actresses were not suitable company for people like Alistair Devlin and Isabelle Wright. To introduce Isabelle to Signy Chermonde would not have been to elevate Signy’s standing. It would have been to lower Isabelle’s. ‘Yes, of course. Forgive me. I only thought—’
‘No apologies are necessary,’ Alistair said gently. ‘I know your offer was well intentioned and I’m quite sure Isabelle would love to go backstage. However, there is a good possibility that someone would see her and that would not be good for her reputation. London may be a big city, but news like that makes the rounds very quickly.’
‘Yes, of course,’ Victoria said, biting her lip.
‘We could, however, pay our respects to Uncle Theo,’ Laurence suggested. ‘Surely there could be no objection to Miss Wright meeting him in the privacy of the Green Room. He does, after all, move in very good society.’
Victoria looked up and saw Alistair watching her, the look in his eyes one she hadn’t seen before. ‘I don’t think that would go amiss,’ he agreed. ‘Though it would be better if it were to take place in the vestibule rather than anywhere backstage.’
‘Then I shall go and seek him out,’ Laurence said. ‘And ask him to meet us at the foot of the grand staircase.’
‘Oh, yes, that would be lovely,’ Miss Wright said, clapping her hands. ‘Then he can confirm that I really did see Valentine Lawe in the theatre tonight.’
Victoria blanched. ‘You saw him? Where?’
‘In the first row of boxes. I noticed him when he came in. He walked in a very slow, dignified manner and he was dressed all in black and white.’
‘As were most of the men in the theatre,’ Alistair pointed out.
‘Yes, but when he turned, I noticed that he was wearing a single red rose in his lapel! And I saw a number of the performers glance in his direction. It must have been Valentine Lawe!’
‘Fine. While you speculate as to the likelihood of the playwright being in the audience, I shall go and speak to Lord Gavering,’ Alistair said.
‘And I shall search out Uncle Theo,’ Laurence said with a pointed glance at Victoria. ‘I think I know where he’s likely to be.’
Left alone with Miss Wright, Victoria pointed to the red banquettes lining the wall. ‘Shall we sit down while we wait for the gentlemen to return?’
‘Yes, by all means.’
When they were comfortably seated, Victoria said with a smile, ‘So, are you enjoying your stay in London, Miss Wright?’
‘I am having the very best time, Miss Bretton. Cousin Alistair has been so good to me. Taking me around, making sure I see all the sights and meet all the right people. It has been terribly busy, but very exciting. I shall be quite bereft when I return home. Of course, everyone is anxious that I meet a suitable gentleman and get married. I know that’s why Mama agreed to let me come,’ Isabelle said. ‘But I’m quite happy to visit the shops and go to the theatre and experience all that London has to offer.’
‘How do you like living with Lord and Lady Kempton?’ Victoria asked in a casual voice.
‘Oh. Well, they’re very nice, of course,’ Miss Wright said, blushing. ‘And I know they mean well …’
‘But?’
‘But they are rather boring,’ the girl admitted. ‘It’s not that they mean to be, and I suppose it is terribly ungrateful of me to say so, but it’s just that … the way they carry on is so painfully …’
‘Correct?’ Victoria supplied helpfully.
‘Exactly! Lord Kempton is very strict, and Cousin Julia and her husband even more so. But then I suppose an archdeacon and his wife must be more mindful of the proprieties than most.’
‘Yes,’ Victoria allowed grudgingly, ‘which is why Mr Devlin has to be very careful about how you go on while you are here.’
‘I suppose. Still, I should have loved to go backstage and meet the cast of A Lady’s Choice,’ Miss Wright confessed. ‘If Cousin Alistair is allowed to involve himself with orphans, I don’t see why I can’t—’
‘Orphans?’ Victoria interrupted.
‘Oh dear, I don’t think I was supposed to say anything about that,’ Miss Wright said. ‘But I suppose it’s too late now. And I really don’t see why he doesn’t want to tell anyone. It’s not as though he was doing anything wrong.’
‘What exactly is he doing?’ Victoria asked.
‘Well, I don’t know all the details, but I overheard him talking to Lord Valbourg the other evening and I think he’s bought a house with a view to turning it into an orphanage. Apparently he already has a place in town that he uses for the purpose, but it’s not big enough any more, so he bought a larger house and plans to renovate it. I think Lord Valbourg is going to help him.’
‘I had no idea,’ Victoria said, trying to imagine Alistair Devlin in such a benevolent role. Instead of squandering his wealth on prostitutes and gambling, he was using it to help children whose circumstances had forced them to find a living on the streets. To think she had accused him of being selfish. ‘I wouldn’t have thought him the type to get involved in such a cause,’ she whispered.
‘He doesn’t talk about it much,’ Miss Wright admitted. ‘I’m not even sure my aunt and uncle know, but I don’t think they would be terribly pleased if they did.’
And then, Victoria had another disturbing thought. Was that where he had been going the day he had come upon her at the Gryphon? Was that the stop he had been intending to make? He’d made it sound as though he was on his way to visit a woman—and she had left him in no doubt as to how she felt about his doing so. But if he had been planning to visit an orphanage, why hadn’t he told her? Why had he let her believe his destination was somewhere else, with an entirely different purpose in mind? Had he wanted her to think ill of him?
Regrettably, it was a question for which there was to be no answer. Laurence returned with their uncle and, at the same time, Alistair came back to join them.
‘Well, well, Devlin, we meet again,’ Uncle Theo said. ‘I’m surprised to see you here a second time.’
‘If someone had told me a few weeks ago that I would be heading to any theatre to see a repeat performance of a play, I would have told them they were mad,’ Alistair said with a smile. ‘But apart from my cousin insisting we come tonight, it was a pleasure to see the play again. The cast gave an even stronger performance than they did on opening night.’
‘I am delighted to hear you say so,’ Uncle Theo said. ‘Did you enjoy the performance, Miss Wright?’
‘Indeed, Mr Templeton! Especially once I realised that Valentine Lawe was actually in the theatre!’
Victoria knew her uncle to be a talented actor, but even she hadn’t realised how talented until that moment. He looked at Miss Wright without blinking and said, ‘And he did not come up and say hello? The bounder! Where did you see him?’
‘In the first row of boxes, second from the left,’ Miss Wright said. ‘A very serious-looking man, with a red rose in his lapel.’
‘A red rose.’ Her uncle frowned, and then, started to laugh. ‘My dear Miss Wright, I am sorry to disappoint you, but that was not Valentine Lawe.’
‘It wasn’t?’’
‘No. It was Sir Michael Loftus, the theatre critic.’
‘It was?’ It was Victoria’s turn to be surprised. ‘But … I thought he never attended plays more than once.’
‘That was my understanding too, but I know for a fact that he was here tonight and that he was sitting in that box.’