The Adventure of the Murdered Gypsy

by Liese Sherwood-Fabre

  A strong wind blew the straw and dirt about the stable floor as Constance used her weight to close it.

  With the door to our backs, I scanned the brushed-dirt floor, seeking any signs to indicate where Trevor might have been. Or of any struggle taking place there. The horses, aroused by our presence, pawed and stomped the ground with their hooves.

  “How should we do this?” she asked. “I’ve never been searchin’ for anything like this.”

  “But you’ve played that game. The one you taught Trevor.”

  “Hot and cold?” She paused and a smile flitted across her lips. A memory of Trevor? Or her own brothers and sisters? “You know, I suppose I have done somethin’ like searchin’. When I used to play the game with my mum, I learned to check for somethin’ out of place. And to learn where they hide things. Like with Trevor. Bein’ short and all, he always hid everything on the ground, under something.”

  I stiffened as her comment brought an idea to mind. “What if he came here not to look for someone but to hide from them? We need to check the stalls. Maybe he tried to cover himself with hay? I think we can eliminate the ones with the horses. He wouldn’t go in an occupied one.”

  “All right,” Constance said and waved her hand to the left. “I’ll take this side. You take the other.”

  The first few I examined contained a bit of straw strewn about but nothing to indicate either man or beast had occupied them recently. About halfway down, a large pile of hay filled the back corner. I called to my friend, and she watched from the stall door as I brushed the hay aside with great care, examining it for any sign of blood or other indications that Trevor had been there. As I reached the bottom, my hand connected with something metallic. Ignoring caution, I dug it out, then sat back on my heels to stare first at the box in my hands and then at the rafters above me.

  “That doesn’t look like something Trevor would have.”

  “It’s one of my uncle’s rat traps.” I lifted the box in my hand to measure its weight. No rats. When I moved it about in my hands, however, I felt something shift inside. “There’s something in there, though.”

  Constance stepped behind me as I pried open the trap’s top. She drew in her breath as I retrieved the item. The necklace was a most unusual design. A double strand of black beads linked by a circle of gold.

  “Is that your mother’s?” she asked.

  I shook my head. “I believe we’ve found Chanda’s mangala sutra. She took it off and hid it in her room before she was arrested. Then someone stole it.”

  “Trevor wouldn’t have done that.”

  “No. But he might have found it and hidden it here. Maybe that’s why someone hit him on the head.”

  “That means someone might come back for it. What if they were to come—?”

  As if her very thought were a prediction, the barn door creaked open, letting in a gust of cold air. I pulled her down next to me, and we crouched at one side of the stall as someone stepped into the barn.

  At first, I thought a stable boy had come in to check on the horses. The step was light and quick as the person moved to shut the door. With the wind now cut off, I could hear the rustle of skirts. Had I not known my mother was attending to Trevor, I might have thought she’d followed us to the barn, but with all other possible women being eliminated, I knew Miss Meredith had joined us. Once the door closed, her footsteps were slow but steady, and she moved back and forth from the stall on one side to the one across from it.

  My mouth dried as she came nearer and nearer. Having not made our presence known from the beginning, we would surely be accused of improper conduct. Not only might we be accused of some sort of eavesdropping, but our conduct might also be questioned because of our different genders. It was one thing for us to be together in the open and quite another to be found hiding together. I didn’t relish the reprimand my father, brother, or the colonel might bestow upon us if found out.

  I dared a glance at Constance. Her eyes, bright, blinked rapidly at me, and I knew she would bear the brunt of any blame. As the daughter of a servant, she would be the one who would be considered trespassing.

  The muscles in my legs cramped from the crouch I held, but I feared moving them would create enough noise to attract the woman’s attention. My breathing came shallow and fast as the woman continued in our direction, and my thoughts whirled about as I debated making ourselves known, weighing it against the commotion it would create should I do so. Then, my thoughts paused and focused on Miss Meredith.

  My concern was resolved when the door opened and closed again and a set of heavy footsteps echoed through the room.

  “Meredith?” Mycroft said. “What a delightful surprise.”

  My mouth fell open. Did she truly believe he hadn’t followed her? I knew of no other reason for him to come to the barn.

  A swish of skirts suggested a quick spin on Meredith’s part.

  His footsteps grew louder as he approached her. “I was hoping we might have a moment alone.”

  She giggled, and he chuckled along with her.

  My mouth snapped shut to keep from drawing in a breath loud enough to be heard over the horses’ restless movements. In all my life, I’d never heard my brother sound so amused. Laugh, yes, often with derision tainting the outburst, but the giddiness he displayed represented a side of him I wasn’t aware existed.

  Constance and I exchanged glances. Unfortunately, whatever she wished to convey was not clear to me. My concern was no longer for us, but for the other couple. Should Mycroft and Miss Meredith be caught, I wasn’t certain that the colonel might not demand my parents restore her reputation by announcing their engagement. After what I had learned of the woman’s history during the interrogation in my father’s study, I knew they would hardly be considered a good match.

  Had the colonel encouraged Meredith to beguile Mycroft for just this reason? To attach her to our family?

