Page 66 of A Swirl of Shadows
He gave a grudging nod.
“If you care to wait for a moment, I could make some hot tea before you set off,” offered Mrs. Schuyler. “It’s brutally cold outside.”
“I have a bottle of vodka in my sleigh,” said Prescott. “That will keep our cockles warm until we reach the city.”
“Do svidaniya,” murmured Saybrook, before turning to follow the major out into the frigid night.
“Come, I’ll light the coals under the samovar, and then let us make ourselves comfortable,” said Mrs. Schuyler, once the men had disappeared in the darkness. “I imagine that you have a great many questions to ask of me.”
Chapter18
Arianna accepted a glass of tea,grateful for its warmth as her fingers closed around the gold handle. She had shucked off her heavy outer garments, and Mrs. Schuyler had kindled a blazing fire in the drawing room’s heating stove. Still, a chill seemed to linger deep in her bones.
“Thank you,” she murmured as Mrs. Schuyler settled into the armchair facing hers.
“As I said, I’m sure you have a myriad of questions. But before you begin, I wish to assure you that I have no involvement in Richard’s—that is, Mr. Fitzroy’s—abduction.” Wrapped in a simple navy blue dressing gown, without the exotic clothing embellishments and kohl-rimmed eyes that she used to create the aura of the mysterious mystic, the American appeared younger and more innocent—though perhaps “innocent” wasn’t quite the right word.
“You’ve no reason to believe me. After all, I’m a woman who makes her living through subterfuge and lies.” Mrs. Schuyler swirled her glass, the tea sending up a flickering of amber-hued reflections against her pale cheeks. “But in this, I’m telling the truth.”
Arianna allowed a soft laugh. “I don’t consider myself naïve. But strangely enough, I do believe you.”
“Thank you,” came the simple reply. Mrs. Schuyler pursed her lips. “I sense thatyou and Fitzroy have a special connection. Have you known each other long?”
“No,” answered Arianna. “But we have . . . things in common.” However, she didn’t intend to discuss her rather complicated relationship with her half-brother. There were far more pressing matters.
“I like him,” announced Mrs. Schuyler. “He’s intelligent, thoughtful, and sharply funny.” A pause. “But more importantly, while most gentlemen don’t feel they have to treat a woman of suspect reputation with any sort of respect, Richard is both kind and speaks with me as if I was an equal.”
“Perhaps that’s because he isn’t a gentleman.”
“But . . .” Mrs. Schuyler looked confused. “He went to Cambridge, he is a respected man of science—”
“In Britain, the title of ‘gentleman’ denotes whether one was born into the right family rather than any personal attributes. Fitzroy’s personal story is his to reveal however he chooses. But suffice it to say, the two of you have a lot in common for having forged your own way in life through your own talents and determination.”
The statement seemed to stun the American. “H-How . . .” She stopped, appearing unsure of how to go on.
“Let’s just say that I know more about Life’s challenges—especially when one happens to be female—than you might expect.” Before Mrs. Schuyler could respond, Arianna quickly added, “There is just one practical matter I need to clarify before we begin to discuss how we are going to find and free Fitzroy and von Wolfram . . .”
Mrs. Schuyler put down her tea.
“Are you an American agent, sent here by your country to foment trouble between Britain and Russia?”
A strangled laugh. “Good heavens, no!”
It took Mrs. Schuyler a moment to compose her thoughts. “I managed to flee from Philadelphia a half step ahead of the bailiffs when I was fifteen and made my way to New York—where circumstances soon required me to book passage to France. I’ve never looked back.” She shrugged. “Given the money I fleeced from wealthy but gullible leaders of Society in those two cities, I’m sure I’d be arrested the moment I set foot on American soil.”
Sophia smiled. “You will enjoy meeting von Wolfram when we free him and Fitzroy.”
A puzzled frown. “That’s yet another mention of von Wolfram,” said Mrs. Schuyler. “I don’t understand why Richard would have asked him to come along to the meeting we had set up.”
“James Wolff—von Wolfram—is working with us. But we’ll explain all that later,” said Arianna. “Right now we need to figure out how to discover where their captors are holding our friends.”
“I think you’re right to focus on Prince Orlov,” responded Mrs. Schuyler. “He may be a puppet for the real power behind the plot, but he’s an influential nobleman, with connections and access here in St. Petersburg.” Her expression hardened. “And he doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty.”
“Tatiana Naryshkin bears the marks of that,” said Sophia grimly.
“The brute should be shot,” muttered the American.
Arianna repressed a grimace. “Let us see that he and his co-conspirators are brought to justice. We’ll leave it to the proper authorities to mete out the punishment.”
