“That is not atallwhat I am worried about,” I said as I shoved him back.
This caught him by surprise, and I scrambled out of his reach. Lord Linden shot me a confused frown as he stood.“Now see here. I don’t know how these things are done on Corfu, but in London if a lady invites a man to her home under such circumstances, one expects certain things.”
A surprised laugh erupted from me, but before I could speak, the connecting door slammed open, and Mr. Dorian stormed into the room.
“You have got a hell of a lot of nerve, Linden,” he growled as he came to my side. I tried to meet his gaze, but it was firmly fixed on the baron. There was also no sign of Miles anywhere. This entire operation was a disaster.
Meanwhile, the baron stared at Mr. Dorian in shock. “Were you listening to us?” he asked, incredulous.
“I was listening to you try to cajole a woman into giving you favors, yes,” Mr. Dorian spat.
I then grabbed his arm and tugged on it. “That is quite enough, Stephen.” Only when I said his name did he finally look at me. “Obviously, this has been a gigantic misunderstanding,” I said through gritted teeth as he turned back to the baron.
“I’m not so sure of that,” he said dryly.
Then I heard the distinct click of a gun. My fingers tightened on Mr. Dorian’s arm, and he covered them with his warm palm. I whipped my head back to the baron and found him staring at the two of us with a bored expression, all of his earlier outrage completely gone. “You know, I really did come here tonight intending to take you to that lecture. A pity things have taken such an ugly turn.”
“Then why bring a gun with you?” I marveled.
“One can never be too careful,” he replied easily.
Mr. Dorian snorted. “Yes. Especially when one is trying to cover up a murder.”
The baron chucked. “Something like that.”
“Then itwasyou,” I said. “You killed Charles.”
The baron let out a sigh, as if he was being terribly inconvenienced by this discussion. “The idiot left me no choice.”
“Then he was blackmailing you?” I asked. Admittedly, I wasn’t very keen on hearing the particulars at the moment, but given that we had a gun trained on us, the only thing I could think to do was keep the man talking for as long as possible.
“Hetriedto blackmail me,” Lord Linden corrected. “It never got that far. But Charles was rather desperate for money, and desperate people make mistakes.”
“Do you know what he needed the money for?” Mr. Dorian asked, catching on to my plan to keep the man talking.
“Some business about that inconvenient wife of his,” the baron said, flicking his fingers. “She wanted money in exchange for finally giving him a divorce, and Charles couldn’t come up with the funds fast enough.”
“And you couldn’t simply lend them to him?” I asked.
The baron looked affronted. “My dear, I am not a bank. And everyone knew that Charles Pearson went through money faster than quicksand. I never would have gotten it back.”
“But what about his collection?” I insisted. “Surely he could have sold you some pieces—”
Lord Linden shook his head. “It may have been a decent collection for a man like him, but there was nothing to tempt me. For what it’s worth, I do think he truly cared for your sister,” he added in a solemn tone that only enraged me.
“And yet you were willing to stand back and let the murder be pinned on her!”
“It was a possibility, of course,” he acknowledged. “And I did try to make it look like a burglary, but I was interrupted when she turned up at the flat that night. Naughty girl.” The baron narrowed his eyes. “And then you took quite an interest in the murder. My butler was certain you were just a silly little woman who wouldn’t give us any trouble. But I knew better. There is no one more meddlesome than a lonely old bluestocking,” he said with a sneer.
I could feel Mr. Dorian tense beside me, but now was not the time for him to lose his temper. “It’s all right,” I murmured, then addressed the baron. “A fair point. Is he your accomplice, then?”
“I don’t need an accomplice,” he insisted. “Only an imbecile would allow themselves to be pinned for murder. No, he is my loyal servant and does whatever I ask.”
“Including, perhaps, following people?” I suggested.
“Oh yes. He is quite good at that,” Lord Linden said, his eyes glinting. “Was in the army for many years, you know. Under the command of someone we both happen to be acquainted with.”
Sir Armstrong-Hughes.
