Alex settled Tulip on the settee and tucked cushions at her back to make her more comfortable.“I’ll be right back.”
He went into his study to take the items he’d found in Ernfield’s room out of his safe.
“I have some things to show you,” he told the men upon returning, and then realized Tulip had not known about his findings either.“Sweetheart, these will be of interest to you, too.”
He held out the building plans, the vials, the velvet pouch, the two tie pins, and–
“Your fob!”Tulip cried out.“Where was it?”
“What are these things?”the magistrate asked.
“The building plans!”Carver exclaimed.“Wherever did you findthem?I gave myself headaches trying to figure out where I had last placed them.”
“Let’s call these items Ernfield’s loot…or perhaps better described as his sick mementos.He took a little something from his victims.That my watch fob was among these items probably meant I was to be his next victim, and he was actively in the planning stage of my demise.”Alex then took the magistrate and Carver to Ernfield’s chamber to show them the cavity in the floorboards.“These were all hidden in here.”
“The foul fiend,” Carver muttered.
They returned to the parlor where William had remained with Tulip, and Alex then explained to all what he had figured out so far.“First, let me state that Mrs.Granger and my wife’s testimony against Ernfield would have been enough to have him hanged had he survived.But there’s more.The locket contained in the velvet pouch connects him to Elspeth’s death.The same for these building plans, for he must have known of them and studied them from as far back as her death.However, I don’t think my grandfather was aware Ernfield had found those plans or knew anything of the secret passages, especially the one leading up to the tower room.”
“What is the significance?”William asked.
“Ernfield knew how to get into the tower room without being seen.He lured Elspeth up there, probably with a forged note or perhaps even a verbal instruction.He then struck her over the head to knock her unconscious, and then pushed her out the window.He took care to lock the tower room door from the inside so that anyone investigating would think she must have been alone in there when she jumped.”
“The foul fiend,” William muttered.
Alex nodded.“After sending her to her death, he left through the secret passage.”
“But no one ever found her body,” Tulip remarked.“So there were never any questions raised about Elspeth dying here.”
Alex nodded.“My grandfather sincerely believed she had jumped to her death and committed the sin of suicide.He must have been the one to find her, and Ernfield was lurking close by, prepared to poison my grandfather’s mind with lies.He had only to look up to see the open tower window.When he later checked the tower door, he must have found it locked from the inside.”
“Just as Ernfield had set it up,” Tulip said in obvious dismay.
“I don’t know what words were exchanged between them that night,” Alex continued.“But my grandfather thought he was protecting Elspeth’s memory by having Ernfield hide the body.”
“Which worked out well for Ernfield since there would now be no investigation,” the magistrate noted.
Alex nodded.“Exactly, but his plan would have worked no matter who found the body.The only difference being that her death would have been reported, and then determined to be a suicide.”
“So, your grandfather played right into Ernfield’s hands,” William said.“The fiend did not even have to worry about an inquest.He got away with the murder of that sweet, lovely girl.Oh, what a vile, sick man.Elspeth was a good soul who never harmed anybody.”
Alex cleared his throat.“Didyoulove her, William?”
“We all liked her, but…oh, dear heaven!That’s why those stupid love rumors about me and Elspeth suddenly arose.There was so much gossip floating around.She’d run off with a navy captain.She’d run off with a married man.And then suddenly my name was mentioned.Ernfield must have been slyly telling everyone I was having an affair with her.Gad, I almost lost Perty because of his lies.Thank goodness Perty believed me.”
“The disgusting wretch,” Carver muttered.“He did not care who he destroyed.”
Alex now turned to his estate manager with pain in his eyes.“I think Martha was also one of his victims.I’m so sorry, Mr.Carver.”
He then went on to explain about Martha likely seeing Ernfield emerging from the tunnel’s secret exit in the grove of trees.“Or perhaps she had seen him hiding one of his vials of poison somewhere in the house.Or seen him retrieve it.Whatever it was, she had no idea of the significance at the time, and he could not risk her figuring it out.”
“So you think he used one of those vials to slowly poison her?”Carver’s every word was filled with anguish and he broke down in tears.“Why did I not see this?I could have saved her.”
“Everyone was fooled,” Alex said, although it had to be little consolation for the grieving father.“And it was no coincidence that young Edward Wilcox died shortly afterward.”
Even the magistrate’s eyes began to tear up.“The innocent lad, too?All these years, we had a monster in our midst and did not know it.So many good people are now dead because of him.”
Alex did not know how good his predecessor dukes were, but they certainly did not deserve to be murdered.
