“You shall have it, in writing. I will direct Sir Knollys to draft it before you depart.”
Brodie nodded and thanked him.
“There is the matter of the note that was found last night.”
I retrieved the note and handed it to him.
“And then there were two.It would seem to have a specific meaning, now with the deaths of the two young men and the murderer’s reference to them.”
What did I see now in His Royal Highness’s expression?
“And the first note?” I inquired. “The sins of the father will be visited upon the children?”
“I have no way of knowing,” he replied somewhat dismissive, I thought.
“Obviously some cruel joke and all the more reason you must continue and find the person who is responsible.”
Eight
Brodie returnedto Marlborough House the next morning with the drawing my sister had made of the man Lily saw the night the son of Sir Huntingdon was attacked. Lily had spent the previous night at the townhouse in Mayfair and we prepared to leave for Sussex Square.
I wanted to learn more about something Aunt Antonia had mentioned about the Prince of Wales’s reputation as a younger man and that somewhat unusual title that he and his university friends had been given.
It was a windy, wet morning, with clouds heavy with rain overhead. The rain grew heavier as Lily and I departed the townhouse.
I was not at all pleased about the outcome of our conversation with His Royal Highness the previous evening, informing us that Sir Avery Stanton was now making inquiries at the request of the Queen.
Even with HRH’s assurances that he would intervene in the matter, I was not convinced that we should continue. Still, I had deferred to Brodie. It was, after all, his past experience with theAgency that had caused his refusal to work with them further at this time.
“Ye’re not pleased about His Highness’s request to continue with your inquiries,” Lily astutely observed, no doubt due to the less-than-subtle conversation between Brodie and myself the previous evening upon returning to the townhouse.
“There was a difficult situation previously…” I chose not to get into details at the time.
“Ye do not trust Sir Avery,” she concluded, quite perceptive.
“People often have other motives,” I replied.
“And they can be dangerous?”
As I said, most perceptive.
It had been a situation where I deferred to Brodie’s judgment in the matter even though I strongly disagreed. And it could have ended very badly for him after interference from Sir Avery.
Now, here we were again, pulled into a situation where we might once again find ourselves at cross-purposes with the man that might well cause extreme difficulty between His Highness and the Queen, when it was the murder of two young men that was most important.
Brodie knew my misgivings, not unlike his own. We had finished our somewhat heated discussion the previous evening, with his comment, “I know yer feelin’s in the matter, but I’ve given my word to His Highness, and we have his written authorization to continue. If there is a conflict, we will end our part in it. If ye’ve a mind to refuse to participate, I understand.”
He knew very well that I would not refuse.
Bloody, stubborn Scot.
Mr. Symons, my great aunt’s head butler, greeted Lily and I as we arrived at Sussex Square.
“Her ladyship is in the solar this morning, Miss Mikaela. With Mr. Arneson, this morning.”
“The ship builder!” Lily exclaimed with some excitement as we reached the solar and were greeted by my great aunt.
“Here you are!” she exclaimed. “What do you think of this design?”
