“I have just received word that our dinner menu may have to be altered tonight, as there was a problem getting supplies from the greenmarket. There seems to be some unrest downtown today.”

“We’ll manage,” Lord Henry said. “It’s sure to blow over soon enough.”

*   *   *

I was surprised that he turned out to be right. The authorized newspaper reported that a minor skirmish near the university had been quickly put down. I couldn’t imagine that the rebels would give up that easily. I might have accused the Mechanics of playacting, but they were serious about their cause, so I suspected any apparent surrender was part of a greater plot. Unfortunately, the new restrictions still made it impossible for Nat to sell papers in my part of the city, so I didn’t know what the rebels were saying. After being so active, it felt odd to have nothing to do as the rebellion actually started, but I heard no useful information to pass on to them. I hoped perhaps I’d learn something at the ball, where I’d be surrounded by soldiers.

That is, if there was a ball. Would they really send the officers to a ball when a rebellion was brewing and there had been fighting in the streets? Or was that why the rebels had fought and then backed down, to make the British overconfident? If that was the plan, it had worked, because there was no talk of cancellation when the day of the ball arrived.

Flora had her maid, Miss Jenkins, help me dress. She arranged my hair in a style that was less severe than my usual tight knot. Curling tendrils framed my face, and others were pinned into a complicated style at the back of my head. I had a feeling I’d be finding hairpins for days after the ball.

Flora came to my room to check on me before we went downstairs. “You’ll do,” she said curtly, and then she tilted her head and frowned at me, making me wonder if there was something wrong with my appearance.

In spite of her frown, I felt like a princess as I swept down the stairs, my skirts rustling around me. Henry waited for us in the foyer, looking rather handsome in a white tie and a tailcoat. He’d attempted to tame his hair, but a few cowlicks had already rebelled. He was adjusting his cuff links, and when he glanced up to see us, his jaw dropped. Flora noticed his expression, turned to study me, then frowned. “Miss Newton, you have no jewelry,” she said.

“Miss Newton doesn’t need jewelry.” Lord Henry’s voice was strangely hoarse as he said it, and his eyes never left me, even when he spoke to Flora. I wondered if I’d done something wrong or chosen the wrong style of gown, but he didn’t seem displeased, merely disconcerted.