were still fifteen of us at the table. Though festive was not how I would have termed the atmosphere, despite the glistening light cast by the crystal chandeliers and the gilded fretwork. Some, like Lady Helmswick and Mrs. Blanchard, appeared tense, while others emulated the duchess’s sons, adopting a reserved politeness. Then there was the duke, who appeared all but unruffled by the troubles beneath his roof.
The duke ate heartily, laughed jovially, and peppered me and Gage with questions. I contemplated whether it was all a show, but then I realized it was genuine. He truly did not fear the consequences of our investigation. This seemed at best foolish, and at the worst an indication of a complete lack of remorse or empathy. Until I grasped the fact that as a man who had always done whatever he pleased with few, if any, consequences, because of the significance of his rank, he had never needed to feel dread over what might come next. As such, he expected the same results from this.
Not for the first time, I felt the sour taste of disenchantment and mistrust flood the back of my mouth. For all that Gage and I were striving to uncover the truth, I was highly conscious that justice might still not be done. If one of the duke’s family proved to be the culprit, I knew better than to expect His Grace to hand him or her over willingly for trial. There would be an attempt to quiet us, or worse, to call into question our results and besmirch our names. Then a more expendable culprit would be named—someone like Helmswick’s valet—in order to tie everything up with a neat bow.
“Mr. Gage, I hear you received a letter from your manservant,” the duke declared at about the midpoint of the meal, settling back in his chair with his glass of wine as he waited for the latest course to be cleared. “Tell us. Did he locate Helmswick in Haddington?”
Neither Gage nor I were surprised he’d learned of the letter, for the butler would undoubtedly have informed him of its arrival.
“I’m afraid not, Your Grace. And they had not received word from him since his departure in early December either.”
The duke’s brow furrowed briefly at this statement, at how peculiar it was. For even he must be in contact with most of his varied estates and properties on a regular basis, if not directly, then through the correspondence he dictated to his various secretaries and stewards. “And what else does he say?”
But I knew Gage was not about to be intimidated into revealing anything about Mr. Renton or any other matters pertinent to our inquiry until he was ready to do so. So he deliberately misunderstood. “Apparently the cholera outbreak there has spread at an alarming rate.” He turned toward Lady Helmswick, whose eyes had widened. “It is a good thing you chose to depart when you did, my lady. Though your housekeeper appears to be a sensible woman, and she’s having the staff take appropriate precautions.”
“Yes, Mrs. Coble is a very attentive woman,” she replied quietly before returning her gaze to her plate.
I couldn’t help but notice how subdued she was that evening. Or the way she kept sneaking glances at her brothers. Her peaches and cream complexion was very pale, and appeared even starker against the violet shade of her gown and the azure silk gracing the walls behind her. Had something else happened, or was she merely beginning to accept that her husband might be dead, and that someone she cared for had rendered him such?
“Your Grace, what is your opinion of these new steam locomotives?” Trevor asked, saving us from further questions regarding Anderley’s letter by reverting to his new private passion. He’d recently become fascinated by the contraptions, and could happily occupy the conversation with such a topic for hours if need be.
Though I was not as enamored by them, I was nonetheless grateful to him for introducing the subject, and cast him a private smile of thanks when his gaze chanced to meet mine across the table. He winked in return.
However, his efforts proved to be in vain. For no sooner had the duke launched into a lengthy answer than the door to the dining room opened to admit the butler followed by a man I knew almost immediately to be the duke’s second son. The resemblance was striking, leaving no doubt who his father was.
The family gasped in pleasure as Lord Richard strode