“Unless princes suddenly began growing on trees, I believe he is the only prince in London,” Elswyth said.
“But that cannot be,” Mrs. Rose said.
“Why not?”
“Well, because he is theprince. Princes do not abduct women. They go to balls and wear fine clothes and busy themselves withthe business of being rich. What interest could he possibly have with your sister?”
“I believe Prince Oliver was Persephone’s secret lover.”
“Lover?” Percival asked. “What makes you say she had a lover?”
“There was a message in her room. A message hidden in a bouquet of flowers. It implied she had a lover. A lover who was threatening her.”
Percival’s face dropped slightly, as though he were confused.
“And there have been other things, too. Lady Forscythe called Persephone aharlot. Mr. Twigg tried to reach under my gown and saidI know how you Elderwoods are. And Venus seemed so furious when I danced with Prince Oliver. She said I was like Persephone.Another provincial whore.”
Percival looked uncomfortable. “Elswyth, that language…”
“Damn the language. I am trying to tell you that all of these people thoughtsomethingabout Persephone. They all know something that we don’t. Combined with the bouquet in her room, I believe that this all points to an affair with Prince Oliver. And what he said to me on the dance floor almost confirms it.Stop what you are doing. Or what happened to your sister will happen to you.He knows that I am investigating. He knows what happened to her.”
“Certainly you are not implying…” Percival began.
She kept going. “It’s a threat, Uncle. He killed Persephone. And he is threatening to kill me.”
Mrs. Rose stammered. “But—but—Prince Oliver… Plantagenet… d’Orange, even…”
Kehinde spoke, standing from his chair and setting down his whittling knife. “I’m afraid she is probably correct. He is powerful and wealthy—powerful enough to kill several women and makethe constabulary look the other way. It fits with our previous theories quite nicely.”
Percival blinked, looking up at him. “Kehinde, what are you saying?Ourtheories? You’ve been helping her with this madness?”
Kehinde kept his expression firm. “I am sorry, Percival. I know you wanted Elswyth to stay away from all of this. But we will never be free of suspicion while Persephone’s killer walks free, and Elswyth is our best chance of finding him.”
Elswyth winced at the look of betrayal on Percival’s face. Then Mrs. Rose gasped. Percival, Elswyth, and Kehinde turned to her.
“What is it?” Kehinde asked.
“It’s only… I’ve asked myself why the queen was so dismissive of you upon your presentation. And now I wonder…”
“If she wasn’t doing it on purpose,” Elswyth said, coming to the same realization. “To make me an outcast, so that my investigation would lead nowhere. To protect her grandson.”
“Are we sure this is not more conjecture…” Percival started.
“And Miss Forscythe,” Mrs. Rose said, “is apparently going to be Prince Oliver’s betrothed. If she wanted to curry favor with the queen, perhaps making a fool of you would help. That could explain why she framed you at Syon House. Not to mention, if Persephone did steal the prince away from her… Well, then she’d have twice the reason to hate you.”
“The murdered man, Captain Burr. He was a friend of Prince Oliver, yes?” Kehinde said. “You mentioned that he and Persephone were seen alone together. Perhaps the captain was some kind of liaison between Persephone and the prince, so that they could keep their affair a secret. Perhaps he was killed so that it would remain that way.”
Elswyth closed her eyes. She gripped at the fabric of her gownuntil it hurt her hands. “Then they all knew. They all knew that Prince Oliver murdered her and helped him cover it up.”
“We cannot get ahead of ourselves,” Percival said. “Think for just a moment, please. Prince Oliver only just returned from his tour in India. Persephone disappeared in November. He would have already been far away from London on a ship. There’s no way he could be responsible.”
Elswyth frowned. She hadn’t considered that.
“Nor does it explain that little monster you found in your rooms…” Mrs. Rose said, shivering. “I doubt Prince Oliver could have made that. By all accounts, he’s not very academic.”
Elswyth tapped her foot. No, it didn’t explain the mandrake, either. “But he’s royalty. He could—”
Mrs. Rose interrupted her. “No. Percival’s right. We don’t know that Prince Oliver is truly involved in this. And what would we do if he was? It’s not as though we can call the police and tell them to arrest the crown prince.”
