Read Online Mrs. Jeffries Wins the Prize by Emily Brightwell - Free Book Online Page A

leave the doors unlocked. Obviously, Inspector”—she turned away from the constable’s hard gaze—“someone used my shears to murder that man.”
    *   *   *
    Mrs. Jeffries came into the kitchen and stopped in the doorway. Mrs. Goodge was sitting at the table staring off into space. Samson, her massive, orange-colored tabby cat sat on the floor next to her chair. He’d come to the household after one of their investigations. He was bad tempered, cranky, and would swat anyone who went near his food dish. The only person he liked was Mrs. Goodge and she, for her part, adored him and spoiled him rotten. She genuinely couldn’t understand why the rest of the household didn’t like him. Samson made a soft mewling sound and butted his head against her shins, but for once, she ignored him.
    â€œAre you alright, Mrs. Goodge?” Mrs. Jeffries stepped into the room.
    The cook snapped out of her trance and gave the housekeeper a weak smile. “I was just woolgathering. I’m fine.”
    â€œGood, I’m glad there’s nothing wrong. You had the oddest expression on your face. It was a bit worrying.”
    The cook waved her hand. “There’s nothing amiss, I was just lost in thought.”
    â€œI do wish Ruth had known a few more facts about Helena Rayburn.” Mrs. Jeffries headed for the table. “If our information is correct, the victim was murdered on her property. That could be very important.”
    â€œTrue. Usually people don’t just wander in and get themselves killed at a stranger’s house, so it’s probable that Mrs. Rayburn knew the dead man.”
    â€œRuth said that Mrs. Rayburn has spent most of her adult life in India. I know very little about that part of the world,” Mrs. Jeffries admitted. “Frankly, hot, tropical climates have never appealed to me.”
    â€œNever been there, but I do know a bit about the place and I’d be cautious about believing anything you read in the press.” The cook looked off in the distance again.
    â€œWhy is that?”
    â€œThe newspapers never tell you what’s really going on in foreign lands. You only read what the army and the government want you to read. India might be part of the empire but it’s a law unto itself. Good Englishmen get that far away and they start forgetting there are rules to be followed. I’ve heard some ugly stories, that’s for certain.”
    â€œWhatever do you mean? What kind of stories?”
    â€œThe usual ones, wives and husbands get strange ideas when they’re in hot climates, makes people feel they can do what they like regardless of who gets hurt. You know, the sort of stories that could embarrass the foreign office or the military. When something horrid happens, it gets reported, but it’s always couched in terms that don’t make Her Majesty’s government look bad.”
    â€œGracious, you make it sound like a den of sin.” Mrs. Jeffries pulled out her chair and sat down. It wasn’t like Mrs. Goodge to be so cynical but perhaps she wasn’t feeling well. Her rheumatism might be acting up.
    She shrugged. “Well, I’d not go that far, but as I said, I have heard stories and most of them didn’t do our nationcredit. The way we’ve treated native peoples is often downright sinful. I’ve never admitted such a thing before, even to myself, but our investigations over the years have changed my attitude about Queen and country. Mind you, on the other side of the coin, we’ve gone to these places and put in railways and roads and built hospitals, so that’s all to the good. And of course, India was one of the few places where decent but poor young women could find a good husband.”
    â€œI’ve heard that. When I lived in Yorkshire, my neighbor’s daughter went out to India as a nanny. She ended up marrying a nice young lieutenant.”
    â€œLots of