Chapter Eleven
An hour before dinner
Gabriel whistled in the corridors as he went up to his bedchamber. Dinner would be served in about an hour, and he rather hoped that Mary hadn’t completed her toilette yet, for “helping” her dress was something he particularly enjoyed.
The couple of hours spent at billiards with other men in the house party had been oddly pleasant and surprising. They’d welcomed him with enthusiasm, and he listened avidly to the talk that was bandied about. Unfortunately, none of it was surprising or clue-worthy, but that mattered not. His son had been lighthearted, and that was all that mattered.
As he came into the bedchamber, his grin widened to see his wife standing in her shift and petticoat while reading over what she’d written in her notebook .
“What a delectable sight,” he said as he closed the door behind him. “Where is your maid?”
She waved a hand at him. “I dismissed her, for I can’t be bothered to choose a gown for dinner tonight. Something is niggling at my brain from these interviews, but I can’t unravel my thoughts enough to figure it out.”
“Well, if you wish for my opinion on the matter, the navy satin with the clear glass beads is my choice. It suits you exceedingly well and sparkles when you move.” He edged over to her position. “Do you wish for my assistance in donning your stays?”
“Oh.” Finally, Mary glanced at him. “Yes, that would be lovely.” After she closed her notebook, she tossed it onto the bed. “I feel as if I’m missing something vital.”
“It will come to you when you’re least expecting it,” he said in a low voice as he slipped behind her and pulled her backside flush against his front. “Trying to force the issue will keep it further from the surface.”
“Right.” She laid her arms over his and when she lifted her head, he took full advantage by pressing a line of featherweighted kisses beneath her jaw. “Does that happen to you?”
“Yes, sometimes. It is frustrating, but part of the process.” He slid his hands up her sides to cup her breasts. “Do you wish to continue conversing? ”
A shiver wracked her body and transferred to him. “Don’t tease, Bright. We don’t have time for what you have in mind.”
“Mmm, true, so perhaps I’ll merely arouse you enough so you don’t forget what we have when you’re dining with all those eligible younger men tonight.” As he whispered the words, he brushed his fingers over her nipples until they hardened.
The sound of a gasp mixed with a moan escaped her. “I could never—” A squeal emanated from her as he gave those pebbled buds a light pinch. “Gabriel!” She turned about in his arms and looped her arms about his shoulders. “You don’t play fair.”
“Nothing is fair in love or war, sweeting,” he said moments before he claimed her lips in an intense kiss.
How was it possible he was still tip over tail for this woman with whom he’d had a relationship of some sort for nearly a year and a half? Burying his hands in her hair, he held her head in his hands and deepened the kiss until they were both fighting for dominance. Over and over, his tongue tangled with hers. He drank from her, but to her credit, Mary gave as good as she got, and that was something he adored about her. She matched him in all the ways that mattered.
It was far too easy with her; she made him feel as if he could do anything. As she furrowed the fingers of one hand through the hair at his nape, his shaft tightened and pressed against the front of his breeches. One of his hands wandered down her spine, and at the sweet curve of her arse, he squeezed one of those cheeks. She moaned against his mouth, and the sound went straight to his length.
Did they have enough time for him to throw her on the bed and have his wicked way?
She solved the problem for him by planting her palms on his chest. Then she gave him a hard shove but softened the action with a shaky grin as her own chest heaved. “If we don’t stop, we are going to be lost to the world far too quickly, and tonight, I did wish to enjoy dinner with the company, for Henry’s sake.”
“I thought I was supposed to be the logical one?” he asked in an equally breathless voice. And damn, if he stared too long at the hard points of her nipples through the thin lawn of her shift, they wouldn’t make dinner at all.
Her chuckle tightened his chest. “Now I am beyond restless, so what do you say to a walk before dinner once we’re dressed?”
“That could prove a good compromise.” Once she retrieved her stays from over a chair back, she handed them to him. “Help me on with these and behave yourself.”
“That is going to be difficult, for I am far too weak where you are concerned.” It was nothing except truth .
A half hour later, they were dressed and down on the terrace. Dinner was still thirty minutes away, and while many of the guests congregated in the drawing room, he escorted Mary outside for a bit of a walk, for he hadn’t felt like mingling.
“Where are we going?” she asked as he guided her over the lawn as the sun had begun its descent.
