Chapter Thirteen
Later that afternoon
Portman Square
Marylebone, London
“What the hell do you mean Chief Inspector Morritson isn’t going to hold the Earl of Edgington?”
Gabriel stared at Major Kourier as the other man sat in a chair that faced his desk.
When he and Mary had come home after dropping the earl as well as the bloody knife at Whitehall, he’d gone directly to his office to start on the wealth of paperwork the case had entailed already.
A half hour later, the major had come to visit.
“Just what I said, Bright. I had paid a visit to a friend who still works at Bow Street, and while I was there, they released the earl, said there wasn’t enough evidence to hold him.”
“What the devil does it mean, then, to find the damned murder weapon among the man’s possessions? Add that to the fact that he had the means and motive?” Gabriel raked the fingers of one hand through his hair. “Has the world gone mad?”
“Perhaps.” Kourier rested his good ankle on a knee and leaned back into the leather chair. “Morritson wasn’t comfortable having the arrest of a soon-to-be duke plastered all over the papers, and he certainly isn’t ready to declare the deceased duke a murder on the Corbett case.”
“Then why am I wasting my time in this investigation if no one in authority is going to believe the evidence I’ve presented?
” More than ever, he was grateful that he’d quit Bow Street when he had.
Hierarchy and being ruled by powerful men who had clout and coin meant cases weren’t solved and guilty men went free.
“God, Morritson is a pigheaded baboon who wouldn’t know a piss-pot from a platter if they were both made of gold.
” In his fury, Gabriel shoved the stack of papers from his desk. They fluttered to the floor.
“Regardless, Morritson wishes to see you later this evening.”
Gabriel blew out a breath. “No doubt to dress me down over this latest ‘mistake’ he thinks I’ve made.”
“You know how Bow Street is. If someone pays them enough, they’ll lean toward whatever outcome they’re hired for.” Kourier shrugged. “Do you need assistance with the investigation?”
“I don’t know; I thought it was over.” Then he frowned as he thought over the events from the past few hours. “In retrospect, I suppose the assumption as well as finding the murder weapon was a bit too obvious.”
One of Kourier’s blonde eyebrows rose. “Almost as if someone hoped you’d discover it?”
“Yes, exactly.” Damn and blast. Not only did they still need to solve the bloody case, but they’d sent an innocent man to Whitehall with a cloud over his name. “I suppose I’ll have to issue an official apology to Edgington.”
“Perhaps.” Kourier shrugged. “But these things are to be expected over the course of an investigation.”
“I don’t know.” Gabriel rubbed his fingers over his eyes. Then he blew out a breath. “Remind me again why I have chosen this as a living.”
His friend chuckled. “Because you love the challenge.”
“I do.” And the next person on the list to call upon was Mary’s brother. That would prove an unpleasant interview purely for the emotions involved, which would cloud critical thinking.
Unless he took the major along instead of his wife…
“Mary is out with the children and didn’t give me a return time. Would you like to accompany me to call on her brother? Mr. Swanson is the English Ambassador to Austria, and he had argued with the dearly departed duke shortly before Boddingford popped off this mortal coil.”
Excitement lit the major’s eyes. “I would be honored. Caroline is with her parents for the afternoon, so I’m largely on my own. This sounds like fun.”
If only that were true.
Grosvenor Square
London, England
“Does no one care to attend to urgent matters these days, well… urgently?” Gabriel asked the major as they sat in the parlor of Ambassador Swanson’s residence.
Since Adelaide was currently at his own office going through his notes to include into the report he thought he would need to file with Whitehall, they didn’t even have the excuse of talking with her to fill the silence.
Kourier relaxed and tightened his gloved fingers on the silver head of his cane. “People are busy with their own lives, my friend. No doubt being an ambassador for anything is demanding on one’s time.”
“Ha.” He waved away the comment. “This is a murder investigation. Doesn’t that take precedence?”
“Oddly, no. Most people are morbidly interested in the dead, but they don’t wish to be included in anything having to do with them. And where the duke is concerned?” He shook his head. “I have the feeling folks want distance.”
Yet every moment spent waiting on potential suspects meant less time out on the streets finding the killer.
Eventually, the ambassador came into the room. “Gentlemen, I apologize to keep you waiting, but we’ll need make this conversation a quick one. I’m needed in a meeting across Town in twenty minutes.”
“Very well.” Gabriel nodded. “It’s good to see you again, Inspector. I trust you are keeping my sister happy?”
