The Black Moth: A Romance of the XVIIIth Century Read online

  CHAPTER XVIII

  ENTER CAPTAIN HAROLD LOVELACE

  At the end of August, after having spent a moderately quiet summer inthe country, Lady Lavinia was again seized with a longing for town andits attractions. She would not listen to Richard's warnings of theatrocious condition of the roads, declaring that she cared not one jot,and go to London she must. After that one protest he desisted, andpromised to take her there the following week, secretly counting himselflucky to have kept her so long at Wyncham in comparative cheerfulness ofspirits. Lavinia was overjoyed, kissed him again and again, scoldedherself for being such a wicked tease, and set about making herpreparations for the journey.

  The roads proved even worse than Richard had prophesied, and twice thecoach nearly upset, and times without number stuck fast in the mire,causing the inmates much inconvenience. Carstares rode by the side ofthe heavy vehicle, in which were his wife, her maid, her tiny dog, andcountless bandboxes and small parcels. In spite of the worry theconstant stoppages entailed, he quite enjoyed the journey, for Laviniawas in excellent spirits, and made light of their mishaps, receivingeach fresh one with roguish laughter and some witty remark. Even whenthe chimney of her bed-chamber, at one of the inns at which they halted,smoked most vilely, she did not, as Richard quite expected she would,fly into a rage and refuse to spend another moment in the house, butafter looking extremely doleful, cheered up and told dear Dicky that shewould have his room while he should have hers. Then in the morning shewould find him all dried up and _smoked_! In high good humour she wentdown to dinner with him, voted the partridges excellent, the pastiesquite French, and the wine marvellously tolerable for such anout-of-the-way place, and kept him laughing at her antics untilbed-time.

  The journey was, of necessity, very slow, not only on account of the badroads, but because whenever my lady caught sight of wild roses growingon the hedges, she must stop to pluck some. Then she and Richard wouldstroll along for some way, he leading his horse, the coach following ata walking pace. All of which was very idyllic, and had the effect ofsending Richard to the seventh heaven of content.

  When at length they arrived at Wyncham House, Mayfair, they found thatthe servants had arrived a week before, and had made good use of theirtime. Never, declared Lavinia, had the house looked so inviting--sospick and span.

  One of her black pages proffered a small monkey with much bowing andgrinning, and the murmur of: "Massa's present."

  Lady Lavinia flew to embrace her Dicky. How did he guess that she hadfor so long yearned for a monkey? Surely she had but once or twicementioned it? Oh, he was the very best of husbands! She danced off toher apartments in a state of ecstasy.

  The _beau monde_ was returning to town, and when, a few days later,Carstares conducted his wife to Ranelagh, they found the gardens fairlycrowded and very gay. Lamps hung from tree branches, although it wasstill quite light; the fiddlers scraped away almost without a pause;fireworks shot up from one end; the summer-houses had all been freshlypainted, and the Pavilion was a blaze of light.

  Consciousness of her beauty and the smartness of her Georgia silk gown,with its petticoat covered in gold net, considerably added to Lavinia'senjoyment. Her hair she wore powdered and elaborately curled down onboth sides with dainty escalloped lace half concealing it, and a grey_capuchin_ over all. Her tippet was gold-laced to match her petticoat,and to fasten it she wore a brooch composed of clustered rubies. Rubiesalso hung in her earrings, which last were of such length that the otherladies turned to stare in envy, and the bracelets that she wore over herlong gloves flashed also with the great red stones. She was well-pleasedwith Richard's appearance, and reflected that, when he chose, he couldbe very fashionable indeed. The claret-coloured velvet he was wearingwas most distinguished, and the gold clocks to his hose quite ravishing.

  They had not been in the Gardens ten minutes before a little crowd ofmen had gathered around them, professing themselves enraptured to beholdthe fair Lady Lavinia once more. One of them fetched her a chair,another a glass of negus, and the rest hovered eagerly about her.

