“But he is such a methodical man,” Luce said. “His diary was very precise — it was the nightbeforethe murder, and he had left the castle before ever an axe was swung.”
“Ah, but here we have new information,” Michael cried excitedly, waving the letter about. “An illegitimate son, no less, and I would wager my favourite sword it is Nicholson’s.”
“Yourfavouritesword?” Luce said in surprise. “The one that has had all the adventures?”
“Hmm… well, perhaps mysecondfavourite sword… no, I am very fond of all my swords. A pony on Nicholson, then.”
Sandy laughed. “A mere twenty-five pounds? That is no wager at all. Make it a hundred and I will take you up on it.”
“Done. But I must see the earl without delay.”
There was no seeing the earl without delay, however, for he was out riding and then had appointments with an array of men dressed in solemn black, wearing lugubrious expressions. Michael was obliged to curb his impatience in the library awaiting the earl’s pleasure for some time, which he did by pacing back and forth and then, when the temptation became irresistible, amusing himself with a rapier from the armoury display in one corner. He was deep into a fight to the death with an invisible opponent, when a voice came from the open study door.
“Planning a duel, Captain?” the earl said, his tone politely bland at this abuse of his library.
“Not planning, precisely, my lord, merely practising. One should be prepared for any eventuality, do you not agree?”
“I cannot see that preparing for a duel would be much use to me, but I dare say your way of life is somewhat different to mine. Do come into the study and tell me what the problem is, and if you can keep it brief I shall be very much obliged to you.”
Michael heard the weariness in his voice, and kept it very brief indeed. “I have discovered that someone, either your father or Mr Nicholson, fathered an illegitimate child on Maisie Whyte, the smith’s daughter, who lives at Birchall.”
“The child’s age?”
“Sixteen or so.”
“Not my father, then. It must be Nicholson.” The earl gave a bark of laughter. “Well! The old rogue! I would not have guessed it, I have to say.”
“You did not know?”
“I knew nothing of it, and would not have suspected it of Nicholson. He always seemed such a devoted husband. But then, he was hand in glove with my father, and, much as it pains me to say it, my father was very lax about such matters himself. He had a succession of mistresses in his younger days, and thought me a positive slow-top for choosing to be faithful to my wife. Let us sit down, and discuss this more fully. I have neglected you rather, I regret to say, being caught up in my own affairs. We should have had this conversation earlier. Will you take a glass of something, Captain?”
Michael agreed to it, and sipped politely when the glass was pressed into his hand, but then set it down on a side table. “Did Nicholson have a mistress?”
“I never heard word of it, if he did. But then, if this boy is truly Nicholson’s, I never heard word of that, either, and that was only at Birchall, right under our noses. You say the boy is sixteen? Then it was after…” He rubbed his nose, looking somewhat embarrassed.
“It was after Miss Teresa was born,” Michael said in his blandest tones.
“Yes!” the earl said. “Exactly so! Everything changed… and Alice was quite unwell… naturally they decided…”
“To sleep in separate rooms.”
“Precisely! Not that that excuses it, of course. Christian marriage vows take no account of difficulties of that nature… but it was a matter of Alice’s health, you see. It was a great concern to all of us, and not least to my dear wife, who had no trouble in that way herself, but she sincerely felt for Alice. Motherhood brings such rewards, does it not? We were all so relieved afterTess was born, although… such a tiny creature! It was a miracle she survived. And after that… Nicholson would have made every effort to preserve his wife’s health, as any husband would. I beg your pardon, Edgerton. I am rambling. This is a shock, as you may imagine. One thinks one knows a man well, and then to discover something of this nature. But it may have been a momentary weakness, bitterly regretted afterwards and perhaps never repeated.”
“Perhaps, my lord.”
“You do not seem convinced.”
“I see the worst of human nature, in the course of my work.”
The earl chuckled. “I suppose you do. Murders and so on… but I cannot see that this news of the bastard advances your efforts at all.”
“One never knows where a thread of new knowledge may lead, my lord. Perhaps the boy resented a father who misused his mother and then failed to acknowledge his own son. Perhaps there are other bastards to be found, other secrets to uncover. My lord, let me be frank. I and my associates have been here for four weeks now, and although we have been able to remove some persons from suspicion, there remain a great number whomighthave killed the chaplain. I have exhausted all enquiries within the castle, but there is still much that could be investigated. Mr Nicholson’s financial position, for instance, his acquaintances beyond Corland, his family, the property he was left by the late earl, his dealings with local people… there are so many possibilities. If I am given a free hand, I believe there is much more to discover about Mr Nicholson, as this discovery of the boy suggests.”
He paused, but the earl said nothing, merely nodding his head gravely, so he ploughed on.
“But so far, following your instructions, I have confined my enquiries only to Corland. I should like your permission toextend my enquiries beyond the castle, and also to interview the Lady Alice again, in light of this new information. The time has come, I believe, to decide whether you wish to pursue the matter further, following all leads wherever they may take us, or whether you wish this murder to be forever a mystery.”
The earl rose, and walked to the window, gazing thoughtfully out. Michael rose also, waiting. From outside, he heard sounds of sweeping from outside the stables, and a groom whistling cheerfully. Someone hard at work, and enjoying it. There were times when Michael envied such men. How simple life would be if all one had to do was sweep out a stable, and care for a string of carriage horses and hacks. Horses were so much easier to deal with than people.
