‘What’s the matter, Sir Philip?’ Maria asked, breathless - maybe a bit more breathless than absolutely necessary. ‘Is something wrong?’
‘On the contrary, my dear, something is right.’ He beamed at all of us. ‘Remember that I told you of this special guest who would be here tonight?’
They all nodded. The black pit in my stomach grew by leaps and bounds. My knees wobbled.
‘Yes, of course we remember.’ Anne’s eyes had become very large. ‘You don't mean…’
‘…He’s here!’ Sir Philip triumphantly finished. ‘I have just bumped into him. I’ve known him for some years, and I’m sure he’ll sacrifice a few minutes of his valuable time for my sake. Ladies, it will be my pleasure to introduce you to one of the most wealthy and eminent personages of the British Empire.’
I cleared my throat. ‘Um… do you really think we should waste the valuable time of such a man?’ Cautiously, I started edging backwards. Maria threw me a venomous look. Apparently, she was already determined to conquer the heart of this mighty, mysterious man.
Oh my dear sister, if you only knew…
‘I’m sure he’ll be delighted to meet all of you. Come, come.’ Without further ado, Wilkins took me and Ella by the hand and started leading us towards the windowed front of the ballroom. In his boundless enthusiasm he didn’t even notice that I was digging my heels into the ground and he more or less had to drag me across the ballroom.
Bloody hell! Let go of me! I don’t want to see him! I can’t! Not in a dress! He’ll… Blast, I don’t know what he’s going to do, but he’s going to do something!
But for a weedy man with a flower fixation, Sir Philip was surprisingly strong. In spite of my resistance, I was towed forward.
Others were not so reluctant. Lisbeth, Anne and Maria were giggling and whispering with each other, hard on our heels. Even Ella and Gertrude displayed a modicum of excitement. And as for my aunt… she was practically bursting! Golden coins were shining in her eyes instead of pupils.
‘Please, Sir Philip…’ I tried to wrest my hand from his grip. ‘I would feel embarrassed, meeting such a great man.’
‘Nonsense. Whyever would you?’
Because unlike you, I know what he keeps chained up in his cellar!
‘Because… because I am a very modest person, that’s why! And very shy!’
Turning her head towards me, Ella gave me a look of pure incredulity. She almost forgot to look where she was going and stumbled over the hem of her own dress. I suppose I couldn’t blame her. She was my sister, after all, and knew me well.
‘Oh, if that’s the only reason, you do not need to worry,’ Sir Philip assured me. ‘My friend’s manners are perfectly unassuming and charming.’
What?
I was so surprised by that description that I actually stopped struggling for a moment, and my knightly tugboat was able to drag me the rest of the way.
We arrived at a tightly-packed group of individuals. Mostly they were men - the most expensively dressed men I had ever seen, in midnight-black tailcoats and brilliant waistcoats with golden embroidery. They were centred around somebody we couldn’t see, all talking excitedly.
For one last time I tugged at my hand, desperately trying to get away. But that blasted Wilkins held my hand firmly. There was no escape.
Wilkins tapped the shoulder of one of the men who were barring the way.
‘Would you be so kind as to step aside for a moment, please?’
No! Don’t be kind! Be mean! Be rude, please! Be bloody impertinent and stay where you are!
‘I would like to introduce these ladies to my honoured friend.’
No! Bloody hell, no!
In spite of my internal pleading, the men in front of us parted. Out from between them stepped another man. I blinked in surprise. He was lean and he was tall, just like Mr Ambrose - but there was no way this man could be mistaken for my employer. He had longish blonde hair that was combed back in elegant waves, a slightly curvy, hawk-like nose and light, steel-blue eyes.
Even if all this could have been faked and underneath that inviting exterior somewhere lurked the brooding self I had suspected to find here, there was one characteristic which definitely identified this man as somebody other than Mr Ambrose: he had a broad, inviting smile on his face.
‘Ah, good evening, Wilkins. What a pleasure to see you again.’ The blonde man bowed to Ella’s admirer, who in turn bowed back. ‘And who, if I may ask, are these lovely ladies you have brought with you?’
His voice, too, was nothing like Mr Ambrose's. It sounded smooth and eloquent, like a public speaker who could move whole crowds, or maybe a young, dashing general who by his voice alone could persuade men to follow him into battle. For some reason I felt a blush creep up my cheeks.
‘Of course, where are my manners?’ Wilkins let go of my hand so he could point us out in turn. ‘Lord Dalgliesh, may I present Mrs Brank, Miss Linton, Miss Linton, Miss Linton, Miss Linton, Miss Linton and Miss Linton. Ladies, this is Lord Daniel Eugene Dalgliesh.’
He bowed to each of us in turn, slowly and elegantly.
‘I am charmed. Who knew that such bewitching company would await me at this ball.’
It hadn’t escaped my notice that Wilkins had introduced us to him and not the other way around. Normally, men were introduced to women. For it to be done in reverse, the man must be presumed to be ten times more important than any woman.
With any ordinary man, this would have sent me into a fit of rage. Yet as Lord Dalgliesh bowed to me and for a moment I met his steel-blue gaze, I knew without doubt that this was no ordinary man.
There was an aura about him, a presence that bespoke greatness. I felt as though those steel-blue eyes could analyse every bone in my body and gaze into the darkest recesses of my soul. Which was complete bilge, of course. My soul didn’t have any dark recesses! Did it?
I was ripped from the contemplation of my soul by my loving sister Maria, who shoved me out of the way to be closer to her target.
‘It is I who am charmed to meet you, My Lord. Tell me how it is that, though I have been a frequent visitor to many balls in the city, I have never yet had the pleasure of making your acquaintance? Such a great lord as yourself should surely be the life and soul of every ball.’
Bravo, Maria, bravo! I really had to admire her. She had flattered him, depicted herself as a worthy object of his undying love, fished for information, and flattered him again, and that all in one sentence. She really knew how to catch her fish. Only I had a suspicion this one would prove to be a little bit too big for her nets.
Lord Dalgliesh gave a light, pleasant laugh. ‘The matter is susceptible of a ready explanation, Miss Linton. I assure you that I am no recluse or social outcast. In fact, I have been away from the metropolis, even from Britain, for a long time now, looking after various matters in the colonies.’ He shrugged apologetically and smiled a smile so charming, it could maybe even have charmed a fairy queen. ‘It was very unfortunate, considering what I was missing here.’
My sister wasn’t a fairy queen. She didn’t have a hope.
‘Oh, Lord Dalgliesh,’ was all she managed to whisper.
‘What brought you back?’ Sir Philip wanted to know. ‘I would have thought you had enough out there to keep you busy for a lifetime.’
Seeing our questioning looks, he added with a smile, ‘Lord Dalgliesh is the main shareholder of the East India Company.’
Maria’s eyes lit up. If she hadn’t been determined to grab this man for herself before, she was now. Anne seemed to experience similar feelings. I must say, I was pretty floored myself.
The East India Company… Did such a conglomerate even deserve to be referred to as only a 'company', when it owned and ruled most of the Indian subcontinent, along with its own army and state apparatus? If this man truly was in charge of the East India Company, he was as close to a king as you could get without actually wearing a crown.