  Becomingly flushed with triumph, my lady gave her little hand to Mr.Selwyn, who had been once a very ardent admirer, laughed at his neatcompliment, and declared that he was a dreadful flattering demon, andpositively she would not listen to him!

  Sir Gregory Markham, who brought her the negus, she discovered to havejust returned from Paris. On hearing this, she broke off in the middleof a conversation with an enchanted French Chevalier and turned to him,raising her china-blue eyes to his face and clasping tight-glovedhands.

  "Oh, Sir Gregory! Paris? Then tell me--please, tell me--have you seen mydarling Devil?"

  "Why, yes, madam," responded Markham, handing her the glass he held.

  She sipped the negus, and gave it to the Chevalier to take care of.

  "I declare, I quite love you then!" she exclaimed. "What is he doing,and, oh! _when_ will he return to England?"

  Sir Gregory smiled.

  "How can I say?" he drawled. "I fear _monsieur s'amuse_!"

  She flirted her fan before her face.

  "Dreadful creature!" she cried. "How dare you say such things?"

  "Belmanoir?" inquired Lord D'Egmont, twirling his cane.

  "Enamoured of the Pompadour, is he not--saving your presence, LadyLavvy!"

  Lavinia let fall her fan.

  "The Pompadour! He had best have a care!"

  "I believe there has already been some unpleasantness between hisMajesty and the fair Jeanne on the subject of Devil. Since then she issupposed to have turned on him a cold shoulder."

  "_I_ heard 'twas he wearied of madame," said Markham.

  "Well, whichever it was, I am glad the episode is closed," decidedLavinia. "'Tis too dangerous a game to play with Louis' mistresses. Oh,mon cher Chevalier! if I had not forgot your presence! But I am sure yousay dreadful ill-natured things of our George, now don't you? Oh, andhave you held my negus all this time? How monstrous good of you! There,I will drink it, and Julian shall take the glass away.... _Voila_!" Shehanded it to D'Egmont and rapped Mr. Selwyn's knuckles with her fan,looking archly up at him as he stood behind her chair.

  "Naughty man! Will you have done whispering in my ear? I vow I will notlisten to your impudences! No, nor laugh at them neither! Sir Gregory,you have given me no answer. When will Tracy return? For the Cavendishrout on Wednesday week? Ah, say yes!"

  "Certainly I will say yes, fair tormentor! But, to tell the truth, Tracysaid no word of coming to London when I saw him."

  She pouted.

  "Now I hate you, Sir Gregory! And he has been absent since May! Oh,Julian, back already? You shall escort me to the fireworks then. Oh, myfan! Where is it? I know I dropped it on the ground--Selwyn, if you havetaken it--Oh, Dicky, you have it! Thank you! See, I am going withJulian, and you may ogle Mrs. Clive, whom I see walking over there--yes,positively you may, and I shall not be jealous! Very well, Julian, I amcoming! Chevalier, I shall hope to see you at the rout on Wednesdayweek, but you must wait upon me before then."

  The Frenchman brightened.

  "Madame is too good. I may then call at Wyncham 'Ouse? _Vraiment_, Ishall but exist until then!" In a perfectly audible whisper, he confidedto Wilding that "_miladi etait ravissante! mais ravissante!_"

  Lady Lavinia went off on her gratified cavalier's arm, encountering manybows and much admiration as she passed down the walk, leaving herhusband not to ogle the beautiful Kitty, as she had advised, but tosaunter away in the direction of the Pavilion in company with TomWilding and Markham.

  D'Egmont guided my lady into one of the winding alleys, and theypresently came out on a large lawn, dotted over with people of allconditions. Towards them was coming Lavinia's brother--Colonel LordRobert Belmanoir--very richly clad and rakish in appearance. When he sawhis sister, a look of surprise came into his florid face, and he madeher a sweeping leg.

  "'Pon my honour--Lavinia!"

  My lady was not fond of her brother, and acknowledged the salutationwith a brief