I must have been glaring so furiously as I approached the barricade that the British soldiers were intimidated, for they took a wary step back and allowed me to head uptown without asking for my credentials. I hailed the first magical cab I found, gave the driver the Lyndons’ address, and settled back in the seat.

Alone at last, I could no longer hold back my tears. I let them fall with the hope that I would be through crying by the time I got home. Although I was angry at my false friends, I was most angry at myself for being naïve enough to fall into their trap. They had made me feel special and important, so I hadn’t allowed myself to doubt them. I had always thought of myself as the clever girl who knew all the answers because I’d read so many books, and yet I’d been a simple fool.

But the worst blow was learning that Alec didn’t care for me the way I’d cared for him. He might have liked me once he got to know me, but I’d always been first and foremost a tool. If I hadn’t been useful to him, he’d never have given me a second thought. I should have known better than to think a mousy, unworldly governess would attract a brilliant rebel. He probably laughed about me with his short-skirted rebel friends.

When the cab passed the lower boundary of the park, I began scrubbing at my face with my handkerchief, and I took several deep breaths to get myself under control before I reached the Lyndon home. I might even have managed to hide my distress if Henry hadn’t met me in the foyer. “Did you—” he started to say, but then he took a look at me and asked gently, “Ver—Miss Newton, is something the matter?”

“No, nothing,” I said, tears threatening to form anew at his concern. “I’m merely somewhat fatigued. I never knew having a gown made would be so exhausting.”

He stepped closer and lowered his voice. “You were able to carry out the errand? And you weren’t in danger while doing so?”

“That went perfectly well.”

“I thank you again for your assistance. You didn’t have any trouble getting past the barricade?”

“It was hardly a barricade. They were only checking people heading uptown. The streets were strangely quiet, though, like everyone was expecting trouble.”

“That’s probably wise of them.”

“Do you think it will be bad?”

“I don’t know, but something’s bound to happen.” In an instant, he changed back into the vague, absentminded young nobleman he usually played, and I noticed Mrs. Talbot approaching. “Flora’s about to burst from curiosity about your gown,” he said, “but I’ve told her she must wait until dinner. You need time to rest.”

“Thank you, sir,” I said.