by Rebecca King
“Who was the man in the churchyard yesterday?” Pie had to know. He had no idea of the question had any significance to the body, and he was certain that the dead man wasn’t the man who had appeared in the crowd, but he just had to know if they were related. He watched her carefully but could see nothing but shock and honesty staring back at him.
“That is my aunt’s problem. He is a man from her past, not mine. She will give you all of the details. She has a serious problem with gambling and he – the man in the churchyard yesterday, is linked to that.” Right now that was the least of her concerns, unless the corpse owed Dexter money, he must be completely unrelated to the debts her aunt owed.
“What is the man’s name?” Hugo asked, leaning forward to place his elbows on his knees. He mentally sighed and wondered if the Star Elite would ever be off duty. He studied the almost protective stance that Pie had taken up beside her and wondered whether it was because he was preparing to prevent her from escaping, or protecting her from attack. Either way, Hugo sensed there was deeper trouble brewing than anyone realised.
“He isn’t your husband, thwarted lover or anything?” Pie growled, mentally crossing his fingers.
Florrie shook her head solemnly. “I have only my step-aunt, such as she is, and my uncle Silas, who lives in Norfolk, apart from Jamie, of course.” She sighed deeply. She watched a maid place a bowl of water, some soap and a towel on a table by the door.
“Wash your hands and then we will ask you some more questions,” Hugo murmured quietly. He leaned back in his seat as Florrie stood and moved toward the door. Pie followed her. Hugo had no doubt that if Florrie did run then Pie would not be far behind. She would never make it half way across the main hallway before she was captured.
Florrie was glad for the opportunity to rid her hands of the evidence of the morning’s horrors. She studiously ignored the red and brown stains that soiled her dress as she resumed her seat. She had no intention of going anywhere until she had convinced these men that she had done nothing wrong.
“I didn’t do it,” she whispered. Her eyes silently begged Pie to believe in her.
“What’s going on with Tabatha?” Pie stared blankly at her and struggled not to give in to the temptation to reassure her that everything was going to be alright. He wondered if the body they now had on their hands had anything to do with the man who had appeared in the congregation yesterday.
Florrie glanced at the men around the room. This was family business. Did they really need to know?
“You need to ask her,” she replied cautiously. This was her aunt’s business and certainly not something Florrie was at liberty to disclose, even when her own freedom was at stake. There was nothing the men in the room could do to erase Tabatha’s debts and, as far as Florrie was concerned, it was down to Tabatha to sort herself out.
That thought made Florrie hesitate. She wondered when she had become so hard-hearted. It certainly hadn’t been the way she had been raised to behave. She was by nature as generous and gentle as anyone could be but, of late her aunt had become less and less likeable. The growing animosity between her and Tabatha was part of the reason why Florrie had spoken to Silas about purchasing a home of her own. She knew that she had to get out of her aunt’s house and away from her gambling as soon as possible, preferably before the growing animosity between them grew to unbearable levels. But did that warrant her breaking Tabatha’s trust and telling the men about her sordid lifestyle?
“I am asking you, Florrie,” Pie countered, not giving an inch. His gaze hardened and he fought the urge to shake her. Why wasn’t she being honest with him? She was the only real, close relative Jamie had and Pie was loath to think the worst of her but, right now, she wasn’t exactly helping herself. Why was she protecting her aunt when there was so much acrimony between them?
“I can’t help you if you won’t take me into your confidence, Florrie,” Pie added after several minutes of prolonged silence. “We can help you with this but you need to be honest with us.”
“I didn’t do it,” Florrie whispered back, swiping at the tears on her face.
“Did you go out at all last night?”
Florrie shook her head. “I went to bed at the same time as everyone else.” She went a few minutes before everyone else, and felt the heavy weight of guilt settle around her just that little bit more. Nobody had seen her go into her bedroom so she now had nobody to prove she had actually gone to bed.
“Did you go out overnight?” Pie’s voice was cool and controlled even though he was fighting bitter frustration. This was different to other missions they went on, because this involved someone who was close to one of his friends. Whether he liked it or not, Florrie was living amongst the people he felt closest to and they all had a duty to get to the truth as quickly as possible. If Florrie didn’t kill the man, someone did, and while they were sitting trying to get information out of Florrie, the real murderer was getting further away.
Florrie shook her head. “I didn’t sleep very well but I didn’t leave the bedroom until this morning. I –” She paused and thought for a minute. Norfolk really had nothing to do with any of them, and she couldn’t risk anyone telling her aunt about it. The last thing Florrie needed was for her aunt to find out about Florrie’s house in Norfolk now. Florrie knew that Tabatha would be unable to resist trying to use the house as collateral to secure funds for her gambling. It was what she had done with her own home after all.
“I don’t have any proof though,” she finished weakly and cast Pie an apologetic glance. It was the truth. Nobody had seen her from when she left the sitting room downstairs, until she saw Pie and Archie in the churchyard this morning.
She had no loyalty to her aunt and knew that she had to at least tell Jamie about her aunt’s problems when he reappeared, if he reappeared while she was still there. But, although her aunt was selfish and addicted to gambling, that didn’t mean her creditors were murderers. She couldn’t see how both of the issues could be related.
