Liam’s expression turned fierce. “Let’s go ask him.” He gestured for the bodyguards to follow him to the far side of the ship where Edwin was playing deck shuffleboard with some of the younger cousins. Even Poppy rose to follow.
“Edwin, when was the last time you were in Pittsburgh?” Patrick asked.
Edwin straightened and leaned casually on his shuffleboard cue. “I’ve never been to Pittsburgh.”
“But you subscribe to the Pittsburgh newspaper,” Liam asserted.
“No, I don’t,” Edwin said, beginning to glance nervously at the people suddenly gathered around him.
“Yes, you do,” Poppy insisted. “You said you monitor it for antique sales and that’s why you had a copy on the island.”
Edwin shook his head, smiling condescendingly at Poppy. “You brought that newspaper to the island. Don’t you remember? You said you wanted to follow the Pittsburgh golfing league.”
Poppy looked confused. “No. The only time I heard mention of the Pittsburgh golf league was when that redheaded fellow mentioned it during the croquet game last weekend. He’s such a crass fellow. I don’t care that he is your hunting partner. I don’t like him and wish you would stop bringing him to my croquet parties.”
The only assailant who’d gotten away the night of Liam’s attack was a redheaded man with a long, crooked nose.
“Tell me more about this redheaded fellow,” Patrick asked, striving for a calm tone so Poppy would cooperate, but Liam was more aggressive.
“Did he have a long nose and carry a hunting knife with deer antlers carved into the handle?”
“I have no idea,” Poppy said defensively. “He’s Edwin’s friend, not mine, and I’ve asked Edwin to stop bringing him around because I can’t tolerate the smell of garlic on a man’s breath.”
Edwin looked sick, but he still managed a nonchalant laugh. “Poppy’s got it wrong,” he said, looking at Liam. “She brought the newspaper to the island, and she was the one who showed me the article about Patrick stealing from some kind of church fund.”
Poppy bristled. “That’s a lie. You brought the newspaper to the island, and now you’re trying to blame me.”
“You probably shot at us too,” Joshua said, staring straight at Edwin in appalled wonder. “None of the Blackstones even know how to load a gun except you.”
“But I’m an excellent shot,” Edwin defended. “If I wanted to shoot someone, I wouldn’t have missed.”
“That was because the gun was loaded with the wrong ammunition,” Joshua said. “Of course the shots went wild. You ruined the best weekend of the year.”
“And I’ve got a scar on my arm I’m going to have for the rest of my life,” Poppy yelled, giving a two-handed shove to Edwin, who stumbled back. The cast on his leg made him clumsy, but he caught himself before falling.
Patrick reeled as the implications sank in. The redheaded man was the lead assassin, and it looked like he and Edwin were hunting partners. Edwin had been short of cash lately.
“Where’s Bertie’s jade flask?” Patrick asked. “He’s been asking about it for weeks.”
“What’s the redheaded guy’s name?” Liam demanded. “He almost killed me in front of my mother, and if I have to beat his name out of you, I will.”
Liam and Patrick stood shoulder to shoulder as they closed in on Edwin, who continued retreating until his back was against the railing of the yacht. His nervous glance darted around the others who congregated around them, but no pity was to be found.
One of the bodyguards looked at Liam. “Do you want us to take him down?”
The color dropped from Edwin’s face as the semicircle of men closed around him. He swallowed hard, turned around, then dove into the bay.
Edwin’s mother screamed. “Somebody save him! My poor boy, he’s got a broken leg and won’t be able to swim!”
A pair of deckhands scrambled to lower a tender to the water below.
“Bring along plenty of men,” Oscar ordered. “Desperate men do desperate things.”
“I’ll go,” Liam said, his voice a combination of anger and anticipation.
“Not you,” Patrick said. Given Liam’s furious mood, Edwin might not survive the rescue, and they needed him alive. He glanced at Joshua, a healthy man who looked keen on getting to the bottom of this. “Joshua? Care to join me?”
Joshua nodded and shucked off his coat.
