[Cornick Nicola] The Last Rake in London(Bookos.org) by The Last Rake in London Page B

Sir Peter Bowes, an architect of some renown who unfortunately lost all his money in unwise speculation at the end of the last century. She has two elder sisters, the notorious suffragette Petronella Bowes—’ here Churchward’s voice dipped with distinct disapproval ‘—and the equally infamous Mrs Jonathan Hayward, who owns a nightclub in the Strand.’
    ‘Miss Sally Bowes,’ Jack said, his lips twitching. ‘I believe she prefers not to be known by her married name, Churchward.’
    ‘I dare say,’ Mr Churchward said frostily. ‘A woman of that stamp—’
    ‘To return to Miss Constance,’ Jack said, cutting in ruthlessly as Churchward’s description of Sally roused a violently protective feeling in him, ‘what of her subsequent career?’
    ‘Well, sir…’ Churchward cast Jack a startled look at his inflexibility of tone. ‘Miss Constance was twelve when her father lost all his money and fifteen when he died. She lived for a number of years with a maiden aunt. There was…’ he consulted his notes ‘…some scandal over a flirtation with a piano teacher and later a thwarted elopement with a young gentleman called Geoffrey Chavenage.’ He cleared his throat. ‘When her sister, Mrs Hayward—Miss Bowes, that is—was widowed Miss Constance went to live and work with her at the Blue Parrot Club.’ Churchward stopped. ‘Two years ago, both women were involved in a rather unsavoury lawsuit for breach of promise.’
    Jack, who had got up and strolled over to the window whilst this recital was continuing, now turned around sharply. ‘ Both women?’ he questioned. He felt a chill down his spine, a premonition that something was about to go awry. ‘Are you sure?’
    ‘Yes, sir.’ Churchward extracted a couple of sheets from his pile of papers. ‘Miss Constance Bowes sued a Mr John Pettifer over breach of promise to marry. Her elder sister stood as a witness and supported her throughout the case. They won,’ Mr Churchward said, with gloomy dissatisfaction, ‘and were awarded substantial damages.’ He paused, pushing his glasses back up his nose. ‘It was also Mrs Hayward who dealt with the matter of her sister’s unfortunate elopement. The Chavenage family allegedly paid out to keep the matter from the courts because Miss Connie was under age at the time.’ He cleared his throat. ‘So one might conclude, sir, that this case involving Miss Constance and your unfortunate cousin is part of a pattern to entrap young gentlemen into indiscretion and subsequently extract payment from them.’
    Jack’s dark eyes had narrowed and a muscle tightened in his cheek. ‘And you are certain,’ he demanded, ‘ absolutely certain, that Miss Sally Bowes—Mrs Hayward—supported her sister in bringing both these cases?’
    He saw Churchward’s surprise at the vehemence of his tone. The lawyer’s eyes blinked myopically behind the thick lenses of his glasses. ‘Yes, sir.’ He held out the papers. ‘I have the court transcripts here. Miss Bowes was her younger sister’s most staunch supporter in the case against Mr Pettifer and my sources also informed me of her role in the Chavenage case.’
    Jack took the papers. He would not, he told himself sternly, believe a word against Sally until he had seen the evidence with his own eyes. And yet even as the thought went through his mind he was scanning the papers before him. In Churchward’s neat annotations he read that the Chavenage family had apparently paid Mrs Hayward seven thousand pounds to keep the matter of her sister’s elopement with Mr Geoffrey Chavenage out of the courts. Chavenage senior was a Member of Parliament and Jack could see how badly the elopement of his son with an underage girl might affect his political standing. With increasing anger and disbelief he turned to the court transcripts for the Pettifer breach of promise case. Again, Sally had been very active in supporting her sister’s claim and had presented Connie Bowes as an innocent