Page 78 of Marigold and the Marquess
“I don’t know and I don’t care.” Leo folded his arms across his chest, tensing as he always did at the mere mention of Beldon. “Even a one time involvement is enough to condemn him.”
He thought Marigold might make some softhearted excuse concerning Beldon, but she merely nodded. “So that is two out of three of your suspects, Leo. How does Cummings fit into this equation?”
“If he fits in at all,” Julius remarked.
“He must. I just haven’t made the connection yet.” Leo had always felt in his gut that his cousin had been involved.
Julius proceeded along that thought. “Is it possible the three of them were an integral part of a ring of elite thieves who regularly cheated the Crown?”
Octavian shook his head. “Denby was their man, the only one who was regularly sent off on these Crown missions. Or did Beldon also travel extensively?”
“No, Beldon only left England the once. This much we know for certain. Mr. Barrow confirmed it to me,” Leo said.
“I’ve seen him around Town often enough these past few years,” Julius added. “Never heard him talk of travels abroad.”
“As to Cummings,” Octavian continued, “does he often come to London?”
Leo shook his head. “No. I had Mr. Barrow look into that as well.”
“So how were instructions sent to him?” Octavian asked. “I cannot imagine any of the conspirators being so foolish as to put anything in writing. Leo, do you know if your cousin regularly took trips outside of England?”
“According to Mr. Barrow, he did not.” Leo sighed. “I don’t think our talking it out is helping.”
“Yes, we are back where we started,” Gory said. “We’ll ask the ladies in our circle of acquaintances what they know about Denby, Beldon, and Cummings. Starting with Lady Withnall, of course. She is our best resource. Whether the three of them were involved or not is significant only to Leo. What matters to England is that there may be someone quite high up in the ranks who is in charge of assigning these delegations for the purpose of cheating the Crown. This takes us straight to the top men in the Foreign Office.”
Leo raked a hand through his hair. “This is likely why Ian has not acted on any evidence yet.”
“And why he is making it appear as though he and his men have found nothing so far,” Marigold added. “As for Cummings and Beldon…I do not know Cummings at all, but what I have seen of Beldon convinces me that neither one would ever be trusted with sensitive matters of sabotage by this high ranking villain. From the way Leo has described them both to me, they are unreliable and too loose-lipped.”
“Beldon struck me as wily and conniving,” Gory agreed. “Quite full of himself, too. I never liked him. Tell us more about your cousin, Leo.”
“What is there to tell? The man is a complete dolt,” Leo replied with a growl. “Ignorant, slothful, and a pompous fool.”
Octavian grinned. “You like him, then.”
Leo laughed, needing this bit of relief to ease his tension which was palpable enough to cut with a knife.
Marigold suddenly leaped out of her seat. “It is all starting to make sense to me now. I know this will sound a bit insane, but I think they were all involved in that Carpathian incident. Hear me out, Leo. Cummings wanted you dead so he could inherit your title.”
Leo arched an eyebrow. “But I am not dead.”
“Indeed, you are not,” Marigold shot back with a grin. “Because something went wrong with his plan. I am glad we are talking this through. Here is what I think really happened, and what we have all been overlooking. Cummings approached Denby and paid him to have you murdered while you were on foreign soil. But Beldon was in the delegation and had already struck his foul bargain with Denby. Or maybe he struck it afterward. The point is, Beldon wanted you to remain alive so he could continue his sordid games. Denby either told him about Cummings, or Beldon caught on somehow.”
Gory grunted. “What about Beldon’s involvement in the mining negotiations? Was he involved in the sabotage of this deal?”
Marigold nodded. “Perhaps not directly involved, but he must have caught on to what Denby was doing. So he struck a bargain with Denby. His silence for Denby keeping Leo alive. Denby took Lord Cummings’ payment, then arranged for Leo to be held in captivity and not killed.”
“And Cummings could not say or do anything without implicating himself,” Syd remarked.
Gory agreed. “So we have Cummings wishing Leo dead, paying his bribe, then unable to say anything when Leo survived for fear of implicating himself. Then, we have Beldon saving Leo’s life…how ironic…because he needed him alive to fulfill his warped entertainment. He must have caught onto to Denby’s plans of sabotaging the deal and promised to stay quiet about it so long as Denby went along with his plans for Leo.”
Octavian groaned. “Is this not getting too complicated? What if we are completely wrong and there is no connection between any of these men?”
“Beldon and Denby are connected for certain,” Julius said. “That is undeniable.”
Marigold nodded. “There is a reason Leo keeps coming up with these three men as suspects. Beldon and Cummings might not have been involved in other dealings, but they all came together on this one mission for the specific purpose of harming Leo. Is it not easily confirmed by questioning Ian himself? Ian was one of the conservators placed in charge of the Muir holdings. Cummings would have had to approach Ian or perhaps he approached my cousin Rose’s husband Julian who was also on that committee of conservators.”
“And what would he have asked?” Gory mused.
