Chapter 15 #2
“What?” Cecilia asked, looking from one woman to the other.
Mrs. Norcroft laughed. “You are right, Katherine! I’d forgotten…
” She turned toward Cecilia. “They met once a month for dinner, drinks, and cards, only they didn’t gamble for large amounts.
All knew the old earl and Lord Jasper’s strapped circumstances.
They played for camaraderie, with the person winning the most donating his winnings to the church poor box. ”
“Mrs. Wayne told me the church misses that little extra money,” Miss Nieves said.
“I’m sure they do!” Cecilia said. “I wonder if it was within this group that the topic of breaking the entail first came up?”
“Most likely. I know from things my husband said that Mr. Searle tried to dissuade the old earl from going ahead with the dissolution of the entail. They almost had a fight over it—”
“Which would have been funny considering their ages,” Miss Nieves interjected.
Mrs. Norcroft frowned at her, but continued. “The others in the group calmed everyone down and they agreed they would not mention it again at their gatherings.”
“Most interesting. I noticed the baron was not part of this group. Was that intentional?” Cecilia asked.
“The baron, when he was younger, gambled on anything and everything. Almost beggared his family. Eventually, and no one seems to know how it came about, he quit and swore he would not touch another deck of cards again, not even for an innocent child’s game.”
“And he hasn’t?”
“No! So of course he couldn’t be part of the Halfpenny gatherings.”
“How did the deaths impact the group. Mr. Hargrave died first, didn’t he?”
Mrs. Norcroft nodded. “Yes. In January of 1815.”
“Did his death break the group up?”
“Not directly. What led to the group breakup was the old earl successfully breaking the entail in the autumn of 1814, and then not selling anything. Before this, Mr. Norcroft told me there were jokes within the group of who was going to buy what part of the estate. My husband thought it all a great laugh; however, Mr. Hargrave did not. He had been saying he was going to purchase Pomum Court and the orchard that borders the river. He said the manor house was the perfect jewel for his wife. Everyone laughed and agreed.”
“I think it was Mrs. Hargrave who considered the house as perfect for her,” Miss Nieves drawled, giving Cecilia a sideways wink. Then she grinned.
“Regardless, it was Mr. Hargrave who made the offer after the entail was officially broken.” Mrs. Norcroft said. “To his surprise, the earl turned him down. Said he wasn’t ready to sell the house off yet, but he and Lord Jasper would consider selling him the orchard.”
“But before he could complete his purchase of the orchard, Mr. Hargrave died,” Miss Nieves said.
“How did Mr. Hargrave die?” Cecilia asked, though she knew from talking to Mrs. Hargrave, she wanted to see if neighborhood rumors were the same.
Mrs. Norcroft shrugged. “Influenza. It was bad that year.”
“It was bad in Kent as well,” Cecilia told her. She was inordinately glad the stories matched, though she couldn’t say why she felt that way.
“And eight months later Mrs. Hargrave is flirting with Lord Jasper and saying she will marry him when her mourning time is done,” Cecilia said.
Mrs. Norcroft folded her hands primly in her lap. “A widow must look after herself and it would have been a marriage to the advantage of both,” Mrs. Norcroft said, “as it would be if she is to marry Monteith now.”
“Oh?” Cecilia said.
“How can you say that, Jocelyn?” her sister demanded. There was a catch in her voice that Cecilia heard and her face flushed.
“She has beauty, money, personality, and she’s always craved Pomum Court. It is a marriage I would recommend to either of them,” Mrs. Norcroft said. “Plus, she is not too tall.”
“Not too tall. Do you think Gideon cares about height?” Miss Nieves protested.
“No, but he should,” her sister answered.
Cecilia felt she was watching a game of tennis. Could Mrs. Norcroft not see that her sister carried a tendre for Monteith?
Most likely not.
Worse, she probably wouldn’t think any man an appropriate partner for her sister! Sometimes love could be a strangling vine. Her opinion of Mrs. Norcroft as an astute woman suffered a hit.
Cecilia didn’t know if Miss Nieves would be a good match for Gideon. She wasn’t a matchmaker. However, she thought they should be given the breathing room to discover what would or would not happen between them. Miss Nieves obviously felt belittled by her sister. That was sad.
“I think we can all agree that Gideon will make his own way, without prompting from any of us,” Cecilia said. “And his future marriage prospects must needs be swept aside until we learn who has been harassing him and why,” Cecilia finished.
“Is someone trying to drive him to sell his property, as was intended with breaking the entail?” Miss Nieves asked.
Cecilia looked at Miss Nieves with approval. She was showing herself to be an astute woman. “That is something we are considering,” she admitted.
