by Paula Paul
“Oh, yes, Your Majesty. Of course I understand,” Lady Forsythe said, although she didn’t understand at all. Or perhaps she understood too much. Was the queen suggesting that Elwold creature had to be done away with? Had the queen had a hand in it? “Your Majesty, I am…I am nothing if not discreet,” Lady Forsythe added as an afterthought and then wondered if that made any sense at all. Would this evening never end?
By the time Her Majesty had touched her napkin to her lips one last time and signaled to a servant that she was finished with the meal, Lady Forsythe’s pain had escalated to the point that she was barely able to stand and make her curtsy. Lancaster, sensing her distress, hurried to her side. As soon as the queen had made her exit, he rang for another servant to help him get Her Ladyship upstairs. Since Hannah was still in London, and Madam Cudney was confined to her room, he had to purloin one of the younger maids to help the lady to bed.
“Why has everyone abandoned me, Lancaster?” she wailed. “Where is Nicholas?”
“He’s gone out for the evening, my lady.”
“Gone out? Is he with that Gladstone woman?”
“I’m afraid I don’t know, my—”
“And Smythson has gone back to London, of course. Long ago!”
“I’m afraid that is true, my lady.”
“Are you afraid of everything, Lancaster?” Her Ladyship was growing more and more irritable. “Get the queen’s physician! That Sir Jenner creature.”
“I’m afraid he is, er, no, what I mean to say is—”
“No! Get that Gladstone woman instead!” Lady Forsythe said, interrupting him. By now her voice had weakened, and she was near tears.
“That local woman?”
“Get her!” she screeched. “And hurry! I am dying, can’t you see? And besides that, I have a possible murderer under my roof.”
Lancaster’s eyes widened. Was Her Ladyship irrational because of the pain? Or was her mind slipping altogether? Or, worse yet, had she discovered the murderer? He didn’t ask any of his questions aloud. He turned away, amidst Her Ladyship’s wails, to do her bidding.
Chapter 12
Alexandra and Nancy were alone in the house after everyone had left the séance. Everything was eerily quiet as Nancy went about lighting more lamps in the parlor before she sat down in her accustomed chair. Her silence made Alexandra uncomfortable. Nancy still looked shaken, but Alexandra was certain it was more than the unsettling encounter with a spirit that had upset her. Zack was equally unsettled. He seemed skittish and paced back and forth, all while keeping close to Alexandra.
“I know it seems we were all spying on you and your friends,” Alexandra said, sitting in the chair opposite Nancy. She’d decided it would be best to get everything out in the open. “However, I hope you understand that—”
“It does seem that way, yes,” Nancy said, interrupting her.
“I’m sorry,” Alexandra said after a pause. “It was rude, I know, but I was…”
“Go on,” Nancy said, looking up at her for the first time.
“I was…Well, I don’t know how to say it. You see, I was—”
“Looking for amusement, perhaps? Thought the three daft women from the servant class would provide it?” Nancy’s voice was unsteady, and she still looked frightened.
“Nancy! Of course that’s not the case. I was curious, I suppose, as much as I hate to admit even giving so much thought to such things as spirits and a séance.”
“If you were so curious, you could have just asked to sit in on the session.”
“You know I couldn’t ask,” Alexandra said. “I would have inhibited you. Not only would you have been uncomfortable with my presence, you probably would have resented it. Or at least the others would have. I suppose you’ve become so accustomed to my stuffiness that it doesn’t matter to you.”
Nancy was silent for a moment. “I suppose you’re right,” she said finally. “I don’t mean you’re right about me being used to your stuffiness, although…Well, never mind that. What I meant was, you’re right that your presence might have been a little inhibiting to the others. Truth is, as it turns out, I guess I’m glad you were here, after all. And Lord Dunsford as well. Wouldn’t bother me much if he was still here.”
Alexandra gave her a look of uncertainty. Zack, nervous as ever, began to howl, something he almost never did. He sounded like a wolf.