Heat rose up the back of his neck. “As much as I can, Mr. Swanson.” He looked the tall, slim man up and down. “You’re looking well.” Due to the ambassador’s schedule, they only saw him a few times a year, which was why he and Mary hosted Adelaide’s Come Out ball in his stead last October.
The ambassador’s hair was now mostly gray and thinning, but his eyes remained sharp, and his tailor’s skill with a needle were evident in the cut of his clothing.
“Thank you. Life has been good though busy. I’m sure you can imagine. Now that Adelaide is done with finishing school and has become your secretary, I worry over her now that she’s moving within in society.”
“Understandable.” With a nod, Gabriel sat in a chair that matched the one Kourier occupied. “Adelaide is a marvel in the role of my secretary, and don’t worry. Mary and I look out for her, but you must know that she is a grown woman now, and she has a mind of her own.”
“True, but I would like for her to marry well.”
Gabriel frowned. “I rather suspect she’ll marry whomever she wishes and whenever she is ready.
She has told Mary and me numerous times that she doesn’t wish to be a wife just yet.
” Surely, the ambassador wouldn’t push his daughter into something she didn’t want merely to make a societal connection or climb a ladder in the ton.
“I rather suspect she’s as stubborn as her aunt.” The ambassador’s eyes twinkled. “As long as she’s not too much of a handful for the two of you to manage while I’m out of the country.”
“Never think that. She is a lovely young woman.” He gestured to the major.
“By the by, this isn’t a social call. I’ve brought Major Kourier today.
In a couple of months, he and I will combine our talents into a private investigation agency.
We’re here to ask you some questions regarding the Duke of Boddingford. ”
“Very well.” Some of the politeness fell from the ambassador’s expression. “I’ve given my condolences to Her Grace. No doubt you already know I was a close contemporary of his.”
“We do.” He nodded, and with a glance to the major, he continued his line of questioning. “You’d argued with the duke shortly before his death. What was the spat about?”
“A couple of things, actually.” The ambassador shook his head.
“First off, Boddingford was trying to recruit my support for a bill he wanted to introduce in the Lords. I said I wasn’t certain about it since the details he’d given me were rather light, so I’d asked him to send me a copy of it in detail. ”
“Did he?”
“He did not, but I just assumed that he was embarrassed at some of the wording, so he was going to alter it.”
Gabriel’s frown deepened. “What made you think that?”
The ambassador shrugged. “He and I talked earlier in the month that perhaps he needed to soften his opinions and attitude, for he was in danger of alienating his children. With them getting married and filling their own nurseries, I advised that if he wished to be a grandfather and know those babes, he needed to become more accepting of things as England grew and changed.”
At that point, Major Kourier cleared his throat. “Did you have hope the duke would change his entire life to accommodate such a new outlook?”
“I always have hope, but Boddingford was so set in his ways, I didn’t fully believe he would change, even when nearly all of his children had told him, at one time or another, that his unrelenting attitudes would drive them away.”
Gabriel nodded. “What was the other reason you’d argued?”
“It’s a bit personal.”
“That doesn’t matter, and perhaps make it even more relevant.” He crossed his arms at his chest. “Please continue.”
“Well, I wasn’t pleased at Viscount Tifton’s treatment of my daughter. He’d come by a few months ago when I was in Town to ask if he could pay his addresses to her. I’d hesitated, for I’d heard enough rumors to have doubts as to his intentions.”
“Yet you gave your permission,” Gabriel pressed.
“I did.” The ambassador paused as concern flitted through his expression.
“However, when Adelaide revealed to me a couple of days ago that she’d discovered the viscount enjoyed being with men in a sexual way, I was incensed.
Not only had Tifton lied to my daughter, but the duke did the same to me when we’d both talked about the idea of matching our children. ”
The major thumped the tip of his cane on the floor. “How did Boddingford react?”
“He pretended that he didn’t know.”
Gabriel huffed out a breath. “Did he?” Of course he already knew the answer.
“He knew, all right, for when I pressed him on the issue, he admitted this had been going on for several years.”
“Is that why you killed the duke?” Major Kourier asked, taking them both by surprise.
Shock reflected on the ambassador’s face. “I didn’t kill him. Argued with him, yes. Felt angry enough to land him a facer, yes, especially after he told me that in retrospect, my daughter wasn’t good enough to be considered a wife to his son.”