Chapter 12 #4
Mrs. Hester shrugged. “Oh, she had been to Thornwycke Hall to see her father. But no one at Thornwycke got sick afterward, so that was ruled out. Mrs. Granger was so kind and thoughtful to them. She had soups and easily digested stews delivered to Martha daily, but nothing seemed to help.”
“That is sad,” Alex said, the hairs on the back of his neck beginning to prickle.
What had Mr. Carver’s daughter noticed at Thornwycke?
Whatever it was, he’d wager it got her poisoned.
By the ever-helpful Mrs. Granger?
Or was his cynical mind looking for something sinister where it did not exist? Martha obviously was not the girl mentioned in his grandfather’s journal.
And the killer had not done away with any of the Davenport dukes yet…unless his grandfather had been helped along to an earlier death, one also hastened by slow poisoning.
And how was Mrs. Granger involved in any of this when she was new on the job at the time?
“What do you know about Mrs. Granger,” Alex asked. “She seems rather young to be a housekeeper for a manor house as large as Thornwycke Hall.”
Tulip’s eyes widened and she stared at him, no doubt wondering why he was curious about their housekeeper.
“Did you know her, Aunt Perty? I don’t remember ever seeing her in Burnham before.”
“She rarely comes into town. Odd, one would think that she would.”
“Why do you find it odd?” Tulip asked.
Perty Hester shrugged. “Her family is from around here. Your uncle and I, and Mr. Carver, grew up with Mrs. Granger’s mother and aunt. The mother’s name was Margaret and the aunt was Elspeth.”
Alex choked on his tea, but quickly recovered. “Do go on, Mrs. Hester. Forgive me, but I felt a sudden urge to sneeze. It has passed. I am fine.”
“Where was I? Oh, yes. Margaret and Elspeth, both of them were such pretty girls. Margaret was the elder. She married and moved away with her husband. They had a little girl, and that is your current housekeeper, Eleanor Granger. But I don’t think they were blessed with any more children.”
“And Elspeth?” Alex prodded.
She sighed and continued. “There was something quite special about her. She was so flawlessly beautiful, she seemed almost magical. All the boys adored her. The girls did, too. She was always very kind and never put on airs. Their parents, the Palters, who are Mrs. Granger’s grandparents, went to live with Margaret shortly after Elspeth disappeared. ”
Tulip gasped. “She disappeared?”
Alex tensed.
Dear heaven.
She had to be the girl named in his grandfather’s diary.
He continued to listen intently as Perty rambled on.
“Yes, my dear. She vanished without a trace,” her aunt replied, shaking her head and frowning. “We were all quite shocked by it and worried that something bad had happened to her. Then a rumor began circulating that Elspeth had run off with a handsome navy officer.”
“And did she?” Tulip asked.
“Well, I had my doubts. She was a beautiful girl, and we all could see how a man might fall in love with her on the spot. But there were no naval officers anywhere around here at the time.”
“Then you don’t believe she ran off?”
Perty shrugged. “Well, not with a naval officer. That seemed unlikely, but we thought it was possible she had eloped with someone else. You see, Elspeth had confided to us about a romantic interest but never told us who the man was. We were sure it was a local gent, someone of importance in our village and perhaps married. But she was a good girl and I could not see her ruining her prospects by consorting with a married man.”
“Then why else bother with all the secrecy?” Tulip asked.
“I truly don’t know, my dear,” her aunt said after taking a sip of her tea.
Alex was eager to pursue this questioning. “Did any gentleman go missing at this same time?”
“No,” Perty replied. “And that’s the bother of it, for everyone here knows everyone else’s business. Well, the parents were frantic with worry at first, but then they seemed to have received news to allay their fears.”
“A letter from Elspeth?”
Her aunt shrugged. “Possibly. That’s when the gossip about her running off with a handsome naval officer began to spread, and they did not deny it.
A few months later, the parents came into some money and moved away to live closer to their other daughter, Margaret.
That was the end of it. We never heard from any of them again. ”
“And Margaret was Mrs. Granger’s mother?” Alex asked, merely confirming the family relations.
“Yes. Anyway, none of us ever heard from them or Mrs. Granger’s aunt, Elspeth, again.”
She sipped the last of her tea and continued.
“We were quite happy when we learned Mrs. Granger had sought employment at Thornwycke Hall. Of course, we weren’t sure it was such a good idea for her to work there considering she was young and beautiful, and the old duke was such a lecherous devil.
