Page 83 of The Art of Theft
Lady Ingram had stopped when Charlotte had, but now she resumed walking. “Art thieves—they’ve been preparing for art thieves. There is an overabundance of them this year.”
Charlotte caught up with her. “I hope they have prepared for more than that. If Moriarty is held here at the château, then there will be an attempt to rescue him tonight.”
Everything made sense now. Moriarty still had loyalists, but they were at a disadvantage. Even before the coup, Madame Desrosiers must have made sure that the château was populated by her own most stalwart supporters, let alone afterward. She would have also made sure that he had no way of communicating with his own followers.
They, on the other hand, would have done their best to infiltrate the château. Charlotte would lay good money that the person caught escaping the night Lord Ingram and Mr. Marbleton first trespassed on the grounds was not Moriarty but an infiltrator who had given himself away by getting too close to Moriarty’s cell.
What was to have been his mission? To get the combination to the safe from Moriarty? Or the location of the safe? No, Moriarty would not have given away the location of the safe. That was his bargaining chip, both with Madame Desrosiers, if she suspected the existence of such a thing, and with his own rescuers: If they knew the location of the safe, who was to say they wouldn’t concentrate their efforts on liberating the safe, rather than him?
Now they were coming for him—both the true loyalists and the hired guns.
Did Madame Desrosiers and Monsieur Plantier know what they would be facing tonight?
“This place is hardly undefended,” said Lady Ingram, perhaps echoing the attitude of her hosts.
She was not wrong. Château Vaudrieu was braced for more thanan onslaught of art thieves this night. It had to have been preparing, for a while, for trouble from Moriarty’s followers.
The reason the château had been shorthanded for the reception? A purge of its own roster, following the discovery of the infiltrator who had run out from the chapel but hadn’t made it over the fence.
The reason Livia, Mrs. Watson, Mr. Marbleton had been subject to inspection by men from the château while they were still at the staffing agency? To prevent Moriarty’s known followers from coming back inside.
In fact, Charlotte thought as they rounded a corner, if it weren’t so expensive to stage coups and defend against Moriarty’s followers, Madame Desrosiers and Monsieur Plantier might not have held the ball this year at all. But they needed the cash from the art sales and the future income generated by photographic evidence of fresh indiscretions. So they took a risk in carrying on as if nothing had changed.
And in securing the château as best as they could, they had reason to be confident. Charlotte had seen firsthand the aplomb with which host and staff had handled the disruption on the night of the reception.
But perhaps, with that very competence, they had sown the seeds of their own downfall. Moriarty’s followers, knowing that they faced a wary and capable defense, had had time to revise their plan of attack.
Charlotte would not want to be on the receiving end of it.
She took a deep breath. “You are right that the château is defended. But defended doesn’t mean impregnable. I would recommend that you seek refuge tonight at the village inn. If all is well, you can return tomorrow.”
Lady Ingram looked insulted. “You think I feel so little loyalty to the woman who helped me avenge my sister that I would run at the first sign of trouble?”
Charlotte gave her a look. Lady Ingram had an odd sense ofloyalty; still, she couldn’t say the woman didn’t have one. “If you wish to help Madame Desrosiers, please do. I only ask that you do not mention my name. Or Lord Ingram’s.”
“Of course not. I need him alive and well to look after my children. And I still owe you a debt for finding out what happened to my sister,” said Lady Ingram, sounding unhappy about both.
Considering that Charlotte’s investigations were also responsible for Lady Ingram’s exile, Charlotte would not have said Lady Ingram owed her anything. But she inclined her head. “Thank you, my lady. Good luck to you.”
She turned to leave.
“Wait. Why were you in that linen closet? Were you trying to take photographs of anyone at their indiscretions?”
Charlotte turned back around. “Wereyou?”
“I wanted to see what sort of indiscretions people get up to.” Lady Ingram laughed rather dryly. “It astonishes me that they would come to a ball and... do such things. All I want when I’m at a ball is to go home and be alone.”
“I was not taking anyone’s photographs,” said Charlotte, folding her hands primly before her.
Lady Ingram’s lips thinned. She turned around and walked away, perhaps understanding that she was better off not knowing anymore.
Eighteen
When Charlotte returned to the corridor, Lord Ingram and Lieutenant Atwood emerged from the easternmost bedroom. They looked disappointed.
“No safe that we could find,” said Lord Ingram. “You might be right after all, that one needs to access it from the secret passage itself.”
Charlotte nodded. “By the way, I spoke to Lady Ingram just now.”
