The rest of us were silent as Emma gave vent for a moment to her emotion. Charlotte and I caught one another’s gaze, and I was moved to see she looked quite devastated by our family’s tragedy. Portia went to pour whiskey for Brisbane and myself, while Sir Cedric sat, his face betraying his disquiet. He seemed to be struggling, and I wondered if he doubted Lucy. They had known each other a bare two months. Was he pondering now if the girl he loved so passionately was capable of bashing a man over the head with a candelabrum?
Henry Ludlow simply stared into the depths of his teacup as though scrying for answers. His eyes were shadowed, and he looked desperately tired. Perhaps he felt guilty for his outburst in the chapel, condemning Lucy as she stood, her hands wet with the blood of Lucian Snow. Or perhaps he was relieved to think his kinsman had been spared marriage to a woman capable of such atrocity.
From the window, Plum moved to stand behind Charlotte’s chair, his face pale in the shadows. She did not turn to look at him, but her back relaxed a little, and I noticed that Brisbane watched the pair with as much interest as I did.
After a moment, Emma composed herself, wiping her eyes and smoothing her hair. “So she must be turned over to the assizes?”
Father shook his head. “Tomorrow I will send to Scotland Yard for an investigator and hand this matter over to the proper authorities. Any local justice will be seen as tainted.”
Emma’s face fell, and I knew she must be thinking of the little girl whose plaits she wove with ribbons when they were children, the little girl she comforted with bedtime stories. Father looked at her, his eyes warm with sympathy. “We have this short time until the investigator arrives to gather any evidence that the courts may take into consideration when choosing to exercise leniency.”
His tone, however, left small doubt that he considered leniency an unlikely prospect.
I had thought she would weep afresh at this, but she merely nodded and resumed her seat next to Sir Cedric.
Sir Cedric rose, his face purpling with rage. “I have heard quite enough. I will not have my future wife treated like a common criminal. She will be released now, and I will take her away from here myself.”
Father rolled his glass of whiskey between his palms. His voice was deadly pleasant. “I think not, Cedric. This is my home, and the girl is my relation. You are not yet married, therefore you have no rights in the matter. If you do not care for my management of this affair, you are free to go. But if you stay, you will not question me again.”
For a moment I thought Sir Cedric might actually have an apoplexy on the spot. He raised a shaking finger at Father.
“How dare you, sir! Your high-handedness is not to be borne. I will not have her treated with such suspicion.”
“She will be treated with suspicion the whole of her life if you do not do as I say!” Father roared, slamming his whiskey glass onto the table. “Do you not see that, man? Everywhere she goes, whispers will follow her. Everyone she meets will wonder,did she get away with murder?The taint will live with you forever, poisoning your lives, and it will poison your children’s lives as well. Is that what you want?” Father demanded brutally.
Sir Cedric opened his mouth, then closed it again, gaping like a newly caught fish. Finally, he gave up the fight and dropped heavily into his seat. “I will put all of my resources at her disposal,” he said hollowly. “I will do everything in my power to secure her freedom.”
Emma murmured her thanks, and I caught Brisbane’s glance. I believe in that moment we were thinking the same thing: for all Father’s breeding and Sir Cedric’s money, Lucy had confessed to murder. It seemed rather a good bet she would swing for it.
Father cleared his throat. “I have asked Lord Wargrave, as he has some experience in these matters, to prepare the reports and statements the courts will require. You will all cooperate with him fully, should he choose to avail himself of your assistance.”
Father’s tone left no room for misinterpretation: this was an order. The rest of us, accustomed to such directives, merely nodded. But Charlotte King dropped her teacup.
The delicate handle snapped and tea splashed over her pretty slippers.
“Experience?” Her eyes flew from Father to Brisbane. “My lord, what can his lordship mean?”
Brisbane regarded her coolly. “His lordship means in my capacity as a private inquiry agent.”
Charlotte clutched at the saucer. Her complexion was noticeably paler, and I wondered for a moment if I should ring for a vinaigrette.
“My lord, you astonish me. I had no notion you were in trade,” she said, her voice flinty. “I think we must speak of this when we have more privacy.”
Brisbane inclined his head, and I smiled to myself. Behind her, Plum’s expression had turned decidedly smug.
Father issued a few more instructions then, most notably that no one was to approach the chapel without his permission, nor were messages to be sent to Lucy that he had not first approved. Emma asked if she might go and sit with her now that she was in command of herself, and he agreed. She also received permission to bring her sister a few articles she might require for her comfort.
Father then bade the party good-night in a clear gesture of dismissal. First to leave was Charlotte King, sweeping out without a word of apology for the broken cup or a glance for her erstwhile fiancé. Plum trailed behind her and Portia followed with Emma. Ly and Violante walked out slowly, murmuring softly in Italian. Alessandro followed them, casting bewildered glances at me as he left. I lingered with Brisbane, watching Sir Cedric and Henry take their leave.
Father stretched his legs to the hassock. His rheumatism was doubtless playing up again as a result of the cold. He showed no sign of stirring. I laid a hand on his shoulder.
“Are you coming, Father?”
He shook his head. “Not quite yet. I mean to finish this rather excellent whiskey and have a bit of a think. Good night, both of you. There will be much to do tomorrow.”
Brisbane and I bade him good-night and left him. Much to my surprise, Brisbane escorted me up the staircase and through the long gallery of the dorter toward my room. It was a breach of propriety for him to do so, but I did not think anyone would trouble about it under the circumstances.
Before we reached my room, Brisbane took my elbow and turned me to face him.