“I thought to explore the hedge maze since we’ve consistently been thwarted in that activity since we’ve been here.” He put his lips to the delicate shell of her ear. “If we are fortunate in remaining alone, perhaps we can get up to scandal.”
“Are you desperate tonight, Inspector?”
“Where you are concerned? Absolutely, I am.” Would there ever come a time when he didn’t tease her? He certainly hoped not. Being with a partner like Mary should always make a man feel so free.
“So romantic.” She chuckled, but when she glanced at him, there was decided heat in her blue eyes. “I might be interested in a quick coupling in such a risky venue if you can manage not to wrinkle my gown.”
“Hmm, the only way to ensure that is to remove you from said gown. Not that I mind.” Already, glimpsing the swells of her breasts above the scooped bodice of the gown urged him closer to madness, and even though he’d already enjoyed her body in that rushed coupling, he wanted her again, for a longer session this time, merely because she was his wife.
“Do you know how glad I am that your affection hasn’t changed because we’re married?” She clung to his arm and smiled up at him. “And we still manage to have fun together.”
“Of course we do.” He couldn’t contain his grin. “Once a couple ceases to do that, the rest of the relationship is doomed.” As evidenced by his first marriage.
“Agreed, and the fact that you make me laugh yet treat me with respect ensures that everything else will remain in place.”
“I can do nothing less.” They were perhaps twenty yards off from the hedge maze when a shout laden with pain and agony split the air. “What the devil was that?” he asked as he brought them both to a halt on the sunset-drenched lawn.
“It sounded not quite human.” Mary frowned as she glanced about the immediate area. “Where did it come from?”
Another cry broke the silence at that moment.
“There.” Gabriel pointed in the direction to the left of the maze in a wooded area. “That was quite human. Shall we investigate?”
“Yes, of course, and hurry.” Her willingness to help never failed to tighten his chest and squeeze his heart with pride. “If that person is hurt, they will need our help.”
He led the way into the wooded area holding onto one of Mary’s hands. Approximately fifty yards into the woods, what they found was exceedingly horrid. “Good God.”
“Dear heavens,” Mary whispered as she skittered to a halt beside him. “Lord Kendrick?”
The young earl had been stripped to his small pants and tied to a tree near a crumbling and ruined folly. He had been blindfolded, but that wasn’t the strangest thing about the situation. Bloody slash marks decorated his chest and arms from knife wounds into which someone had rubbed salt. They now oozed, and no doubt that was why there was such agony in the cries. Salt in raw wounds would sting like the devil.
“Who’s there?” His brown curls were tangled with the bark of the tree as he thrashed his head about. “If you think to intimidate me further, I will fight until my last.”
“Calm yourself, Your Lordship,” Gabriel said in a low voice while he looked at Mary. “We are here to help you. It’s Inspector and Mrs. Bright.” To her he said, “Untie the earl. I’m going to reconnoiter and see if the perpetrator is still here.”
“Please be careful.” She squeezed his fingers before releasing his hand.
“Always.” Then he crept cautiously deeper into the wooded area and hoped to hell enough of the fading sunlight would penetrate the trees.
No matter where he went in the woods, there was no sign of anyone else. Neither was there an indication of where the earl’s clothing had been taken. For a few minutes, Gabriel stood silent as a sentry, but other than the usual bird sounds and the faint scrape of leaves against other leaves, he didn’t hear footfalls or even breathing.
Well, damn. Who’d done this and why? Did it have something to do with Edwin’s death, or was this an unrelated crime?
By the time he returned to the tree where Kendrick had been secured, Mary had untied the ropes. Apparently, she’d given him her wrap, which he’d draped over his shoulders. She’d led him out of the wooded area and as soon as they reached the lawn, he collapsed onto the ground.
“It’s all right, Your Lordship. Rest there. We’ll see you back to the manor in short order,” she told him in soothing tones, but jumped when Gabriel reached her side. Clearly, she’d been intently focused on caring for the other man.
Going down on one knee with his forearms resting on that knee, he held the younger man’s gaze with his own. “Who did this to you?”
“I don’t know.” The earl shook his head as he started to shiver. “I didn’t recognize the voice, but then, it was quite raspy and deep, no doubt to disguise it.”
“Was your attacker a man or a woman?”
