It Takes a Scandal by Caroline Linden

to remove her jewelry. “Still certain we’re condemned to boredom?”
    “I wonder what made Lady Samantha so tense when we asked about Mr. Vane,” mused Penelope.
    Abigail’s fingers slowed on the clasp of her necklace. “I’ve no idea.”
    “I bet he’s got some deliciously wicked secret.” Penelope leaned against the bedpost, a gleam of trouble in her eye. “Why does he keep to himself, I wonder?”
    “Go to bed, Penelope.” Abigail was relieved when her maid, Betsy, slipped into the room. “I’ve no idea what to make of Mr. Vane.”
    But for once, she was even more interested in the answer than her sister was.
     
     
    Chapter 4
     
    “I think this is our most likely hope.”
    Abigail eyed the bookshop. It was large and clean, with windows that sparkled in the morning light. It looked welcoming and respectable and utterly unlike the shop in London that sold 50 Ways to Sin . Now that they had held their ball, Mama felt they had been introduced to, and become part of, Richmond society. When Penelope asked if they might walk into town to visit the shops, Mama agreed, provided James went with them. Their brother had departed almost at once on his own errands, leaving them outside a milliner’s shop. Penelope, of course, had other plans, and towed Abigail through the streets to this bookshop. “Are you certain?”
    “Of course not,” whispered Penelope. “That’s why you have to go in and ask.”
    “This looks like a shop Mama might visit,” replied Abigail, stubbornly resisting her sister’s attempts to nudge her forward. “You’re going to get us both in horrid trouble, Pen.”
    “I gave my word I would take the entire blame if this goes wrong. Mama would murder me, but she’d probably forgive you. And you gave me your word you would try. Please, Abby.” There was a note of desperation in Penelope’s voice. “I am wasting away from boredom . . .”
    “We’ve only been in Richmond eleven days,” muttered Abigail, but she relented at her sister’s expression. Unlike her, Penelope wasn’t happy with a good book and a cozy spot to read. Penelope craved adventure and gossip and excitement, and since getting caught reading the notorious pamphlet over a month ago, she hadn’t had much of any of those things. Their mother had clamped down on Penelope’s freedom like a vise. She was allowed to go to dances and parties again, but she was no longer permitted to wander freely and talk with friends; she was required to stay near their mother, and dance with the gentlemen chosen for her. She was only allowed to walk into town because her siblings had come with her.
    But Abigail also knew—just as well as her sister knew—that if they were discovered on this errand, there would be hell to pay. When Penelope had been caught before, she had sworn on her very life that Abigail had nothing to do with it and hadn’t even known about the pamphlet. That was a bold-faced lie, of course, but it had left Abigail free . . . free to shop where she liked. But if Mama learned she had been trying to purchase the pamphlet, she would know that Penelope had lied to her, and even worse, that Abigail had helped deceive her. Both their lives would become misery.
    “Very well,” she said at last. “You’d better stay far away from me. Jamie will be back for us soon, so we haven’t got much time.”
    Wild joy and eagerness lit her sister’s face. “Thank you, Abby! Thank you! I shall be utterly demure and as silent as a mouse. Just ask politely for it, and try to look mature and sophisticated when you do.”
    They went into the bookshop, where a little bell tinkled over the door. The shop was beautifully arranged, with bookcases lining the walls and a bench in the middle. It was calm and peaceful, just as a bookshop should be. It was also thankfully almost empty of witnesses to the impending crime. Penelope strolled to a bookcase and pretended great interest in the books there, although Abigail knew her