  Meredith sighed, and a rustle of skirts signaled her movement toward my brother. Another sigh followed and then what sounded like a kiss.

  “Meredith, you have made me…your presence at Underbyrne is…” He paused. “I can’t bear the thought of this place without you. It would be so…empty.”

  “I’ve grown quite…fond of you, too, these past few days.” Another swishing, and from the sound of her voice, she’d moved away from him. “I will miss you very much when we leave.”

  “Surely you don’t mean—”

  “My plans are my uncle’s. Whenever he decides the time is right, we will move on.” More shuffling about. “I can’t bear the thought of being without you.”

  “Or I, you. If you go to London—”

  “I have no idea if we will do that anymore. The whole purpose of our trip was to carry Chanda to safety. And she repays us by attacking me…” The last word was choked off in a sniffle.

  To that point, I had considered the declaration of her affections legitimate—and my brother’s own besotted tone rather amusing. Her disparagement of Chanda, however, raised my doubts about the sincerity of all her pronouncements. For her to imply she was the rajkumari’s protector when they arrived and now raise doubts about the woman laid all her assertions open to suspicion.

  The muscles in the back of my neck tightened, and I knew I had to remain hidden. Under no circumstances should Mycroft marry this…this deceiver. While I’d developed a slow burn, Mycroft had continued in his response to Meredith.

  “My…dear, don’t think of that night. You are safe. I would stay by your side forever to keep you that way.”

  “I do feel safer…in your arms. I want to stay in them always. And we could, you know. That is, if we were…”

  “Are you suggesting…?”

  “How far is Gretna Green from here?”

  “I-I’m not certain…from London. I’d have to consult Bradshaw’s.”

  My eyebrows flew up at this point. The one thing my brother would not have to do is to consult the train tables. He knew them. By heart. Thanks to a m
emory even greater than mine.

  Why was he lying to her?

  After a pause, he said, “Good heavens. You are truly serious about—”

  “Aren’t you?” she asked.

  Although I couldn’t see him, I had a clear image of my brother. He was hardly ever at a loss for words, but when it happened, his chin would quiver as his mouth worked itself as if to force his lips and tongue to pronounce the words.

  Surely he was tongue-tied because he realized he’d been duped? He had gone from expressing a vague fondness for the first woman, as far as I knew, who had shown any interest in him to running off to Gretna Green in the span of a few seconds.

  I glanced at Constance. Her eyes were round, and she clamped her hand over her mouth so tightly the flesh around her fingers was white. The import of this conversation seemed as clear to her as it was to me.

  Meredith seemed to take his hesitation as a refusal. In the next instant, she moved toward the door, pausing at the entrance. “I allowed you certain…liberties because of what I considered sincere feelings. Now I see, however, you were just…you were just—” The last bit ended with a slight whimper and another sniffle.

  A series of quick steps sent him toward her. “I would never dishonor you in such a fashion. My feelings for you are genuine.”

  “Then what’s keeping you from acting upon them? Why not simply agree to this plan?”

  “What about Christmas? Don’t you want—?”

  “You don’t think they have Christmas in Gretna Green? If you are truly sincere, I don’t see why you are objecting.”

  I could think of any number of objections, not least of which was that, other than Colonel Williams’s vouchsafe, no information on the woman existed. And who vouchsafed for the colonel? Could someone make such a life-changing decision in just a few days?

  The answer came in Mycroft’s next statement.

  “My intentions, my dear Meredith, have and always will be honorable toward you. It is my deepest desire to keep you at my side. Always. And Gretna Green would appear to be the most expedient means of doing so. Will you do me the honor of becoming my bride?”

  “Oh.” The word escaped Meredith’s lips as a little squeal. This expression was followed by a louder but breathless, “Yes. Yes, my dear Mycroft.” Before my brother could respond with his own enthusiasm, she added, “Let’s not dally. Tonight. Tomorrow night at the latest.”

  “Tomorrow would allow me time to arrange our route.”

  “We need to make our departure when we will not be missed. Let’s discuss this on the way back to the house, before our absence is questioned.”

  Their footsteps led them out of the stables.

  When the door shut off their voices, I leaned back against the stall’s side, and with a deep exhalation, I rested my head against the rough boards. Only then did I realize how stiffly I had held myself, and I twisted a bit to stretch my muscles.

  Turning back to face Constance, I was surprised when she peeled her hand from her face and let out a howl of laughter. “If she put a ring in his nose, she would no better be able to lead him.”

  For the first time ever, my anger truly flared at her. I’d been frustrated, annoyed, and peeved, but never had I been as furious with her as I was at this moment.

  “What do you find so amusing? My brother is about to—” I paused, unable to even mouth the words or come up with a reasonable explanation. “She’s…she’s…bewitched him.”

  “Ain’t no witchin’ goin’ on here. She’s just usin’ what God gave her to get what she wants.”

  “You don’t think she’s in love with him?”

  She shrugged and giggled. “I don’t know that. But I’s can tell you, she wants somethin’ else as well. And it must be in that Gretna Green place.”

  “I fail to see any humor in this. My brother is about to ruin his life.”

  “Won’t be the first man to do so. ’Sides, I sort of thinks it’s justice-like. Him, all high and mighty, bein’ taken down a peg or two by a woman.”

