Dr. Fox asked, “Was the door unlocked this morning when you got there?”
Frederick shook his head. “It was locked. We used the maid’s key to open it.”
“To lock the room from the outside would require a key. Is Mr. Oliver’s room key missing?”
“No, it’s right there on the table,” Frederick replied. He added, “The chambermaids have keys, as do Mr. Mayhew and Mrs. Somerton. Perhaps one of theirs has gone missing. I asked Mayhew to look into that, and have not yet heard back.”
Frederick stepped to one window, then the next. “Latched. No one went out this way.”
Dr. Fox picked up the cup and bowl. “There are a few tests for arsenic, although some dispute their validity. I could ask a colleague to examine the contents for us.”
“Excellent,” Sir Frederick replied. “Please do.”
A current of urgency rippled through Rebecca. She was tempted to run off to the lodge to confront John right then but worried she’d be seen sneaking away and look suspicious. She was also reluctant to face her growing suspicions about who may have killed Ambrose Oliver. Perhaps someone with a close relationship to the chambermaid, who had a key to the man’s room....
After a few more minutes of discussion, the three departed. The doctor bid them good night and walked away. Rebecca, however, lingered in the passage. As Sir Frederick fished out thespare key to lock the door, she stepped closer and nervously licked dry lips.
“I know you asked us to remain in the hotel, but would it be all right if I made a brief visit to the lodge in the morning? I imagine word has spread quickly around the village, and I don’t want Rose or John to worry. I only want to assure them I am all right. I would not be gone long.”
He considered, then nodded. “Very well. But come back directly. It is unlikely the coroner will summon you, although he might take it into his head to do so, since you and I discovered the body.”
“I will be quick,” she said and turned to go.
He called after her. “I have been wondering. Early this morning, you said you thought you saw someone you knew outside the abbey?”
For a moment she stilled, heart pounding. Then she feigned an indifferent shrug. “In hindsight, I think it must have simply been Mr. Dodge. His field abuts the abbey grounds. It was foggy, you will remember.”
“True.”
But Sir Frederick did not look convinced.
After Dr. Fox and Miss Lane had returned to their rooms, Frederick walked downstairs to the hall. There he approached the desk and addressed the night clerk, explaining his reason for coming.
The young man nodded. “Mrs. Somerton mentioned you’d be stopping by.”
The clerk gave his name and length of employment, and then Frederick asked, “Did you notice anything out of the ordinarylate last night or in the small hours this morning? Anyone asking for Mr. Oliver’s room number or loitering about?”
“No, sir.”
“Do you stay on duty all night?”
“In a manner of speaking. I sit here at the desk until midnight, then I leave a sign near the bell and go into the back room to sleep. There’s a cot there. Very kind of Mr. Mayhew to provide it. And the truth is, I rarely get summoned between midnight and seven. It’s an easy job, really.”
“But couldn’t someone steal a key or get into the cash box while you sleep?”
“They could do. Which is why I lock them in that drawer there before I leave the desk unattended.”
Frederick nodded. “So if someone were to enter or leave the hotel in the small hours, you wouldn’t see them. Anyone could come and go as they pleased and commit a crime leaving no one any the wiser?”
The young man’s Adam’s apple rose and fell. “Not ... exactly. I lock the front door there at midnight. And the barman locks the back door when he closes up for the night at one or two.”
“And they remain locked until ...?”
“Seven. I unlock them before I go off duty.”
“I see. Well, thank you. If you think of anything else, do let me know.”
Next Frederick went belowstairs to the gentlemen’s bar and billiards room. Dr. Fox and Thomas were there before him, preparing for a game, and an older gentleman sat alone near the door, cigar in hand and cognac glass at his elbow.
