Rake's Progress by MC Beaton Read Free Book Online Page A

Miss Jones to attend the opera or a few routs.
    â€˜You must have social ambitions for your little sister,’ he ventured after a lull in the conversation.
    Esther laughed. ‘Her début is a long way away.’
    â€˜But you naturally hope she will marry well,’ pursued Rainbird, ‘and you are in an excellent position to begin to make friends among the ton who will be useful to both children when they grow up.’
    Esther frowned. She had never thought of the twins’ growing up and marrying. But this odd butler had a point.
    â€˜Besides,’ said Rainbird, ‘I am sure they would like friends to play with. It is very important for children to have friends.’
    â€˜They have each other,’ said Esther defensively.
    Rainbird, feeling he had almost gone too far, turned the conversation back to education, and the visit ended on a pleasant note.
    After he had left, Esther sat a long time deep in thought. She had never before thought of education as being fun. Children were supposed to have fun , she thought with a guilty pang. London was full of theatres and circuses and menageries.
    At last she roused herself. She would go out to Hatchard’s bookshop in Piccadilly and buy some entertaining books for the children and for the staff.
    Beguiled by the bright sunshine outside the windows, she set out wearing insufficient clothing. By the time she set out to walk back from Piccadilly, an icy wind was blowing and a thin sleety rain whipped against her clothes.
    By the next morning, she had a raging cold. Wearily, she summoned the twins and told themthey must make shift to look after themselves until she felt better.
    â€˜What shall we do, Peter?’ asked Amy when they were back in the nursery.
    Peter’s eyes shone. ‘Why don’t we slip out on our own and go to Kensington Gardens?’
    â€˜That’s not much fun. Why there?’
    â€˜To look for that French spy. We could follow him and unmask him and get a medal from the king!’
    â€˜Oooh,’ breathed Amy. ‘Let’s go.’
    The afternoon was dry but steely grey with a biting wind. The twins told their nursery maid that they were going to play quietly by themselves, and, when she had gone off, they put on their coats and slipped quietly out of the house.
    Hand in hand, they trotted quickly through Hyde Park and into Kensington Gardens.
    They searched and searched for an hour until they were tired out.
    â€˜We’d best be getting back,’ said Peter, disappointed.
    He took Amy’s hand and they set off home. But as they left Kensington Gardens and entered Hyde Park, Peter stiffened and clutched Amy.
    â€˜Look!’ he said. ‘Over there.’
    The Bloomsbury Volunteers were drilling on an open patch of ground. Standing watching them and making notes in a small black book was Manuel.
    â€˜What do we do?’ asked Amy, her voice squeaky with excitement.
    â€˜We creep stealthily up on him and try to see what he’s writing,’ said Peter. ‘Come on!’
    They crept up behind Manuel until they were almost next to him. Peter raised himself on his tiptoes to see if he could make out what the servant was writing in his book. At the same moment, Amy let out a tremendous sneeze. Manuel looked quickly over his shoulder and saw the small boy, obviously trying to read what he had written.
    He seized them both by the arms and started to shake them. ‘What you look at me for, heh?’ he shouted.
    â€˜We weren’t doing anything,’ gasped Peter bravely, but Amy, thoroughly terrified, began to scream.
    â€˜Manuel! Leave those children alone this minute!’ came a loud voice.
    Manuel’s sallow face flushed, and he dropped the children’s arms. Peter and Amy clutched each other and stared up at their rescuer. He was tall and fair and dressed elegantly.
    â€˜My lord,’ said Manuel sulkily, ‘these brats, they sneak up on me and frighten