Chapter Twenty-Eight
Katherine
She should have brought something with her to write notes, but when Katherine had left her room this afternoon, she hadn’t known she’d be following Miss Walker. The woman made Katherine suspicious. How long could a love go unrequited before it turned bitter and twisted?
The woman bent out of sight, rising up a few moments later with a new bloom in her hand. Miss Walker had been puttering about Perrin’s gardens for the better part of two hours, giving her ample time to hide, or harvest, any poisonous flower she wanted.
The large problem that faced Katherine was that she didn’t know anything about horticulture.
Miss Walker could feed her a salad full of death and Katherine would never know.
She wanted to compare the flowers Miss Walker picked with sketches from that book on herbalism she’d found in Perrin’s library, but she was having trouble remembering what they all looked like.
“Purple flower with a stalk full of blossoms. Yellow tulip-looking flower. Small white buds.” She muttered the descriptions on a loop, trying to imprint them to memory. “Purple flower with a stalk full of blossoms. Yellow—”
“What are you doing?” He whispered the question near her ear, causing Katherine to jump.
She covered her mouth with her gloved hand, smothering her squawk. Frowning, she glared at Mr. Evans. “You shouldn’t sneak up on a person,” she said, after raising her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. “It isn’t polite.”
He shifted, his shadow blocking the sun’s rays. “And here I thought we’d moved past the forced politeness stage of our relationship. How disappointing.”
Katherine’s stomach fluttered. She always forgot just how tall and broad he was until he stood next to her. His wide shoulders tested the strength of the fabric of his jacket. His buckskins molded across muscular thighs.
Flustered, she gave him her back. “And here I thought we didn’t have a relationship.”
His chuckle sent a shiver skittering down her spine.
She frowned, not quite sure she liked the feeling and searched for her quarry. “Drat. She’s gone.”
Reaching around her, Mr. Evans plucked a leaf from the hedge that stuck up out of place. “Why are you following Miss Walker?”
“I’ve told you I think she is the most likely suspect in Perrin’s murder.” She turned back to face him. “You and Lady Mary seem biased against her guilt, I’m guessing because of her sex. Women can be just as vicious as any man.”
“I have no doubt.” His whiskey brown eyes twinkled. “I’m certain you’ve left many a man devastated in your wake, with little regard for his heart.”
She knew it was a jest, that Mr. Evans found pleasure in teasing her, but her chest tightened.
“I don’t have the luxury of breaking hearts.
It is known that my father will choose my husband, with little regard for my wishes.
And most men who choose to flirt with me do so with an eye to their financial gain. Their hearts aren’t involved.”
Mr. Evans sobered. “I apologize. I shouldn’t have teased you so soon after both Lord Perrin’s and Mr. Taylor’s deaths. I’m certain, however, that if you had married Perrin, even if it were from mercenary reasons on his part, he would have quickly grown fond of you. Anyone would.”
Her cheeks heated. “Mr. Evans—”
“Henry.”
She rocked back on her heels.
“My Christian name is Henry. I wish for you to call me that, at least when we are alone. And may I call you Katherine?”
She hesitated, her heart pounding unnaturally loudly for such a small request. “Henry.” The name suited him. Strong and practical, just like he was. She said it again. “Henry. I noticed you and my father were quite friendly the other day.”
“He seemed most appreciative of my actions toward Mr. Taylor after he nearly shot you.” A shadow crossed his face. “Contrary to what you may think, your father loves you very much.”
Yes, but he loved other things, too. “I feel I must give you a word of caution.” She hesitated, thinking how best to phrase this.
“My father is most agreeable when it comes to his friendships and with those with whom he is acquainted, but do not expect that amiability to translate to anything further.”
“Are you trying to warn me not to expect your father to give me your hand in marriage?” His eyebrows shot up.
The back of her neck tingling, Katherine turned and started walking away.
He followed.
“I don’t mean to imply that is something you would wish for.
” She grabbed a purple flower and yanked it from its bush.
Another man would try to ingratiate himself with her father, hoping to profit from the relationship, but she didn’t believe it of Mr. Evans.
Henry. He didn’t strike her as a social climber.
He did strike her as someone who wanted to pursue a deeper relationship with her, however.
And that would need her father’s approval.
Which he wouldn’t receive. It was best to nip whatever this was in the bud now rather than let more feelings develop.
It was best if she tried to forget about Henry altogether.
“I only mean to say that my father would see no benefit to pursuing a friendship with you.”
He grasped her shoulder, halting her progress and turning her to face him. “Katherine.” His hand lingered, his thumb resting on the curve of her neck. “Right now I am unconcerned about your father’s wishes. Yours interest me much more. Do… do you regret what has happened between us?”
She touched her mouth, the silk of her gloves a poor substitute for his lips. No, she didn’t regret it. That memory would sustain her for years to come. It didn’t seem possible that a kiss could have felt as good as she remembered.
She swayed forward, her chest almost touching his. Perhaps if they tried again, perhaps then—
“Hallo there.” Miss Walker’s cheery voice startled Katherine from her preoccupation. “Are you enjoying Perrin’s gardens as much as I am?”
Henry gave the intruder what Katherine had come to think of as his professional smile. “Very much so. Though it was my understanding that these gardens are due to Lady Perrin. After her death, Lord Perrin merely maintained them.”
Miss Walker’s face tightened. The edges of her smile turned brittle. “Yes, Lady Perrin took great pleasure in her work here. It is to her husband’s credit that he indulged her hobby so generously.”
Katherine frowned. She didn’t doubt Perrin’s wife would enjoy working in her garden, but it seemed of little credit to the man himself to encourage something that improved the appearance and value of his estate. And reduced the cost of the labor of his gardeners.
