Heirs and Graces (A Royal Spyness Mystery) Read online

  “Everyone, Your Grace? Does that include the children?”

  “I think it should, since it concerns them,” she said.

  “And what about those young men who were the duke’s guests?”

  Edwina frowned. “Yes, I suppose they’ll have to know, and then they can go home, thank goodness.”

  “And the visitor in the morning room, Your Grace?” Huxstep asked with no trace of expression on his bland face. “Should he be included?”

  “I see no reason to include him in family business. His visit here was incidental. Leave him where he is.”

  I put down my coffee cup. “I have to go up and change my wet shoes and stockings. Would you like me to bring down the children when I come?”

  “How kind.” She touched my arm gently. “You have been such a help to me, Georgiana. I see now why the queen spoke so highly of you.”

  “What about Sissy?” I asked. “She shouldn’t be left out.”

  “Of course not. Huxstep,” she called after him, “send up two of the staff to have Miss Elisabeth carried down to the library.”

  “And about their mother . . .” I began. “I presume you’ll want to break this news to them yourself?”

  “If my daughter has made a good recovery, I see no reason why they should need to know,” she said. “Especially if it transpires that she tried to take her own life. They have had enough upset in their young lives. They must see their mother as their rock.”

  I went upstairs thinking that actually I’d been no help at all. Jack had arrived, and I hadn’t managed to stop him from picking up his chicken, ruining a hunt or, apparently, from killing his uncle. In my eyes, my visit so far had been a hopeless failure. I paused at the top of the stairs. Could Jack have crept down that path behind his uncle and stabbed him to death? It seemed so unlike the glimpses I had had of his character. He had been angry with Cedric yesterday. He’d even challenged him to step outside and fight. But that was man to man, not sneaking up behind someone’s back. The Jack I had seen was a simple sort of chap. He’d punch someone if they insulted him. But kill him? I shook my head. Nothing about that body on the path made sense to me. I wished the inspector would hurry up and get here.

  There was no sign of Queenie—probably down in the kitchen having elevenses, knowing her. She had an absolute fondness for cakes and biscuits. So I changed my shoes, draped my wet stockings over a chair by the fire, took off my wet skirt and rubbed my hair with a towel before I went upstairs to the nursery. I was nearing the head of the stairs when I heard voices, and saw the three Starlings coming toward me.

  “You’re wanted in the library, I believe,” I said.

  “Oh, so that’s where Ceddy’s been hiding out,” Julian said. “We wondered where he’d got to.”

  “Of course we didn’t exactly go looking for him this morning, after last night,” Adrian said. “We were seriously put out, weren’t we, boys?”

  “Absolutely shattered. We simply couldn’t believe he’d do a thing like that,” Simon agreed. “Then this morning, after a good breakfast, we came to the conclusion that he was just teasing, just pushing buttons. You know Ceddy—he loves to push buttons. So we decided to forgive him after all, and we were going to give him moral support with his architect, but then we couldn’t find him and it was blowing a gale.”

  “So we went to work on the play in the ballroom instead,” Julian said. “We thought we’d get that problem scene all smoothed out and surprise him.”

  I tried not to let my face show what I was thinking.

  “We’d better not keep him waiting a second longer,” Simon said. “You know how he hates to be kept waiting. Off we go then. Fly like Peter Pan.”

  And they ran down the stairs. In spite of everything, I had to smile as I climbed the last flight to the nursery. All three of the men were remarkably like Peter Pan, living in a pretend world. But as they said, they had been seriously put out when Cedric announced that he was planning to adopt his valet rather than one of them. Had they really not taken him seriously, or had they decided to stop him?

  I tapped on the schoolroom door and went in. The twins were standing beside the table, with Mr. Carter behind them.

  “Carefully,” he was saying. “Pour it steadily.”

  They looked up in surprise when they saw me.

  “I’m sorry to disturb you,” I said, “But Her Grace has requested the presence of the children in the library at once.”

  “Oh, crikey.” Nicholas glanced at Katherine. “What do you suppose we have done this time?”

