Above were apartments to let. But it was the gambling hells and brothels that made the Palais a center of dissipation and depravity. The evening entertainments, Dare said, rivaled London's most scandalous.

It was there during their fifth afternoon in Paris, as Julienne strolled the arcaded pavements with Dare and Solange, that she first spied Lord Castlereagh. The foreign secretary was plainly dressed in a blue coat and hardly looked like a man of such enormous power. His entire posture was solemn and weary, as if he truly did have the weight of the world on his shoulders.

He wasn't alone, Julienne noted. Two British soldiers walked a discreet distance behind him.

"Are those his bodyguards?" she asked Dare.

"I expect so. And it seems we may have guessed correctly. Our friend Martin Perrine is sitting at the next cafe, with a clear view of the gardens. Shall we see what he is up to?" he asked, steering the two ladies on his arms in Perrine's direction.

Julienne had to look twice to recognize the nondescript fellow sitting at a table at the open-air cafe. With his brown hair, average build, and modest attire, he would easily disappear into a crowd.

As they passed Perrine's table, Dare pretended not to notice him, but Julienne paused, flashing a brilliant smile. "Why, Mr. Perrine, is that you? How delightful to see you here."

Perrine rose politely and bowed to her, then Dare. "Miss Laurent, Lord Wolverton…" He gave Solange a quizzical glance.

"May I present Madame Brogard?" Julienne said easily. When the niceties were observed, she added, "It is so comforting to see a friendly face. May we join you? Darling," she said to Dare, "will you be so good as to order me some wine? I declare I am parched."

Dare looked appropriately reluctant, but he did as she bid, raising a hand to summon a waiter.

"What brings you to Paris, Miss Laurent?" Perrine asked in an idle tone as she settled in the chair next to him.

Julienne held out her arm smugly, flashing the diamond bracelet Dare had just purchased for her. "Lord Wolverton has been extremely generous, but I hope he will be even more so. You may know that my father was a noble…" She told Perrine of her desire to recover the Folmont estates. "I have asked Dare to visit the south of France with me, but he says it is too dangerous just now to travel." Julienne pasted a slight pout on her lips. "I told him we can hire outriders to protect us from bandits-"

Just then Solange was hailed by friends, and Dare's attention became occupied with greeting them.

"I must speak with you in private," Julienne murmured under her breath to Perrine. "Can you meet me?"

His brows drew together sharply, and he studied her for a long moment, his eyes showing a momentary flash of the keen intelligence that was attributed to the cunning Caliban.

Then he gave a shy smile. "I am at your command, Miss Laurent, of course."

"Then come to the Hotel Clichy for tea tomorrow at four," Julienne whispered. "Dare will be gone by then- Do tell me what brings you to Paris, Mr. Perrine," she added when Dare turned back to her.

He launched into a story about Lord Aberdeen, the British ambassador to Austria, who was a close friend and who had invited him to participate in the historic marking of the liberation of Europe.

Solange and Dare joined the conversation then, leaving Julienne little to say. But a half hour later, as they prepared to leave, she gave Martin Perrine a meaningful glance. "It was delightful to see you again, Mr. Perrine. I hope we may meet again very shortly."

"That would please me a great deal," he replied in his usual unprepossessing tone.

Later that night, after a ball given at the British embassy by Sir Charles Stewart, the popular English ambassador to France, they met with Philip Barton to discuss various contingencies of their plan. Dare severely disliked the thought of Julienne meeting alone with Perrine, but she reminded him that she had her knife for protection, adding that she doubted Perrine would do anything to harm her just yet, since he was obviously curious about what she had to say.

In the morning Solange left the hotel to spend the day with friends. Julienne engaged a private parlor for the afternoon and arranged for tea to be served. In the event that Perrine was watching, Dare planned to make a show of leaving the hotel early in the afternoon but return shortly through the back entrance. He and Philip Barton would be in the adjoining room in case of trouble.

Martin Perrine arrived punctually and was shown up to the private parlor where Julienne awaited him.

"You must be wondering why I asked to speak to you," she said as she poured his tea.

Mr. Perrine gave a shy smile. "I confess to a great curiosity, Miss Laurent."

