“I will be the first to admit that I know very little of government affairs, but if you know who and where this villain is to be discovered then why on earth would you not have him arrested?” Leonida demanded in confusion.
“Because we cannot be certain he is acting alone.”
“Did Herrick at least retrieve your letters?”
“He searched the man’s house, but could find no letters.”
Leonida made a sound of frustration. “They could be anywhere.”
“He is being constantly watched so if he does have them hidden he will eventually lead the guards to the location.”
Leonida realized there was no use in pressing to have the horrid blackmailer arrested. If Herrick had decided to allow the man to remain free, then nothing she said would alter the situation.
Instead she concentrated on her more pressing questions. “Why do you suspect he is lying about having the letters?”
Nadia returned to her pacing, her fingers toying with the large drop diamonds of her necklace. A sure sign she was not nearly so composed as she would have Leonida believe.
“When he first approached me, I demanded that he show them to me. He claimed that he did not have them on his person, so I requested that he reveal precisely what they said. Again he refused, saying that he would offer no proof until I had paid his outrageous sum.”
“That does seem odd. Surely he must realize that anyone with the least amount of sense would demand evidence before paying?”
“Most gentlemen underestimate women. No doubt he assumed I would be so panicked that I would give in to his demands without thinking.” Nadia’s voice revealed her contempt for such stupidity. “And there is something else.”
“What?”
“Mira and I quite often traded secrets, so we devised our own code when we wrote to one another in the event our letters fell into the wrong hands. It was silly and no doubt childishly easy to decipher, but the man said nothing of having managed to translate the words.”
Leonida had to agree that it did sound suspicious. Even assuming the man thought a woman could be so easily culled out of such a large sum of money, he surely would have felt compelled to brag at his cleverness of deciphering the code.
In her experience, gentlemen never lost the opportunity to reveal their utter superiority to women.
“So, if he does not have the letters, how did he discover they exist? And how did he know they might be damaging to Alexander Pavlovich?”
“That is why Herrick allowed him to remain unaware we know his identity,” Nadia explained. “He believes that Nikolas Babevich is merely a pawn being used by others.”
Leonida shuddered, knowing it was more from apprehension rather than the chill of standing in the middle of the room wearing nothing more than her shift and corset.
The thought that there were more enemies seeking to harm her mother was not precisely reassuring.
“Then it seems there is nothing to do but wait until the man leads you to his associates.”
There was a tense silence before her mother halted to stab her with a narrowed gaze.
“Actually, there is a very important task that must be done.”
Leonida took an instinctive step backward. She knew that tone of voice. And it never boded well.
At least not for her.
“I am not certain I wish to know.”
“Someone must travel to England and search the Duke of Huntley’s estate for the letters,” Nadia said, ignoring Leonida’s words of reluctance. Typical. “If they are still there then we can be certain Nikolas Babevich is nothing more than a fraud.”
The shimmering unease in the pit of her stomach became outright panic.
Good lord. She had not seen this coming. Stupid, really. Nadia thought nothing of making the most outrageous demands of her only child.
“But…” She struggled to capture her elusive breath. “If the letters are still hidden in England, how could anyone know of them?”
Nadia shrugged. “Perhaps the current Duke or his brother, Lord Summerville, mentioned seeing them to someone. Edmond was here in St. Petersburg, after all, only a few months ago.”
Leonida seized on the words as if they were her salvation. “Then why not simply write to them and demand the letters back? The Duchess has been dead for years—they could have no interest in your correspondence.”
Nadia gave an impatient wave of her hand. “Because they are first and foremost Englishmen with loyalty to the Prince Regent… Oh, I suppose the hideous man has now become King.” She grimaced. “In any event, it is well known that the portly monarch was not at all pleased by Alexander Pavlovich’s last visit to celebrate the end of the war. If the King knew that those letters contained information that could harm the Emperor, I do not doubt he would demand they be given to him.”
Leonida wanted to argue, but she had heard the rumors of King George’s lingering resentment toward Alexander Pavlovich’s distant manner during his brief visit. Hardly surprising. The two rulers could not be more different.
The Emperor detested gaudy displays and false bravado.
She swiftly sought another excuse to avoid the appalling mission to England.
“One can hardly search the Huntley estate without permission. An English duke must possess an entire battalion of servants. I would not get past the door without being caught.”
Nadia smiled. “You could if you were a welcomed guest.”
“Mother…”
“The arrangements for your journey are being made as we speak,” Nadia interrupted, her tone resolute. “You will leave by the end of the week.”
It was Leonida’s turn to pace the floor, the rising panic making it difficult to think clearly.
“Even if I were willing to agree to this absurd scheme, which I assure you I am not, I could not possibly intrude upon the Duke of Huntley. Not only would it be extremely rude, but he is a bachelor.”
“I have already written to Lord Summerville and his new bride to inform them that Alexander Pavlovich has decided you are in need of a proper introduction to English society. They could not possibly turn you away.”
Dear heavens, this just became worse and worse.
“Does Lord Summerville live with his brother?”
“No, but the King has given the couple Lady Summerville’s previous home, which is less than a mile from Meadowland. No doubt you will often be calling on the Duke.”
Leonida shook her head in disbelief. “So you simply foisted a complete stranger on the newlyweds without regard to how awkward it will be for all of us?”
Nadia’s expression hardened. She had made her decision and nothing Leonida might say would sway her.
“Leonida, not only would I be ruined if those letters are indeed in the hands of my enemies, but Alexander would never be able to withstand the scandal,” she said, her voice harsh with warning. “Not again.”
Not again?
What the devil did that mean?
Leonida’s temper stirred. This was hardly the first occasion her mother had devised some outlandish scheme, but this…
“So you wish me to travel to England, intrude on a newlywed couple who have never met me, sneak into a duke’s well-guarded home and retrieve letters that might or might not be hidden there?”
Her