Ten Little Wizards: A Lord Darcy Novel
Page 22
“No, my lord,” Master Sean assured him. “I was able to rule that out, remember. Otherwise, don’t you see, they wouldn’t have been impossible crimes.”
“The bakery was easy,” Lord Darcy said. “Just because we had to break into it, doesn’t mean you couldn’t close the door going out. A rod inserted through the door to hold the wooden bar up as you close the door, and then withdrawn at the last instant to allow the bar to fall into place, would do very nicely. Or a stout cord running around the bar and over the door to the outside. I don’t know which method he used, but I fancy it was one of those two.”
“And the ballroom?” Coronel Lord Waybusch asked.
“The thin wire that Bowers used to try to kill Sir Darryl was used there. It’s about twenty feet long. It was put around the victim’s neck and held on to by a wooden handle at one end. As the victim ran into the room, he sliced his own throat.”
“Nasty!” Mary of Cumberland said.
“Indeed,” Lord Darcy agreed. “This whole plot was a nasty-minded piece of business.”
“And the throne room?” Marquis Sherrinford asked.
“I’m not sure,” Lord Darcy said. “I am still investigating that. I’ll make a report when I have an answer.”
“Glad you’re not infallible, my lord,” Coronel Lord Waybusch said. “It makes you more human, don’t you know.”
The conversation continued for a while longer and then broke off, as the busy men went back to their duties. After all, the coronation was less than a week off.
After the last of the visible guests had left, a royal hand pushed the screen aside. “My Lord Darcy,” the familiar Plantagenet voice said.
Lord Darcy dropped to one knee, and the Duchess of Cumberland curtsied low. “Your Majesty.”
“Once again, my lord, We have occasion to be grateful that, long years ago, you chose to indulge in your knack for puzzle-solving rather than merely manage your estates or practice beekeeping.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Lord Darcy said.
“One question,” His Majesty said. “Tell me the truth about the throne room death. You do know how it was done, don’t you?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“How?”
“There is only one possibility. The pseudo Count d’Alberra was practicing more than his mental science on Marquis Sherrinford. His Lordship was hypnotized. He let the Count and the victim into the throne room that night, and the recollection of it was wiped from his mind. Then he went back to the ballroom, and the Count used a wooden wedge to keep the door open.”
“You have proof of this?”
“I have the wedge,” Lord Darcy said.
“We see,” His Majesty said. “We had best not tell Marquis Sherrinford. It would only distress him.”
“I agree,” Lord Darcy said.
“Once again you have done a good job for us, Lord Darcy,” His Majesty said. “We are pleased.” he turned and walked to the door. “Good day, Lord Darcy. Mary of Cumberland. We are lucky to have such subjects.”
“May God keep Your Majesty,” Mary of Cumberland said as the king closed the door behind him.
“Well, that’s that,” Lord Darcy said. “I’m glad it’s behind me.”
“You say that now,” Mary of Cumberland told him, “but you’ll be bored in a week.”
“You’re probably right,” Lord Darcy admitted. “But human nature being what it is, I doubt that I’ll be bored very long.”
“Come,” Mary of Cumberland said. “Cook is making her special omelettes for lunch. And it looks like the weather is clearing. Perhaps after lunch we’ll go for a walk.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The author of over thirty novels and a melange of short stories, articles, and other stuff, Michael Kurland has been writing professionally for over three decades. His stories are set in epochs and locations from Ancient Rome to the far future—anyplace where the reader won’t spot the anachronisms too easily. His works have appeared in Chinese, French, Italian, Spanish, German, Swedish, Polish, Portuguese, Japanese, Czech, and some alphabet with a lot of hooks and curlicues. They are believed to be the fragments of one great opus, a student of the Untermensch. He has been nominated for a Hugo, two Edgars, and the American Book Award, and various book clubs have picked up various of his books. More can be learned at his website:
www.michaelkurland.com