He took her hand and she curled her fingers around his.
He said, “Hubb thinks Mrs.Hubb was so keen to retrieve her reticule because there was an indiscreet letter there.”
“That would make sense.Though it doesn’t tell us where the wretched thing went during its absence.”
“If someone tries to blackmail her, it will give us a clue.”
“Only if she tells us, and she won’t, will she?”
“She might tell a friend and confidante.”
“If you mean me, she already mistrusts me.In fact, she thinks I took it, no doubt because I am of the criminal classes.I am, of course.I just have standards.”
“You do, but you are not.You are the viscountess.”
“Piers.I will never be a real viscountess.We always knew that.I don’t mind.I only ever wanted to be your wife.”
He smiled, his fingers idly caressing hers.“You didn’t even want that.I had the devil of a job convincing you.”
“Did you never want to marry anyone else?”
“Never,” he said.
He never lied to her.Though he didn’t always tell her everything.She said quickly, “The servants are all lying about something.”And told him about her conversations with Mrs.Riley and the maids.
Piers nodded thoughtfully.“Well, that gives us some more suspects.We need to speak to the under gardener, who might bear a grudge about Peggy; to Harold, who might, according to Dr.Forbes, bear a grudge about his sister Anne; and to the farmer whose wife strayed, again according to Dr.Forbes.”
“Need it have been a man?”April asked.“Could it not have been one of the women in a fit of fury at his deception?Admittedly, I can’t imagine Peggy being strong enough to hit him so hard, but Becky is a bigger, stronger person and, I think, less likely to recover emotionally.Peggy is a flirt in her own right.Becky isn’t.”
Piers stretched out one leg as though it hurt.April doubted it was physical.“Fosterson noticed Peggy.And he was up and dressed when I fetched him to Edward.Possibly, so was Mal.”
April frowned.“I can’t imagine Mal noticed Peggy.He barely notices Meg and I’m pretty sure he loves her.In his own way.”
Piers raised an eyebrow.“Does he?Good for him.”
“What about Dr.Hale?”
Piers blinked.“And Peggy?I doubt it.He likes pretty girls as much as the next man, but he has Claudia right beside him.And Claudia’s father.Their engagement might be somewhat troubled, but his feelings are deep.”
“I know.I was thinking more that he could have been outraged by Edward raising his eyes to Claudia.”She knew from his sigh that the same thought had crossed his mind too.“It makes more sense than Fosterson, a budding doctor who needs his reputation, seducing a housemaid he only saw for the first time the day before and being passionate enough about the affair to try to kill a rival.He is a doctor, sworn to save life, not take it.”
“None of them are killers,” Piers said positively.“Though they do have tempers.”
“Does Claudia?”April asked carefully.Without looking at Piers, she added, “She is emotionally confused and vulnerable.If she thought Edward was a friend, even one beneath her, and he tried to take advantage, could she have struck him?”
Being Piers, he followed the intellectual thread.“She is tall for a woman and possibly strong enough.She’s certainly intelligent enough to have left no trace of her presence.But I can’t imagine her making an assignation with a servant—under Hale’s nose and her father’s!”
“What if she didn’t?What if she was simply walking because she couldn’t sleep?Either she ran into Edward by accident, or he followed her, perhaps with intent which she resisted?”
“Wild speculation,” Piers said.“We have no proof of any such thing.”
April sighed.“Nor of anything, really.”
“Shall we walk up to the summer house and see what’s there?”
She rose to her feet, tugging him with her.“Why not?I’ll get the key.”
***
