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The door opened once more, and the footman stepped into the room with his brows raised in question.
“Miss Poole and I are acquainted,” Gideon explained, sending Electra a look.
She nodded, seeming to read his intent.
“She has assisted me in the past, and we wish to speak to Mr. Beecham together.”
The footman looked hesitant but then nodded. “Very good, sir. Right this way.”
As they followed the young man down the hall, Gideon glanced at Electra. “What’s the other thing?” he whispered.
“You'll find out soon enough.”
“Electra, please don't be enigmatic in the middle of a murder investigation.”
The footman stopped before a door and pushed it open, directing them inside.
Gideon allowed Electra to precede him, and once he stepped into the man’s study, his eyes landed immediately on a row of dozens of bladed weapons, from swords to knives to a heinous-looking curved saber. A few looked to be the approximate length and width as what was described in Dr. Farringdon’s report. All of them were polished and glinted in the gaslight.
At the far end of the room, a tall, broad chested, wide-shouldered gentleman with dark hair stood assessing them.
“I take it you are Detective Inspector Pierce of Scotland Yard, and you must be Miss Poole.” After another searching look, then the man gestured to two chairs arranged before a desk.
“Please have a seat.”
They did, and Beecham examined them a moment longer.
“Neither of you had appointments, but I was willing to meet with each of you. Yet now you’ve come as a pair.”
“Indeed,” Gideon said, wishing to get straight to his questions.
“This is most intriguing,” Beecham said and smiled. “Since you are with Scotland Yard, I can only assume this has to do with the death of Percival Pennington.”
“Yes, Mr. Beecham. Through the course of my investigation, I've come to understand that Mr. Percival Pennington was engaged to your daughter.”
“He was.”
“And he subsequently broke that engagement.”
“Indeed, he did.”
“What were your feelings on the matter?”
Beecham drummed his fingers on his blotter. “My feelings, Inspector?”
“Your reaction, sir.”
“Are you married, Inspector?”
“No.” Gideon felt the weight of Electra’s glance his way.
“Have any children?”
“No.”
“If you did, then you would easily suspect my feelings where Pennington was concerned. I was livid. My opinion of Mr. Pennington went from reluctant admiration to a belief that he was a faithless cad.”
Gideon had no children, but he could understand a father’s dislike of a man who’d harmed his daughter. “I understand there was a possibility of a breach-of-promise case.”
