The Mystery Woman (Ladies of Lantern Str - By Amanda Quick Page 0,9

spot the gray in her blond hair. She was pleasantly rounded in a manner that men—young and old—invariably found attractive. She was cheerful, optimistic and inquisitive.

A keen, self-taught amateur scientist, she was fascinated by the various kinds of evidence left at crime scenes. She maintained a well-equipped laboratory in the basement of the town house where she examined everything from fingerprints to samples of poison brought to her by Flint & Marsh agents.

Mrs. Beale frequently declared that one day Sara would accidentally set off an explosion or unleash poisonous gases that would be the death of everyone in the household.

Both Abigail and Sara possessed what they referred to as a sixth sense. In their younger days they had operated a bookshop that had catered to those with an interest in the paranormal. But a few years ago they had closed the shop in favor of launching what proved to be a successful private inquiry business. The firm of Flint & Marsh attracted wealthy, upper-class clients who wished to commission discreet investigations.

The volumes from the bookshop days now lined the walls of the parlor from floor to ceiling. Many of the books were infused with energy. Beatrice was aware of faint currents stirring the atmosphere of the room.

“Excellent work, my dear,” Sara said. “You mustn’t blame yourself for what happened out in the garden.”

“Euston nearly managed to abduct her and it was my own fault,” Beatrice said. “I allowed myself to become distracted by the spilled lemonade. And when the man with the cane vanished from the ballroom at approximately the same time that Daphne disappeared, I worried that he was involved with the abduction.”

“All in all, a bit chaotic there at the end, but all’s well that ends well,” Sara said.

Abigail snorted. “Doesn’t sound as if things ended well for Mr. Euston. Not that I am overly concerned with his fate. I am very curious about the gentleman who came to your assistance, however, the one with the cane and the scar. That part of your story is extremely worrisome.”

“Yes,” Sara said. “Tell us about him.”

Beatrice struggled to find the right words to explain her reaction to Joshua Gage. “He appeared first in the ballroom. He was only there for a short time but I knew that he was aware of me, that he was watching me.” She hesitated. “Studying me, might be more accurate.”

Abigail frowned. “He should not have taken any notice of a paid companion sitting in the corner of a large ballroom.”

“I know,” Beatrice said. “But he did. What is more, after he introduced himself in the garden and offered to get rid of Mr. Euston he used you and Mrs. Marsh as character references. He then announced that he wished to speak with me tomorrow.” She glanced at the clock. “That would be today, actually.”

“Well, I think that clarifies things,” Sara said. “If he knows about Flint and Marsh and if he is aware that you are one of our agents, he must be someone who was involved in a previous case. That’s a perfectly reasonable explanation.”

Abigail’s eyes narrowed. “But neither of us recognizes his name.”

“Most likely because we never actually met him,” Sara said patiently. “But he obviously knows one of our clients.”

“There was something quite . . . unsettling about him,” Beatrice said.

Abigail frowned. “You say he wishes to talk to you in the morning?”

“Yes. He also said that Euston would no longer be a problem. He was quite clear on that point. To be honest, I am somewhat concerned that Euston might end up in the river.”

“Euston might deserve such a fate but the policy here at Flint and Marsh is to avoid any sort of scandal,” Sara said uneasily.

“Nonsense, bodies turn up in the river all the time.” Abigail brushed the matter aside with a wave of one long-fingered hand. “Euston’s will be just one more.”

Beatrice winced and exchanged a glance with Sara, who gave a long-suffering sigh. Abigail was often inclined to take the pragmatic approach to problems.

“You know very well, dear, that the bodies of gentlemen who move in Society do not turn up all that often in the river,” Sara said. “Euston was not a highflier, but he was known in certain circles. He obviously had some connections. That is how he managed to get himself introduced to Daphne Pennington by a respectable friend of the Pennington family. If he is found dead under mysterious circumstances there will likely be a police inquiry. We all know that Flint and