The Mystery Woman (Ladies of Lantern Str - By Amanda Quick Page 0,63
the oarsman keeps his mouth shut. News of the murder at Alverstoke Hall will be all over the village by now. Sooner or later it will come out that someone from the village was hired to row a stranger to the old smuggler’s cave near the hall on the night of the murder.”
She caught her breath. “We must find the oarsman.”
“I doubt that will be much of a problem,” Joshua said. “Dead bodies have a way of washing ashore.”
Twenty-Seven
The old smuggler’s passage?” Lord Alverstoke’s bushy brows and sideburns twitched in a scowl. “I’d forgotten all about that tunnel to the cove. It was originally constructed as an escape route in the event of a siege. Later it was used for contraband. But that was years ago.”
“Who else knows about the tunnel besides yourself, sir?” Joshua asked.
He was having a hard time keeping his attention focused on Alverstoke. He kept glancing at the clock. Beatrice was upstairs with Hannah and the maid, finishing the preparations for the journey back to London. Logically he knew she was safe enough for the moment but he did not like letting her out of his sight.
“Well, as to who might know about the passage, that’s hard to say.” Alverstoke snorted. “Many of the servants have been with me for decades. I expect they are all aware of it. Not as if it’s a secret, you know. The house is riddled with passages and stairwells that are no longer used.”
“I understand. But can you think of anyone in particular—a visitor, perhaps—who took an interest in the tunnel and its history?”
Questioning Alverstoke was probably pointless, Joshua thought. It was clear the old man knew nothing about the murder. He did not even know how Hannah had gotten on his guest list for the house party. Leave that sort of thing to my secretary.
There was no time to talk to every member of the household staff, Joshua decided. Right now his first priority was to get Beatrice out of reach of the assassin. Nevertheless, it would be extremely helpful to discover how the killer had obtained such a thoroughgoing knowledge of the mansion and the secret entrance to the antiquities chamber.
“Afraid not,” Alverstoke said, very firm this time. “Can’t think of anyone who showed an interest in that old smuggler’s tunnel.”
“What about antiquities experts? Have you invited any colleagues or other collectors to visit for an extended period? Long enough to have discovered the tunnel by accident, perhaps?”
“I’ve certainly allowed other experts to examine my collection from time to time but they never stayed here for more than a day or two and I always accompanied them when they viewed the objects in the great hall.” Alverstoke pursed his lips. “Except for that lovely young lady who asked to study the artifacts so that she could write a paper for one of the journals. But that was over a year ago. I can’t see how her visit could be linked to the murder last night.”
A chill of knowing swept through Joshua. “You allowed a woman to study your antiquities?”
“I know what you’re thinking.” Alverstoke chuckled. “One doesn’t expect a female to possess a sound knowledge of antiquities. But this lady was the exception. She was astonishingly well informed. She had actually done some fieldwork in Egypt.”
“Sir, this is very important. How did this female antiquities expert contact you?”
“She wrote to me requesting permission to study the artifacts. Signed the letter as E. Baycliff. I assumed she was a man, of course. When she arrived on my doorstep I was shocked to see that she was a female.”
“But you invited her to stay?”
“I was going to send her away but she pleaded with me to show her some of the antiquities before she took the train back to London.” Alverstoke winked. “Very attractive young woman. So intelligent and quite charming. I saw no harm in taking her on a tour of the great hall. In the end I relented and agreed to let her study some of the artifacts.”
“How long did she remain here at Alverstoke Hall?”
“Not long. A few days. She was called back to London before she could finish her research. Something about a death in the family, I believe.”
“Did she ask to view your catalog?”
“Yes, of course,” Alverstoke said.
“Did she express any special interest in any items in particular in your collection?”
“As I recall, she was very keen to view two rather odd obsidian jewels. Not terribly important antiquities, really. We both agreed they had no