Laurie Benson - An Unexpected Countess

Wonderful! Now what was Sarah to do? She should have volunteered to crank the contraption. How was she to remove the bracelet without anyone noticing? Where would she put it? How horrible would it be if she kept it in her shoe?

‘My bracelet!’

All heads turned to Lady Everill and Sarah’s body grew cold. She was certain everyone would know the woman’s latest prized possession was in her slipper.

The Dowager’s clear voice gave her a small bit of comfort. ‘What is wrong, Harriet?’

‘My bracelet is missing! Oh, Eleanor, someone has stolen my bracelet!’

‘Nonsense! I can assure you no one here stole it. It must have fallen off. We will all help you search for it. Katrina, why don’t you and Miss Forrester look in the drawing room? You remember where we were sitting. Harriet, you, Everill, Mr and Mrs Forrester and I will search the hallway, and, Julian, you remain here with Hartwick to look for it.’

‘What does the bracelet look like?’ Hartwick enquired, looking at the lady in question.

‘It is engraved gold links and two of those links have small paintings on porcelain.’

Hartwick nodded in understanding while Sarah’s heart felt like it would jump out of her chest. Once she made it to the Crimson Drawing Room, her heartbeat slowed.

‘I cannot believe her bracelet just fell off her wrist like that,’ Katrina said, closing the door behind her and locking it.

Neither could Sarah and now she was fairly certain the Dowager had been eavesdropping on their conversation yesterday. ‘I have the woman’s bracelet in my slipper,’ she whispered back harshly. ‘I’m amazed I did not jingle down the entire hallway.’

‘As am I. I don’t know how you did it.’ Katrina opened the drawer of the game table and withdrew a piece of paper and a pencil. As Sarah sat to remove the bracelet, Katrina handed the drawing implements to her. ‘Use these, but be quick.’

The bracelet was of substantial weight, leaving Sarah to believe the links were solid. She studied each link and hinge, and found no way to open it. She placed it on the table and began to sketch it out to size. Although the back of the bracelet was free of any etchings, she took a rubbing of each link just to be certain she was not missing anything. Then she made indications of the colours of each of the images.

She folded the drawing and shoved it inside her stays, between her breasts. She was an intelligent woman. She could do this. She would not give in to doubt.

They discovered Lady Everill sitting in the library, fanning herself and drinking wine. Lyonsdale was pacing slowly near the doorway, studying the carpet under his feet.

‘We found your bracelet, Lady Everill,’ Katrina called out as they entered the room.

Lady Everill rushed to them, grabbed the bracelet out of Sarah’s hands and clutched it to her chest. ‘Oh, thank heavens.’

A loud thud came from under a nearby table, and Sarah dropped down to find Hartwick on his hands and knees, rubbing his head.

‘What are you doing under there?’

‘Searching for that bracelet,’ he bit out. ‘What did you think I was doing under here?’

Sarah shrugged at his unusually harsh tone.

‘See, Harriet,’ the Dowager said from the doorway. ‘No one had taken your bracelet. Wherever did you find it?’

‘It was near the doorway of the drawing room. The clasp must have come loose when we were on our way to the library. You may wish to have a jeweller repair it for you,’ Katrina suggested with a sympathetic smile.

‘Oh, dear, I will at that,’ Lady Everill said, dropping it into her reticule and securing the satin braid of the bag around her wrist. ‘I’ll bring it to Rundell & Bridge myself tomorrow.’ A team of wild dogs would not be able to wrestle that bag from her firm grasp.

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