The reluctant cavalier by Karen Harbaugh

been a very trying evening! The vinaigrette should be enough for me. Ah, Betty, I thank you!" Lady Grafton unstopped the bottle the maid had just given to her. She breathed in the vapors, then sneezed violently. She sighed. 'There! There is nothing like vigorous sneezing to enervate one's constitution."
    Usually Parsifal bore his mother's starts with resigned patience. But this time a flare of anger burst within him. "I did not call the doctor for you, ma'am!" he snapped.
    "Parsifal! How dare you talk to me in that—"
    "I called him for Lady Smith. She has been grievously hurt—attacked in fact—and is unconscious in the Blue Room at this moment. Her daughter is attending her."
    "Attacked! Oh, good heavens!" The stopper on Lady Grafton's vinaigrette came off again, and she sniffed and sneezed again. "I think perhaps when Doctor Robinson arrives I shall need—"
    "Lady Smith will need his services first, Mother. Then if you need something, I will instruct him to come to you. Meanwhile, she and her daughter will be guests in our house until such time Lady Smith has recovered." He turned to the maid standing round-eyed beside his mother. "Betty, prepare a room for Miss Smith, as close to her mother's as possible, and direct her to it once the doctor arrives." The maid curtsied and fled.
    Lady Grafton stared at her son, astonishment and affront writ clearly on her face. "Parsifal! I have never, never —"
    "I daresay," he said and turned on his heel.
    "Parsifal!"
    He did not want to hear her arguments, and went up the stairs again to his chamber, ignoring her protests. More important things demanded his attention. Once there, he removed his costume, pulled on his usual clothes, and descended once again. Arriving just as the doctor's gig stopped at the stables, he told Doctor Robinson what had occurred and sent him on his way.
    But that was not the only reason why he had come outside again. He remembered something had dropped from Lady Smith's hand; it was round, about the size and shape of a gentleman's pocket watch. It seemed an unlikely thing for her to have. Perhaps it was something that her assailant had left behind.
     
    The path to the garden was dark, but he knew it well and found the pocket watch easily, for he had noted in his mind the place at which it had fallen. He picked it up and put it in his pocket. He would examine it later in better light, once he returned to his room.
    A clock in the house tolled the hour, and Parsifal looked up at the windows of the ballroom. The lights therein had been doused. A glance to the east showed no dawn yet, but he could hear the early morning birds begin to waken and sing. He would not be having his morning swim today, but would be sleeping late, as he was sure the other guests would. He would miss it, but if the guests left early, he could do it later in the day.
    Meanwhile, he wished to look at his find. He went again to his room, took the watch out, and examined it in the light of the candles. The cover had an intricate design, etched in gold and silver. But on the other side was a stamped design, like a crest, and below it ornate lettering. Parsifal brought it up closer to the candlelight. There, in the middle of a tangle of" leaves and vines were the letters Q and B.  
    His hand tightened over the watch. Miss Smith had been accosted before by a man with those initials—Sir Quentin Barnaby. He'd be willing to wager that the crest just above it belonged to the man as well. As for why he attacked Lady Smith this time ... could it be that the man had something against the two ladies, or the family as a whole?
    Sir Robert Smith was involved in diplomatic matters, but peace had been declared at Amiens, and it was unlikely Sir Quentin had anything to do with foreign affairs, if that man's reputation for unreliability and drink were any indication. No, what was more likely was that Sir Quentin sought to compromise and marry Annabella, for she was an heiress, and he was not at all