"Surely Lord Durley cannot be that all bad!" Nicholas heard Ysabella utter. His two sisters, Ysabella and Emma, were secretly staring across the ballroom, their eyes flickering from one point to another. "And so is his mistress, poor thing! Everyone is gawking at her! Just look!"

Nicholas followed the direction of their gaze and found Durley talking to Osegod while Sophia lingered merely a few paces away, enough to draw everyone's attention on her and not on Durley. She was wearing the same gown she was wearing earlier in the gaming room, her face unreadable yet beautifully out of place.

"Lady Gedge is coming her way!" Ysabella hissed at Emma.

"That woman knows everything but her rightful place," Emma growled back.

It was too late when Nicholas realized what his sisters were about to do when they suddenly jumped to their feet and crossed squeezed their way through the crowd in their gallant attempt to rescue a woman they did not even know.

"Bloody hell!" he cursed under his breath, rushing after his sisters, but his mother's voice called out to him. When he deliberately ignored the call, a hand grabbed his arm and he turned to find Lady Alice beaming up at him. "I have a very important task for you, son," she uttered.

Nicholas craned his neck to find his sisters. They were already making their way toward Sophia who was slowly being surrounded by Lady Gedge, Wickhurst's biggest gossipmonger, and her friends.

"Mother, I am afraid I am quite occupied at the moment. See, your two daughters are currently—"

"Oh, let them be. Ysabella is a married woman and Emma ought to learn from her. Now, come with me and I have something for you to do."

His mother pushed him to the right.

"Mother, I do not think Ysabella is the best teacher Emma can learn from—"

"Now, son," her mother continued, not hearing his words, leaning close to him in a conspiratorial manner, "I believe you and your brothers are not too fond of Osegod, but we must at the very least be nice to him—"

"I do not understand what you are trying to do, Mother. If you wish me to dance with the man, I have to consider that you are starting to go senile."

His mother lightly slapped his arm in warning. "Do be serious, Nicholas. Now, as I was saying, Benedict might have refused Lord Ransford's offer to be a partner in our trade. And of course, I do not know the secret you and your siblings are keeping from me, but I trust that it does not include Lord Ransford's daughter."

Nicholas frowned at his mother. She was as perceptive as Maxwell and it still amazed all of them to this day. He was not certain how much she knew about Osegod, but they must consider the fact that they did were not raised by a foolish mother.

"Mother, whatever misunderstanding Osegod has with—" he paused when her last words finally dawned on him. "What daughter?"

Lady Alice gave him a knowing smile as she turned him face another direction. "Her, son."

Nicholas frowned at the crowd, not quite certain where his mother wanted him to look. But he soon found who she was referring to when he spotted a woman standing idly in one corner wearing a dark blue gown that almost resembled the wall. A few feet away was Osegod himself. Nicholas returned his gaze to the woman.

There was no mistaking it. She had the same dark hair, square jaw and thin lips. She was not striking, but something in her spoke volume of her character—strong and confident. She was not dressed to impress anyone. She simply carried herself in such manner that despite being alone in one corner with her hands clasped in front of her, one could not easily come forward and make light of her.

"Dance with her."

"Bloody hell, Mother," Nicholas groaned, tearing his eyes away from the woman. "She is too bloody intimidating."

His mother's eyes flickered with warning. "Language, Nicholas." She turned to steal a glance at the woman before returning her gaze at him. "Deana Osegod has been standing in that same corner for hours. Now, go forth and ask for a dance."

Nicholas was already shaking his head. He started to turn but his mother's hand pulled him back.

"One dance and you shall never hear me ask anything of you again," his mother said.

"What do you get from this in return, Mother?" he asked. "Is this simply charity work? It is clear the woman is quite comfortable where she is."

"Remember, son, that her father is the Head of the Town Leaders. We may no longer have to suffer another dinner with the man, but we should at the very least be chummy to those close to him."

He gave his mother a doubtful look. "You are trying to play politics, Mother."

Lady Alice smiled, one that reminded him of the twins when they were up to something. "I believe they call it the Art of War, son. Now, go and dance with Deana Osegod. Charm her but dare not act as the rakehell that you are. Simply make her an acquaintance."

