Page 68 of An Affair at Stonecliffe

“There are plenty more in the garden,” Noelle responded, dumping the stems she had gathered into the basket. “Annabeth...”

The other woman shook her head, wiping away the tears that had spilled onto her cheeks. “Silly of me—for an instant I thought that he had come to see me.”

Noelle took her arm. “Why don’t we go sit in the garden?”

“You’re very kind.” Annabeth summoned up a smile. “But I’m fine. You needn’t worry. I don’t know why I reacted so foolishly. It’s been years and years. I don’t go about moping over him. Really. Or even think about him. I gave up loving him long ago. It was just... I don’t know, seeing him unexpectedly like that. He looks so different...and so much the same.”

“Years dull the hurt,” Noelle said. “But I think it hangs about in one’s heart, just waiting to pop up again.”

“Do you still miss Adam?” Annabeth looked at her. “Is it still so painful?”

“Sometimes, when Gil smiles in a certain way or I see one of Adam’s paintings.”

Annabeth nodded. “I’m sorry. I think I’ll go up to my room and rest a bit. Would you reassure Nathan that I’m all right? He worries so.”

“He cares for you.”

“I know. I care for him, as well.” Annabeth sighed. “I just wish that I cared for him in the same way.” She started toward the stairs, then turned and looked back. “Why was Sloane here?”

“He brought us a list of the men in the tontine.”

Annabeth smiled faintly. “So he helped you. I knew he couldn’t have tried to hurt Gil.”

“No. I think you were right.” Noelle swung around and went to the drawing room, where she found the two men engrossed in studying Sloane’s note.

Carlisle looked up at her entrance. “There are ten names.”

“Do you know them?” She went over to stand beside him and look at the scrawled list of names.

“Some. They’re our fathers’ age; a good number of them are dead.”

“What about their sons? Lady Lockwood said it was based on a male heir who would still be alive by a certain date.”

“It’s only the original participants, but we can find their sons’ names. This gives us a place to start looking.”

“We have to consider the fact that this could all be a hum,” Nathan pointed out. “Something Sloane made up to throw us off his trail.”

“I don’t think he’s guilty,” Noelle said.

“Neither do I,” Adeline said from the doorway. She walked over to join them.

“Just because Sloane brought this list, it doesn’t mean he’s innocent. I think we have to continue to suspect him,” Carlisle said.

“You can suspect him all you want, but it doesn’t make him guilty,” Noelle retorted a little acerbically. “Whatever else he may have done, I don’t think he tried to kill my son—not after I saw him with Gil.”

“She’s right,” Adeline agreed. “The way he looked at the boy, the way he spoke to him. Smiled at him.”

“It could be a pretense,” Nathan said stubbornly.

“I think you want him to be guilty.” Noelle crossed her arms and looked from one man to the other. “Both of you. Nothing he has done or said indicates that he tried to murder Gil. Just the opposite.”

Carlisle let out a reluctant sigh. “I think they’re right, Nathan. Much as I hate to admit it, it’s hard to believe Sloane’s behind this. He doesn’t need the money. And would he really murder a child to get a title?”

“I don’t know.” Nathan scowled. “But it seems unlikely that anyone would kill Gil in order to win the tontine money either. There are ten men listed here.” He waved at the sheet. “A number of them are bound to have sons and grandsons. One would have to kill an inordinate number of people.”

“That’s certainly a point,” Carlisle admitted. “I have no intention of clearing Sloane yet. Diggs is still looking into Sloane’s unsavory connections, as well as his Scottish alibi. However, these men must be investigated, too. Let’s make note of all the possibilities, the signers and the heirs.”

Noelle went to the countess’s dainty secretary against the wall and pulled out a piece of paper. “I’ll write down the names.”