  “Nothing that I can think of,” she said. “We’ve been silent and invisible, as far as I know.”

  “That’s when I’m most suspicious about you,” Mr. Carter said. “So off you go then. You shouldn’t keep your grandmother waiting.”

  “But what about our experiment?” Nicholas complained. “Now we’ll never get a chance to finish it.”

  “There’s always tomorrow. It can wait,” Mr. Carter said.

  “Do you know what this is about, Georgie?” Nick asked. “Are we both in trouble?”

  “Nobody’s in trouble, as far as I know,” I said. “Your grandmother wants to talk to the whole family.”

  “At least it’s Grandmama and not Uncle Cedric,” Katherine said. “If it was him, we’d know we were in real trouble.”

  “By the way,” Nick said, “speaking of trouble, we saw that funny local bobby cycling up the hill toward the house. He was having such a hard time riding in the rain and against the wind. When he was halfway up, his helmet blew off. We had a good laugh, didn’t we, Kat?”

  “We did,” she said. “So what was up this time? Somebody tried to poach a deer again?”

  “I really don’t know,” I said. “You’d better get downstairs. And someone is coming up for your sister. Is she in her room?”

  “Yes, she’s reading Dickens.” Nick made a face. “She actually likes Dickens. Can you imagine? I mean, Sherlock Holmes I can understand. That is fun. But Dickens? So boring. Come on, Kat,” Nicholas said. “We’d better bugger off.”

  “Nicholas. Where did you hear such language?” Mr. Carter demanded.

  Katherine grinned. “From Uncle Cedric’s strange followers. We’ve increased our vocabulary by leaps and bounds.”

  “And you’d be amazed what we’ve learned of anatomy from the pictures drying in Uncle Cedric’s darkroom,” Nick said.

  “Shut up, Nick.” Kat gave him a dig in the ribs. “You’ll get us in trouble. You know it’s off-limits.”

  “So are lots of places, but that hasn’t stopped us yet.” He gave a final wicked grin as they ran off.

  Mr. Carter gave me an apologetic smile and shook his head. “Those children have too much time on their hands and no real direction. It’s not healthy.”

  “I think they just delight in shocking adults,” I said. “They seem rather fun to me.”

  “But not what their grandmother wants. Has she heard them using language like that? Is this what the summons is about? In which case, I’ll probably be on the carpet too.”

  “No, it’s nothing like that,” I said. “But Her Grace wishes to address the staff in half an hour or so. I know you don’t count as staff but I suspect you should hear what she says as well.”

  “I see.” He was frowning. “You really don’t know what this is about?”

  “I’m not at liberty to say, Mr. Carter, only that it shouldn’t affect you in any way.”

  “That’s a relief.” He paused. “I heard there was a rumpus last night, and that the children’s mother was threatening to walk out or be kicked out. I thought I might be out of a job.”

  “It’s nothing to do with that. I can reassure you there.”

  He managed a smile. “Thank you. I’ll go down in a little while then, shall I?”

  “In half an hour, so I unders
tand.”

  I went across and tapped on Sissy’s door. Two people looked up as I entered. I was surprised to see Jack sitting beside Sissy, their heads close together over a book.

  “Oh, there you are, Jack,” I said. “They’ve been looking for you.”

  “Sissy is helping me with my reading,” Jack said guiltily. “I’m not so hot at big words.”

  “How very nice of her,” I said and watched her blush. “You’re going to be taken downstairs, Sissy,” I said. “Your grandmother wants to speak to the family, including you.”

  “How exciting.” Sissy’s face lit up. “I haven’t been down for ages. Are they sending servants up for me?”

  “No worries,” Jack said. “I can push the chair to the end of the hall and then carry her down the stairs.”

  “Jack, I think it takes two people,” I began, but he reached into Sissy’s chair and lifted her as easily as if she was no weight at all.

  “There you are. Like I said, no worries.” He had a big grin on his face. He put her back in the bath chair, opened the door and set off at a great pace down the hall. Oh, dear, I thought as I watched them go. I do hope she’s not falling for someone who might have killed her uncle and tried to kill her mother.

