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Authors: TASHA ALEXANDER
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as I suspected this was nothing more than a ridiculous and unnecessary ploy to get me alone so that he could tell me what he learned when he spoke with the servants.
“There is no need to be so rough,” I said, pulling my arm away once we had reached the music room, far across the house from where the others were breakfasting.
“I did not mean to hurt you,” he said, his voice soft. “I have a tendency to get carried away when I take on a role. Will you forgive me?”
“It is of no consequence,” I said. “Please tell me you got something of use from the servants.”
“I do believe that I have convinced at least two of the footmen that they ought to read Karl Marx. His views on the bourgeoisie ought to resonate with them after having worked for your mother.”
I cleared my throat. “And?”
“So far as I can tell, no one who shouldn’t have been in either your room or Sunita’s was there the night of the theft,” he said. “Nanny and one of the maids brought the boys to your room to tell you good night, but you had already gone to the dining room, and that was before the jewelry had been stolen, which is unfortunate, as I do like the idea of one of your children taking after me. Other than that, nothing seems to have happened beyond the servants’ ordinary tasks. No one was lurking in corridors after you all went to bed.”
“And what about Sally?” I asked. “Were you able to discover anything that might have led her to act in desperation?”
“If Sally were a decade younger than she is, I would be concerned that she now expects me to suggest an elopement, but as she is closer in age to my grandmother than, shall we say, you, I felt on fairly safe ground using every means possible to extract information. Fortunately, she took my good-natured conversation as it was intended. She is quite thoroughly panicked that she will be blamed for the theft, but I do not believe her to be guilty.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I cannot reveal all my methods. You know better than to ask.”
“I do not think she took it, either,” I said, “but I am glad to have you confirm my conclusion.”
“What led you to it?”
“I cannot reveal all my methods,” I said. “You know better than to ask.”
“Be coy if you like. You’re very pretty when you are out of sorts. Your cheeks go pink.”
“That turban does not suit you at all,” I said.
“I should expect nothing else from you, should I?” He sighed. “Regardless, and much though it pains me, I must return to your mother. I have very nearly convinced her to have her portrait painted in the style of the Pre-Raphaelites. Can you picture it? Lady Bromley as the drowned Ophelia?”
“Lady Macbeth would better suit her,” I said. “You are quite confident no one was seen entering Sunita’s room?”
“I am, but that does not bring us closer to identifying the culprit.”
“No, but it does suggest that the servants are not lying.”
“I am certain they are not,” he said. “They seem to be more or less convinced that your mother could slay them using only her mental prowess if they ever disobeyed her.”
“What a pleasant place to work,” I said.
“What a pleasant place to be a little girl.” His blue eyes met mine. “I am sorry, Emily. She is a bear and it cannot have been easy.” He pressed my right hand between both of his, and then raised it to his lips. I tolerated this for an instant longer than I ordinarily would have before pulling it away.
“Thank you,” I said. “Is there anything else I should know?”
“The Blue Room is extremely secure. It would be difficult to access from outside without a ladder. The ground is frozen, but I saw no signs of one having been used. The snow could have hidden any marks there, but none were left on the outside of any of the windows on that side of the house. Generally, a ladder will scar the paint at least a bit, unless it is used by someone of consummate skill, like myself.”
“Colin
“There is no need to be so rough,” I said, pulling my arm away once we had reached the music room, far across the house from where the others were breakfasting.
“I did not mean to hurt you,” he said, his voice soft. “I have a tendency to get carried away when I take on a role. Will you forgive me?”
“It is of no consequence,” I said. “Please tell me you got something of use from the servants.”
“I do believe that I have convinced at least two of the footmen that they ought to read Karl Marx. His views on the bourgeoisie ought to resonate with them after having worked for your mother.”
I cleared my throat. “And?”
“So far as I can tell, no one who shouldn’t have been in either your room or Sunita’s was there the night of the theft,” he said. “Nanny and one of the maids brought the boys to your room to tell you good night, but you had already gone to the dining room, and that was before the jewelry had been stolen, which is unfortunate, as I do like the idea of one of your children taking after me. Other than that, nothing seems to have happened beyond the servants’ ordinary tasks. No one was lurking in corridors after you all went to bed.”
“And what about Sally?” I asked. “Were you able to discover anything that might have led her to act in desperation?”
“If Sally were a decade younger than she is, I would be concerned that she now expects me to suggest an elopement, but as she is closer in age to my grandmother than, shall we say, you, I felt on fairly safe ground using every means possible to extract information. Fortunately, she took my good-natured conversation as it was intended. She is quite thoroughly panicked that she will be blamed for the theft, but I do not believe her to be guilty.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I cannot reveal all my methods. You know better than to ask.”
“I do not think she took it, either,” I said, “but I am glad to have you confirm my conclusion.”
“What led you to it?”
“I cannot reveal all my methods,” I said. “You know better than to ask.”
“Be coy if you like. You’re very pretty when you are out of sorts. Your cheeks go pink.”
“That turban does not suit you at all,” I said.
“I should expect nothing else from you, should I?” He sighed. “Regardless, and much though it pains me, I must return to your mother. I have very nearly convinced her to have her portrait painted in the style of the Pre-Raphaelites. Can you picture it? Lady Bromley as the drowned Ophelia?”
“Lady Macbeth would better suit her,” I said. “You are quite confident no one was seen entering Sunita’s room?”
“I am, but that does not bring us closer to identifying the culprit.”
“No, but it does suggest that the servants are not lying.”
“I am certain they are not,” he said. “They seem to be more or less convinced that your mother could slay them using only her mental prowess if they ever disobeyed her.”
“What a pleasant place to work,” I said.
“What a pleasant place to be a little girl.” His blue eyes met mine. “I am sorry, Emily. She is a bear and it cannot have been easy.” He pressed my right hand between both of his, and then raised it to his lips. I tolerated this for an instant longer than I ordinarily would have before pulling it away.
“Thank you,” I said. “Is there anything else I should know?”
“The Blue Room is extremely secure. It would be difficult to access from outside without a ladder. The ground is frozen, but I saw no signs of one having been used. The snow could have hidden any marks there, but none were left on the outside of any of the windows on that side of the house. Generally, a ladder will scar the paint at least a bit, unless it is used by someone of consummate skill, like myself.”
“Colin
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