Chapter Ten
At midmorning, Felix decided to walk the shore. After he and Caroline finally consummated their union the night before, he felt as if things were more congenial between them… except there was still sorrow and a bit of fear in her eyes when he’d woken her with a kiss not an hour ago.
Why, though?
It was puzzling, especially since she claimed there was nothing wrong. Clearly, it was a lie, but until he had more evidence—or knowledge—he didn’t know how to question her or arrive at the truth of the matter.
With each footfall, he wished he didn’t have a prosthetic leg, for he would have liked to have felt the water on his feet, on his leg, would have liked to traverse the pebbled and sand beach without feeling unsteady or having to heavily rely on his cane.
Caroline didn’t deserve a man like him, a man who wasn’t whole or even young any longer, but she’d married him anyway… and she loved him.
There was a certain comfort in that.
When he arrived at the spot where Danforth’s body had washed ashore, he stood in the same place that he had the morning of his wedding.
The relentless waves had never stopped, and there wasn’t a trace of the indentions made from the body.
Of course there wasn’t; it had been a couple of days, and the sea would have claimed any further evidence.
But something niggled at the corners of his brain.
If Danforth was killed not too far away and then dumped into the sea, where was the actual murder scene?
And which way did he need to start looking?
Beyond the surface level disgust that Danforth showed everyone, especially when he’d been drinking, why would anyone wish to kill him?
Men like him existed in every echelon of society and no one went around offing them.
They were just avoided and whispered about. So why him? Why now?
Why on the morning of my fucking wedding?
There were no easy answers. In fact, he had more questions now than when he’d begun his investigation.
Caroline’s mother owned the murder weapon, and she had ample opportunity to kill Danforth.
The maid had motive, as well as the viscountess, but the maid was slighter in frame.
He doubted she could have plunged the letter opener into a body to the hilt let alone haul it from the townhouse to the beach and then into the sea.
The dragging or carrying dead weight would have required strength, and that’s why he was leaning toward a man…
of which there were many in direct connection to the nuptial ceremony.
Starting with the gentleman he’d met just after finding the body. Damn it all to hell.
Before he began another round of interviews or sleuthing, he required coffee and in copious amounts. As he turned about to return to the cottage, he gazed across the still-deserted beach only to find a familiar figure.
“Shit.” At that point, he was obliged to wait until Captain Horner came closer. Once he did, Felix gripped the head of his cane a bit more tightly. “How goes it, Captain?”
“Well enough. Thought I’d take in the sea air.”
Felix nodded. “Are you on holiday, then?”
“Not exactly.”
“Well, it is fortuitous you’re here. I need to interview you regarding the death of Lord Danforth.”
The other man frowned. “Here?”
“Of course not.” A growl threaded through the response.
It wasn’t ideal, but there was nothing for it.
“Come up to my cottage. My wife was still abed when I came out to the shore. However, if she’s awake, we can break our fast together.
” Originally, he’d planned to come back from his shore rambles by kissing Caroline awake, which would have hopefully led to other, more pleasurable things, yet that wouldn’t be possible now.
“Very well.”
In silence, they walked up the beach then along the short walkway and through the wrought iron gate until Felix ushered his guest into the cottage.
“The drawing room is on the second level. I’ll join you there presently.
” Once the captain moved toward the stairs, he summoned Mrs. Andrews, explained the situation and asked that tea, coffee, and perhaps pastries be brought in for his temporary guest.
By the time he walked into the drawing room, surprise went through his chest to find Caroline chatting merrily with the other man.
The reddish strands in his brown hair were more pronounced in the morning sunlight that streamed into the room.
Annoyance stabbed into the vicinity of his heart.
Why wasn’t she that carefree or animated around him these days?
“Oh, Felix, did you know that Captain Horner works for Bow Street? I wonder if your paths crossed with his during those years.” She glanced at him with amusement dancing in her eyes. “How lovely that the two of you have that in common.”
For a second, his lower jaw went slack. “I beg your pardon, but did you say Horner is with Bow Street?”
“Yes.” Caroline nodded. She was darling this morning in a cotton day dress in a robin’s egg blue color that made her eyes glow. “He is also quite charming, said you’d invited him to take breakfast with us this morning.”
