“I can only say that he seemed so.”
“Hmm. I had the same thought. Appearances aren’t necessarily fact. He asked all the right questions. I couldn’t tell if he was preparing himself for Mr. Headley’s visit or simply satisfying himself about the progress of the investigation.”
Lily held up a finger to forestall Roen from speaking. “Mr. Headley is coming here? I didn’t think you’d had a reply from him, Roen.”
“I haven’t,” he said. “Ben lied. He’s quite good at it, too. For a moment, I believed him. He convinced Cabot that he was there solely on Fedora’s account, and when the man was lulled into believing his answers were satisfactory, Ben dropped the other shoe. Cabot was struck dumb but not paralyzed. He jumped to his feet and would have left right then if Ben hadn’t blocked him.”
“It helped that he stumbled over your foot. Well done.”
Roen shrugged modestly. “No taste for physical altercations, I’m afraid.”
“Neither, apparently, does he,” said Ben. “He returned to his seat easily enough.”
“Did he say where he wanted to go?” asked Lily.
“He wanted to see her. He wanted proof.” Ben leaned back in his chair. “It’s not an unusual reaction to learning about a death when it’s unexpected. Still...” He fell quiet, musing.
“Still?” asked Lily. “What else?”
Roen said, “He’s thinking, Lily.”
“Then he can do it out loud. You do.”
Roen gave her a look that was wryly amused and put a finger to his lips.
Lily clamped her mouth closed and waited. She wasn’t sure that Ben had even heard their exchange. Ben finally made a sound at the back of his throat that seemed to signal the end of his thinking. Lily leaned forward just a little.
“I hope you’re not expecting an oracle,” Roen whispered out of the side of his mouth.
She tapped him on the forearm. “Hush.”
“Still,” said Ben, “there was something not quite right about his presentation.”
“I told you,” said Roen, still whispering to Lily. “Not an oracle.”
“I can hear you, you know.” Ben’s tone was dry as dust.
“What are you saying?” Lily asked. “It sounds as if you’re considering him a suspect. You didn’t go there with that in mind.”
“I went there with an open mind,” said Ben.
Roen said, “He can’t prove he was in his room all evening.”
“No one who lives alone can provide proof of staying indoors.”
“You’re right,” said Ben. “It doesn’t mean much that he can’t account for his time, but there was something about his reaction to the news that struck me as false. I’m trusting my gut here, but it seemed calculated, as if he was preparing to jump before I’d finished telling him the news. He set his feet and leaned forward. It was subtle. God knows I might have imagined it.”
“Did you see that, Roen?” asked Lily.
“Not that I’m consciously aware, but perhaps I did. I only said that it seemed he didn’t know about Victorine. I trust Ben’s gut.”
Lily nodded. “So do I. I suppose this means he’s not leaving. You’ll want him to stay. Fedora will be unhappy.I’munhappy.”
“I know,” said Ben, “and I’m sorry. I would have escorted him to the station myself if it weren’t for Victorine.”
“You asked about her pregnancy?”
“Not directly. In fact, I never told him she wasn’t pregnant. He spoke of it several times, each time as if it were real. I decided not to challenge him about it.”
