He grinned mischievously, then, his arm still hooked with Dita’s, turned and kept walking.
Chapter Eighteen
It was unsettling to be inside Jasper’s office at the CID now that it no longer belonged to him. It was Sergeant Lewis’s hat and coat hanging on the stand, and his half-eaten lunch languishing on the desk. Boxes of casework and evidence had piled up next to the desk, as well as in the chair that Jasper had always kept empty. As Leo paced the small office, she noted another stack of papers on the mirrored stand that Jasper had often used to shave or tidy himself up when he’d been out all night and couldn’t make it home before the next workday began.
While she knew Sergeant Lewis had only been placed into this office temporarily while Jasper was in Liverpool, she did wonder how the sergeant would feel when he was shuffled back to his desk on the department floor—if he even had a desk to return to. When Leo arrived, there had been a few new faces in the department, all of whom were younger men who peered at her quizzically as Constable Wiley reluctantly led her to Lewis’s office.
The front desk officer had not missed her over the last few months, if his curling lip when she’d first approached was any indication. He’d closed her in the office and told her to wait. Atleast fifteen minutes had passed since then, and Leo began to question if the constable had even told Sergeant Lewis of her arrival. Or perhaps the constable was having a good chuckle at her expense and hoping she’d come storming out in a fit of temper.
Well, she wouldn’t give him that.
Leo continued to pace the office, impatient and bored. Outside, evening was falling faster than usual, thanks to a sleety rain. Ittinkedagainst the window, the sound assuring her that she would become drenched on her walk back to Duke Street. It only darkened her mood and heightened her restlessness.
As she passed the desk, she peered at the side of a box where a small, metal-framed window held a paper placard. The nameGiles Beattyhad been written in ink. It was an evidence box, she knew, and she couldn’t help but be curious as to who Giles Beatty was and what he’d done…or what had been done to him.
She started to lift the lid to peek inside but then grimaced and stopped. If Jasper found her peering into an evidence box, he’d be annoyed. If Sergeant Lewis found her doing so, however, his reaction could very well be to throw her out of Scotland Yard for good. Not that she really thought he would go to that extreme…but the truth was, she didn’t know the sergeant well enough. It was better for her to be cautious and restrained until she did.
Leo walked around to the chair in front of the desk, where another box and some papers had been stashed. She bent at the hip to read that case placard, but when she did, she immediately forgot the promise she’d just made to herself to behave.
The box of evidence was labeled with Helen Dalton’s name.
Leo didn’t stop herself from lifting the lid off this box, reasoning that it wasJasper’scase, not Sergeant Lewis’s. Inside, she found several items relating to the case, including those from the scene of Helen’s murder. Helen’s personal belongingsthat Leo had set aside at the morgue, including her clothing, boots, and handbag, were tucked next to the peacock statue, which was the suspected murder weapon.
The door to the office opened, but instead of Sergeant Lewis, it was Constable Wiley who entered. He wasn’t alone. Frederick Cowper followed him into the office, his hat in his hand and his greatcoat glistening with rain. Wiley screwed his face up in contempt.
“What do you think you’re doing? That’s off-limits to you.”
Quickly, Leo replaced the lid. Not because the constable had reprimanded her, but because Mr. Cowper’s attention had gone straight to the open evidence box. The visual reminders of his niece’s murder weren’t anything he needed to see.
“Mr. Cowper,” she said. “I didn’t realize you were still in London.”
“Miss Spencer,” he replied, greeting her with a distracted nod. “I was waiting for the funeral service to complete the casket I commissioned for Helen. I thought my father would appreciate the Cowper family seal upon the lid.” He grimaced at the sorry thought. “My train is due to depart soon, but I wanted to see if I could claim some of Helen’s belongings before I leave. The constable thought it would be fine.”
Leo slid a disappointed look at Wiley and laid a hand on the lid of the evidence box. “I am sure Inspector Reid will have Mrs. Dalton’s possessions sent to Harrow as soon as the case is closed. But as the investigation is still ongoing?—”
“I’ll ask you not to interfere with official police business, Miss Spencer,” Wiley interjected.
She set her shoulders. “I think it is premature to release evidence, Constable Wiley.”
His cutting glare was as good as a command for her to shut her mouth.
Mr. Cowper, discomfited by their tense exchange, raised his hands. “If it will be too troublesome, I’ll simply wait.”
But Wiley wasn’t willing to give up, especially if it meant allowing Leo to win this round.
“I’ll speak to the Chief Inspector and see what he has to say on the matter,” he announced, then left the room in a fine pique of temper.
Mr. Cowper arched a brow in what appeared to be amusement. “I don’t think that man is very fond of you.”
She sighed heavily. “The feeling is mutual.”
He came toward the chair, gesturing toward the evidence box with his hat in his hand. “I was hoping that Helen’s brooch might be in there. It’s a family piece, and I know Nadia will wish to have it.”
“Helen wasn’t wearing a brooch,” Leo said.
There had been no brooch when she’d viewed the body, nor when she’d done a quick perusal of the items inside the box. Mr. Cowper, however, didn’t appear convinced.
“Are you certain? She always wore it.”
