“She didn’t go to see what made the noise?” Katherine asked.
“That would hardly be sensible.” Evans extended his arm toward the house, and they began to trudge their way back. “What woman would be foolish enough to go investigate a strange noise in the middle of the night?”
Katherine and Lady Mary exchanged a look. What woman indeed?
Katherine’s shoulders drooped. The fear from being trapped, followed closely on its heels with the exhilaration of being in Mr.Evans’s arms, had left her feeling curiously drained. The backs of her eyes burned. She wanted nothing more than to be home, in her own rooms, safe.
She looked to the house, hoping Constable Adams would find something to uncover who had killed Perrin. Something to end this.
Movement in one of the windows caught her eye. A face pressed against the glass inside the ballroom.
She stopped, her breath catching. It was human, she was sure, but it looked wrong, distorted, as though the individual features had been sewn together incorrectly.
“Is something wrong?” Mr. Evans’s voice still held a bite of irritation, but there was a note of something else there, as well.
Katherine looked at him. The edges of his whiskey-colored eyes were crinkled in concern. When she’d first met the man, she’d thought him pleasant but plain looking. Now that she knew how strong that jaw felt in her palm, how comforting his arms felt wrapped around her, she couldn’t deny his appeal. She raised her hand and pointed at the window.
But when they all looked to where she pointed, the face was gone.
Chapter Twenty-One
Lady Mary
The constable joinedthem in the rear sitting room, a brown glass vial in his hand. He’d asked everyone, guest and servant alike, to gather in one room while he searched.
“I found this tucked behind some boxes in the attic.” He held it up. The vial was empty except for some dusty residue inside. “I’ll give this to the magistrate to have analyzed, but I’ll ask all of you first. Is there any legitimate reason such a bottle would be stored up there?”
The butler shook his head. “Any tonics or medicines are kept in the pantry off the kitchen. We don’t clean up in the attics often, however. There’s no telling how long it could have been up there.”
“There’s no dust on the outside of the glass.” I cocked my head, wondering if the constable would allow me to have a closer look at the substance inside. Was that small residue ground up mineral, leaf, or seed? “If it had been there long, we’d see the evidence of it.”
“But why put it up in the attics?” Havenstone asked.
“The killer must have assumed our rooms would be searched at some point.” I should have asked the butler to search the rooms immediately after Perrin’s death. It would have angered the guests, but perhaps we would know who the killer was if I had. “Or that a maid might come upon it while cleaning. The attics are as good a place as any to dispose of the evidence.”
“He truly was poisoned then. By one of us.” Mr. Smith shook his head. “I didn’t fully believe it until now.” He stood, his jacket pulling taut around his soft middle. “I want to take my daughter out of here. The magistrate can contact us at home.”
There was a general murmur of agreement.
Constable Adams tucked the vial into his pocket. “There is no reason any of you should be a target. Lord Perrin was obviously the intended victim. I am going to ask that you all remain until the magistrate comes to question you himself. It’s only a day or two more.”
“The constable is right,” I added, loath to have my suspects disperse in a most unmanageable manner. “Besides, it might look suspicious for any of us to appear too eager to leave. Like we had something we wanted to hide.” It was the lowest form of emotional manipulation, but I was hard-pressed to feel guilty over it. Perrin had been my husband’s brother. While I hadn’t liked him much, I couldn’t just let his killing go unanswered.
Marie nervously tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear. She darted a glance at the baron. “That looks like one of the little bottles in Lord Havenstone’s case.”
The room grew silent.
“How do you know that?” Havenstone exploded. “Did you search through my belongings?”
Marie had the grace to flush.
“It wasn’t her fault.” I leaned forward in my chair. “Lord Perrin told her to look through his guests’ rooms. She was only following the orders of her master.”
“He did what?” Lady Havenstone’s jaw dropped open. “That is abominable.”
Miss Walker frowned. “He must have had good cause.”
“No, he was simply a miscreant.” Bertram inhaled sharply. “I told my sister not to marry the man. I told our father his title wasn’t worth it, but they didn’t listen.”
