Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
When Evie and James returned to Bottoms House the next day, Xenia and Gigi dashed into the entrance hall to greet them, their voluminous skirts swinging with their haste.
“There you are!” Gigi exclaimed. “What took you so long? We’ve been waiting for ages.”
James turned to Evie. “My love, why do I feel as if we have been run to earth before we’ve even crossed the threshold?”
“Come quickly.” Xenia, whose temperament was generally less excitable than Gigi’s, looked as if she were about to burst at the seams. “Mama is waiting for us.”
Evie’s curiosity was further piqued when they were led to Xenia’s private sitting room. Mama was there, sipping tea in the cozy chamber overlooking the garden. After greeting her, Evie and James settled on an overstuffed chintz sofa.
“The pair of you look refreshed.” Mama’s gaze was warm. “How was your lecture, dearest?”
“It went as well as I could have hoped.” Smiling, Evie interlaced her fingers with her husband’s. “James was a great support.”
“You shone on your own merit.” He kissed her hand before adding somberly, “We made some discoveries as well.”
He described the visit to the glovemaker’s shop and to Murdoch’s consulting rooms. The description of the physician’s death did not improve with a second telling, and Evie shivered.
“Heavens.” Gigi paled. “What did you do?”
“I sent an anonymous note to the police with Murdoch’s address,” James replied. “I couldn’t risk further involvement. To do so might alert the blackmailer to my activities—or stir up scandal I cannot afford.”
“Do you suppose that Murdoch was involved with the blackmail scheme?” Gigi asked. “And someone—his partner, perhaps—murdered him to ensure his silence?”
“Or to take his share of the payment,” Mama said coolly.
Xenia’s forehead pleated. “Do you think Merrow is responsible for both the extortion and the murder?”
“It is possible,” Evie said. “He struck me as a scheming fellow—one who would do anything to get ahead. His devotion to Wilmington was likely self-serving: he viewed his master as a ladder to reach his ambitions. By taking Wilmington’s life, I deprived Merrow of his livelihood and foiled his plans.
I still remember how he cornered me, shouting, ‘What have you done?’”
With flooding terror, she felt him shoving her against the wall, his eyes blazing with violence, his spittle stinging her face. Warmth encircled her shoulders—James’s arm. His strength drew her back into the present.
“All right, love?” he murmured. “Perhaps we ought to take a break—”
“No, let us finish this.” Composing herself, she shared the theory she and James had deliberated upon.
“It is possible that Merrow persuaded Dr. Murdoch to keep the poisoning a secret. Accusing me would have gained him nothing save perceived justice for his employer. But I don’t think loyalty was his driving motivation—self-interest was.
He might have decided that while I was useless to him as a penniless adolescent girl, perhaps one day I would be worth something.
Perhaps one day I could give him the wealth he’d been robbed of…
and he would have an unbreakable hold on me.
He could get whatever he wanted because he knew my secret. ”
“He played a long game.” Mama nodded briskly. “That takes intelligence and self-control, which makes him a dangerous nemesis indeed.”
“Should we keep to the plan and try to lure him out?” Gigi bit her lip. “Before, we didn’t know Merrow was capable of murder, but now…”
“Now we need to stop him more than ever,” Evie said. “James and I have discussed this.”
“I wouldn’t say we are in full agreement on using you as bait to capture Merrow,” James muttered. “But, yes, in principle, we agree: he must be stopped.”
“I won’t be in danger with everyone looking out for me,” Evie said soothingly. “By the by, we picked up the necklace from Garrard.”
Reaching into her traveling bag, she removed the velvet case and opened it. The fine paste diamonds sparkled in the sunlight, the riviere pattern an exact replica of her original necklace.
“Quite convincing,” Mama said. “It would fool most people.”
“I plan to wear the genuine article at every affair. If the blackmailer has eyes on me, he will see it and hopefully be enticed to make another demand.”
A sudden silence descended upon the room, and she caught the glances traded between the other ladies. A sense of foreboding quickened her pulse.
“What is it?” she asked.
It was Mama who spoke. “There is a reason we wanted to speak to you in private upon your return. We made a discovery ourselves. I am afraid it has to do with Harkness.”
Disquiet spread through Evie. “What about her?”
“After you left, she was acting strangely. There was a certain furtiveness to her behavior that caught my attention. One day, I followed her,” Mama admitted.
“You did what?” James frowned. “Were you alone?”
