Chase wore the happy mood of a man well sated when he descended the stairs and entered the morning room. Nicholas looked up from his mail upon his entry.
“You have risen early,” Nicholas observed. “My excuse is I barely slept. What is yours?”
“I retired early. Remember?” Chase examined the sideboard, then filled a plate. Coffee already waited when he sat.
Nicholas continued perusing his mail. “Early though you are, you are too late to see off Mrs. Rupert. Rude of you. However, I took your place. I promised her that dinner when I return to London.”
The news caught Chase while he was raising his cup. He paused a second, surprised.
“You did know she was leaving, I assume.”
“Of course. Just not so early.”
“She sent her maid down to ask for a carriage to be hired and brought for her and her friend. The butler had the sense to offer one of mine instead, so off they went.” Nicholas turned another letter. “She said she had another assignment waiting and could not dally here, since her assistance to you was finished.”
“She said all of that, did she?” Chase dug into his breakfast.
“Well, I asked. Her departure seemed hasty to me. And I was planning that dinner tonight.” Nicholas set the stack of letters to one side. “She was most emphatic that we not disturb you, the way I suggested. I would suspect the two of you had a falling out, except she appeared not the least bit vexed. In fact she looked very contented. As did you when you entered this chamber.”
Chase kept eating. Let Nicholas probe, in his unsubtle way. Minerva’s assistancewasover, for all intents and purposes. She had met with the servants. She merely had not told him what she had learned. And they had both concluded the duke had not fallen accidentally. In short, Melton Park no longer was of interest to her. She had learned all she probably would ever learn from it.
It thus made perfect sense that she had left. So why was his contentment much diminished now, replaced by a sharp annoyance? He had expected—he wasn’t sure what. A few words at least. A secret smile. If she needed to leave, a note perhaps.
Hell, whom was he lying to except himself. He had expected far more than any of that. Another night, at least. Additionalcontentment,for both of them. Perhaps talk of even more, once they returned to London. He had no right to expect any of that, but it had seemed to him that one night was not adequate, to say the least.
He looked up to find Nicholas watching him. He set his fork down.
“I am going to make some of my own inquiries of the servants today. I should get to it.” He made to leave.
“Sit a moment longer, if you will. You see, the oddest thing happened while they were leaving. I had handed them both into the carriage, and the young one, Miss Turner, examined the carriage’s appointments with those pretty blue eyes of hers. ‘Oh, my,’ she said. ‘Have you ever seen anything like it, Minerva?’” Nicholas leaned in. “What a coincidence, that Mrs. Rupert’s given name is the same as one of our legatees. The one you have found. It is not a common name.”
“It is not an uncommon name either. If the name were Polyhymnia or Terpsichore, that would be a most peculiar coincidence. Now, I must be on my way, so I can—”
“Not yet. Please, indulge me lest I wonder all day.”
Chase settled back in his chair.
“Was that in fact Minerva Hepplewhite?”
Nicholaswouldask bluntly and leave no room for dissembling. “Yes.”
“Ah.”
Chase began rising again. Nicholas again gestured for him to sit.
“Why was she here?”
“She has a pointed interest in Uncle’s death. Understandably, since it affected her so completely.”
“If it was not an accident, she might be seen as a likely object of inquiry herself, I assume.”
“That too. So she wanted to see for herself where it happened.”
“And you arranged that. How good of you. Here I thought you had brought that woman here, no matter what her name, so you might seduce her. I thought perhaps she had not departed this morning so much as run away from your intentions.”
“I do not importune women, if that is what you are saying.”I am not Phillip, damn it.
“No, you don’t. Her contentment, and yours, convinced me that no importuning was involved. I am relieved. I have some responsibility to women under my roof. I’m not sure I like that you are taking up with one of the women from the will, though.”