“We know Mr. Hargrave wanted bits of the estate. He was not silent about it. Who else had an interest, perhaps a quiet, behind the scenes interest?” Mrs. Norcroft said.
“Exactly,” Cecilia said. “This has led us to wonder if any of the deaths were unnatural, or in some way encouraged. We are starting from that standpoint and working through everyone with interest in the Monteith estate. That is why I am interested in who died and when.”
“I can understand that,” said Mrs. Norcroft slowly. “I can give you my opinion, but that is all it would be, an opinion from having lived here for years.”
“I’d like to hear it. You, too, Miss Nieves.”
“I don’t know how valuable mine would be, I’ve only lived here five years with my sister and her husband after our parents passed away.”
“All ideas are interesting. Particularly where you disagree. Let’s start with Mr. Hargrave, as he was the first to die.”
“Rich,” said Mrs. Norcroft.
“Very rich,” Miss Nieves amended, looking at her sister archly.
“Where did he get his money from?” Cecilia asked.
“I don’t know the basis for his wealth. What I do know is he invested in canals, mechanized looms, engines…anything and everything steam powered.”
“He encouraged the group to do so, too,” Mrs. Norcroft said.
“Did your husband invest in anything he suggested?”
“Yes, the looms, but he sold out of that investment at a loss after the Luddite riots. He wasn’t inclined to invest in anything else as he saw how modern devices could disrupt our country.”
“What else can you tell me about Mr. Hargrave?” Cecilia asked.
Mrs. Norcroft tipped her head to the side. “He was significantly older than Mrs. Hargrave but appeared to dote on her. He would try to get her anything she wanted.”
“I heard from our housekeeper that she would throw a temper tantrum if he couldn’t get something she wanted,” Miss Nieves said.
“Katherine! Gossiping with staff!” protested Mrs. Norcroft.
“How else does one learn what really goes on in the village and around us?” Miss Nieves asked.
Cecilia laughed. “True! I’ve seen that myself. What of Mr. Searle?”
“Nice man, mad for Roman antiquities. He was forever telling my husband and the old earl that he sensed Roman artifacts on our properties and they should invite archeologists to come investigate. He was beyond excited when Mr. Compton found mosaics under his land. He was instrumental in getting Dr. Talbot down here for the initial verification.”
“Did he covet any of Monteith’s land?”
“No. He wanted him to bring in the archeologists, but he didn’t want any of his land.”
“What about your husband, did he want any of the Monteith lands?”
“He would have liked to have the clay pit mine since the earl wasn’t interested in working it. And they had discussed it; however, as his health deteriorated, I dissuaded him from the purchase, as it was obvious he would not live to carry through on his vision of restarting the mine.”
“But you were aware of the value of the mine?”
“Yes, and so I told Gideon when he inherited. I urged him to get the mine producing as soon as possible for the revenue potential.”
Cecilia nodded. “Hearing Mrs. Wayne’s story of the wound to Lord Jasper’s head—”
“You think he was murdered?”
“Yes, we do. We have talked to Mrs. Wayne and the woman who assisted her. Their clarity of details, and their horror, convinced us they did see evidence of a killing blow across the back of his head. This got us to wondering if the old earl’s death was accidental or caused.”
“Caused? What do you mean?”
“A burr under the saddle, for example? Or a wire pulled across the road as was done to Gideon?”
“So you are thinking there could have been agency to these deaths.”
“Yes. What we cannot see is who would be responsible?... And why?”
Both women nodded.
“James, Gideon, and Mr. Thornbridge are meeting now to determine next steps. I think they want to get everyone to come back to the mine. They are planning something.”
“What are they planning?”
“I cannot say, as I do not know. And I’d like to keep it that way. I just want this mess to be cleaned up as soon as possible so I might get home again.”
“Gideon told me you have a son?”
“Yes, Hugh, named after my grandfather. I miss him so.”
“How old is he?”
“By now, he is six months old.”
“Six months? And you left to come here? Your body did not need more rest?”
Cecilia laughed. “It probably did, however, I refused to take it.”
Mrs. Norcroft and Miss Nieves plied Cecilia with multiple questions about her son. Cecilia responded to all of them with delight for she loved talking about her son. All too soon, an hour and a half had passed and it was time for Cecilia to return to Pomum Court.
Cecilia bid the women goodbye, thanking them for their hospitality.
“Please keep us informed of what goes on in your investigation!”
Cecilia promised she would and as she got in the carriage, in her mind she started to organize all she had learned from the ladies and what of it—if any—held meaning.