“Uh, I did, because I need to interview him.” To say he was caught by surprise with the revelation was an understatement. Quickly, he took a seat near the sofa where his wife and the captain rested. “Why didn’t you tell me that when we first met?”
Captain Horner shrugged. “It was irrelevant at the time.” He plucked a speck of lint from the knee of his breeches. “I’m afraid I wasn’t quite forthright with you that morning, but there is good reason for that.”
“You will need to enlighten me. Your arrival when the dead man washed ashore was far too coincidental.” As he spoke, Felix removed his notebook and pencil from the interior pocket of his jacket.
“It’s true that I’m with Bow Street as a principal officer.” The captain paused when a maid entered the room with a wooden tray bearing a tea service with a pot of coffee.
Caroline thanked the young woman. “Tea or coffee, Captain?”
“Uh, tea please. One lump of sugar.”
While his wife prepared the repast, Felix cleared his throat. “How long have you been with Bow Street?”
“Several years now, but only in the last year have I been assigned cases to work on my own.” He grinned at Caroline as he accepted the cup of tea from her.
“Yet you are here, in Brighton, as a guest at my wedding. Why? Who are you to the dead man?” When Caroline gave him a cup of coffee, he nodded his thanks to her and caught her eye. She smiled, and awareness shivered over his skin. Why the hell couldn’t he have been alone with her?
“That’s the only part of the story that doesn’t make sense to an outside observer.” The captain sipped from his tea. “I am nothing to him, actually.”
Confusion gripped Felix’s mind. “Why did you come here to the wedding then?”
“Because Lord Danforth’s name was on an invoice my quarry had in his possession, and I wanted to know why. Also, I believe that same man I’m hunting might have been hiding amongst the guests or friends of your wife’s family.”
“What?” Caroline asked on the heels of a gasp as she poured out her own cup with a shaking hand.
Felix bounced his gaze between them, for he, too, wished to know the answer. “To what end? Business happens everywhere. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that the man you’re after was here.”
“Apparently, Danforth gave this man a few thousand pounds to invest, and this man didn’t do that.” The captain paused to take a sip of tea. “Instead, he absconded with the coin, disappeared from London along with a handful of other people’s money, including the Earl of Grantly.”
Interesting. “What do you know of Lord Danforth?”
“Not much. Only that he was reckless with coin but insanely fortunate with his investments. Had a gut feeling as it were, which was probably why my quarry wished to prey upon him.”
“What’s the name of the man you’re hunting?”
“Leopold Manford.”
“That name isn’t familiar to me.”
“Then count yourself fortunate, else he’d try to have you invest as well.”
Felix glanced at Caroline, who shrugged. Clearly, she hadn’t heard of the supposed guest either. Then he focused back on the captain. “Back to Danforth’s death. Did you see him the morning of the wedding?”
“Briefly.”
“Where?”
The captain huffed out a breath. “Just outside, in the garden. He was arguing with a woman, and he seemed in quite a hurry.”
Caroline frowned as she set her teacup on the table. “Was the woman a maid in this townhouse?” Then she pressed a fingertip to the Cupid’s bow of her top lip while swallowing hard. Was she upset about the subject matter? It wasn’t any more upsetting than all the other cases they’d worked.
“I couldn’t be certain, but I don’t believe so.” Horner looked at her and again grinned, much to Felix’s annoyance. “She was dressed in wedding finery.”
He returned his cup to its saucer with more force than necessary. China clinked together as he laid them both on the table. “What happened then?”
“Since I was walking the shore, I couldn’t say for certain, but it looked as if the argument grew more heated. Abruptly, both left the garden area and went around toward the street.”
“Where do you think they were going? One of the maids said she overheard him headed to a bakery.”
The captain shrugged. “I couldn’t say, for I wasn’t hunting him.”
“Fair enough.” Felix rubbed the side of his face with a hand. This was rapidly getting them nowhere. “You’re free to go. If we have more questions, I shall notify you.”
“If you don’t mind, I’ll linger a bit and talk with your charming wife and partake of the assortment of pastries you’ve provided.
” As he spoke, he put a couple of seed cakes and a jam tart onto his saucer.
“By the by, our paths crossed a couple of times in Bow Street, just before you were injured and forced to retire.”