Nicholas groaned as his mother pushed him away. From the corner of his eye, he saw that Ysabella and Emma had finally reached their goal. Ysabella was whispering something in Lady Gedge's ear while Emma was trying to start a conversation with Sophia.

He also realized that Osegod and Durley had disappeared from the ballroom.

Bloody tarnation.

His eyes returned to Deana Osegod and he groaned furthermore.

Why did he have to leave the bloody gaming room?

*****

"Do not mind the stares, dear," one of the ladies whispered to her.

Sophia stumbled in her feet but a strong hand was holding her arm, helping with her balance.

Wherever Marcus was, he ought to rescue her at once!

Two women had suddenly presented themselves to her and quite forced her to walk with them in the gardens. As someone who had never been in a ball, Sophia thought a walk in the gardens was customary.

And a way to escape the suffocating atmosphere.

"They were not simply staring if I may be honest," the other voice said. "They were gawking."

The two women were almost dragging her along an even ground. Sophia could not entirely tell them that she did not mind the stares or the gawking for she could not see them. It was best to keep her silence. There was no one to trust in this party.

"You ought to thank us for saving you from Lady Gedge," said the other voice. "She and her friends almost reached you earlier."

"She does not seem to believe you," said the other.

"Oh, well, she must!" the other voice answered. "I have saved many ladies from that woman's unwavering gossip mongering."

"Truly?" the other voice asked with suspicion.

"Of course! I did save Maxine, if you must know. Lady Gedge learned about her before anyone else did. I stopped her before she could tell any of her friends!" The woman clucked her tongue. "The Theobald parties are the birth of many scandals."

Sophia was listening intently while counting her steps. Perhaps she could stop walking and the two ladies would not even notice. The two kept talking about the many scandals that happened in Theobald in the past, too engrossed in their conversation that Sophia suddenly felt quite out of place.

Soon she realized that they were talking to her. "Our sister-in-law, Lady Victoria, once found herself lost in one of the gardens. As did I but I was not truly lost. I was hiding inside a closet, see? William found me, of course."

Sophia frowned and stopped walking, the realization of the identity of her companions slowly creeping in. She had heard these stories before. She heard them from Nicholas. "I beg your pardons, my ladies, but may I inquire who you are?"

The two women laughed. "No, we beg your pardon. We have been so impolite! My name is Ysabella and this is my sister Emma."

"Everards."

A short pause followed before Emma uttered, "Ah, of course you know."

*****

Asking Deana Osegod for a dance was probably the most obstinate, if not embarrassing, thing Nicholas was ever forced to do. Not only did the lady refuse his invite, she also said, quite intricately, "I do not have the time, my lord. I hope you understand," which was incredulous for she was probably the only person in that bloody ballroom who was wasting time!

He gave his mother a shrug and exited the ballroom to find the twins before his mother could question his encounter with Osegod's daughter.

The amused stares of those who witnessed the woman refuse Nicholas Everard was still freshly engraved in his mind.

But no matter, he ought to find the twins for they had disappeared. With Sophia!

He found them in the gardens, the three of them sitting on a bench. He did not catch Emma's words but he clearly heard Sophia's reply.

"I have heard many great things about you all."

Nicholas froze in his spot.

Ysabella's face went alight. "Truly? Surely not from the Herald. They never talk about our greatness, see?"

Sophia shook her head. "No, from a very reliable source."

Nicholas felt his entire body tighten with fury. He did not appreciate being reminded of his foolishness.

"Truly? Who?"

"Someone I once knew."

Suddenly he was overcome with a great sense of shame, far worse than what he felt earlier with Deana Osegod. He was indeed a total fool when he told Sophia everything about his family.

"Hmm," Emma said, "I wonder who—"

"Ysabella, Emma," Nicholas said, finding his voice. He walked toward the three women, noting Sophia stiffen in her seat before adding, "Mother is searching for both of you."

"But we are keeping Miss Sophia company while—"

He did not appreciate that she introduced herself to his sisters and he showed his contempt by throwing his sisters a sharp look. "I shall escort Miss Sophia back inside the ballroom. Do be on your way now."

