Chuckling, she said, “Is it a sign of our growing intimacy that we’re now having the same thoughts?”
“Soon we’ll be finishing each other’s sentences,” he said with a grin. “Ladies first. How did you arrive at your conclusion?”
She described her interview with Morton. “He was clearly nervous talking about Julianna and didn’t want me looking into her death. Which made me think something was going on between them. Yet he was also rather convincing when he said he wouldn’t hurt anyone for money.”
“Morton was having an affair with someone. I found a stack of letters from his lover—unsigned, unfortunately, but the notes are likely from Lady Hastings. Here is one of them.” As Cull removed the perfumed paper from his jacket pocket, its cloying scent filled the cabin. “If Lady Fayne has a sample of Lady Hastings’s handwriting, we can match it.”
“The writer was Lady Hastings,” Pippa said with conviction.
“How do you know? You haven’t even opened it.”
“That particular blend of violet, musk, and ambergris was Lady Hastings’s signature scent,” she explained. “The room always smelled of it after she left.”
Unfolding the letter, Pippa read the lines aloud.
My dearest love,
How I regret the last words we exchanged. And how I wish I could undo my life’s biggest mistake, for never have the shackles of matrimony weighed so heavily. But as Father so often said, if wishes were horses…
Please do not lose faith, my love, for I know my solution will work. Wait for me.
I count the moments until we meet again.
“What solution do you think she was referring to?” Pippa asked.
“I cannot say. There was no mention of it in the other letters,” Cull said meditatively. “But my guess is that she was either going to leave her husband…or make him leave her. How else would she undo her ‘biggest mistake’?”
“Hastings would never agree to leave her. Not with Turner’s fortune within reach.”
“Precisely. To get rid of him, she would probably have to kill him.”
Pippa gaped at him. “You don’t think Lady Hastings would plan to…”
“One never knows. Love and hate are sides of the same coin, and both can drive people to unimaginable behavior,” Cull said broodingly. “Whatever the case, Lady Hastings wound up dead before her husband, so if she did have such a plan, it did not come to fruition.”
“Which leads us back to Morton or Wood as the most likely suspects,” Pippa said. “They stand to gain the most with Lady Hastings gone.”
“You’re right. Morton is likely spooked by your visit. I’ll leave Mikey and Matches to monitor him, see what he does in the next few days.”
“A splendid plan.” Pippa slid him a glance. “I suppose we should head back to London straight away?”
“I’m afraid so.” He paused. “In addition to the case, I have other pressing business.”
“Oh?”
He hesitated. This business of being intimate was new to him. Before Pippa, Nan had been the closest he’d had to a sweetheart, and she hadn’t been all that interested in him beyond the bedchamber. Frankly, he’d felt the same way. Even so, Nan had resented sharing his attention with the larks, and they’d fought over it constantly. Christ, that tug-o’-war between her and his duty had been exhausting.
Looking into Pippa’s curious blue eyes, he saw the pitfalls. Yet he’d promised to share himself with her and thus had to try. He outlined the situation with Squibb.
“I won’t be able to see you for a few days while I deal with the bastard,” he said. “I need my wits about me and don’t want you getting hurt in any crossfire.”
“Will you be safe?” Pippa said in a rush. “Could I help?”
“You’ll help best by staying at a distance, love. As for Squibb, I’ve handled far more dangerous men than him. I’ve everything in hand.”
He braced himself for an argument.
Pippa blew out a breath and said, “All right.”
