<div style="margin:20px; margin-top:5px"><div class="quotetitle"><input class="button2 btnlite" onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = '';      this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Hide'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerText = ''; this.value = 'Show'; }" style="text-align:center;width:100px;margin:0px;padding:0px;" type="button" value="Show"/></div><div class="quotecontent"><div style="display: none;"><div class="inline-attachment">
<dl class="file">
<dt><img alt="" height="10" src="./styles/prosilver/imageset/icon_topic_attach.gif" title="" width="7"/> <a class="postlink" href="./download/file.php?id=2061">Irina.JPG</a></dt>
<dd>(104.15 KiB) Downloaded 7629 times</dd>
</dl>
</div></div></div></div><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold">London, England, 1730.</span><br/><br/><div style="text-align: justify;">London, as most capitals in Europe, had a curious dichotomy going on. In some parts, it was a prosperous and thriving city. In others, it had all that was bad and ugly, with the squalor of a poorer city. Basically, there were two Londons in one. <br/><br/>The McAllister family, of Scottish roots, lived in the better part of the city. A family coming from old money, and old nobility - Lord McAllister had a title as a Count, inherited from the past six generations. Unlike other noble families that had fallen on hard times, the McAllisters still held on to their wealth, as Lord McAllister was a shrewd businessman. He liked hunting an parties as much as the next nobleman, but even in these activities, the man enjoyed networking and kept his eyes open for any opportunity.<br/><br/>One of the sources of income he had was the loaning of money to other noblemen. With interest, of course, since, as Lord McAllister himself stated, 'he didn't run a charity'. When the sums were paid, he got wealthier. When they were not, he had another family under his hand and could have them pay in other currencies, as favors.<br/><br/>And of course, not being silly, the man kept the best part of his fortune running in business enterprises that always seemed to prosper. It was said that Lord McAllister had a 'touch of Midas', but the truth was that he simply knew how to spot the right investments.<br/><br/>The only thing Lord McAllister didn't have was a son. His beloved wife had given him only one child before she passed away - one girl. Irina McAllister was everything her father expected of her. She was smart, educated, and had a never ending thirst for knowledge allied with social graces. Well, she was <span style="font-style: italic">almost</span> everything that was required of her. The only thing she was <span style="font-style: italic">not</span> was married.<br/><br/>But Lord McAllister had every intention to work on that. All he needed was to find the perfect suitor.</div>