He shook his head. “That’s the first thing I did. All it got me was being laughed out of the police station and dismissed as an old man. The force in London isn’t the same as in Hertfordshire. All those years as a county magistrate and the men could not have cared less. The men took one look at the letters and accused me of trying to get attention or blamed it as little petty tricks that my fellow club members were playing on me. And of course, it’s October, so they thought it was to do with All Hallows’ Eve and a little prank.”
The wind howled against the trees at that moment, and due to the thin-paned glass and old walls, the outside air actuallymoved the curtains out toward them, as if a ghostly figure approached.
Uncle Edwin shuddered and gripped his candle again. “Come along. Let’s keep looking.”
“For what? What do you hope to find? You don’t really expect to find this ghost, do you?”
“No, of course not. But I wouldn’t put it past my old friend to come here in the night and try to dress up like the ghost or pay someone to spook us a little, just to win our bet. Five hundred pounds is a lot of money. And…” He glanced at her. “Your mama wrote me despairing of your marriage prospects. I thought I’d invite some young people along and introduce you to some eligible young men. It’s not right, a pretty, smart thing like you being a wallflower at parties.”
Violet blushed. “It’s not my fault. The men I meet in London don’t seem interested in me.”
“Then we just need to find one who is. I’d hoped this party would be pleasant for us both, Thorny.”
“Well, I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” she said. “We’ll stick together like glue.”
They opened the door to the dining room, and Violet entered first, just in time to see a person exit through an open doorway across the room. She froze for a second, then said, “Stop!”
Uncle Edwin came in after her. “What was it? Did you see something?”
“Someone’s there.” She slipped into the corridor, looking from left to right.
But there was no one.
She frowned.
“What did you see? What did they look like?” her uncle asked.
“I don’t know.”
Together, they walked back through the dining room, looking under the long table and around the curtains. All that could be heard was the wind and the sharp, staccato sound of the rain hitting the windows outside.
Violet gave a little shiver. “I’m glad to be indoors.”
“Me too,” her uncle said.
They entered a small parlor, which would have belonged to the lady of the house, and a fine library, which boasted many excellent books, from the floor to the ceiling. Violet was enthralled. So many wonderful tomes, just waiting to be read. It was delightful. “Oh, Uncle, how wonderful. I wish we could stay here longer, just so I could read some of these.”
There was silence.
“Uncle?” She turned around.
Uncle Edwin was gone.
Chapter Five
Violet swore andwalked from the library with purpose, looking this way and that. Where had he gone? She’d only been talking with him for a short time. It didn’t make sense. Why would he leave her side?
She kept walking through the large corridor, which bore suits of armor and along the walls, as well as impressive displays of medieval and restoration-era spears and weaponry, including blades, pistols, and muskets. Her shoes echoed on the polished floors, and she slowly turned around, just as a suit of armor came crashing down before her.
She jumped and shrieked. The candlestick fell from her hands. Fortunately, the candle’s little flame sputtered but did not go out and didn’t catch on anything.
With shaking hands, she bent down and reached for it, quickly standing up after she grasped it.
“What was that?” a voice called out, making her jump.
Mr. Fairbanks came toward her, turning his head to the side. A small candle in his hands offered a bit of light and played shadows on his face. “I say, are you all right?” Violet shook her head as he approached. “My word. The suit of armor fell?”
She nodded. “Y-Yes.”
