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Siena hurried towards her designated room, trying to change as quickly as possible. She threw off the heavy gown and slipped into the comfort of her own clothes; rubbed the makeup off her face; removed the pins from her hair, letting her curls fall freely over her shoulder.
Then, she took a deep breath, looking at herself in the mirror.
She had sworn herself to not perform at a ball this season. Her career was stable enough to politely decline the few invitations she had received. Perhaps it had been foolish; perhaps it was maddening that he was still controlling her life. But she had not wished to risk it—had not wished to see the Viscount, and she was quite certain that he had not wished to see her either.
But then, Lady Trowbridge had approached her personally—and with a very pretty sum.
Therefore, Siena had agreed to perform at her ball this evening.
And nothing of note had happened. Yet she still felt tense.
She had noticed him almost immediately. And he had also noticed her. Then, he had asked his betrothed to dance with him.
Had he done so on purpose to vex Siena? But then again, she had been flirting with the Duke in front of him not too long ago. Perhaps they were even now.
She felt quite sorry for the poor girl, however. Edwina Sharma was her name. She had seemed quite young—and most likely did not know what she was in for.
But that was none of Siena’s business.
She grabbed her shawl, then left the room.
She hurried in the direction of the servants’ quarters—but as she passed the corner of a small hallway, she halted.
At the end of the corridor was a large window. And below that window sat a woman—hugging her knees, her face buried. She was crying.
Which was none of Siena’s business either.
But still, she could not simply walk away. Something horrendous might have happened.
Therefore, Siena took a deep breath and then carefully approached the woman. Or girl, perhaps? Maybe it was just some sweet debutante, crying because no one had asked her to dance.
“Are you alright?”
Startled, the person looked up at her with wide eyes. Woman it was. Around her own age, even.
“Yes … yes, I’m fine,” she stuttered, brushing away her tears. Then, she tried standing up—placing her hands on the windowsill as she began to sway.
A drunk woman.
Well, that was the kind of woman Siena knew how to deal with.
The woman sank back down then, staring at the floor.
“You do not look fine,” Siena stated. “Should I call for someone?”
“No please — don’t tell my Mama or sister!” she pleaded. “They can’t … they can’t see me like this.”
Still, she did not look up at her.
“Alright. I won’t tell anyone,” Siena promised her.
The woman nodded, still staring at the floor. She might not be a girl, but Siena could certainly not leave her alone like that.
She sighed, then decided to sit down next to her.
“I’m Siena.”
“Kate.”
“Did something happen, Kate?” Siena asked. “You can be honest with me. I’m just an opera singer. I don’t even know what your Mama looks like.”
Kate glanced up at her for a quick moment, then back down to the floor.
“It’s just … it’s my sister’s engagement,” she sighed. “And yes, we came here to secure her future. We used our last money to travel here, so that she can find a good husband. And I … I should be thrilled but … but my sister deserves to find love as well. He might be a viscount but I know that he doesn’t love her.”
At her last words, Siena tensed—staring at her with wide eyes. Thankfully, Kate was still looking at the floor, not noticing her odd reaction.
Siena took a deep breath, then asked, “Your sister is engaged to the Viscount Bridgerton?”
Now, Kate did look at her—a small smile on her lips.
“I guess now you know who my sister and Mama are.”
“Well … I still won’t tell,” Siena assured her. “But … are you certain he does not love her?”
Why are you asking that?
Siena had already assumed that he did not. She was way too young and sweet for him. But still … she would like to know.
“He doesn’t look for a love match,” Kate replied as her gaze wandered back to the floor. “He made that quite clear from the beginning.”
“And is your sister aware of it?”
Kate bit her lips. “He told her so…” she muttered. “And I told her as well. But then … he started pursuing her—relentlessly. I don’t know why. I guess he can’t lose. He saw all those other men competing for her attention … and me trying to stop him from getting close to her,” she added. “It turned into a competition for him. She’s his trophy. And he’s lying to her.”
