Mr Harber has called twice since our visit to the Albizzi exhibition, but he has made no reference to you and me ending our betrothal, or made any mention of you at all. He was, however, delighted with making Lady Blackmore’s acquaintance. She is a person whose intelligence he admires greatly, and I think he is hoping that I might set up another outing where he can talk with her some more, although he would never be so crass as to mention it directly.
Are you still planning to attend the Albrighton ball on Friday? I believe it is one of our agreed-upon engagements.
Yours, Sophia
Dear Sophia
You greatly understated your artistic talents. The bear-man is outstandingly realistic. Please put me out of my misery, however, and confirm that this is not how you see me. It has been a crushing blow to my confidence to think you might view my teeth in such a way.
May I trouble you for another one? Lotte would love a copy and, despite the suggestion that I am the ugliest man alive, I find myself reluctant to give her mine.
I remembered how much you enjoyed the box in the Blue Lounge, so please find enclosed something along similar lines. Although there are no small figures in the centre, I believe the beauty of the carving more than makes up for it.
I am looking forward to Friday’s soiree. I shall come and collect you an hour before it begins. This should give me time to listen to any of Miss Annie’s poetry and make suitably impressed noises before we leave.
As for Mr Harber, he is correct in his opinion of Lady Blackmore, but he is still a fool where you are concerned. Do not worry, we shall make him come about.
Yours, Christopher
ChapterTwenty
The storage room Christopher and his brothers were crammed into was small. So tiny, his right side was pressed up against Edward, who was squashed between him and Freddie. A squat box was digging sharply into Christopher’s left calf, but he couldn’t really complain. At least he wasn’t Tobias, who was almost doubled in half by virtue of a low-hanging shelf. All four of them were staring in silence at the ground as if they were waiting for it to start talking and reveal answers to a recent mystery.
‘Just because a window is broken,’ said Freddie after a while, ‘it does not necessarily follow that there has been an attempted break-in.’
Edward made a strangled noise, deep in his throat, sounding a little like a wounded animal in its death throes. He loathed mess, so his pained reaction could either be because of the glass scattered across the floor, or caused by fear of what this event might represent. Ever since they had received the news that it was likely their brother’s death had been a result of foul play, they had all been on tenterhooks expecting something like this to happen. They had gradually stopped jumping at unusual sounds, but that was likely to start up again after this. It would be especially bad for Edward. Last night he and Kate had announced that they were expecting their first baby and, as Edward was a man prone to worry at the best of times, this unexpected eventwould likely see him turn wild with anxiety. No doubt Christopher would have to pretend not to know his older brother was prowling the house at night, checking that every door and window was secure over and over again. Sometimes it was hard to remember all the things he was not supposed to know about.
Tobias was unnaturally still, especially for a man hunched as he was in such an awkward position. It was almost as if he had turned into a marble sculpture of himself. From his facial expression it was impossible to guess what he was thinking. But, as was the wont of Tobias, he did not utter a word. Instead, he suddenly broke the statue illusion by turning on his heel and striding away. It was odd behaviour even for a man prone to being strange.
‘Most likely a wild animal did it,’ said Christopher, who immediately regretted speaking when his two brothers turned to him with almost identical looks of incredulity.
‘Oh, yes,’ said Edward. ‘Badgers are known for scaling walls, smashing windows and then disappearing into the night.’
‘It could have been a bird, you sarcastic nincompoop.’ Before children had come into their lives, Christopher would have sworn at his brothers. Now all four of them made an effort to keep their language clean at all times. Christopher found he rather liked the tamer insults; they were somehow more disparaging.
‘Then why is there not an injured bird in here?’ asked Edward, his voice dripping with anger. ‘If it smashed the window, it stands to reason it would have been moving forward and yet the room is empty of any type of wildlife.’ He ran his hand through his hair, leaving it standing on end. ‘Besides, birds do not fly around at night, you muttonhead.’
‘Perhaps one got confused in the dark.’ That was unlikely to be the case, but he was irritated now, and he was not going to back down.
‘They are not going to be flying at night, Christopher.’ Edward’s lips were a tight line across his face, his skin pale. ‘It just does not happen. Unless said bird is an owl and adapted to darkness and would therefore not careen into the wall of our house.’
‘If this was done by someone intending harm, why smash a window not big enough for an adult to fit through? It does not make sense, Teddy.’ Using a moniker his brother hated was perhaps unkind, but being condescended to was as annoying as hell.
‘Christopher makes a good point,’ said Freddie.
‘I do,’ he agreed.
But Edward was shaking his head, not willing to even consider that either of his brothers might have displayed sound reasoning. ‘Someone could have come into the garden and smashed this window to assess what level of security we have here. If we did not notice, they would know they could come and do something bolder.’
‘That is even more absurd than your badger comment,’ said Christopher. ‘If someone is out there testing us, then they would surely realise that this will alert us to their presence and we would therefore increase our security. It does not make sense for this to be sinister.’
His words did not calm Edward down. ‘Are you forgetting that someone murdered our brother?’
Christopher’s blood thundered in his veins. It had been months since he had a falling out with one of his brothers, but it seemed it was about to happen now. ‘As if I could forget such a thing. It never leaves my mind. But comparing what happened to Sebastian to this is like comparing cheese to water. It is not the same.’
‘Christopher is making sense, Teddy,’ said Freddie.
‘My name is Edward! Unless you are under the age of ten, stop calling me blasted Teddy.’
