Epilogue
“It’s so perfect outside, and now that he has his first teeth, it is the ideal day to take Cameron to see Miss Bright and her mother. Lord Nicholas assured me that they would both be receiving callers today.”
Martha Stepp nodded and moved the blanket away from Lord Cameron’s face so he could see the world around him.
“I beg your pardon, my lady, but have you had any further thoughts on what happened to the coin that you asked me about?”
“No, it’s so odd. Yes, I foolishly left the key in the lock of the jewelry box the night before, so it’s possible someone took it. But why take only the coin?” She had been very distracted about wearing the diamonds for Harry, so perhaps she had dislodged the coin when she pulled the diamonds out. “And you and Freeba were the only ones to come in that morning. Freeba was expected, and you came to show me that Cameron’s teeth had broken through.”
Bettina shook her head, trying to reconstruct the morning, for the fifth time in as many days, but she had been so happy and so happily tired that the first few hours of the day had passed in a haze. She thought she might be increasing again. Though it was impossible to know for certain yet.
“Not that I suspect you at all, Martha,” she assured her favorite servant. “Whoever took the coin took nothing else. And really, that coin is worthless.”
Bettina made a mental apology to the coin and the mage who had endowed it with magic. But who would believe her if she told the truth?
By the time they were settled in Lord Bright’s sunny red and yellow salon, Bettina had let the coin slip to the back of her mind. She showed off her darling baby boy and then passed him to Nurse so she and the Brights could use the rest of the time to talk.
Bettina still hoped there was a way to save Miss Bright from marriage to the young, virtually unknown Osterman heir, but she realized that she would have to tread carefully. Today was the first step.
Miss Bright was very subdued and spent most of the first part of the visit staring out the window onto the street at the front of the house.
“Come over here, daughter,” her mother commanded. “You spend so much time staring out that window you are going to take root there.”
With a last wistful look out the window, Miss Bright joined Bettina and her mother in the center of the room. Martha Stepp, holding Lord Cameron, claimed the window that Miss Bright had just vacated.
As the three women chattered on about fashion, Bettina tried to find a way to introduce the subject of Miss Bright’s engagement. In the end, Bettina said good-bye without having broached the subject, hoping she would have another chance. Any disappointment she felt was relieved by the thought that the marriage could hardly happen overnight. She would ask Harry. Together they could come up with a plan to save the girl.
Not one of the three ladies knew that only a few minutes after the Countess of Fellsborough completed her call, Miss Bright found a very strange coin on the sill of her favorite window, beckoning her with its golden glow.
Always a curious girl, she picked it up, studying it with interest, and wondered why she had such a strong urge to make a wish. She wrapped her fingers tight around the coin and thought. It would have to be just the right wish. Miss Bright knew exactly what that was.