She stared at him, her brain still slightly foggy with sleep.“That can’t be true.He’s one of London’s most respected physicians.You’ve always spoken highly of him and—”
“While I hope to be proven wrong, I may have misjudged him.”Adrian clenched his jaw briefly before admitting, “I found evidence in his desk drawer at the hospital.He made notes, Samantha.There’s no mistaking what he was hoping to accomplish.”
She pushed herself upright and pulled her legs to one side, granting Adrian more space.Her fingers clasped his.“Tell me about these notes.”
Adrian relayed how he had discovered them, what they revealed, and how he’d taken the information directly to Kendrick.“I wanted to come straight home afterward but the tension gripping me wouldn’t let up.So I stopped by Reed’s for a bit of sparring.Managed to give Wrengate a proper trouncing.”
“You fought Wrengate?”She wasn’t sure which information shocked her most.Wentworth potentially being a murderous scoundrel or this.
“He was there and I was more than happy to take him on.”He flexed his fingers and she noticed his red knuckles.When she moved to withdraw her hand from his though, he tightened his hold.“There’s no need for coddling, Samantha.I’m fine.”
“And Wrengate?”
“He’ll live.”
She flattened her lips and forced back the urge to roll her eyes.“There’s one more name that shows up on both of the lists you left with me.”
“Wentworth’s?”
“It’s actually Doctor Fellowes’s.”
Adrian stared at her for a long moment, as though fighting the will to let this information sink in.Eventually he shook his head.“The research on the tonic was found in Wentworth’s desk.”
Yet he himself had considered the possibility of Wentworth sharing this information with someone else.
“Yes, but the calling card you retrieved from Islington’s office did not bear Wentworth’s name.He wasn’t mentioned by the clerk you spoke with at Sparrow’s, which means his calling cards are printed on different card stock or use a different font, perhaps both.”
“What are you suggesting?”A foolish question he already knew the answer to.
She shrugged one shoulder, aware how difficult this would be for him to hear since it might involve him misjudging not only one man but two.“Maybe Wentworth had an accomplice.Either Melroy or Fellowes.”
“Or maybe the calling card has no connection at all.Maybe it just happened to be among the pieces of paper Islington disposed of in haste.That could be the case.It’s not unreasonable for him, as a physician, to have had the calling cards of numerous men who share his profession.The rest might have perished in the fire.We only happened upon this one and chose to turn it into a clue when it might have nothing to do with the case at all.”
“We still need to look at Melroy and Fellowes.Anything less would be sloppy on our part.Especially with Wentworth being investigated too.”When Adrian said nothing to this she asked, “How did Kendrick respond to the information you gave him?”
“He was grateful.Told me he’d make sure to get the permission he needed to search Wentworth’s office, both at St.George’s and at his home.The man will also be brought in for questioning.If everything goes well, the extent of his involvement will be determined by this time tomorrow.”
“And until then?”
“I would suggest we wait and see what happens.It’s still too soon for you to be running around Town.Another day’s rest will benefit you.”
She knew better than to argue.“Someone should keep a watchful eye on Fellowes and Melroy.If either one played a part in this, Kendrick’s interest in Wentworth may cause them to panic, making them more prone to showing their hand.”
“I’ll send a note to Murdoch.If he’s got people at the hospital or in either of these men’s homes, they’ll keep us apprised of their response to this development.”
* * *
Peter Kendrick considered the man he’d brought in for questioning based on Croft’s recommendation.Doctor Wentworth was three and sixty years of age and a full head shorter than he.His white hair matched his eyebrows, which sat above a pair of inquisitive eyes.A wide nose offered support for the wire-rimmed spectacles he wore and a pair of heavy cheeks marked by splotches of pink bracketed his pursed lips.
All in all, he looked like a studious man who was prone to analyzing the world around him.He’d also been remarkably polite toward Peter and his Runners.Had made no protest when he’d been asked to accompany them to Bow Street.
He’d merely asked, “Why?”
When Kendrick told him he needed his help in an ongoing investigation, Wentworth had simply nodded and said, “Let’s go.”
Not exactly the sort of response one would expect from a ruthless killer, Peter mused.Then again, Benjamin Lawrence had kept his monstrous ways carefully tucked away beneath a similarly amicable façade.He’d even played the victim and managed to fool the entire world into thinking he’d lost the use of his legs in a riding accident.
To maintain such a ruse could not have been simple.It showed how far some people were willing to go in order to hide the heinous crimes they committed.Perhaps Wentworth reasoned that by cooperating, he’d avoid suspicion.