“Again, I don’t know. I was blindfolded. The voice could have belonged to anyone, and they didn’t really speak much.”
Mary laid a hand on Kendrick’s shoulder. “What about smells? Did your assailant wear cologne or perfume? If you could remember that, we might be able to identify them if they are part of the house party.”
Gabriel intently watched the earl’s face as the younger man gave the question some thought. Fear was the prominent emotion in his hazel eyes. They should take him back to the manor soon, for he would be wracked by shock from his wounds, and they would need to carry him.
Finally, he shrugged, then winced. “Not that I could tell. But then, I wasn’t thinking about sniffing the person; I was afraid I’d be killed. Instead, I was cut and tortured.”
“I know.” Mary again patted his shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Your Lordship.”
“Please, call me Kendrick, or even Alan.” Fatigue lined his face. “One moment I was hiking through the woods to work up an appetite for dinner, the next I was hit in the back of the head with a hard object. When I came to, I was here and practically naked.”
Gabriel softly cleared his throat to redirect attention to him. “What did your attacker say when he or she was slashing at you?”
“Um…” The earl swallowed so hard his Adam’s apple bobbed. “They kept saying that what I’d done wasn’t fair, that I didn’t deserve to live the life I have now, that it was only made possible from a sacrifice, and that now I needed to pay them back.”
He frowned. “Who?”
“I don’t know!” Just as Gabriel feared, Kendrick’s shoulders shook, and his teeth began to chatter even though it wasn’t all that cold in the twilit night. “How could I know? I’m sure my friends would never have done something this egregious, and a stranger wouldn’t have said that.”
“Which means you know what they referred to,” Gabriel pressed as he surged into a standing position. “Why won’t you tell us everything?”
The earl shook his head. “I’m sure anything I could think of wouldn’t prove connected.” He struggled to his feet. “I would like to go back to the manor with at least some dignity.” There was a hint of command in his voice. In a couple of years, he would be quite an effective earl.
“Of course. We’ll escort you there. Put your arm about my shoulders. My wife will flank your other side. ”
Between them, they helped Kendrick to the manor in short order. Immediately, Gabriel had footmen running for various items they would need while he and Mary helped the younger man upstairs to his bedchamber. Thankfully, the man he shared the room with was no doubt at dinner, so they were able to put the earl into his narrow bed without annoying questions.
A handful of moments later, footmen brought up a basin of warm water, a stack of clean and folded rags, as well as the same sort of healing balm Mary had used on her head wound from earlier.
God, had it only been that day? It seemed an eternity now.
Then a maid brought in a tray of tea things, and the earl’s valet arrived with concern on his face. Gabriel escorted his wife out of the room, but they stood in the corridor, waiting.
“Do you believe that incident is connected with our case?” she asked as she wiped her hands on one of the rags.
“At this point, I couldn’t begin to speculate, but it is worrying.” He leaned his back against the wall. “It could also be that we’ve frightened the killer, and now he’s acting rashly, but I’ll promise you this. We will figure this out.”
Nearly twenty minutes later, the door opened again. The maid and the valet went out, so Gabriel stood back, let Mary precede him into the room, and then he followed. Kendrick’s wounds had been cleaned and bandaged, and he was dressed in loose Turkish-style pajamas and propped up against the pillows.
“I realize this isn’t the most ideal time and that you should rest, but while we have you alone, I would like to ask you a few questions regarding the murder of Edwin Rightenour.” Gabriel offered him what he hoped was a disarming grin. “Then I’ll ring for some laudanum if you’d like.”
“I’d rather have a bottle of whisky, if it’s all the same to you.” With a sigh, the younger man nodded. “Proceed. I have been expecting your summons.”
“How did you know Mr. Rightenour?”
Mary sat on the foot of his bed and accepted the notebook he handed her since she didn’t have hers. “Whenever you are ready, Kendrick.”
The earl nodded. “I went to Cambridge with him and his brother.” The man seemed to have aged a few years since they found him in the woods. The flickering candlelight wasn’t kind to him, and honestly, the boy could do with a full night’s sleep. “Along with Quentin and another boy, Stuart. We were a reckless quintet, but happy most of the time, all gentlemen about Town.” Then his expression changed into that of sadness. “Unfortunately, Stuart died two years after we were through with our schooling. ”
Gabriel frowned. “How so?”