“Until we get the bottom of what happened, I think it would be best if you remained inside the house for now,” Pie sighed. He glared at her for several moments as he disgust rose. He made no attempt to hide the ruthless determination in his eyes and watched as she shivered and began to look uncomfortable under his intense scrutiny. She had to know that he wouldn’t give up until he had the truth.
Florrie nodded once and pushed out of her chair. “Am I free to go to my room?”
“For now, but we will talk later in the study. I will send for you when I am ready.” Pie winced at how officious he sounded but he knew he needed to draw the line between agent of the law and family.
Florrie nodded and walked solemnly out of the room. She could feel Pie’s careful scrutiny as she passed but couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze. She didn’t need to look in any of their faces to see the condemnation and quiet watchfulness lurking in their silence.
They thought that she was guilty, and there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.
“Do you believe he could be a lover spurned, or something like that?” Pie asked, considering the possibility. Florrie was about the least obvious murderer he had ever encountered, but was that most probably because he wanted her to be innocent.
“The man isn’t one of the villagers, I am sure of it. He is dressed more like an urban gentleman rather than even middle class country folk,” Archie added with a sigh. He rose to stare into the fire, wondering what Cecily would think to having a would-be murderer in Jamie’s family. It knocked her being related to a traitor into a hat that was for sure.
“We can’t lose sight of the fact that this could be a warning,” Simon added harshly. Everyone turned to stare at him.
“Meaning?”
“Meaning, we know that Beaulieu is around here somewhere and is preparing to move. It isn’t implausible that he has identified Jamie and decided to send us a message that we have gotten too close to his operation. I think we had better make enquiries into whe
re Beaulieu is and what he is up to.”
“Shit,” Simon spat.
“We need to protect everyone,” Jonathan added thinking of his recent activities in Melvedere. He had not forgiven the doctor for his plundering yet, and still carried the lumps and bruises, however wasn’t sure if they were mainly as a result of his work in the secret tunnel or the doctor’s dubious ‘care’. Now it appeared that he wasn’t going to get the time to rest and recuperate as he had hoped.
Oh well, better luck next time, he sighed quietly and turned his attention back to the room.
“Florrie may have only been the person who was unlucky enough to stumble on to the corpse. We need to find out why she was in the churchyard and what she was doing creeping out of the house the way she did. Who was she trying to avoid? Why?” Hugo added. “I will –”
Pie interrupted. “I will ask her. I was the one who watched her creep across the hallway. I was also the one who found her in the churchyard studying the blooded weapon. I think I should be the one who gets to question her.” His voice held a cold ruthlessness that drew Hugo’s frown.
“I think we had better do it together. That way she won’t be scared into silence,” Archie replied pointedly. He hated to be at odds with Pie, especially after everything they had shared, but Pie could be intimidating without trying sometimes. Although it worked on most of the Star Elite cases, it wasn’t appropriate for Florrie to experience it and Archie felt a responsibility to protect her given that she was Jamie’s cousin.
Pie nodded briskly. He wanted to stalk upstairs and demand answers. He had no idea know where this desperate need for the truth was coming from and it was a little worrying. He was usually perfectly calm and in control of himself, as well as the circumstances around him, whenever mysteries arose like this. It wasn’t like him to want to wade in at the earliest opportunity, especially without consulting his colleagues, and he didn’t think his need to get involved had anything to do with his desire to get the job done.
“I will send for Tabatha first,” Hugo sighed, tugging on the bell pull. At this rate, they were going to need everyone who was available to keep watch over the guests, at least until Portia and Archie’s wedding was over and everyone went home.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Florrie!” The heavy thumping on the locked bedroom door was accompanied by Tabatha’s shrill voice. Florrie remained quiet and still on the window seat.
“Florrie? Are you in there? Open the door at once.” Rapid knocking was replaced by the rattling of the knob as Tabatha tried to force her way in. “You can’t avoid me forever, you know.”
Can’t I? Florrie thought waspishly, ignoring her aunt’s shrill dictates. She curled up into a tight ball and stared out of the window. It had started to rain. She watched the trickle of rainwater meander randomly down the window and traced one with her fingertip.
“Florrie!”
Florrie heard the low murmur of voices and sighed with relief when everything in the hallway went quiet. For now, at least, her aunt appeared to have given in.
She wondered briefly who her aunt had spoken to. She thought she had heard Pie’s voice but couldn’t be sure. One thing was for certain, someone was guarding her room.
“Tabatha, come and take a seat,” Hugo ordered waving toward the chair opposite.
“What is it? What is going on? Why does this need everyone?” Tabatha, her face flushed with indignation, glared at Pie, Rupert, Archie and Simon as she stalked across the room. She was clearly reluctant to do anything under orders but the sight of the men kept her silent. She perched warily on the edge of the chaise and stared at Hugo, the man who seemed to be in charge.
“I want you to tell me who the man was in the churchyard after the wedding yesterday,” Hugo announced flatly.
Tabatha’s eyes flew to his. If Hugo hadn’t been staring at her he would have missed the brief flicker of horror that shadowed her gaze a second before it was gone, and replaced by a hard, almost defiant glare.
