Mr. Evans scratched his chin. “He rubbed his chest frequently. His chest might have been hurting.”
“Good.” Lady Mary looked at Katherine expectantly. “You?”
“Me?”
Lady Mary tapped the toe of her boot. “Did you notice anything that might point to which type of poison killed him?”
Katherine pursed her lips. Had she? “Well, he staggered up to me and grabbed for me. I thought he had a lewd intent, but he could have been dizzy? Or his legs may have no longer held him.”
“So, weakness in the body, as well.” Lady Mary shook her head. “That might not narrow the list down much. Did you learn anything new in Perrin’s study?” she asked Mr. Evans.
“No, but there is still much to go through.” He rubbed his jaw. “It could take me weeks to read every document.”
Lady Mary nodded. “As it stands, we know three people here who have financial reasons to want Perrin dead. Four if you include that Mr. Taylor,” she said, nodding her head at Katherine.
Katherine chewed on the inside of her cheek. “Mr. Taylor had no financial motive.”
“With all due respect to your charms, I don’t see Taylor killing simply for your company.” Lady Mary gazed at the ceiling. “No, he would want your money and the status marrying an heiress would bring him.”
Katherine inhaled sharply, trying to control her tongue. She would not get into a battle of words with the aunt of a duke. Smiling as sweetly as possible, she said, “Be that as it may, Mr. Taylor had no way of knowing I would give Lord Perrin the gentlest of nudges just as he was dying from the poison and that Perrin would fall down the stairs, leading me to believe I had killed him. And without the threat of exposure, Mr. Taylor must have known he had no chance to convince me to marry him.”
Mr. Evans nodded. “It does sound more like the secretary was an opportunist after the fact.”
“Perhaps. Some people, however, are most deluded in their own worth and prospects. He might have thought he could woo Miss Smith here to wed him instead of an earl.”
Laughter burst from Katherine’s lips. She covered her mouth and feigned a fit of coughing to cover just how ridiculousthatidea was.
“All right, all right.” Lady Mary grimaced. “But the man plunged a knife into a corpse. Better than sticking a living person, I’ll grant, but still not an action a decent person would take. I don’t trust him.”
A small smile crossed Mr. Evans’s face, his eyes lighting with humor, and something in Katherine’s belly fluttered. He truly was a handsome man, if one ignored his sneaking about and listening in on private conversations. “You don’t have to trust him,” Mr. Evans said. “That still doesn’t make him a killer.”
Lady Mary sniffed. “Well, he remains on my suspect list with the others. He might not have known Katherine would push—”
“Nudge!” Katherine couldn’t have others exaggerating.
“—Perrin down the stairs, but he could have poisoned him just the same. The opportunity to extort Miss Smith could have just been the cream on top of the pudding.”
“The others?” Katherine sat up straight, remembering Lady Mary’s earlier words. “You mentioned three people with financial motives? Who?” Dread spiraled through her gut.
Mr. Evans ran his hand through his dark hair. It needed a trim, but the unrefined look somehow added to his appeal. “Perhaps we shouldn’t discuss—”
“Well, Lord Havenstone, of course.” Lady Mary rubbed the bridge of her nose. “He invested in one of Perrin’s schemes and lost everything. That kind of humiliation doesn’t sit right with most men.”
“Then why come to Perrin’s house party if he disliked him so?” Katherine leaned forward, grasping the armrest of the settee. “And why would Perrin invite him?”
“Both excellent questions.” Lady Mary looked about and sighed. “I do wish I had my walking stick, but I usually only use it when I go out of doors.”
Mr. Evans hurried to her side. “Are you feeling unsteady, my lady?”
Lady Mary scowled. “No. It is simply more satisfying making points when I have the stick to jab into the floor for emphasis.” She turned to Katherine. “As to your first question, the only reason I can see why Havenstone accepted the invitation is for revenge. Which puts him near the top of my list.”
There was talk of that list again. Did everyone have a list of people they suspected of killing Perrin? Should Katherine have one? “And the other two?”
“Mr. Bertram Withers.” Mr. Evans gave Lady Mary one last concerned look before stepping away. “Perrin lost a good sum of money to him gambling and paid it off with a worthless mine.”
Lady Mary cocked her head. “Bertram and Perrin were related. There have been family events since that incident they’ve both attended with no acrimony. I’ll admit Bertram wasn’t overly fond of the earl, but not being sad someone has passed is a far cry from killing him.”
“Very few murderers have what most people would consider good reasons for killing.” Mr. Evans cocked his shoulder against a bookcase.
