“A Scotland Yard detective will come and talk to you,” Mr. Armitage said. “Be honest with him and you’ll have nothing to worry about.”
“Yes, but…what happens now?” He looked down at Millie, holding his hand and humming quietly to herself. “I have no work and Nellie is no longer alive to give us money every month. And the school…I can’t afford to move closer.”
“What about the things your wife took from Pearl’s flat?”
“Already sold to pay off debts.”
I clasped his arm, but nothing I could say would help. He was in shock. He’d lost his wife today. I felt sorry for him yet all I could give was empty assurances that all would be well, somehow.
I left with Mr. Armitage, happy that he offered to escort me to the hotel. I was also in shock. I hadn’t liked Mrs.Larsen, but I’d not thought her capable of murdering her own sister.
Mr. Armitage helped me up the step into the hansom, one hand at the small of my back, the other cradling my elbow. “Thank you,” I said as he joined me on the seat. “I’m glad I brought you along.”
He opened the hatch above our heads to give the driver instructions then closed it again. “You did it all, Miss Fox. You worked it out.”
“But you stopped Mrs. Larsen from braining me with that bottle of cordial.”
“It would have made quite a mess.”
I laughed softly, despite my heavy heart.
I settled in for the journey home, our arms touching in the close proximity of the small hansom. His presence was a comfort, but I could never admit that to him.
Once I was back at the hotel, and Mr. Armitage went on his way, I told Frank, Goliath and Peter that I wanted to see them in the staff parlor during their afternoon break. One of them sent word to Harmony and Victor, so that we all met in the parlor at three-thirty.
Over cups of tea, I told them how the investigation had ended. “Thanks to your help, Pearl’s murderer has been arrested.”
“We didn’t do anything,” Peter said. “It was all you, Miss Fox.”
“It was a little bit us,” Goliath admitted.
“Quite a lot actually.” Harmony gave Victor a sideways glance. “Some contributed more than others, however.”
Victor stretched out his legs and crossed them at the ankles. “That we did.”
She opened her mouth to retort, so I cut in before she could rise to his bait. “Does anyone know if Lord Rumford is in his suite? I ought to give him the news.”
“He checked out this morning,” Peter said.
“I thought he was staying until tomorrow.”
Peter shrugged. “He checked out at around ten.”
I slumped into the chair. There went any possibility of getting paid for all our hard work.
Chapter 15
With the investigation and its conclusion still playing on my mind, I had difficulty sleeping. I ordered a cup of hot chocolate through the speaking tube at three AM, but when it didn’t arrive, I put on my dressing gown and headed down to the kitchen.
My candle flickered in the drafts swirling through the stairwell, creating dancing shadows on the wall. I clutched the dressing gown tightly at my throat, but it did little to block out the cold. I should have stayed in bed.
As my foot stepped onto the second floor landing, a figure emerged from the corridor. We both stopped and stared at the other. By the light of her candle, I could see her ruby red lips, her pink cheeks and painted eyes. Her shawl hung loosely around her bare shoulders, revealing an extremely low-cut dress and ample cleavage.
She wasn’t one of the elegant mistresses I’d seen on the arms of gentlemen guests, treated as though she were his wife. This woman was not of the same quality, and her benefactor was treating her like a whore, making her leave in the middle of the night. She wasn’t the sort of woman my uncle would want coming and going from the hotel.
She pressed a finger to her lips and giggled, then passed me and rushed down the stairs. I followed at a distance and waited at the base of the stairwell as she crossed the foyer. There was no beak-nosed man there tonight, no Mr. Hirst,only James, the night porter. He opened the door for the woman and she left without a backward glance.
I checked the vicinity then approached him. He swallowed heavily upon seeing me then he too, glanced around. I suspected he was looking for an escape, or someone to come to his rescue.