Tabatha’s thoughts immediately turned to her step-niece and she wondered whether Florrie was behind this sudden change of events; it would certainly explain why the young miss was determined to ignore her. Tabatha struggled to control the flash of anger toward her step-niece, and made a mental note to have a quiet word with Florrie at the earliest opportunity. She visibly trembled with the need to lash out and clenched her fingers tightly in her lap while she tried to get control of her emotions. She knew the quiet, watchful gazes of those present were taking stock of her reaction and it was imperative that she not give them any hint to just how annoyed she was that Florrie had involved the Star Elite in her concerns.
“I don’t know who you mean,” Tabatha snapped, glaring at Archie who had so far remained silent.
“Come now, you and I both know that you are acquaintances with the man who was staring fixatedly at you once you left the church. Now let me think,” Hugo drawled pushing out of his chair to wander aimlessly around the room.
He had used this particular tactic to his advantage on many occasions in the past. He knew that by throwing questions at the people he was ‘interviewing’ from various points around the room, he would stand a better chance of getting snippets of information that would eventually lead to the truth. Hugo’s constant movement and relentless questions from all angles left his interviewees feeling off-kilter and unnerved and, more often than not, their feelings of being at a disadvantage would lead them to tell him what he knew.
Hugo had seen women like Tabatha before. If he had any hope of getting this woman to tell him what he needed to know then he had to dig in to her defences and try to knock her off-guard. He knew his tactics were working by the bead of sweat that popped out on her brow and fought the urge to keep the satisfaction from his gaze.
“He could have been a spurned lover, maybe?” He ignored Tabatha’s snort of contempt and moseyed back toward the fire. He kept his back toward her for a moment before he spun on his heel. “He could be someone you have crossed who wants vengeance.” He watched dread flood Tabatha’s face and knew that he was not far wrong. What had the ladies gotten themselves into? Calling on all of his years of experience, Hugo began another slow perusal of the room.
“I think that you have a few minutes to come up with the truth, Tabatha, or I will place you under house arrest here and now.”
“For what? I have done nothing wrong!” Tabatha protested, pushing to her feet and turning to glare at Pie and Archie. “I have no idea who the man was. You need to ask Florrie, she knows him. He is after her, not me.”
“Why would he be after her?” Pie asked, ignoring Hugo’s annoyed look. He knew the woman was lying. She had a desperate look in her eye that warned him that she was going to point the finger at anyone who would take the heat off her.
“Because she owes him money and he has come to collect. She is up to her ears in debt,” Tabatha snapped, turning from Pie to Archie again, before her gaze flew to Hugo. “I told her that she was being foolhardy but she has driven us to wreck and ruin. That is why she left so quickly yesterday, she was scared he was going to take vengeance there and then.”
Pie sighed and stared at her. He wished that he could come up with some counter-argument to the woman’s declaration, but the memory of Florrie stalking down the road toward Crompton on the day of the wedding remained strong. Had she been eager to get away from the impending threat? Was she up to her ears in debt?
“Why would Florrie be in debt? What for?” Pie asked, trying desperately to find a way to prove Florrie was innocent.
“Gambling.” The word fell like a stone into the middle of the silent room. They all stared at the middle aged woman before them.
“How much?” Hugo’s voice cracked like a whip and made Tabatha jump in alarm.
Tabatha named a sum that caused Simon to whistle. Hugo’s surprised gaze met Pie’s for a brief moment. Anyone who ran up that kind of money through gambling had a serious problem on their hands, and it wasn’t only because of
the pugilist in the churchyard who wanted his money back.
“Name,” Hugo snapped. For some reason he was struggling with the image of Florrie sitting in a sordid gaming house running up huge debts that she couldn’t hope to repay. The woman before them perhaps but, somehow, Florrie just didn’t fit into the seedier side of life that all of the Star Elite knew existed.
“What?” Tabatha gasped, staring at him with pure hatred in her narrowed eyes.
“Give me his name. Now,” Hugo bellowed, drawing himself up to his full height and glowering down at her. He was sorely disappointed with the latest turn of events and knew that someone somewhere was lying.
Silence settled. “I don’t know his name,” Tabatha stammered. She looked around her as though trying to find a way out.
“Where does she gamble?”
“I-I don’t know.”
“What time does she go out?”
“I haven’t a clue, she goes out and doesn’t come back until late,” Tabatha gulped.
“How late?”
“I am n-not sure.”
Hugo snorted and turned to stare stonily at her. “So you are trying to tell me that you have someone, a young, well-bred lady, in your house who goes off in an evening, doesn’t tell you where and doesn’t come back until late and you make no attempt to ask where she has been? You have no idea what time she comes back?” He made no attempt to keep the scorn out of his voice. He didn’t believe her lies and she knew it. “I think madam, that you are a liar and a fraud,” he growled.
Pie saw the furtive glance she threw toward the door and knew that she was feeling cornered. The reaction she couldn’t hide made him more convinced than ever that the woman was lying. He felt somewhat protective toward Florrie’s reputation and wasn’t prepared to let her off the hook.