“You have to admit it was all a bit unsettling. Even Zack thinks so,” Nancy said. “I wasn’t expecting anything scary to happen, you know. Although I hoped…Well, I hoped it could be a diversion for poor Wilma. I suppose I even hoped we could conjure a spirit. But now, I…I only hope it’s not still here.”
“Of course there are no spirits here,” Alexandra said, “and as for what happened, you may as well admit you arranged it somehow.”
“But I didn’t.” Nancy’s voice trembled slightly.
Alexandra chuckled. “Nancy, no need to be dramatic. There’s a logical explanation.”
“Is there? Would you be so kind as to give it to me?”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that yet.”
“That’s what I was afraid you’d say,” Nancy said with a little shiver.
“What I meant was that I can’t give you the details, but it’s obvious that if you didn’t arrange it, then someone else did, of course.”
“Who?” Nancy asked. “Who arranged it? Not Pickwick. Not Wilma.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll get to the bottom of it.”
“We?”
“Certainly,” Alexandra said. “The two of us. We’ll have a look around tomorrow. There’s got to be some explanation as to how that person did what he did. Or she did. Never mind tomorrow. We could even start a search tonight if you—”
“Thank you, but I’d much prefer the daylight for such a deed,” Nancy said, interrupting her again.
“Why, Nancy, I’ve never known you to be like this,” Alexandra said with a smile. “You were always the daring one when we were children—getting me to jump from the roof of that old barn, enticing me to try to swim in the sea at night when no one could see us.”
“It had to be at night. What would people say about two girls swimming like a pair of boys?” Nancy sounded disgruntled.
“We could have drowned.”
“Ha! Not you. You only got wet up to your ankles.”
“But you got in deep enough to get your braids wet,” Alexandra said.
Nancy shrugged. “Lot of good it did me. Caught a case of the grippe and still didn’t learn to swim.”
“Ah, yes, but still, you were the daring one.”
“Can’t say I’m daring enough to go mucking around looking for spirits,” Nancy said.
A sudden screeching and then a thud outside the house caused both of them to turn their heads toward the sound. “What was that?” Nancy whispered. At the same time, Zack emitted another uncharacteristic growl and dropped his body to a crouch, as if he were ready to attack.
“It’s just Nicholas returning with the boys. That was the sound of his carriage wheels squealing. Listen! The carriage is leaving. Hear it?”
Nancy looked at Alexandra wide-eyed for a few seconds before her expression turned to one of chagrin. “Of course,” she said. “I don’t know what’s got into me. Spirits indeed!”
“Now, there’s the old Nancy,” Alexandra said.
Nancy gave her a weak smile. “Spirits or no spirits, we best get to bed,” she said. “You’ve a full list of patients to see tomorrow, and I’ve plenty to do myself.”
Alexandra was convinced Nancy had regained her usual good sense until she insisted on sleeping on a pallet at the foot of Alexandra’s bed alongside Zack, who had his own pallet.
“Just in case,” Nancy said, although she was never able to articulate what the case might be.
The two of them had just gone to sleep when they were awakened by a pounding on the door. They both hurried downstairs, Zack galumphing along in front of them. Nancy opened the door to
Nicholas while Alexandra and Zack stood behind her. He seemed to sense something in Nicholas and, oddly, didn’t greet him with his usual growl.
“It’s MaMa,” Nicholas said. “She needs you now!”
—
It took all of Alexandra’s skills to calm Lady Forsythe enough to try to relieve her of her pain. She appeared to be out of her head and kept insisting that there was a murderer in the house. Alexandra had grown concerned about the laudanum and was beginning to suspect, as others did, that the infusion of opium was addictive. She decided to give her a dose of potassium bromide instead, then soothed the lesions with yellow dock and zinc oxide. A young maid Alexandra had never seen before had been sent in to help, but she could only stand by the bedside looking frightened. She was even too concerned about causing Her Ladyship more pain to aid in administering the zinc and yellow dock compound.
