“A new clue?” The flutter of paper chased all other thoughts from her head. “Did you find Gannett?”
“Yes, and you were right to suspect that he wasn’t working alone.” Wrexford came to sit down beside her on the sofa. “He pointed us to a man named Hollis, who, judging by all the pamphlets we found in his room, looks to have been a leader of the Workers of Zion.”
The earl’s use of the past tense stirred a prickling at the nape of her neck. “And what did Mr. Hollis have to say for himself,” she asked. “Assuming you found him?”
“Precious little,” replied Wrexford grimly. “His throat had been slashed.”
Charlotte flinched.
“He did manage to say he didn’t kill Ashton . . .” He blew out a harried breath. “But the rest of his words were naught but a cursed riddle.”
“W-What did he say?” she demanded.
“When I asked if he knew the real killer, he said ‘Find Nevins’—and before you ask, I haven’t a clue as to who he is. Then he added the phraseNumbers—numbers will reveal everything.”
She stared at the folded piece of paper in his hands. “Have you any idea what that means?”
He slapped it down on the tea table and smoothed it open. “I was hoping you might see something that I’m missing.”
Black on white—a string of seemingly random numbers jumped off the crinkled page. Charlotte stared at them blankly and then looked up. “Were it art or symbols I might be of some help. But I’ve no expertise in mathematics, sir.”
“I thought perhaps that might work in our favor,” he muttered.
“I take it you were hoping I might spot an unexpected pattern.” She made herself take another long look. “Sorry, it looks like Greek to me.”
“Damnation.” Wrexford grimaced and then muttered, “Would that it were Latin.”
Hic sunt dracones—Here there be dragons, thought Charlotte. Early on, she had betrayed her knowledge of the classical language, and the earl had never ceased using it to probe for information about her background.
Ignoring the comment, she said, “You’re a man of science. Surely there must be some logic to the numbers and how they add up.”
“Not that I’ve seen. However, I’ve sent it to a professor at Cambridge who’s far more skilled in mathematics than I am. With a modicum of luck, he’ll have some ideas.”
Of late, Luck had not been looking on them favorably, thought Charlotte.
“I’ll leave this copy with you,” he added. “Just in case inspiration strikes.”
“Tell me more about Hollis and his connection to Workers of Zion,” she said after taking the paper. “Perhaps there’s some clue we can find there.”
The earl recounted all that had happened the previous evening. “I’m convinced Gannett is merely an unwitting pawn. And as for Hollis, I need to meet with Griffin this evening. I sent word to him about the body and the connection to the radical agitators, so no doubt Bow Street will be frothing at the mouth to track down the rest of the group. But I want to convince him to delve deeper into this whole sordid mess. The radicals may be involved, but my sense is Hollis wasn’t lying about not having killed Ashton.”
“He might have had a falling out with one of the other leaders,” mused Charlotte. “Perhaps he meant Nevins is the killer.”
“I suppose it’s possible, though it didn’t seem as if that was what he meant.” Wrexford made a face. “I’m not convinced we should abandon the idea that someone close to Ashton is involved.”
Charlotte thought for a moment. “I wonder . . .” Looking up, she asked, “What did Hollis look like?”
“A big fellow, dark hair, a mole on his cheek.”
“That’s the man Henning described as having left the pamphlets!” A sharp exhale squeezed from her lungs. “He said he knows nothing about Hollis, and I believe him, but maybe one of his patients knows something about Nevins and can help point to his whereabouts.”
“A good point,” said the earl. “I’ll pay a visit to his surgery. Hollis did seem to be trying to say a word that began withHwhen he gave up the ghost. It’s possible it was Henning’s name, and that has to mean something.” Wrexford paused. “But first, I’m paying a visit to Ashton’s two assistants.”
Octavia Merton and Benedict Hillhouse.Charlotte felt her insides clench. She must make a decision, and quickly.
“I’ve a talk scheduled with Mr. Hillhouse,” continued theearl. “I’m curious to see if his behavior seems as furtive as that of Miss Merton.”
On one hand, Charlotte wished to pursue her preliminary investigation of the two assistants independently. Working closely with Wrexford stirred its own complexities. At times, she feared it clouded her judgment. Even now she could feel his molten green gaze burning against her flesh as he waited for her reaction.