Siena felt her chest tighten. She knew that Anthony was not an awful man. He did awful things sometimes—but he could be good too.
Yet how could she tell her that without letting her know of their acquaintance?
“But … but many marriages are based on duty,” Siena said carefully then. “It doesn’t mean it has to be loveless. He might fall in love with her eventually. I’m certain there are things he admired her for.”
“I do believe he considers her a good fit as viscountess,” Kate muttered, her glazed eyes glued to the floor. “But that shouldn’t be all. And yes, he can be kind—when he wants to be. And funny and gentle and…”
She trailed off as Siena stared at her. Those were quite a lot of compliments for a man she apparently despised.
Kate took a deep breath, then said, “But I don’t think he will ever love her…”
“Why?”
Stop with all those questions!
She noticed Kate biting her lips before she muttered, “There’s … there’s someone else he’s interested in.”
Of course.
Siena still had trouble comprehending the entire situation, but she believed that she finally understood why Kate Sharma had cried earlier. It was always the same.
Siena had never expected to be able to relate to a lady—but she could understand Kate Sharma quite well right now. After all, she knew what it felt like to have one’s heart broken by the Viscount Bridgerton.
“But it doesn’t matter,” Kate said then, shaking her head as she attempted to stand up again—successfully this time. “I’m sorry. I should … I should get home…”
Siena stood up as well—just in time to catch her, as she staggered in her direction.
“Alone?”
Now, Kate looked at her again—a desperate plea in her eyes.
“They can’t see my like this!”
Siena nodded. “Then … then come with me. You can rest at my place until you’re ready to face your family again.”
Kate stared at her in shock—the same shock Siena felt right now. But she had been grateful to all those strangers in the past who had offered her a sofa to sleep on. Well, she did not believe that any of those strangers had ever been the former lovers of her current affair. But Kate did not need to know that.
Siena gave her a smile, adding, “You can’t walk home on your own like this. It’s too dangerous.”
“But … but they will worry when they realise I’m not home.”
“Well … is there someone else we could tell?” Siena asked.
Kate seemed to think about it for a moment—then she said, “Lady Danbury.” Siena raised her brows and Kate clarified, “We’re living with her.”
Siena nodded at that. “Fine. You stay here. I will talk to Lady Danbury.”
She helped Kate lean back against the windowsill, then left the small hallway.
Siena had heard of Lady Danbury before—and had even seen her a few times, although they had never shared a word. If there was someone who deserved to be called a lady, it was her.
As she could not simply walk into the ballroom, searching for her, Siena decided to approach a maid instead, asking for Lady Trowbridge.
When Lady Trowbridge came, Siena told her that she had to speak to Lady Danbury regarding an urgent matter. Surprisingly, Lady Trowbridge did not seem surprised or suspicious, but immediately went to search for Lady Danbury.
Then, Lady Danbury appeared—who did seem surprised and suspicious.
Immediately, Siena told her what had happened. There was an arched brow, but otherwise, Lady Danbury’s face remained blank.
To Siena’s surprise, she then however said, “Fine. Do you have a card on you? I will send someone to pick her up tomorrow.”
Siena did not expect it to be that easy. Did she have an honest face after all? Or did Lady Danbury knew Kate Sharma well enough to accept this as the truth? It had to be one of those things, because she did not seem like a woman that trusted anyone too easily.
Siena handed her a card then as Lady Danbury asked, “Do you believe you can handle this on your own?”
“Yes,” Siena replied with a nod. “She’s not drunk enough to pass out. I just don’t believe she should be alone.”
Lady Danbury nodded at that. Then, suddenly, she asked, “Does Miss Sharma know who you are?”
“An opera singer?” Siena asked innocently—although she had a suspicion to the true nature of that question.
“You know what I mean,” Lady Danbury replied, proving her right. “She might not feel too comfortable walking home with the Viscount’s former mistress.”
“Well … then she doesn’t have to know, does she?” Siena replied with a smile.