Kendrick’s gaze fell to his hands clasped on top of the counterpane. A signet ring rested on his left pinky finger, the same one each of the twins owned. “I don’t wish to say, for it doesn’t reflect well on me.”
“Fair enough.” He paused to let Mary write her notes. “Did the five of you rub along well at university?”
“Mostly.” Shadows filled his eyes. “We had our disagreements, of course, but life in school is much different than life as a fully grown man. Tempers and allegiances changes. There are responsibilities and other things we become aware of.”
“Will you expand on that?”
The earl raised his gaze to Gabriel’s. “I’d rather not admit to my indiscretions. It was a horrible time and doesn’t have any bearing on the man I’m trying to be. The man I was back then was an embarrassment to my family, and it was in my past.”
It was Mary who answered this time. “I understand your reticence to speak on that, and it is your right, but oftentimes the healing we need in our future is found in that same past.”
How much did he adore her? She was the perfect partner to his bluntness.
Still, Kendrick shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
Gabriel nodded. “Very well. Can you think of anyone who hated Edwin so much that they might kill him?”
Some of the blood drained from the earl’s face. “Anyone he’d met, I’d imagine.” And again, he wouldn’t meet Gabriel’s eyes.
“Where were you on the morning Edwin met his demise?”
“I had only just arrived at the manor. Barely had I given my greetings to Lord and Lady Titterford when the news of the murder swept through the guests.”
That was all he could do this night. “If you should think of something else relevant to the case, please send a footman for me.” Gabriel moved to the still open door while Mary rose to her feet. “Rest easy, Kendrick. I’ll order that whiskey for you, and just to ease your mind and mine, I’ll have a footman posted outside your door for the next twenty-four hours.”
“I appreciate that, Inspector. Thank you.” Then he leaned his head back against the pillows and closed his eyes.
Gabriel closed the door softly behind him. “Well, we’ve missed dinner once again. Why don’t you retire to our room and order the meal sent up on a tray for us?”
“That sounds lovely. After what we just witnessed, I’m not sure I have much of an appetite.” She gave him back his notebook and pencil nub. “I might just want to snuggle up with you and revel in your protection.”
His heart squeezed. “That I can do.”
Before either of them could speak again, he was hailed from the direction of the stairs. Lord Titterford gained the floor. “A moment of your time, Inspector.”
Mary patted his arm. “I’ll be waiting.”
“This shouldn’t take long,” he murmured and then retraced his steps along the corridor until he reached the stairs. “What can I do for you, my lord?”
“Don’t try your charm on me.” The viscount wagged a finger at him. “Has there been a break in the case? Everyone at the dinner table is buzzing about the state of Kendrick when you brought him in.”
“No, there is no break, but this recent attack is worrisome.”
The older man shoved the fingers of one hand through his hair. His eyes were a bit crazed. “For the love of God, Bright, find the killer! I am being harassed by the women in my family, and I can only withstand their pleas and tears for so long.” He huffed. “And if I have to listen to my daughter play any more mournful music on that damned piano, I might just off myself.”
That position probably wasn’t the best to find oneself in. “I am doing the best I can.”
“Why the hell haven’t you moved forward with an arrest?”
“And if I brand an innocent person the murderer?” When he was met with silence, Gabriel sighed. “What makes you think I haven’t gained great insight to narrow down our suspects? This is a long game, Titterford, not instant gratification.” He offered a slight grin. “If I do something rash, the killer will spook. Can you live with yourself knowing your neighbor’s murder wasn’t solved because of that? That his killer slipped away into the night because my investigation was rushed?” One of his eyebrows rose. “Or worse, could you have on your conscience the knowledge that the killer will do so again?”
“No, of course not.” The air went out of Titterford’s proverbial sails. “I know you are working on this day and night, but I just want the peace and solitude of my house back.”
“I understand. Be patient, my lord. I have a feeling everything will come to a head soon.” Especially in light of what happened to the earl. It was connected, he could feel it, but he just didn’t know how.
“Good.” The viscount nodded. “Regardless, you have one more day. That’s it. Day after tomorrow, those children will be wed.”
“But that is unwise—”
“You heard me,” Titterford interrupted. “That is final.”
Well, damn. “Thank you. I will do my level best.” What was he supposed to do now?