Chapter 29
After explaining the strange coincidence of three of their suspects potentially knowing sleight of hand, rather than actual magic, all six of them decided it was time for coffee and a snack. Alex got Smithson to bring in a tray and he was thanked with great feeling by everyone involved.
"All right," said Alex, sitting on one of the chairs Smithson had also brought in, "how are things looking?"
"Well, we'll talk to every single stupid noble here, and then release them one at a time," said Lapointe, "but we won't release the suspicious ladies until we have to, unless we manage to actually arrest one."
"Do you have your minions looking into the snake angle?" said Alex. "Because that's the weirdest skill here, being able to milk snakes."
"Is it really called that?" said Thomas, and they all nodded.
"It's not hard, I looked it up," said Julian, "but it's a little dangerous if you don't have the specific equipment, mainly the bite-proof gloves."
"You can fake up the other thing by stretching a condom or even a couple of layers of plastic wrap over the top of a glass," added Alex, "but it's still dangerous to handle the snake itself."
"Gotta have quick hands for all of it," said Lapointe. "I know who I'd prefer it was based on demeanour, but that's not always or even often probative."
Julian took a bite of one of the little hors d'oeuvres that they'd been brought, which were probably originally intended for one of Chudleigh's planned activities that were not to be.
The stuffed mushroom cap was filled with breadcrumbs, cheese, and smoked oysters, and delicious as anything.
"Oh, the kitchen here does such a good job with these classics," he said.
"No one's dared poison the food yet," commented Thomas. "Scrump says only the cups were dusted, none of the food. Our killer has something against tea, I guess."
"Mine was coffee, and Camellia's was a cocktail," said Alex. "So it's drinks in general, I guess. And I'm glad we have these bezoars."
"You're going to make some for yourself, I bet," said James, watching as Alex pulled his out to look at again.
"Of course he is," said Julian fondly. "As soon as we're home, he'll be down in his mad wizard lab seeing if he can make a batch."
"They're not hard to make, but I'm not sure I have the right stones," said Alex, putting it away. "I can get them, though."
"Maybe we'll make them during the waiting," said James. "We were told that we aren't to leave you two until the murderer's arrested, and even if that's today, to hang out a few days and see what's up with the Source."
"Nice," said Julian. "You know you're always welcome."
"I can order in the stones if Jones will do the delivery. He's hanging out with the servants, I think?" Alex looked at his phone but didn't unlock it yet.
"He is, yeah. He can bring the house a delivery or three tomorrow, I'm sure Alys will have things she wants, too," said Jacques.
"Always," said Alex.
"I've got it, you just take care of your wishlist," said Julian, texting Alys and then Jones and trusting the two of them to organise it all.
She knew most of Alex's suppliers by now, and the bezoar stones weren't jeweller-level purchases.
Though at this point the jewel suppliers would also probably fill an order for her, as long as it was paid for.
"You know me too well," said Alex, poking through his phone. He kept a hodgepodge of notes, to-do lists, wish lists, and photos of other lists on there, and somehow managed to pull what he needed out of the chaos all the time.
Julian thought it was madness.
"All right, so we've got you two for a few days," said Julian, and then he turned to Lapointe and Thomas. "You two will no doubt end up ferrying between here and the Agency, so I won't bother to burden you with another stop."
Lapointe shrugged. "If we finish in time, we'll come over for tea or something," she said.
"She doesn't like to miss a chance at the extra awesome cooking that happens when Alys and Jacques hang out," said Thomas with a wink.
"Neither do I, so I don't blame her," said Julian. It was easy with this group the way everything had been hard with the other partygoers, and he was looking forward to not dealing with any of these people for a long time, except for Geoff and Chudleigh.
He took out his phone and texted them both to see how they were holding up.
He got a, "Busy with the cops," message from Chudleigh, unsurprisingly.
Dr. Geoff said, "All right, helping the coroner."
Julian sent them both some encouraging emojis and put his phone back away.
"You're too sweet," said Alex, kissing his temple. "We'll have them out to the cottage in a few weeks, once things are back to normal-ish for them."
"I hope Chudleigh won't have to redo that one room again," said Julian with a sigh. "Camellia didn't die on the bed, though, so maybe he can get away with some paint and new bedspreads and stuff."