Oh, I do beg your pardon, Your Grace. I… ”
Alex shook his head. “I know how awful my family is, Mrs. Hester. Rest assured, I am as appalled as you are. Do go on, I am eager to hear more.”
Tulip’s aunt poured more tea for all of them and picked up where she had left off.
“As I was saying, Mrs. Granger seemed an odd choice for the position of housekeeper, but the duke always liked pretty faces around him. I heard from Mr. Carver that they got along well enough. Your grandfather did not push himself on her. In fact, seems he was quite respectful of her.”
“That’s a surprise,” Alex muttered.
Perty arched an eyebrow. “Yes, but I think his exploits were exaggerated. Despite all you may have heard, he was not really the sort to push himself on anyone. Why should he when he was a very handsome fellow in his younger days and women came to him willingly?”
She turned to her niece. “Tulip, dear…it is the way of things. Handsome dukes get what they want and hardly need to lift a finger to get it. But I understand from Mr. Carver that it was never like that between Mrs. Granger and the old duke. Of course, he could not do much of anything by that time, seeing as he was becoming so frail and sickly. Anyway, there was no need to foist unwanted attention on Mrs. Granger. He still had dozens of scantily clad ladies running about the place even as he lay on his deathbed.”
Tulip’s aunt now turned to Alex, frowning. “You aren’t anything like your grandfather, are you?”
“No, I assure you. My first act upon becoming duke was to write to Mr. Carver and have him send away these…um, unwanted guests.”
Tulip’s eyes widened. “You did?”
“Of course.”
She nodded. “You see, Aunt Perty? Alex is the most decent person you will ever meet. He is nothing like his horrible relatives. He is smart and kind and considerate. And–”
Her aunt laughed. “I am delighted to hear it. I did not think John Farthingale would ever approve of the marriage unless he thought highly of His Grace. Of course, we all know your story and are relieved you turned out nothing like your predecessors.”
“You know my story?” Alex leaned forward, eager to hear Perty Hester’s version of it.
“Oh, yes. It was all anyone spoke of for months afterward. Your mother was very wise to take you away from Thornwycke Hall.”
“I am very well aware,” Alex assured her.
“Very brave of her, too,” she added.
Alex looked forward to Tulip’s aunt telling him more about his mother, but those were questions for another time. His priority was to discover whether there was a killer on the loose who intended to strike again.
“Where was I?” Perty muttered, serving each of them another slice of cake while preparing to spill more gossip that Alex was eager to hear.
“You mentioned Mrs. Granger,” he said, definitely interested in learning more about her now that Perty had made the connection between his housekeeper and Elspeth who was likely the girl his grandfather had mentioned in his journal.
“Oh, yes. She managed the old duke quite well and learned how to maneuver herself around those…er, free-spirited ladies of his. She never complained about the old duke or any of his successors, as far as I know. But I don’t think the succeeding dukes were as nice as the old man.
They took on all of his vices, but had none of his charm. ”
Alex grunted.
The Davenport dukes were all depraved and everyone knew it. Even his ‘kindly’ grandfather was a wretched specimen of a man. That he did not force himself on women was a point in his favor, but he was reprehensible in so many other ways.
The local residents just did not openly state it.
“We hoped you would turn out different, Your Grace,” she continued. “I’m so glad your mother was able to save you from your grandfather’s influence.”
The conversation stopped when Mr. Hester rushed in. “Tulip! Dear girl!”
She leaped to her feet. “Uncle William!”
He was a big, jovial bear of a man, and obviously sentimental. He swallowed Tulip in his beefy arms. “My sweet girl! How good of you to stop by to see us.”
Tulip laughed and hugged him back. “We’ll have you and Aunt Perty to Thornwycke Hall very soon. We only arrived yesterday and have yet to get our bearings.”
She quickly introduced him to Alex.
William Hester regarded him warily, unlike his wife who seemed to accept him without hesitation. But William was probably aware of the depths of the depravity that went on at Thornwycke, things Mr. Carver had told him about that he would never repeat to his wife.
“You are going to adore my husband,” Tulip insisted. “He is nothing like his horrible ancestors. In fact, he is wonderful in every way. Just ask Mr. Carver if you do not believe me.”
William managed a smile. “Glad to hear it.”
“He is,” Tulip insisted with a vehemence that made Alex feel warm inside.
They did not stay long afterward, for the clouds were beginning to thicken and the sky had turned gray. “We had better start for home,” Alex said, thanking them for their hospitality and promising they would receive an invitation shortly.