Page 48 of Evil at the Essex House
“Right,” Christopher said, biting back whatever words he had foolishly thought of saying. “Flossie’s gone, kidnapped and held for ransom. You know Flossie, so we thought you would want to know. That’s all.”
There was silence on the line. “Fifty thousand American dollars?” Crispin asked.
“Her father can spare it,” I told him. “Florence has told me he’s a millionaire.”
The Sutherland money was unnecessary, if that was what Crispin was thinking. Not that I imagined that Uncle Harold would be willing to part with any of it, for Florence Schlomsky.
“Of course he is,” Crispin said. “And is he going to pay the ransom?”
“They’ve spent the day collecting it,” Christopher confirmed, “we think. We haven’t spoken to them since this morning. They went to Grosvenor Square, we assume to talk to the American ambassador, but we don’t know how else they may have been spending their time. Mr. Schlomsky was adamant about not involving the police, though.”
“So naturally the two of you went directly to Thomas Gardiner.” It wasn’t a question, or didn’t sound like one.
“We tried,” I said. “He’s away on a case. We left a note.”
There was a moment of silence.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Nothing, Crispin,” Christopher said again, and I added, “We meant it, St George. We really just wanted you to know. Because… Well, it seemed as if you should have the information, that’s all.”
He hummed. “Thank you, I suppose. When and where does the transfer of money take place?”
“Tomorrow evening at eleven,” Christopher said, “just across the Thames in Southwark.”
“It would be Southwark.” I could hear the eyeroll all the way from Wiltshire. “You’re planning to go, I assume?”
“We thought we might,” Christopher said.
“I’ll see if I can get away.”
I made a face. “That’s really not necessary, St George.”
“I don’t doubt that you would much rather have His Grace, theGrafvon Natterdorff, by your side, Darling. But as you said, Flossie and I were…” He paused for a second, “close.”
My eyes narrowed. “I had no intention of inviting Wolfgang, you prat. I won’t need protection, and if I do, I trust Christopher to provide it.”
“As you should.” His voice was smooth and colorless. “Nonetheless, I’ll do my best to be there. Thank you for letting me know.”
He disconnected before either Christopher or I had the time to come up with anything to say.
“You upset him,” Christopher told me as he replaced the earpiece on the telephone.
I resisted the temptation to roll my eyes, because if I had, they would have rolled so hard that they might disappear into the back of my head. “I did not. I said nothing to upset him. And I think you overestimate how easy he is to upset, anyway.”
“You don’t think finding out that a girl he has dallied with has been kidnapped and is being held for ransom might be upsetting?”
“He never dallied with her,” I protested. “She kissed him a few times when she was able to corner him in the lift, that’s all. Hardly a dalliance. Not considering the way he has of carrying on with other women. All those girls he brought back to Sutherland House for the night, not to mention Lady Laetitia Marsden…”
“So you don’t think he was upset?”
I scowled. “He might have been upset. But if he was, he hid it well.”
“Not well enough for me,” Christopher said. “I do wish you wouldn’t go out of your way to be disagreeable, Pippa.”
“I don’t go out of my way to be disagreeable,” I said—disagreeably—as we headed down the Strand. “He just brings out the worst in me.”
“And you in him.”
