“I don’t know about that,” he said with a grunt.“Perhaps I am losing my touch.I can’t even find my watch fob.Haven’t seen it since yesterday.”
She looked up at him in surprise.“Truly?You are always so meticulous.”
“I know, but this mystery must have me more distracted than I realized.You haven’t seen it, have you?”
“No, Alex.But I will keep an eye out for it.”
They next met with Lord Farnhum, the local magistrate, whose feelings were much the same as the doctor’s about the prior dukes.“Your Grace, I am glad to see you are nothing like them,” he said, smiling in approval of Alex’s polite manner around Tulip.“As suspicious as those rapid deaths in succession may be, I saw no proof at all to rule them as other than accidental.”
Next, they spent time poring through newspaper accounts, the pages yellowed from age, that were maintained by the town’s bookshop owner, Miss Adela Keane.“It is my civic duty to hold onto these vital records since neither the magistrate nor the newspaper office appear to deem preservation of old news necessary,” the middle-aged spinster had declared.
They spent hours reading those newspapers, taking care to keep them from crumbling under their hands.Unfortunately they came across nothing helpful because the volumes in the bookshop’s storage did not go all the way back to Elspeth’s time.
Alex seemed convinced the deaths of his predecessors were related to Elspeth, but they had come to a complete dead end because there were no records or subsequent clues to be found, not even in the local church registry.
Tulip could feel Alex’s tension mounting daily.
Each night, he would inspect the walls, the fireplaces, and even the flooring in search of a hidden doorway, but never found one.He would then wash up and retire to their bed with his grandfather’s journal and read portions of it over and over again.“I am missing something obvious, Tulip,” he said with frustration as they climbed into bed at the end of another long day.
“It cannot be obvious if it is eluding someone as clever as you,” she replied.“What if I read it?Maybe it will help to view it from a woman’s perspective.”
“No, sweetheart.I know what’s written in these pages will upset you.It upsets me and my heart is made of stone.”
She snuggled against him, knowing that he had the softest heart for her.
Well, she would insist on reading that journal if nothing came to light within the next few days.
She fell asleep in Alex’s solid arms, soothed by the strong, steady beat of his heart.
Had she claimed his heart?
Neither of them had admitted their love yet.
Perhaps it was still too soon to make such declarations even if they were husband and wife.
Tulip awoke early the following morning refreshed for another day and with a battle plan in mind.She hoped to gain information from friends and family who would attend the dinner party she and Alex were hosting tonight.“We haven’t questioned Mrs.Crabbe yet,” she casually mentioned while she and Alex prepared for the day.
“We?”He shook his head.“Tulip, leave it alone.I don’t want you interrogating anyone, and especially not Mrs.Crabbe who will be in worse humor today of all days because of our party.”
She donned her walking boots.“I can go into the kitchen pretending to check whether all is in readiness for this evening.Is this not an excellent excuse?”
“No.”
“But this would be the perfect opportunity for me to hold a casual conversation with her.”
“Again, no,” Alex said, shrugging into his jacket as they were preparing to go downstairs for breakfast.“She’s a surly old bat even on the best of days.I’m serious about not wanting you to poke your nose in this investigation.This is no game.”He then grunted.“Assuming there is even anything nefarious to be found out.All we have are disconnected facts.”
“A young woman gone missing about twenty years ago.Another who died under mysterious circumstances about five years ago.And a string of Davenport dukes who met their untimely ends.That’s more than mere ‘disconnected’ facts.We must take Uncle William and Aunt Perty aside and question them more closely again tonight.”
He kissed her on the forehead.“No, not tonight.This party is to celebrate our marriage.”
“But, Alex–”
He kissed her again.“They were immensely helpful, but we still have no proof those deaths were murders and no proof that Elspeth died.”
“Of course, she died!”
“All we have is gossip, suspicious circumstances, and some old stories that gave rise to them.I agree with you that something bad happened to Elspeth, but you cannot go blurting it around.Are we agreed?No talk of her or Martha or the dukes tonight.”