“Dear boy, you ought to know by now that I can take care of myself. I could hardly bring a coterie with me on a covert mission, could I?” She waved off his concern.
“At any rate, I followed Harkness to Chudleigh Crest, where she visited a coaching inn. From what I could ascertain, she was inquiring about the schedule to the Reading train station.”
The lines deepened on James’s face. “Evie, did you know Harkness was planning a trip?”
“No.” Her dread turned into denial. “However, I am sure there is a good explanation—”
“I did not wish to say it then, but I must now.”
Seeing Mama’s sober countenance, Evie shook her head, as if she could ward off what was coming.
“Back when you discussed potential suspects—those who were present at the time of Wilmington’s murder and knew your secret—you missed one key person.”
“I had the same thought,” James said quietly. “And I mentioned it to Evie.”
“No.” When the word emerged as a hoarse whisper, Evie said it again. “No. You’re both mistaken. Harkness has taken care of me my entire life. She would never—”
“I know it is hard to contemplate the possibility, but you must,” Mama insisted.
Evie’s head whirled. “Inquiring about train schedules is not an indication of guilt. Harkness might just want a holiday—”
“There is more.” Xenia’s brown eyes shimmered with empathy. “I am sorry, Evie, but after what Mama discovered, I…I searched Harkness’s chamber.”
“While I distracted Harkness,” Gigi added. “We had to do it, Evie, for your safety.”
Evie said faintly, “Did you find something?”
“Fifty gold sovereigns,” Xenia blurted. “And a pair of lady’s gloves from Perry & Morris.”
“Those are coincidences. They mean nothing.” The knots in Evie’s chest made it hard to breathe. “Harkness has always practiced economy. She has scrimped and saved since I was a girl. With the wages James provides, it’s perfectly possible that she saved—”
“You gave the blackmailer a hundred sovereigns.” James’s jaw was granite-hard, his gaze full of steel. “Now Harkness has half that amount in her possession…which could be her share if she is working with a partner. And don’t forget Harkness knows Merrow. They worked together for years.”
“She would never hurt me,” Evie said desperately. “You know what she has done for me.”
“I know she resents me,” James countered. “She has never hidden her animosity. It is not much of a leap to suppose that she might act upon it. Perhaps blackmailing you is a way of gaining revenge on me for taking you away.”
“She would never do such a thing.” Evie was appalled. “As for the money, that must be her own savings. And countless people own gloves made by Perry & Morris—”
“Harkness has large hands for a woman,” Mama said. “Xenia took one of her gloves, and now that you have returned, we may compare it with the blackmailer’s.”
“You are wrong, all of you.” Evie shot to her feet, her voice shaking. “Harkness would never betray me. For years, she was the only family I had—”
Suddenly, she was weeping. An instant later, James was holding her.
“There now.” His voice gentled. “It is true that we don’t know for certain if Harkness is involved. However, we cannot ignore the evidence.”
“Sh-she stood by me.”
Evie drew back, her chest twisting when she saw his stark expression.
“When I was alone in the world, Harkness was my only friend. I cannot lose her.”
“If she is innocent, then you will not lose her,” he said. “Yet we must take precautions.”
“What sort of precautions?”
Mama spoke up. “You cannot confide in her any longer. About anything.”
“If Harkness were conspiring with Merrow or whoever the blackmailer is,” Evie said miserably, “wouldn’t she have told him about our plan? He would know that I shared my secret with you and that we are setting a trap to capture him. Wouldn’t he have exposed my secret by now?”
“Perhaps she hasn’t had the opportunity to share the information,” Gigi suggested. “Or perhaps he has a contingency plan of some sort. From a practical viewpoint, exposing you doesn’t do him any good: better to wait and see if he can gain leverage in another way.”
“If the blackmailer does not make contact this week,” James said grimly, “that would support the theory that Harkness tipped him off.”
“In any case,” Mama said, “you must play along, Evie. Act as if you suspect nothing. When Harkness asks about London, you will say that your lecture was a success, but you learned nothing about the blackmailer.”
“In other words, I must keep secrets again.” With palpitating anguish, Evie said, “I must lie to my oldest friend…who may have betrayed me.”
Evie spent the next few days accompanying James to various events.
From charity functions to hospital visits, she played the role of loving wife and helpmeet as best she could.
While her support of her husband was genuine, the fact that she might have compromised his future by trusting the wrong person—the person who’d been her confidante, whom she thought of as kin—weighed as heavily as the diamond necklace she flaunted to lure the blackmailer.