A Murder at Brighton: A 1920s Historical Cozy Mystery (The Kitty Worthington Mysteries Book 8) by Magda Alexander

Author:Magda Alexander [Alexander, Magda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781943321247
Publisher: Hearts Afire Publishing
Published: 2023-12-30T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 14

A LUNCHEON AT THE GROTTO

"Thank you for inviting me," Esther said. "I don't often get an opportunity to enjoy time with another young lady."

“Don’t you engage with them at balls and such?” I asked.

“I’m not out yet.”

She was seventeen, I reminded myself. Although many young ladies were brought out at that age, she was not one of them.

“Were plans being made for your debut next season?” By March, she would be close to eighteen, if not that already.

“No. Not really.” Her face flushed pink. “Papa is busy with his estate, and Stepmama is, er, did not wish to get involved in such an endeavor. Now, with her sad demise, that will be out of the question.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you. She wasn’t the pleasantest of individuals, but her marriage to Papa allowed him to pay off the estate debts. Without the funds she settled on him, I don’t know what would have happened to us.” She glanced down at her hands as she stated, “I did admire her, you know.”

“Did you really?” How very odd. If I were in her shoes, I certainly wouldn’t have.

“She rose from poverty to make something of herself.”

“Did she?” I asked hoping to learn more about her stepmother’s background. It was the kind of information we needed to know to solve Lady Litwell’s murder.

“Her father moved the family to South Africa to improve their fortune. Except there was no fortune to be had. After he died from working himself to death, the mother did what she could. But she succumbed to some disease. At a very young age, my stepmother was left parentless. Her one asset was her beauty.”

“She was beautiful.” In a cold, cruel kind of way.

“She apparently used it very effectively to attract the notice of her first husband.”

I could imagine a way or two she could have done that. As rich as that gentleman was, she would have set her sights on marriage and employed whatever means necessary to make that happen.

“Within months of their meeting, he married her. She told me he was so enthralled, there was nothing he wouldn’t do for her. Sadly, the marriage lasted but a few years. He died from the bite of a venomous snake.”

“How did the marriage to your father come about?”

“She contacted a marriage broker in London who put Papa in touch with her. Marriage plans were made and agreed upon before she even left South Africa. A short time after her arrival in England, the wedding ceremony was held.”

“Their marriage was amicable?”

Lady Esther shrugged. “They rubbed along well enough, I suppose. But she resented Papa paying more attention to his estate than her. During their first year of marriage, he did join her in London so she could enjoy the season. But afterward, he refused to do so claiming his properties needed all his attention.”

“So, she braved the season alone?” She wouldn’t be the first peeress to do so. Still, it would have created some awkwardness at invitations to suppers. Hostesses preferred even numbers at their tables.

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