  Chapter 17

  The tableau assembled in the library looked like the set from a period stage drama. The old sisters in their outmoded fashions were sitting in high-backed, leather armchairs. The twins sat cross-legged on the floor. The three Starlings stood uncomfortably by the bookcase on the wall. There was no sign of Edwina.

  Everyone looked up expectantly as the door opened, but it was Jack carrying Sissy. One of the servants followed with the bath chair. They settled her off to one side, by the fire.

  “Isn’t this exciting?” Simon said in a stage whisper. “I keep expecting a detective in a deerstalker to appear at any moment saying, ‘I’ve called you all together to name the murderer.’”

  “As long as it’s not ‘I’ve called you all together to tell you to leave my house this instant,’” Nick replied.

  “Do you think Ceddy’s waiting to make a grand entrance?” Simon whispered.

  “With his mother. What a fearsome duo. And where is Lady Irene? The main players are not here yet. Only us bit parts.”

  As if on cue, the door opened and the dowager duchess came in. Her gaze scanned the room. “Good. You’re all here,” she said. She noticed Jack. “There you are, John.” Her voice sounded breathless. “We hadn’t seen you all morning. We thought you might have gone out.”

  “What, in this weather?” Jack grinned. “Not me. I’m not used to rain. We only get six inches a year where I come from.”

  “You’re here now. That’s the important thing,” she said, “because this concerns you more than anyone else.”

  She looked around the room. “I should first tell you that my daughter, Lady Irene, is awake and drinking some black coffee. That is wonderful news, is it not?”

  “What happened to Mummy?” Sissy asked. “Is something wrong with her?”

  “She was a little under the weather. She’s quite all right now, and that’s all that matters,” Edwina said smoothly.

  “What happened to Lady Irene?” Adrian whispered to me.

  “Took a sleeping draft and they couldn’t wake her.”

  “Tried to kill herself, you mean?” Adrian whispered back then turned red when he realized that Edwina was frowning at him and clearing her throat.

  “I have more news to impart,” she said. “News that is almost too horrible to express out loud. I am afraid to tell you that my son Cedric, Duke of Eynsford, is dead.”

  There was a little yelp of horror from one of the Starlings.

  “Not Ceddy!” one of them exclaimed.

  “Poor Cedric,” Princess Charlotte said. “I told you the Ouija board spelled out ‘death,’ didn’t I? The spirits never lie.”

  “Damn your spirits, Charlotte,” Edwina snapped. “My son was murdered.”

  There was a stunned silence during which all one could hear was the crackle of the fire, the drumming of the rain on the window and the constant drip, drip, drip from a nearby drainpipe.

  “Where did this happen?” Virginia asked at last.

  “In the glen, on the estate. Lady Georgiana found him when she took the architect to meet Cedric.”

  “And he was definitely murdered?” Charlotte asked.

  “Very definitely,” Edwina said. “There can be no doubt that somebody killed him in cold blood.”

  “On the estate.” Virginia looked around nervously. “One doesn’t expect the criminal classes to have infiltrated our safe and secure little world. I wonder what it was—had he fallen foul of criminal types, perhaps? Did he have gambling debts? Or did he just surprise a burglar making off with some of our silver?”

  “We must wait for the police to find out the truth,” Edwina said. “An inspector is on his way now.”

  “How was he killed, Grandmama?” Kat asked.

  “Such matters are not suitable for children, Katherine,” Edwina said.

  “I only wanted to know whether you took one look at him and could see he had been murdered,” Kat insisted. “We like reading detective novels, you know, so we’re interested. I don’t need to know the details if they are not suitable for my ears.”

  “If you wish this morbid curiosity satisfied, then I can tell you that your uncle was killed with some violence.”

  I saw Katherine give her brother a satisfied grin, and I wondered whether they might have had some kind of bet on this.

  Edwina cleared her throat again and went on. “The important point at this moment is that there is a new duke of Eynsford. John, you have now taken your uncle’s place. This is now your house, your estate.”