"Actually, I thought to warn you." Pausing to let her remark sink in, Julienne stared thoughtfully at her guest. "Wolverton has been trying to discover the identity of a cunning traitor who goes by the name Lord Caliban."

The puzzled look on Perrine's face would have done justice to the best actors of her acquaintance, Julienne thought. "What does that have to do with me?"

She passed his cup across the table to him. "He thinks you might be this Caliban, or at least that you know his true identity."

"I, a traitor? Whatever gave him such a notion?"

"You were once in possession of a ring that was known to belong to Caliban."

"Indeed?" Perrine murmured, lifting an eyebrow.

"The Earl of Ivers was arrested last week," Julienne added evenly. "He implicated you."

Not so much by a blink of an eye did Perrine exhibit any emotion that could be considered distress. "I own myself astonished that Ivers would make up such tales. He owes me a large sum of money. Perhaps he thinks to cause trouble for me so he can avoid having to settle his debts. If he impugns my honor, then my power to collect will be lessened."

Julienne feigned a frown. "Wolverton was extremely suspicious to find you in Paris. He thinks your connection to Caliban may have brought you here."

"I came," Perrine replied easily, "because my good friend Ambassador Aberdeen invited me to partake of the festivities. Not because I am engaged in treason- or because I know of anyone who might be a traitor." His mouth curved in an amused smile. "It does make me wonder, however, why a libertine like Wolverton would be hunting this traitor."

Her own mouth twisting cynically, Julienne nodded. "It does seem absurd, I know, but he is acting for a friend who was badly harmed by Caliban."

Reaching for an almond biscuit, Perrine remarked in a bland tone, "Even if I were this traitor you speak of, I could hardly wish to own it, would I?"

She leaned forward, giving him an earnest look. "It makes no difference to me, one way or the other. England is not my country, and I don't give a fig for politics."

"You seem to be very fond of Wolverton."

Julienne shook her head, injecting scorn into her tone. "That is mere pretense, I assure you. I've had to make a public show of interest because of our wager. But I will never become his mistress."

Perrine chewed thoughtfully for a long moment. "So why did you decide to ?warn' me, Miss Laurent?"

"Because I hoped you knew Caliban." Averting her gaze, she let her lower lip tremble. "It isn't common knowledge but, I have an… unsavory history with Wolverton. Seven years ago, his grandfather accused me of treason and ruined my life."

"And were you guilty?"

"No, not at all." Julienne took a deep breath. She had decided to stick close to the truth, in the event that Ivers had revealed her past to Perrine. And because the truth would give her stronger motivation to want to hurt Dare.

"I might have been able to fight those charges, but his grandfather hired Ivers to… to violate me." She bit her lip, letting her eyes fill with tears. "Dare not only did nothing to stop him, but he cast me aside afterward… because I was soiled goods."

"So you want revenge?"

Julienne looked up sharply, letting hatred show in her shimmering eyes. "Precisely. I want Wolverton to pay. I want his heart on a platter… literally. I was glad to see Ivers go to prison. I hope he hangs for his crimes. I want him dead for what he did to me. But it won't be enough. I want Wolverton to suffer as well."

Wiping her eyes, she made a visible effort to compose herself. "If you truly know who Caliban is, I thought… I hoped to hire him to rid me of Lord Wolverton." Julienne twisted her fingers in her lap. "Our journey to the south of France would be a prime opportunity. If our coach were to be set upon by bandits, Wolverton could be mortally wounded while defending me."

"But why can you not hire your own bandits?" Perrine asked.

"I suppose I could try. But I wouldn't know where to begin. And I want no suspicion to fall on me. I must be particularly careful, since my friend Madame Brogard will be accompanying us."

"I believe you said Wolverton was planning to buy the Folmont estates for you. I should think you would prefer to wait until after the transaction is completed to be rid of him."

"No," Julienne replied adamantly. "I merely used that as an excuse to get Wolverton away from England, where it should be easier to accomplish my goal. Recovering my father's properties isn't as important to me as finally giving Wolverton his just desserts. And to be perfectly frank"-she flashed him a smile that was a trifle flirtatious-"I have faith in my charms, Mr. Perrine. I'm certain I can find another wealthy patron who will purchase the estates for me."