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woman clutched at her throat as the figure of a man ran away, melting into the shadows. Another man ran past the woman and followed the disappearing figure. The woman sank to her knees, letting out another howl.
    Stewkesbury was down the steps in an instant and running to her. Vivian followed close behind him, trailed by the Wilbournes’ footman. The earl crouched beside the woman, taking her arm to steady her. “Madam, are you all right?”
    “No! No!” she cried, clutching at him. Wildly she waved an arm behind her. “He took my diamonds!”
    Both Vivian and Oliver looked in the direction she pointed, but all they could see was the dimly lit street stretching into the darkness. “I’m sorry; I’m afraid he’s gone.”
    This remark sent the woman into more wails. “No! He cannot get away! Oh, what will I do? What will I tell Charles? Those were his grandmother’s jewels!” She burst into tears, covering her face with her hands.
    Oliver shot Vivian a harried glance.
    “Lady Holland.” Vivian, recognizing the woman, stepped forward and leaned down. “Please, you must get up. You’ll ruin that lovely cloak.” Vivian reached out to take the woman’s arm to tug.
    Oliver’s brows rose in amazement as those mundane words seemed to penetrate Lady Holland’s emotional storm. She nodded and gulped, then wrapped her hand around Vivian’s arm and began to pull herself to her feet. Quickly Oliver grasped her other arm and hauled her up.
    At that moment the man who had given chase to the thief came trotting back, panting. “Sorry . . . my lady . . .” he gasped out. “I tried . . . but I couldn’t . . . catch up with him. Fast little dev—um, man.”
    “You are Lady Holland’s driver?” Oliver asked, and the man nodded.
    “Yes, sir. I went after him, but . . . I’m sorry.”
    “I am sure you did all that could be expected.”
    “I don’t know as his lordship’ll say that,” the man responded gloomily.
    “Did you see what happened?” Oliver went on. “Did you get a look at the man?”
    The driver shook his head. “No, I saw her ladyship coming, and I was climbing down, see, and going around the carriage to give her ladyship a hand. Then I heard something funny, and her ladyship screams. There was footsteps off and runnin’. I ran around the carriage and took off after him. Heard his footsteps, got a sight of his back ’fore he hit the shadows. He was a fast one. Little.”
    Oliver nodded. “Well, get back atop. We’ll put Lady Holland into the carriage and escort her home.” As the man responded to the authority in Oliver’s voice and started back toward his carriage, the earl turned to Vivian. “Why don’t you get Lady Holland settled in the carriage? I shall tell your coachman to follow us and take you home from there.”
    “Yes, of course.” Vivian turned back to the other woman. “Come, let us get into your nice warm carriage? It’s far too cold out here for my taste, even with a cloak on.”
    Lady Holland nodded, still sniffling, and allowed Oliver to hand her up into the carriage before he left in search of Vivian’s coachman. Vivian sat down beside the older woman, picking up the lap robe and laying it across them both, carefully tucking it in around Lady Holland. Lady Holland smiled wanly and wiped the tears from her cheeks. A pleasant-looking middle-aged woman, she looked rather the worse for wear now. She was pale, with a livid scratch where the diamonds had been torn from her neck.
    “Charles will be so furious.”
    “At the man who stole your necklace,” Vivian saidsoothingly. “Not at you. He will be glad that you were not injured in the robbery.”
    Lady Holland appeared as dubious as the coachman had about their lord’s reaction to the thievery. “He didn’t want me to wear them tonight. He told me it was too dangerous, what with all these robberies that have been taking place. But I insisted. I mean, after all, what good are diamonds if one never wears