But first, he must speak to Lord Brathwaite. And Moira must be present, too.
Impatient to share his findings, Barnaby approached the butler.
“Will his lordship be able to meet with me this morning? I have news of the missing pages.”
“The earl has not yet come downstairs. I believe he is having breakfast in her ladyship’s room.”
“Oh. She is not unwell, I hope.”
The butler sniffed. “It is good of you to ask, Mr. Ash, but her ladyship’s wellbeing is only our business when his lordship makes it so. I believe married folk may dine together without there being any suspicion of illness.”
“Oh. I see.”
“Quite. Will there be anything else, sir?”
“No. Thank you. Although it might be mentioned to his lordship that I have found the pages of the manuscript and know who took them and why.”
“I shall certainly pass the message along. Meanwhile, sir, can I arrange a shave for you?”
Barnaby ran his palm across his rough chin. “I shall see to it myself.”
“Very good, sir.”
Barnaby managed to remove the overnight growth from his face without cutting himself, although he fidgeted internally no end. Then there was nothing to do other than wait. An hour passed. Then another. Barnaby thought he would wear the rug clean through with his relentless pacing.
When Lord Brathwaite finally sent for him, all Barnaby’s excitement had morphed into nervous tension, so that he fought not to tap his fingers against his thigh as he stood in his employer’s study.
“What’s this I hear you have solved the mystery of the theft, Mr. Ash?” the earl asked from the seat behind his desk.
“I will happily explain everything, your lordship, if you will but send for the servant girl by the name of Moira.”
“Moira, you say? Is she the guilty party?”
“Yes and no, milord. If you will let me explain, you will see she meant no harm.”
“Hmm. I do not usually conduct my interviews in this fashion, but I shall allow it this once. You’d better not be wasting my time, Mr. Ash.”
“No milord. And thank you.”
The earl rang his bell. A footman appeared post-haste.
“Fetch the girl Moira, will you? And accompany her here. I don’t want her running off because she’s afraid of what I might say.”
The footman nodded, disappeared, and returned after what seemed like a small eternity with the terrified maid servant. Barnaby imagined it must have taken some persuading to bring her before their master.
The earl waved the footman away before beckoning Moira closer.
“Mr. Ash here tells me you are the culprit who tore out and stole those pages from my manuscript.”
Poor Moira looked as if the ground had just opened up beneath her. Her bowed head jerked up, eyes wide and staring, her hands folding about each other, seemingly seeking comfort.
“Tell his lordship why you did it, Moira,” said Barnaby. “It wasn’t really theft, was it? You love this family. You wanted to protect them, didn’t you?”
The girl’s mouth fell open. “How did you know?”
“Tell us how you found the book.”
Nervous eyes flicked back and forth. She licked her dry lips. “Well, I was helping to unpack the books from the crates in the library…”
