However awful it had been for him to see Evie after, this was somehow worse.The coroner hadn’t yet had the chance to clean this woman up.Dark red, nearly black, splotches stained the gash at her throat.Stained her breasts and lilac gown too.
As with his sister, a note had been pinned to her crumbled bodice, accusing her of being a whore.Kendrick was right.This wasn’t an easy sight in the least.It made his eyes sting, knowing what Evie must have looked like when she had been found.Before the blood had been washed away.
Even then, it had been a hellish experience.
“Well?”Kendrick asked, his voice apprehensive as he came to stand beside Adrian.
“I was wrong to suspect Lundquist.”Adrian stared at the woman who’d made her debut last year together with Evie.The rosy tinge to her cheeks was now gone, hidden beneath a pale mask of death.“It seems unlikely to me that he’d kill his own sister in such a way.”
A sharp hiss alerted Adrian to Kendrick’s surprise.“Are you telling me this is—”
“Lady Lavinia.”Adrian took a step closer to her, his gaze now searching her body, noting her posture, looking for anything that might be useful.A question began taking shape, the sort he’d no wish to ask, much less know the answer to.But given the state she was in, it seemed important.“Was she…”
God, he couldn’t get the word out, so he gestured with his hand instead.
“Raped?”When Adrian nodded Kendrick told him, “We won’t know for certain until the coroner takes a look, but I don’t believe so.Such an act would have required force.The perpetrator would have had to get her onto her back, lift up her skirts, and do the deed while holding her still.This would have left at least one of her hands free at some point or other, allowing her the chance to fight.Yet her gown isn’t torn and her nails appear clean.”
“So he came at her from behind and seduced her?”Adrian tried to imagine how it could have happened but found it a challenge.“How the hell does a murderer lure a young woman out of her house late at night?”
“Judging from what we know of the previous victims, I expect he’s taking advantage of their desires.”
It took extreme restraint for Adrian not to round on Kendrick and slam him into the nearest wall.He took a few breaths to slow his pulse, then told him, “I trust that statement doesn’t apply to my sister.”
“Of course not.I know she was killed by mistake.”
And yet, Evie’s death had been very deliberate.He could only hope that solving this case would help him figure out who was behind it.
“When will you tell the marquess?”
Kendrick clasped his hands behind his back.Another couple of Runners brought a stretcher for the body and a sheet to drape over it.“As soon as we’re done here.”
“I think I’ll resume my ride then.”Adrian didn’t bother extending his hand, but he did thank Kendrick for sharing the crime scene with him.
Staring straight ahead, he suppressed the shiver stealing across his shoulders as he walked away.Lundquist’s world was about to change in the same tragic way his own had a few weeks ago.Adrian owed the man an apology and planned to stop by his house tomorrow to pay his respects.
Had their positions been reversed, he’d have welcomed the distraction.Not to mention the chance to speak with someone who understood his pain.
What he wouldn’t share was what he himself had witnessed at the Ottersburg ball when he’d gone for a bit of fresh air.Seeking privacy, he’d exited one of the parlors and stepped onto a secluded balcony so he could be alone with his thoughts.
The private moment he’d glimpsed had been none of his business, although he had filed away a few details in case he required leverage later.
He’d deliberately kept that piece of information from Kendrick.After all, he’d had his go at Mr.Walker already, and had chosen to set him free.It was Adrian’s turn now.And if Walker turned out to be the killer – if he’d somehow managed to double back and murder Miss Irvine on that September evening in Vauxhall – thenhewould be the one to end him.
26
Lundquist House was teeming with people when Samantha stopped by to pay her respects.Servants hurried about, attending to guests and family members while Kendrick spoke with Lundquist in the hallway.A steady stream of Runners moved up and down the stairs, the overall look about them suggesting they were terribly busy and important.
Samantha stepped aside to let one past her as she entered the house.News of Lady Lavinia’s death had reached her the previous evening when Harlowe brought it up over dinner.She’d thought of it at great length since and knew she had to learn more.
Another death meant another chance at catching the killer.
The bouquet of lilies she’d purchased on her way over weighed heavily in her hands.Despite the resolve with which she’d come, melancholia crawled through her veins like a sickness attempting to find a foothold.
This had to end, but a year had now passed since the first murder, and it didn’t look as though Bow Street was closer to catching the killer than they had been then.As for Mr.Croft’s own attempts, they’d clearly led him astray.He’d been so certain the man he hunted was Lundquist, but that seemed highly unlikely now.
Hopefully, by coming here, Samantha would discover something more useful – a piece of information to aid the investigation and bring these pointless deaths to an end.
“The parlor is fully occupied at present,” said the butler, his lifeless eyes a perfect match for the somber mood.“Please wait here a moment.I’m sure a seat will be made available shortly.”
