Kate was left very much to her own devices, with little chance of establishing a social life of her own. Her father saw no point in spending money on entertaining, and despite Arabella’s pleas, he turned down invitations to dine with acquaintances. He refused to take his wife and daughter on frivolous outings to the theatre, although occasionally he might suggest they accompany him to a lecture at the Royal Society, which Arabella found the courage to decline. The fact that her parents had embraced life in London to the exclusion of herself made Kate even more determined to make her own way. She was desperate to return to Delhi even though the situation was still perilous, but the pin money given to her by her father was her only source of income. She scoured the ‘Situations Vacant’ columns in The Times, hoping to find a family who needed a governess or even a lady’s maid to accompany them to India, but after two months she was beginning to lose hope.

Perry was a regular visitor to the house in Finsbury Square, but he came only when he needed to discuss cases in private with Sir Bartholomew. Even so, he always found time to chat with Kate and she looked forward to seeing him, although not for any romantic reason. Perry brought a breath of fresh air into the stuffy household, where the only lively person was Jenny Marsh. Without Jenny’s cheerful chatter and plain common sense, Kate doubted if she would have survived the first weeks at home. Despite the many letters she had sent to her uncle in Delhi, she had not had a single reply, and she had begun to fear the worst.

One morning, unable to bear the stress any longer, Kate went to her father’s study where she found him studying a document with Perry.

‘What is it, Kate?’ Sir Bartholomew said crossly. ‘You know better than to interrupt me when I’m discussing a client.’

‘Yes, I’m sorry, Papa. I just wondered if you’d heard from Uncle Edgar. I’m very anxious about him.’

‘My brother can take care of himself. Given the circumstances, I wouldn’t expect to receive any communication from him until the present situation is resolved.’

Perry cleared his throat. ‘I have all the information I need, sir. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll return to chambers.’

‘Yes, of course.’ Sir Bartholomew waved him away. ‘And you should be helping your mother, Kate. I’m sure she has a committee or something for you to join.’ He turned away and picked up a sheaf of papers, and Kate knew that she had been dismissed. She left the study, followed by Perry. He caught up with her as she was about to cross the entrance hall.