out cards and dice, changing linen on the beds, ensuring that any equipment that might be needed was clean and checked for damage.
Below stairs, he knew, the kitchen staff would be preparing delectable dish after dish to tempt appetites, and footmen under the supervision of the butler would be bringing up wine and spirits from the cellar.
On the third floor, the women who were the primary drawcard of the House were also ensuring the merchandise was in top condition. Mistress Lily demanded meticulous attention to personal hygiene, cosmetics and jewelry that enhanced beauty without overwhelming, and clothing that hinted at more than it revealed.
Customers came to the House of Blossoms to feel at home, surrounded by the appurtenances of their upper-class lives, but with an available (if shared) harem of willing and skilled courtesans.
It had been a recipe for success. If the remaining six of the original seven Blossoms closed the House tomorrow, they could live comfortably on their savings and investments for the remainder of their days.
Lily’s door was open, so Snowy went straight in. She, Poppy, and Jasmine were gathered around a table sorting through fabric swatches, but looked up when Snowy entered the room.
He bowed. “Ladies. Lily, Blue said I was to come straight up.”
Lily moved a stack of fabrics and then another until she found a folded and sealed sheet of paper, which she passed to him. “You have an urgent message from your countess. One of her footmen delivered it half an hour ago.”
Jasmine held up a rich brocade in a ruby red. “What think you of this for the chairs in the red room?”
Snowy broke the seal and unfolded the paper but answered her query absently before he began to read, “Whatever you decide on the refurbishment is fine by me.” Then he quickly scanned Lady Charmain’s few sentences:
Snowy, Dickon Deffew is here. He begs you to meet with him. He will not tell me what it is about, except that your brother is in grave danger. He will wait here until five o’clock.
Snowy handed the page to Lily, who read it and passed it on to the other two.
“The lady wrote this,” she said. “I recognized her hand. Whether under duress or not…”
“It could be a trap,” Jasmine said.
Poppy shook her head. “Lady Charmain would not be party to a trap.”
Snowy checked his pocket watch. He had a little over thirty minutes. He could easily get there in time if nothing happened to delay him.
Lily was examining his expression. “You are going, aren’t you? Please be careful, Snowy. This Deffew is your cousin’s creature, as is the brother he is using as bait.”
She was probably right, but if Ned, whom his mother had loved, was truly in grave danger, then Snowy had to save him.
Chapter Twelve
