Anne Perry - Rutland Place

The danger was too real for soft words and lies.

"I don't suppose Thomas himself would think so," she an shy;swered quietly. "But other police might. There must have been some reason why Mina died, so we had better find it first, before the locket turns up and anyone else has the chance to think anything at all."

"But what?" Caroline shut her eyes in desperation, searching blindly for some explanation in the darkness of her mind. "We don't even know if it was suicide or murder! I did tell Thomas about Tormod Lagarde."

"What about him?" Thomas had not mentioned Tormod or any possible connection.

"That Mina might have been in love with him," Caroline replied. "She definitely had an admiration for him. It could have been more than we thought. And she did go to the Lagardes' house just before she died. Perhaps she had some kind of interview with him and he rejected her in a way that she could not bear?"

The idea of a married woman finding the end of such a relationship cause for suicide disturbed Charlotte. It was frighten shy;ing and pathetic in a way that repelled her, especially since she could not put Caroline and Paul Alaric from her mind. But then she did not know how disagreeable or empty the Spencer-Browns' marriage might have been. She had no right to judge. So many marriages were "appropriate"-and even those born of love could sour. She reproved herself for making too hasty a judgment, an act she despised in others.

"I suppose Eloise Lagarde might know," Charlotte said thoughtfully. "We shall have to be very tactful in inquiring. No one would wish to believe they might have been the cause, however unintentionally, of someone else's taking her own life. And Eloise is bound to protect her brother.''

The hope faded from Caroline's face. "Yes. They are very close. I suppose it comes from having only each other when their parents died so young."

"There are several other possibilities," Charlotte continued. "Someone has been stealing. Perhaps they took from Mina some lover's keepsake from Tormod, and the fear that it might become public was unbearable to her. Perhaps they even went to her and threatened to give it to Alston if she did not give them money-or whatever else they wished." Her imagination went on to thoughts that might drive a person into thinking of death. "Perhaps it was another man who desired her. And that was the price of his silence."

"Charlotte!" Caroline sat bolt upright. "What a truly appall shy;ing mind you have, girl! You would never have been capable of such thoughts when you lived in my house!"

Charlotte had on her tongue a few pointed words about Caroline, Paul Alaric, and the question of morality, but she refrained from speaking them.

"Some truly appalling things happen, Mama," she said instead. "And I am a few years older than I was then."

"And you also appear to have forgotten a great deal about the sort of people we are. No man in Rutland Place would stoop to such a thing!"

"Not so openly, perhaps," Charlotte said quietly. She had her own ideas about what was done but would be called by a pleasanter name. "But he doesn't have to be one of you. Why not a footman-or even a bootboy? Can you answer for them so surely?"

"Oh, dear God! You can't be serious!"

"Why not? Might not that have been enough to make Mina, or any other woman, think of suicide? Might you not?"

"I-" Caroline stared at her. She let out her breath very slowly, as if she had given up some fight. "I don't know. I should think it is one of those things that would be so dreadful you could not know how you would feel unless it happened to you." She moved her eyes to look down at the floor. "Poor Mina. She so hated anything in the least unseemly. Something like that would have-shriveled her to the heart!"

"We don't know that that was what happened, Mama."'Char shy;lotte leaned forward and touched her. "There are other things it could have been. Perhaps Mina was the thief, and she could not face the shame of being discovered."

"Mina? Oh, surely-" Caroline began, then stopped, suspi shy;cion fighting incredulity in her face.

"Someone is," Charlotte pointed out soberly. "And consider shy;ing where the articles were stolen from, it doesn't appear that any one servant could have taken them. But someone like Mina could!"

"But she lost something herself," Caroline argued. "A snuffbox."

"You mean she said she did," Charlotte corrected. "And it was her husband's, not hers. Surely the most intelligent way to direct suspicion from oneself would be to take something of your own as well? It does not take a great deal of brains to work that out."

"I suppose not. And you think this person who is watching knew about it?"

"It is a possibility."

Caroline shook her head. "I find it terribly hard to believe."

"Do you find any of it easy? Yesterday Mina was alive."

"I know! It's all so ugly and useless and stupid. Sometimes it seems impossible to believe how so much can change irrevo shy;cably in a few hours."

Charlotte tried another line of thought. "Do you still have the sensation of being watched?"

Caroline looked startled. "I've no idea! I haven't even consid shy;ered it. What does a Peeping Tom matter now, compared with Mina's death?"

"It might have something to do with it. I'm just trying to think of everything I can."

"Well, none of it seems worth anyone dying over." Caroline stood up. "I think it is time we took luncheon. I asked for it to be ready at quarter to one, and it is past that now."

Charlotte followed her obediently and they repaired to the breakfast room where the small table was set and the parlormaid ready to serve.

After the maid had gone, Charlotte began her soup, at the same time trying to recall some of the conversation that had taken place when she had met Mina a week ago. Mina had made a number of remarks about Ottilie Charrington and her death, possibly even implying that there was something mysterious about it. It was an ugly idea, but once it was in Charlotte's mind it had to be explored.

"Mama, Mina had lived here for some time, had she not?"

"Yes, several years." Caroline was surprised. "Why?"

"Then she probably knew everyone fairly well. Quite well enough that if she were the thief, and took something important, she might well understand its meaning, don't you think?"

"Such as what?"

"I don't know. Ottilie Charrington's death? She said a lot about it when she was here-almost as if she suspected there could be a secret, something the family would rather were not known."

Caroline put her soup spoon back in the bowl. "You mean that it was not natural?"

Charlotte frowned uncertainly. "Not anything quite so awful as that. But perhaps she was not as respectable as Mr. Charrington, at least, would have liked. Mina said she was very high-spirited, and definitely implied she was also indiscreet. Maybe there would have been some sort of scandal if she had not died when she did?"

Caroline started to eat again, breaking a piece of bread.

"What an unpleasant thought, but I suppose you are right," she said. "Mina did drop several hints that there was a lot more to know about Ottilie than most people realized. I never asked her, because I am so fond of Ambrosine I did not wish to encourage talk. But Mina did make me a little curious about Theodora as well, now that I come to remember."

Charlotte was puzzled. "Who is Theodora?"

"Theodora von Schenck, Amaryllis Denbigh's sister. She's a widow with two children. I don't know her very well, but I confess to liking her considerably."

Charlotte found it hard to imagine liking anyone related to Amaryllis. "Indeed," she said, unaware how skeptical she sounded. '

Caroline smiled dryly. "They are not at all alike. For a start, Theodora does not appear to have any desire to marry again, even though she has very little means, as far as anyone knows. And, of course, people do know! In fact, when she came here a few years ago, she had nothing but the house, which she inher shy;ited from her parents. Now she has a new coat with a collar and trim right down to the ground I would swear is sable! I remem shy;ber when she got it that Mina remarked about it. I am ashamed of myself, but I cannot help wondering how she came by it!"