Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

I t was close to midnight when Victoria lightly tapped on her sister's bedroom door. She flinched as Coco suddenly opened it and dragged her inside. "I…"

Coco's hand pressed over her mouth. "Shh. Do you want to wake the entire household?" Victoria shook her head, and her sister released her. "The first rule you have to learn about sneaking out of here is to be silent as a wraith. If you make a noise, one of the servants will hear, and then we will never go anywhere."

Victoria wasn't accustomed to stealing out into the night. At this hour, she'd much prefer to be in the warmth and comfort of her bed, preferably with a good book. Coco on the other hand was the mistress of mischief and midnight wanderings.

"Did you find out where he lives?" asked Coco.

"Yes, Pye Street. But I can hardly go knocking on his front door in the middle of the night," replied Victoria. What would she do if he answered? Shove a pistol in his face and go through with her mad plan of challenging him to a duel?

This is a mistake. I haven't a clue what I'm doing.

She had managed to find out where the Duke of Saffron Walden lived through Richard, who had attended a party next door to his house some time last year. Her brother had fortunately not asked why she wanted to know—he had been more interested in the state of her purse. A handful of coins had bought his silence.

A sly smile appeared on Lady Coco Kembal's lips. Was that a wicked glint in her eye?

"The first thing you need to do is what we night ramblers call a sneaky sortie. You walk to the rear of his home and slip in through the garden gate. I find you can discover plenty of things about people from their gardens."

"Such as?"

Victoria had only ever thought about flowers and potting sheds. What other secrets could be found among the weeds and stones?

Coco picked up a long woolen gentleman's coat and slipped her arms into it. When Victoria scowled at her, she simply shrugged. "Coats are far more practical than cloaks or capes. Especially when you have to climb over walls. I've been known to get about town in men's trousers, but I ripped the ass out of the last pair when we had to flee from the Bow Street runners. Couldn't risk getting caught."

Hearing about her sister's exploits had Victoria having serious second thoughts about spying on the Duke of Spice. Who was to say he didn't have weapons? This was London, and anyone caught skulking about in a private garden late at night wasn't likely to be there simply to admire the roses.

But if she didn't go this evening, she mightn't get another chance. Having successfully navigated the dinner party three nights ago, Lady Anne had apparently found her courage. Despite their earlier agreement, Victoria's social diary was now bulging with every party, ball, and at-home imaginable.

Her mother's list would most certainly not include her daughter skulking through a duke's garden, but Victoria wanted to do something. Even if it amounted to nothing more than her standing outside his house and silently raining down all the curses and taunts, she could think of to say to him. If she got brave, she might even throw a small stone at his window on her way out.

He was a duke. She was an unwed young miss. Her best laid plans had revealed themselves to be nothing more than foolish flights of fancy.

Publicly unmasking him as the reviewer for the Morning Herald would only leave her open to further attack. This was a war she couldn't win. Not without risking serious damage to her marital prospects.

She would go with Coco tonight, do her worst, and at least feel some sense of satisfaction. Come tomorrow, she would put all thoughts of the Duke of Saffron Walden out of her mind and get on with the business at hand. Securing a husband, and helping her family reestablish themselves back into London society. It was the only sensible way forward.

Coco dropped to her knees. She rummaged around under the bed for a moment, before getting to her feet. Victoria's mouth went dry at the sight of the pistol in her sister's hand. Her fear rose with every moment as her sibling casually loaded the weapon and tucked it inside her coat.

What on earth is she doing?

When Coco was done, she gave Victoria a tight smile. "London is a bloody dangerous place at night. It's a good thing we were all taught how to shoot straight."

Their father had insisted that all his children knew how to handle a weapon, but she doubted the Duke of Mowbray had been thinking about the ruffians of London when he'd instructed the girls. The occasional wild boar at their uncle, the Duke of Strathmore's Scotland estate was more likely to have been his main concern.

"Please tell me you haven't had the need to use that pistol."

Coco shrugged. "What is the very first rule of handling a loaded weapon? The one they taught us at the start of every shooting lesson."

"Don't point a pistol at someone unless you are fully prepared to fire it."

Oh god.

That thought sent a chill running down Victoria's spine. Her sister really had run wild. Here she was trying her best to restore the family's reputation while at the same time her younger sibling was roaming the streets armed with a loaded weapon. The Kembal women had always skirted the rules of society, but this bordered on insanity.

She was still pondering her own state of mind as she followed her sister downstairs and out into the night. From Berkely Square, they crossed over into Bruton Street. She spied a darkened carriage and slowed her steps. Her senses tingled. This was dangerous.

As they neared the carriage, Coco put her fingers to her lips and let out a sharp whistle. The door of the coach opened, and a tall figure climbed out. Victoria stopped, ready to turn and run home, but her sister merely kept going. When she reached the stranger, Coco threw herself into the man's arms, and cried, "I've missed you," before the two of them embarked on a long lingering kiss.

In the street. In public.

"She's determined to ruin both herself, and any chance of either of us making a smart match," muttered Victoria.

Coco and the stranger finally broke the kiss. Her sister was still in the man's arms as they turned to face Victoria. "A, this is my sister, Lady Victoria."

When the man moved closer and bowed, Victoria was certain her heart had stopped beating. Coco was running wild with Viscount Askett. She wasn't sure whether this was good news or not. On the one hand, she was with a nobleman who had to have an appreciation of the risk that all this posed to a duke's daughter, while on the other, this was a man whose own scandalous reputation put that of the Kembal family to shame.

"Lady Victoria. Coco sent word that you might be coming with us tonight. I must say I'm surprised to see that both unwed Kembal girls are on the wild side." He bent and kissed Coco. "This one has always been naughty, but you not so much."

If she had a lick of sense, she'd turn on her heel and head straight home. At Mowbray House, she would knock on the door of her parents' apartment and confess all. It was the only way to save Coco.

But if she did, her sister would never forgive her.

"I…I just want to stop past a house in Pye Street and see where someone lives, not…nothing else," she stammered. As soon as she had sent her silent insults to the duke, she would ask them to bring her back home.

Coco climbed onboard the carriage, and a reluctant Victoria followed. Dropping onto the leather bench seat, she made a vow. This would be her first and last time stealing out of the house and wandering the midnight streets of London.

What would my future husband say if he discovered this was the sort of mischief I have been up to? No man would want to marry me.

One time. One time only. She would never again do anything so reckless.