“Where is Madam Cudney?” Nicholas asked, frustrated by his mother’s cries.
“Sick,” the maid said. “Took to her bed.”
“Then for God’s sake, Alexandra, give her something to make her well and get her in here,” Nicholas said.
Alexandra was in no mood to argue with Nicholas. She was about to send the maid to see if Madam Cudney was possibly well enough to assist when she heard a knock at the door and turned around to see Madam Cudney peeking around the edge. She looked pale and disheveled.
“One of the servants came to fetch me.” Her voice was weak. “Said I’m needed with Her Ladyship.”
“Is that you, Madam Cudney?” Lady Forsythe called.
“You don’t look well,” Alexandra said. “Your voice is—”
“Weak, I know. Sometimes the headaches make it painful even to speak.”
“Essence of peppermint and a vinegar bath for your forehead,” Alexandra said. “Find Mrs. Pickwick. I’m sure she has plenty of both.”
“Madam Cudney, is that you?” Lady Forsythe called out again. “I must talk to you. I’m afraid I’ve learned something awful. I pray we are not in danger. What if she decides we all must die?”
Madam Cudney frowned and glanced first at Alexandra and then Nicholas.
“I’m afraid she’s out of her head,” Nicholas said.
“Pain can sometimes cause that,” Alexandra said. “I hope the medication I gave her will take effect soon.”
“I would never have guessed….” Lady Forsythe’s voice drifted off, but her frightened eyes darted about the room. “Never guessed,” she began again, “that she would be capable of murder.”
Madam Cudney gasped. “Who does she think is capable of murder?” Her voice sounded weaker than ever.
“She had dinner with the queen, and ever since, she’s been talking like that,” Nicholas said.
“Her Majesty? Murder?” Madam Cudney’s voice had become a bit stronger, but she sounded choked. She coughed, turned her face away, and coughed again before she walked to Her Ladyship’s bedside and picked up her hand. “There, there, you mustn’t fret,” she said.
Lady Forsythe looked at her with blurry eyes before trying to respond, but she closed her eyes before she could speak.
“The medication seems to be working,” Alexandra said. “We should leave now and allow her to sleep.”
“I shall spend the night with her,” Madam Cudney said.
“Oh, please do. I should appreciate it more than you know,” Nicholas said.
“I don’t think that’s advisable,” Alexandra said. “Madam Cudney needs to take care of her headache. The maid can spend the night with Her Ladyship.”
“I assure you, I’m quite capable—”
“No, I insist you not stay with her.” Alexandra’s voice was firm. “I shall give you something for your headache and for that cough.” She was rummaging in her bag for a bottle. When she found it, she handed to Madam Cudney. “Take this. It’s only one dose, but it should take care of your cough.”
“The cough is nothing, Dr. Gladstone. I assure you, I—”
“Please,” Alexandra said. “You can be of no help to Lady Forsythe if you are ill.”
“Ill? Do you think I’m…?”
“I think you need to take this medicine, and I will check on you in the morning when I come to see Lady Forsythe.” Alexandra thrust the bottle toward her. Madam Cudney took it, looking a bit unsure of herself, before she turned and left the room.
“Does she have something contagious?” Nicholas asked. “Are we in danger of—”
“There’s no need to worry about contagion,” Alexandra said.
“Let us hope you’re right. We have quite enough of everything else going on here—murder, ghostly appearances. We certainly don’t need an epidemic.” Nicholas took her arm. “I’ll drive you home. That is, unless you want to spend the night. It’s quite late, you know.”
“It’s best that you drive me home,” Alexandra said. “Nancy is expecting me, and it’s best I don’t cross her again.”
“Yes, I gathered she was rather upset by our eavesdropping.”
“Spying, she called it,” Alexandra said.
“We weren’t spying, really,” Nicholas said. “Rather, we were investigating.”
“Investigating? I shall give it a try and see if that explanation satisfies her.”
“It was actually a bit eerie,” Nicholas said. “A talking spirit from the grave?”
