Page 68 of Heir of Uncertain Magic

Hulda paused. “MissPearshold said there is no new owner. Mr.Hogwood had no children”—the thought brought Mr.Adey to mind—“no family that I know of. His immediate family was dead.” Her gaze drifted to the shelves where those horrible dolls had been stored.

“But the estate should have gone to someone, correct?” Merritt asked. “I’m not entirely familiar with British law, but isn’t a man’s property forfeited if he’s indefinitely imprisoned and has no heirs?”

“Supposedly?” Hulda wasn’t sure herself. “If I’ve learned anything from my visit with the detective, it’s that wizards are not always treated as the common man. Neither is the peerage. For all we know, Silas was having”—she blushed—“... conjugal visits.”

“Or using a cup,” Merritt offered.

Hulda met his eyes, unsure of his meaning ... and then it clicked, and her jaw dropped. “Really, Merritt!”

He shrugged. “Makes sense.”

“Regardless,”she pressed, “Silas must have appointed some sort of heir, or perhaps ...” She hesitated, following the train of thought.

Merritt gave her only a few seconds to do so. “Perhaps what?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know. If the Crown wanted Silas Hogwood alive, perhaps they struck a deal with him. Shortened his sentence, gave him special treatment, threatened him ...”

“How much can you threaten a man already in jail?”

Hulda turned away, resuming her pacing. “Gorse End was very important to Mr.Hogwood. What if the Crown seized it and hung it over his head somehow? Perhaps he was told they’d refrain from selling it if he did as they asked ...”

Merritt glanced at the communion stone. After a minute, he asked, “Can an aristocrat will his estate to someone who isn’t family?”

Hulda’s steps slowed. “I’m afraid I also am not well versed in British law. But someone of Mr.Hogwood’s stature surely had influence over such things.”

“I’m thinking about what we talked about before. With BIKER.”

Now she stopped pacing altogether. “BIKER?”

He nodded. “How—and I know you disagree with me on this—BIKER doesn’t seemworththe trouble for Baillie or whomever to go to such efforts to secure it.”

She nodded, her mind a giant knot. “Yes, we did ...” The knot loosened. “Mr.Baillie being Mr.Hogwood’s estate lawyer.”

Merritt nodded. “Mr.Baillie who seems far too interested in you and BIKER. And that stone connects to this Lidgett fellow, who seems to have been a very,veryloyal servant.”

She stared at him for a beat. “Do you think Mr.Lidgett was the heir to the estate?”

Merritt threw up his hands, unsure. “Possibly? Partial heir? What better way to ensure the loyalty of a staff member than to promise him payment? And Silas wouldn’t have been able to pay him in a traditional way from prison.”

Hulda considered this. “IfMr.Lidgett was in Mr.Hogwood’s will, he would have been paid out when the prison recorded Mr.Hogwood’s death in June.”

“Unless the estatewasseized by the Crown,” Merritt added. “Mr.Adey proves they’re involved. It makes sense.”

She glanced to the stone, then surveyed the dark, menacing room. “If Mr.Baillie is attached to the inheritance, then he might be waiting to be paid as well. He wasverycurious about Mr.Adey.”

“Because if Mr.Adey finds Silas’s body, then proof of his death would activate his will. Because if Mr.Adey is asking, then the English government lends no weight to his initial death certificate.” Merritt dug his hands into his pockets. “It’s a decent theory, I think.”

Hulda nodded. “Yes, it is. But only a theory.”

“We could ask the stone.”

“Perhaps it’s best not to. Not until.” Groaning, she permitted a curse past her lips. “Damn it, Myra.”

He offered her a sympathetic smile. “We can’t wait on her forever.”

“No, we can’t.” Hulda snatched the handle of the lantern, making the light sway across the water-riddled stone walls. “I need answers.”

Merritt stepped close, stilling the lantern with one finger. “Is there anyone else you can write to?”

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