  “Stone the flaming crows,” Jack said. He gave me a look that was half panic, half amusement.

  “The duke’s suite of rooms will be prepared for you as soon as the police have finished their investigation and your uncle’s belongings can be removed. As of now they will be untouched, in case the police find any kind of clue in there.”

  “But I thought you said he was killed in the glen?” Virginia asked. “Are you trying to say that he was not murdered by an outsider?”

  “I have no idea, Virginia,” Edwina said. “I just wish nothing to be touched until the police have made a thorough investigation.” She looked around the company. “Now, if you will excuse me, I have to address the servants and apprise them of the situation. John, you will come with me. It is right and fitting that they are formally introduced to you. They are your staff now.”

  She took his arm. He looked absolutely stunned as she started to lead him off. She paused in the doorway and looked back at us, all frozen in place with shock. “I suggest that we all stay reasonably close by, as I’m sure the police will want a statement from each of us. And it goes without saying that nobody should attempt to go anywhere near the glen.” She paused and glared at Nick and Katherine. “Out of morbid curiosity,” she added. “Because you’ll find a policeman guarding the site, and there will be serious repercussions from me.” Then she gave a little jerking nod of the head and went out the door with Jack in tow.

  Nick and Katherine rushed over to me. “Isn’t it thrilling, Georgie?” Nick said, his eyes sparkling. “A real murder, and awful Uncle Cedric at that. If anyone had to be murdered, I’m glad it’s him.”

  “It’s ‘he,’ Nicholas,” I said, “and I don’t think you should say things like that out loud. It will get back to your grandmother.”

  He nodded. “I only meant . . . well, there are some people one likes and others one doesn’t. I’m going to take another look at Sissy’s Sherlock Holmes book and see what he would have done to find clues. What’s the betting there are tiny clues all over the place that the police will overlook, eh, Kat? You know, the match from a cer
tain matchbox that showed the murderer was left-handed and came from Austria?”

  “I think you two should stay well out of the way of the police,” I said. “Real-life murders are not like Sherlock Holmes. Besides, it’s your uncle who died. You should be in mourning.”

  “It’s hard to be in mourning for someone so nasty,” Nick said as we came out of the room into the hallway. “He made it horribly clear that he never wanted us here. He was stinking rich and yet he wouldn’t pay for school for me and Kat.”

  “Kat and me,” I corrected.

  “You see how desperately we need schooling, don’t you?” Katherine said. “Utterly hopeless, that’s what Mr. Carter says.”

  “I think you are lucky to have such a fine tutor. You should make the most of his brilliant brain.”

  “Anyway, everything will change now, won’t it?” Katherine said happily. “Jack is now lord of the manor, and he’ll want to help his poor relatives.”

  “I wouldn’t count on it,” I said.

  “Why not?” Kat looked puzzled.

  “Because one never knows everything about people. Jack might decide to take his money and go back to Australia and convert this house into a hotel.”

  “Surely not. Jack’s a good fellow,” Nick said.

  “One never knows,” I repeated.

  “Do you think there are elevenses in the morning room or the Long Gallery?” Nick asked, his mind turning to more important matters for eleven-year-old boys.

  “You will tell us when the police arrive, won’t you, Georgiana?” Kat said. “Me and Nick want to follow them around and observe their every move. We might want to be detectives when we grow up.”

  “I don’t think the police will take too kindly to being followed by you,” I said, smiling at her eager face. “If I were you . . .”

  This was interrupted by Nick’s call. “Kat, come in here and see. Sandwiches, cakes, the lot!”

  And she ran after him. How simple life was for children, I thought.

  I had just reached the foyer and was debating whether to follow the children in the direction of food in the Long Gallery or to do the more charitable thing and join poor Mr. Smedley in the morning room when there was a loud rap on the front door. The police had got here really quickly, which was good. The way the rain was coming down, any kind of clue from the crime scene would soon be washed away. I lingered in the hallway, curious to see the inspector who was going to take over the case, as Huxstep came hurrying from the rear of the house, brushing down an invisible fleck from his black coat.