“Yes, and you know what that means, don’t you?”
My parents had been experimenting with wild magic.
What could my parents have been experimenting with so close to their death?
“And what did you do after your meeting with my parents?” I asked.
“I left to have dinner with my daughters. That night is ingrained in my memory because it was the final time I saw your parents.”
“Is there anything else you noticed?”
“I’m afraid that’s it. If you want any more knowledge, I’d talk to John Rittle. Like I said, he was the last person to see them alive.”
I nodded. “One more thing, when did you last see Clara Ashcombe?”
He paled. “Clara Ashcombe? I heard about her, that poor woman. I haven’t seen her since our council meeting a week ago, but I want to be clear that the text she sent a couple of days before wasn’t just to Lady Denham.”
I looked at him in surprise. “I’m sorry, what text?”
“Oh, you don’t know. Well, Clara Ashcombe tried to text Lady Denham, asking for your phone number. I guess she wanted to meet with you. But she actually sent the text to every member of the council.”
“So the whole council was aware of her wish to meet me?”
“Yes, but as I said, I haven’t seen her since a week ago, at least.” He rubbed his hands and looked around.
He appeared nervous about something. Something hidden? Or maybe he wanted to protect Lady Denham from any accusations.
“Thank you, Sir Elliot. I hope my questions didn’t offend you.” Although I hadn’t missed that he’d pointed me toward John Rittle twice. Sir Elliot could be innocent, or he was endeavoring to get my curiosity off of him because he was hiding something.
“No, my boy, no worries at all. If something happened to your parents and it’s connected to poor Clara, I hope you figure it out.”
Lady Denham returned with a balloon in tow and handed it to Sir Walter. He lifted the balloon. “Let me get my love properly bound to me.”
Lady Denham laughed with delight.
I tugged Lizzy a bit off to the side so we could speak without being overheard.
“Why would your parents be experimenting with wild magic just like Clara Ashcombe?” Lizzy asked. “Did you know?”
I shook my head. “That was news to me.” They couldn’t have been trying to solve Moonrot like Clara since Moonrot had been created the day they died. “I have no idea what they were trying to do.”
“Hmm, I wonder what it means.”
“It’s strange. My parents were always very by the book. It wasn’t like them to experiment with something forbidden like wild magic.” And yet, Pemberley possessed many hidden rooms and passageways. It would be more than possible that my parents experimented in one and nobody was aware of it. “We should talk to John Rittle. He might know something about it, too.”
“Does everyone have their ankles tied? Thumbs up if you’re ready,” Charlotte said.
Each couple gave a thumbs up. We wrapped our arms around each other’s shoulders, and I saw the spark of excitement in Lizzy’s eyes. Now that I finally had my arm around her, I wished I never had to let her go.
“For this activity, Mayor Pembroke will tell us when to start,” Charlotte announced.
Mayor Pembroke stood to the side, wearing a deep raspberry velvet tailcoat embroidered with swirling gold hearts thatshimmered with tiny sequins and caught even the faintest light. “The first couple to round that large tree and come back wins!” Mayor Pembroke adjusted her boots and headband that said “Love Conquers All” before pointing toward the tree. “May the best couple win.” She raised her arms. “Ready, set, go.”
We stumbled forward. Sir Walter and Lady Denham had an early start, but then we rounded the tree and Collins and Charlotte took the lead. We were catching up as a close second when Lizzy gasped as she tripped. I extended my arm, attempting to grab her, and we both fell to the ground with her underneath me
Her wild hair splayed out behind her, and her gaze sparkled with mirth. A chuckle rose in my throat and shook my chest. Lizzy brushed her hair from her face, her eyes widening. “Did you just laugh?”
“It’s been known to happen on extremely rare occasions.”