Lady Danbury sighed. But then, she nodded as she said, “Miss Sharma is a grown woman who can make her own decisions. But I will be at that address tomorrow morning to ensure that she is fine.”
Siena nodded—quite surprised that Lady Danbury did not wish to talk to Kate herself. How well did they know each other?
Perhaps a part of Siena had almost wished that Lady Danbury would take care of the matter herself. She did feel sorry for Kate, but she was also quite exhausted herself. But now, she was the one who began to feel suspicious. Why would she let a stranger take care of Kate?
Yet the eyes she was looking into were quite old—and they had seen it all. It was probably for the same reason why Siena had just invited a complete stranger to sleep on her sofa. They all had to look out for each other.
Lady Danbury returned to the ballroom then as Siena hurried back to get Kate.
Slowly, they made it through the backdoor of the house, without being seen, and then walked along the dimly lit streets. Thankfully, Siena’s flat was not too far away—merely about fifteen minutes. Though, at their speed, perhaps half an hour.
Kate was a good bit taller than her. Siena had put Kate’s arm around her own shoulder to steady her, but she was quite heavy. Though, it did seem like it had been a while since her last drink. Eventually, she stopped swaying and merely seemed exhausted.
By the time Siena had settled her down on the sofa in the living room, Kate’s pained face made her believe that the drunkenness had begun to fade and the first signs of a headache had appeared. Under different circumstances, Siena would have offered her a drink as a cure. But on their way home, Kate had been talking about how she rarely ever drank—maybe a sip; occasionally a glass of wine. According to her own words, she had never been that drunk. And apparently, she seemed quite ashamed of it.
Siena had smiled slightly at that. Whatever regret Kate had now, it would only be worse tomorrow morning. But for that, Siena would be there. Quite a few nice evening had been erased from her memory thanks to some good wine. She knew how to help her.
“Thank you,” Kate said with a smile as Siena brought her a blanket.
“No problem.”
Siena bit her lips then. She should probably wish her a good night. But still, she was curious.
“You said the Viscount is interested in someone else?”
Immediately, Kate’s eyes shot to the floor.
“It’s … it’s nothing. I don’t think he’s serious.”
A slight smirk appeared on Siena’s face. “Well, apparently serious enough for you to worry.”
Kate stared up at her in surprise and the smirk left her lips.
Should she tell her? Why not? It was all in the past either way.
Siena took a deep breath, then said, “I know the Viscount as well.” Kate’s eyes widened even more as Siena bit her lips. “We … we had an affair a while ago.”
Suddenly, Kate’s surprise turned into realisation.
“You’re the opera singer,” she stated. “I … I heard about you while I was trying to…”
She trailed off as a smile appeared on Siena’s face again.
“Trying to learn more about him?”
“For my sister’s sake.”
“Of course.” She suppressed a chuckle and gave her a smile instead. “Look, I know that he can be an ass—trust me, I might know that better than anyone else,” Siena told her. “But … he’s not a bad man. He’s just … a little messed up. Yet people can change. They can grow. Sometimes…” She sighed, looking down to her feet. “Sometimes they merely need to meet the right person to do so.”
She looked back at Kate, who stared at her in confusion. But then, she nodded.
“Perhaps,” said Kate. “And maybe Edwina will be able to change him.”
“I wasn’t talking about your sister.”
Kate raised her brows, seemingly confused. But Siena merely gave her a smile. Then, she stood up, saying, “I will be upstairs. If you need anything, just call me.”
She wished her a good night then before leaving the room. This was all a bit ridiculous. But Siena hoped that there might be a chance to continue this conversation once Kate was completely sober again. She would like to know what she had to say then. The fact that she had still seemed rather articulate, despite her drunken state, made her believe that Kate must be a rather smart woman.
Though, that possibly only meant that she would be even less likely to open up once she was sober. After all, only a fool would admit to being in love with the Viscount Bridgerton.