"Nicholas," Emma began, standing to her feet.

"Now, Emma."

His sisters gave him a curious look before they both turned to Sophia and said, "We hope to make your acquaintance soon, Miss Sophia."

Sophia merely nodded as she stood.

The twins glared at him as they walked past him on their way back to the ballroom.

Nicholas blocked Sophia's path when she attempted to follow. He grabbed her arm and tightened his grip. He guided her back to the ballroom, walking behind his sisters without a word.

As Ysabella and Emma rushed to find their mother, Nicholas took Sophia back to where Durley had left her earlier, ignoring the curious glances from the other guests.

She had not said a word, nor had she made a sound even after he pulled her closer to him, almost twisting her arm in fury.

"You are planning something with Durley, I know it. But do keep this in mind," he harshly whispered, "Stay away from my sisters. Stay away from my family," he warned before letting go of her arm.

She looked away without a word and he stormed off to find a gaming room.

*****

Durley came to her chamber that night, angry.

"What is the matter?"

"He threatened me."

Sophia was not certain why Nicholas' name came to her mind, but she soon brushed it aside. Durley was talking about Osegod. "Why?"

"He believes I have something to do with why one of his men was captured. Not one of his men in the Guards can find the man and now Osegod is in panic."

"One of them was captured?"

"Yes, and now that man is in the hands of the League of Founders."

Sophia's heart began to hammer. Osegod was supposed to be trusting Marcus, not suspecting him! "What threat did he give you?"

Marcus swore under his breath. "The truth."

Sophia's eyes widened. "How did he know? How did he find out?"

Marcus was pacing the room, his hands on his hips. She had seen him act like this too many times in the past. He was not one who liked his plans shaken. "I do not know. Spies, I don't know."

"But we have been careful, Marcus."

"Not careful enough after all," he said. "He also asked me for something in exchange of his silence."

"What?"

"Who," he corrected. "You."

Sophia let the silence linger for a while as she herself began to think. "Marcus, I can—"

"No!" her brother erupted. "God, Sophia! I did not take you under my care to offer you as pawn in my plans! I have lost my entire family. I will not lose you too. I made a promise to your mother. It is enough that you have to suffer this bloody party."

"This is part of the plan and I have long prepared myself for this. We have prepared for such parties like this, Marcus, but not this threat from Osegod. He is on to you because of what happened a year ago. He must think you have other plans for trying to stop that ambush. I was partly at fault although I do not regret having begged you to do it. I am willing to play Osegod's game while you come up with a better plan." Marcus was already shaking his head before she finished. "I might be of help. I might serve as your spy on Osegod. We cannot allow him to tell them everything, Marcus. The ton will no longer see you as they do now. Everything will be ruined."

Marcus held up his hand to silence her. He was thinking.

"What are you planning, Marcus?"

Her brother made a sharp turn and started for the door. "Prepare your things. We are leaving tonight."

"Where are you going?"

"I need to provide Osegod something other than you. Get ready. I shall return shortly."

*****

Sophia started to worry when Marcus failed to return after nearly an hour.

Aabha watched as she paced around her room, biting her lower lip.

Did something go wrong?

Dread washed over her as she moved to the door. Aabha followed her out in the corridor.

Bending down, Sophia whispered, "Lead me to Marcus, Aabha."

The dog barked and excitedly sniffed the floor.

Sophia carefully followed the dog's steps until they reached the end of the corridor that branched out to two more. As Aabha followed Marcus' scent, Sophia tried to focus her attention on the shadows.

Aabha finally barked and ran off to the right corridor.

"Aabha!" Sophia hissed, trying to catch up. "Aabha!" she called out again when the dog disappeared to another corridor.

Sophia began to panic as she lost sight of Aabha's shadow.

She began to run but she felt something—or someone following her from behind. She quickened her steps and tried to call out for Aabha once again but her breath was snatched out of her as strong arms caught her from behind, trapping her arms in a tight embrace.

Her scream was quickly muffled by a cloth over her nose and mouth.

The light disappeared as darkness consumed her sight once again.