“As I said to Nancy, I’m sure there’s a logical explanation.”
“Quite so.” Nicholas led her out the door and to the carriage. “There’s no such thing as spirits returning from the dead to speak to us.”
Just as he was about to help her up and into the carriage, Alexandra caught sight of something or someone walking across the lawn near the front fountain.
“There’s someone out there,” she whispered.
“Where?” Nicholas asked, turning quickly to look. “Good God! That looks like Dunley. What’s he doing here?” He let go of Alexandra’s arm and shouted, “Dunley!” The man stopped and turned around briefly before running away.
“Nicholas, don’t…” Alexandra didn’t finish her warning before Nicholas all but disappeared in the darkness as he ran after the figure. “Nicholas?” she called again. It was several seconds before he reappeared, breathing heavily.
“It was Dunley, all right. He knows he’s in trouble. MaMa finally decided to fire him from his job and told him not to return. I can’t imagine why he’d come back. That maid he’s supposed to be in love with—Hannah, I believe? He knows she’s not here.”
“Isn’t he the one who caused the row at the tavern?”
“He’s the one. And it was all over a woman, I’m told. What woman, I don’t know.”
Alexandra decided not to mention the rumor that it was Alvina Elwold, since it was unsubstantiated gossip. “Perhaps you should warn Lancaster that he’s out there lurking around.”
“I don’t think he’ll be back,” Nicholas said. “I think I frightened him away.”
“Let’s hope you’re right,” Alexandra said.
“Are you afraid of him?”
“I don’t know the man well enough to be frightened,” she said. “It’s just that I have an uneasy feeling. Perhaps I’d call it a woman’s intuition.”
“You’re just tired,” Nicholas said. “It’s time I get you home.”
—
When Alexandra returned to the house, Nancy was awake and sitting in the parlor with Zack at her side. She had three oil lamps burning, along with a coal fire in the fireplace. To her surprise, Zack wasn’t sleeping in front of the fire but was pacing nervously around the room, stopping by the window once to emit a bloodcurdling howl.
“Zack? What’s wrong?” Alexandra went to him and placed her hand on the scruff of his neck.
“He’s been like that since you left. ’Tis the spirit. Alvina. He thinks she’s still out there,” Nancy said.
Alexandra shook her head slowly. “Nancy—”
“How is Lady Forsythe?” Nancy asked, abruptly changing the
subject.
“I gave her a bromide sedative. She’s sleeping now. I shall see her in the morning.”
“Her condition worsened?”
“She was quite upset. Seems to think there is a murderer in her house.”
“Murderer? At Montmarsh?”
“I believe the pain of shingles may have caused her to go out of her head a bit.”
“So many strange things going on. I can see how a person could be upset,” Nancy said.
Nancy had repeated Nicholas’s thoughts, but Alexandra felt too tired to contemplate it. “We’ll talk about it in the morning,” she said. “It’s time we go to bed now.”
Neither of the three of them slept well. Especially not Zack, who walked the halls all night, howling.
—
Nancy was unusually quiet as she served breakfast the next morning, and there were dark circles under her eyes.
“If you’re not feeling well, you have my permission to leave the surgery to me this morning,” Alexandra said. “Have a little rest, and perhaps you’ll feel better. I can do all my rounds this afternoon.”
“Feel better? Not likely. Not when there’s spirits in the house and murderers on the loose.”
Alexandra gave her a surprised look. “I hoped the light of day would help you get past your superstition. I thought, or hoped, you were as convinced as I that there were no spirits in the house.”
“No spirits, you say? Excuse me, miss, but it’s my feeling that spirits were what Zack was howling at last night. You know he’s never howled like that before.”
“I’ll admit Zack was not himself last night, but it was only because he was upset by all that was going on during the evening,” Alexandra said.
“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Nancy insisted.
Alexandra shook her head. “No, no, I didn’t mean the spirits. I meant all of the people in the house last night, all of the strange noises coming from the parlor, the fact that I wouldn’t let him join you.”