"Oh, I didn't think of that. Will he have to redo the drawing room where Wicket died?" asked Alex.
"Why is he called Wicket?" asked Lapointe.
"Oh, he played cricket, and you know, Finklewick, Wicket. A lot of them have nicknames like that, though I never socialised enough to have one," said Alex. "One generally picks them up in secondary school or uni, I'm given to understand."
"Alex is un-nickname-able," teased Julian. "Could you imagine?"
"I mean, people did try to call me Dick," said Alex, "but I didn't bother to answer."
That got them all laughing, and something relaxed in the room as they remembered how to all be old friends despite the looming spectre of murder.
That was, of course, when someone knocked at the door. Julian was starting to hate the sound of knuckles on wood.
"Agent Lapointe, ma'am?" said what was obviously another person from the agency. "We caught one of the noble ladies, the ones you wanted us to watch, out of her rooms."
"Bring her in," said Lapointe, and Julian and Alex made an effort to sit less centrally, James vacating the chair that she'd been using to question people while he and Jacques went back to flanking the door, cups abandoned.
"I am nobility and you will treat me with respect!" Halliwell was saying as the officer nudged her into the room.
"With respect, Lady, you're not being very cooperative," said the poor agent.
She huffed and flounced in, taking a seat in the obvious location without prompting. "Can I at least have some coffee?" she asked belligerently.
"Where'd you find her?" Lapointe asked the agent, Saadu, Julian thought. One of the bullpen guys they were friendly with but not friends, and a newer one at that.
"She was coming downstairs bold as you please," said Saadu. "I don't know where she was headed but she's been quite surprised to be caught out."
"Just like someone who's successfully snuck around before," said Thomas darkly. "You're not making your case very well here, Lady Halliwell."
She glared at him but chose not to speak.
"Get forensics down here to check over her and her things," said Lapointe to Saadu. "I'll take her from here."
"Yes, ma'am," said Saadu, with the tone of a man very happy to be shut of her.
"You know," said Julian, looking critically at the outfit she was wearing, a blue dress with a green shawl and slippers and a purse that matched neither, "changing clothes would make her hard to pin down by the staff. Is this what she was wearing in your office earlier?"
"I don't think so?" said Lapointe, flipping through her notes. "The dress is the same, maybe."
"She had a jacket thing instead of the shawl," said Thomas. "Can't say about the shoes, though."
"I will not be talked about as if I am not here," said Halliwell, nostrils flaring and face going red. "I am a woman of rank!"
"You're a murder suspect," said Lapointe, unimpressed. "Your rank doesn't mean beans if you killed those people."
"And tried to kill three others," added Alex, "including me. Four if we count Julian."
She harrumphed delicately and folded her arms over her chest, purse swinging into her lap. It was an oversized leather affair from some designer or another, and it looked like it could hold a whole apothecary of poisons. "Just because you suspect me incorrectly is no reason to be rude."
"I'll keep that in mind," said Lapointe. "Now, what were you doing out of your rooms?"
"The policemen were in there," she said. "I didn't want to watch them go through all of my delicates, it's not right."
She looked even more upset at that, but less watery than Julian thought she ought to have been going for if she wanted Lapointe's sympathy.
"So you thought you'd wander downstairs and into areas you were specifically asked not to go into?" said Lapointe dubiously.
"Where else should I have gone?" she huffed, offended again, though to Julian it all felt a little performative.
"You should have stayed where you were told, which is probably in your rooms helping the techs," said Lapointe dryly. "For now you can stay down here." She picked up her phone and sent a text, probably to figure out who was in her rooms and when they'd be done.
"When will you guys visit for a weekend again, anyway?" asked Alex, clearly intending to annoy.
Sometimes it had a purpose, though, so Julian let it go.
"Oh, I was hoping for a Castles marathon in two weeks when there's that big event," said Thomas, sending them puppy eyes. "I asked Nat to put it in your calendars."
Halliwell was cooperating nicely by growing more and more annoyed, her expression going from performatively pathetic to sincerely irked.
Julian looked and indeed the Golden Moon Event was blocked out for that whole weekend for both him and Alex, on both their personal and work calendars, which were really the same one with different colours.
"That sounds great, I should have all those moonflowers grown in time, I've been watching over them carefully. "