Page 66 of Lady Edith and the Registry Office
A tea tray was on a table at her elbow. Nathaniel took a seat. “No, thank you, my lady.”
The countess sat back on the plush sopha.
“I was glad to hear you are well.”
She nodded. “I am. It is a lucky thing you didn’t eat any of my supper.”
“I noticed others in distress before I could sample the food,” he replied grimly.
There was a silence.
“What did you wish to speak to me about, Lady Sandhurst?”
“I might ask you the same question.” The lady pursed her lips.
“Why did you invite my sister and myself to your card party? We barely know each other.”
She shrugged. “I was asked to.”
He frowned. “By whom?”
“I wish I could tell you. All I know is I received an anonymous letter telling me to invite you. If I didn’t, something might happen to my daughter and her family.”
He looked a question.
“My only child, Anne, is married to the Earl of Breckston. They have two young children.”
“And my presence at your party had nothing to do with your being Lt. Cooper’s godmother?” He paused. “You feel no ill will towards me because of Cooper’s death?”
“His mother and I were friends years ago. She passed soon after the boy was born; I did not know Lt. Cooper very well. I bear you no grudge. You were invited to my card party because my family was threatened.”
“Have you told anyone else about the threat?”
The lady shook her head. “I was warned not to go to the runners or tell anyone about the letter. Unfortunately, I threw the note in the fire before I came to the realization it might be useful.”
“Yet you’re telling me about it.”
She nodded. “I let my maid know that you demanded an audience with me to express your displeasure at your sister becoming ill at my party.”
And the servant grapevine would do the rest.
“You’re not afraid of repercussions?”
“I know you are friends with Lord Wycliffe.” She added grimly, “If anyone can ferret out who would threaten my family, it would be him. I assume someone tampering with the food at my party is related to the request you be in attendance.”
The woman was very astute. He believed the same thing. “Shall I raise my voice before I leave? It would give credence to your story.”
“That would be a great help.”
He rose to his feet. “Lady Sandhurst, I am appalled that you do not know what happened in your kitchens! It is unacceptable! Neither my sister nor I will darken your door again!”
Nathaniel strode from the room, nearly running into a footman in the corridor. With a theatrical scowl, he brushed by the servant and made to don his outerwear in the entry hall, grumbling under his breath.
A moment later, a scream pierced the air. The footman assisting him into his coat paused. Nathaniel heard another scream and observed several servants rushing down the nearby corridor.
Nathaniel hurried along after the servants to a music room in the back of the house. He pushed through the small crowd gathering around the doorway of the room to see a housemaid standing over a prone body on the floor, sobbing.
The scene that met his eyes was gruesome. A woman, a maid he ascertained from her dress, had been bludgeoned in the head several times. She lay on her back, a tall silver candlestick resting beside her prone body.