  Her lack of concern at what I considered a quite disturbing turn of events only pushed my anger to the boiling point. So what if he’d been less than respectful to her? I failed to see this as appropriate punishment for his behavior. At that moment, I wanted to hurt her, and I knew exactly where to plant the sword.

  “I suppose your father is another.” She sobered immediately and fixed her stare on me. I drove the edge to the hilt. “You said so yourself. Emily has her hooks in him. Maybe she’ll take him down a peg or two as well.”

  Her fists convulsed at her sides, but her voice was calm and slow. “Maybe. But at least the children will have a mother. All you’ll have is a liar for a sister-in-law. And you’ll never be able to trust her. And you can’t tell anyone why ’cause then you’ll have to tell them how you were a spy and a liar yourself.”

  Before I could respond, she pushed past me, shoving the stall’s gate open so hard it swung around and slammed against the wall.

  The anger drained from me, and I stared at her retreating back. She held her head high as she stomped from the stables, leaving me frozen in place by both anger and regret. I’d hurt my friend. Part of me wanted to run after her and apologize. The other part wanted to preserve my wounded pride. After all, she’d hurt me first. The second part won. I waited until she had left the barn to go in search of my mother.

  The elopement had to be stopped.

  Chapter Ten

  No sooner had I entered the house than a hand clamped onto my forearm and another onto my mouth, and I was pulled tight against a man’s chest.

  I knew it was a man because of the breadth of the hand covering my lips and the tweed cloth on the hand’s arm. My breath whistled through my nostrils. What if this was the person who accosted my cousin?

  My breath slowed only slightly when my brother hissed into my ear. “You and I are going to have a private conversation, Little Brother. One sound out of you, and I’ll break your arm, do you understand me?”

  I nodded, and the pressure on my face disappeared. The force on my arm, however, increased as I was pulled down the corridor. While my respiration had slowed, my dread had intensified. Mycroft was not one to make physical threats, and his doing so only made clear both the fervor that currently possessed him as well as how it pulled him out of character. For this reason, I allowed him to drag me toward our father’s office. I might have been able to release myself from his grip thanks to my baritsu training, but I feared Mycroft’s reaction given his odd state of mind. I had heard that those not in control of their faculties often possessed superhuman strength. As such, he might prove a more formidable opponent than I would anticipate.

  In addition, I wanted to share what I’d learned about Miss Meredith’s history, hoping, in part, to dissuade him from a hasty marriage. Of course, divulging this information presented a dilemma. I’d no way of sharing it without also revealing how I’d obtained it.

  At the end of the foyer, my brother yanked me into Father’s office and shut and locked the door.

  Releasing me, he said, “Now we can talk without being overheard.”

  I rubbed the spot where his fingers had gripped my arm, knowing I would most certainly carry a mark for several days. My glare followed him as he moved to stand with his back to the fireplace. With no other illumination in the room except for the embers glowing in the grate, he appeared almost demon-like. A tall silhouette flanked by a deep crimson glow.

  “What were you doing in the barn?”

  “How did you—?”

  “Please,” he said, a sneer coloring the word. “I heard that Straton girl’s cackle. Even through a closed barn door.”

  I opened my mouth to remind him she had a name and that it was quite rude to refer to her laugh as he did, but a greater concern rose as my brain sorted out the import of his explanation. Instead, I asked, “Did Miss Meredith hear her too?”

  He shook his head. “She’d gone on ahead so we wouldn’t be seen together. You
didn’t answer my question about being in the barn. Please tell me it was nothing untoward. An involvement with that sort of girl won’t end well. For either of you.”

  My throat contracted at his reference once again to Constance’s class rank and my association with her, burning with a thousand retorts to his warning—chief of which were my knowledge of Miss Meredith’s questionable heritage and reputation. If both or either were made public, Father’s disapproval of Mycroft’s “involvement” with the woman would not be dissimilar to his issues with Constance—most likely with an even greater vehemence given Mycroft’s position as successor to the Holmes estate.

  Mycroft must have taken my silence as a sort of affirmation because he raised the derision in his voice. “That was what you were doing in there. I’d hoped you had better sense than that.”

  This second insult jarred my tongue free.

  “If you must know, Mother sent us there. We were trying to find out what happened to Trevor. And Constance is ten times—a hundred times—better than Meredith. And you’re the fool if you take her to Gretna Green.”

  The reference to his secret plans spurred him to take the few paces between the fireplace and my position until he was standing over me. “You little sh—” He clamped his mouth shut, his lips forming a thin line, and his jaw muscles tightening.

  I couldn’t tell if his anger or the fire had deepened the flush in his cheeks, but I knew my remark had wounded him. Only when truly furious was he at a loss for words.

  After several breaths, he said in a slightly calmer voice, “You stay out of my affairs. I swear by all that is holy, if you breathe one word of what you overheard, I will make your remaining days on this earth a living hell.”

  He gripped my forearms and leaned into me. His face inches from mine, I could tell he’d eaten kippers with his eggs that morning. “Swear to me,” he said. “Give me your word you will not tell a soul what you overheard.”