Juliana could understand why Mr. Lytton sympathized with the girl, to a certain extent, even if it was hard to do so herself from having so little of the story to work with. If it really hadn't been her fault, it was understandable that she was looking for some sort of way out. This was the sort of thing that would see a young woman ruined forever, particularly if her family wasn't willing to help her through to the other side of it.

"If there was an easy and painless way, no woman would ever have an unwanted child," she pointed out gently. "But it happens all the time." And, if the cautionary tales were to be believed, most of the women who ended up pregnant out of wedlock were in exactly that sort of situation — with no idea how to raise a child and no way to provide for themselves or the baby. Many of those women and children, she believed, ended up dead. Obviously, Mr. Lytton would want to prevent that sort of fate if possible, if he was so affected by the woman's story.

"If she does make it through the pregnancy, she can give the baby to an orphanage," Juliana said firmly, a formal recommendation at this point. "And if she can't — yes, she might as well throw herself down the stairs. Or find some way to make it seem natural. A fall from a horse or a broom could do it, too."