Henry tilted his head. “I thought Mr. Withers mentioned that Lord Perrin wasn’t a great supporter of his sister’s hobby. That Withers himself provided the lady with many of her favorite plants here.”
Miss Walker tightened her grip on the basket, her knuckles going white. “Mr. Withers? He is hardly one to criticize a man for inattentiveness to his wife. I understand there was a time when he was a most faithless husband.”
“You were quite fond of Lord Perrin, were you not?” Katherine’s chest burned with sympathy for the late Lady Perrin.
She could only imagine this viper’s tongue turned on the countess whenever Miss Walker came to call.
A woman in love with the countess’s husband, and who seemed loath to find any fault in the man.
If Katherine had married the earl, how much would this woman’s presence have been inflicted upon her?
Miss Walker stiffened. “He was a good neighbor. Kind to me and my father.”
“He was more than just a good neighbor, though, wasn’t he?
” Katherine pressed, ignoring the warning look from Henry.
“When I observed the two of you together, you seemed to have developed an interesting…friendship. You felt free to give your thoughts on the management of Perrin Manor, and he seemed to respect your opinions.”
That last was more than a stretch. Lord Perrin didn’t seem to respect anyone’s opinion but his own.
Miss Walker laughed, her chin high. “Well, we had been neighbors for quite some time. Our relationship was one of mutual respect and trust. I sometimes jested that he couldn’t get along without me.”
“Which made it all the more surprising that Perrin wanted to marry me.” Katherine furrowed her brow, pretending to look confused.
“I would have thought once the earl had decided upon marriage, he would have looked to his close friend, the woman he relied upon so much. It would have only made sense.”
Miss Walker flushed under her bonnet. “Men of a certain rank have other considerations beyond their own desires. My father isn’t a wealthy man of business.”
That stung more than it should, but Katherine supposed she deserved it.
It was her father’s money that attracted men to her, not her own qualities.
She darted a glance at Henry. He stood with his arms crossed, looking resigned to her interrogation.
When he’d held her, it didn’t seem as though he’d wanted her wealth.
His desires had seemed much more immediate.
Perhaps because he was smart enough to know that her father would never condone a union between the two of them, he knew that immediate desires were all that could be expected from any pursuit of her.
But this wasn’t the time to ponder her own relationship troubles.
She suspected that Miss Walker hadn’t been so composed about Perrin’s choice in a future wife when she’d first learned of it.
“No. That does limit your options.” Katherine gave the woman a sympathetic smile.
“It must have been difficult, knowing you and Lord Perrin would make such a good match, and knowing that it would never come about. I wonder that you were able to still accept Perrin’s invitations.
If it had been me, I would have been too angry to continue the friendship. ”
“You are not me.” Miss Walker pulled the basket tight against her abdomen, crushing a purple bud.
Henry cupped Katherine’s elbow. “No. And perhaps it is time—”
Katherine pulled away and laughed lightly.
“That is surely true. I, for one, would have been apoplectic with rage had Perrin invited me to a house party along with his current lady friend. It must have burned when you saw Perrin with Mrs. Draper. I heard they weren’t discreet with their affections. ”
Miss Walker’s body positively vibrated, the brim of her bonnet trembling.
“Mrs. Draper found out that it wasn’t wise to toy with a man as she did.
That using one’s body to seduce only led to trouble.
Perrin saw what she was before it was over.
A manipulative little trollop. He saw, and she was rewarded for her actions. ”
Henry straightened. “Yes, her reward was a broken girth on her horse’s saddle when last she visited Perrin Manor. She could have been killed.”
Miss Walker raised one shoulder. “She took a gamble riding that beast. It didn’t work out for her.”
“Did you know Perrin invited her back?” Katherine asked. “He still wanted her company. It was the lady who refused.”
“That is a lie.” Miss Walker’s voice was devoid of emotion. Her gaze was so hateful, Katherine fell a step back. “Perrin was a smart man. He didn’t repeat his mistakes.”
Nothing Katherine knew of Perrin’s character supported that assertion. “Where were you before lunch yesterday?”
From the way Miss Walker narrowed her eyes, Katherine knew the woman understood what she was asking. But Miss Walker didn’t bother to answer. She turned on her heel and strode for the house.
Even though the sun was warm, a shiver worked its way down Katherine’s spine. “Now do you believe me?”
Henry turned to face her, his expression dark. “Believe what? That it is foolish to provoke that woman? Yes, I believe that.”
Katherine frowned. “No, that Miss Walker is a good suspect to Perrin’s murder.”
Henry looked over her head at the path Miss Walker had taken. “I believe she may have wanted to kill Perrin. That she’s vicious enough to attempt it. But you’re forgetting something.”
Katherine pursed her lips, thinking. Finally, she shrugged. “What? What am I forgetting?”
“It wasn’t only Perrin the killer murdered. It was Mr. Taylor, as well. And to overcome a man and stab him to death takes a strength even Miss Walker in a rage doesn’t possess.”
Katherine wasn’t so sure about that. How much strength did it take to plunge a knife into a person’s chest? She had no way to test it, but there must have been cases where women had stabbed men to death in the past.
No, the question of strength wasn’t what bothered Katherine.
It was the fact that Mr. Taylor had been killed at all.
Perrin, she could understand. He had been an obnoxious bully, one who had toyed with Miss Walker’s emotions, at least from Miss Walker’s viewpoint.
But Mr. Taylor and she had barely spoken two words to each other.
What did the two men have in common that had sentenced them both to death?