Christmas in Nuala by Harriet Steel

Author:Harriet Steel [Steel, Harriet]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-11-29T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

De Silva and Jane watched Anna Phelps as she sipped the hot tea one of their servants had brought in. With her light-brown, curly hair, round spectacles, and plain dress, she looked younger than her years.

One glance at the state of the kitchen in Robert Rushwell’s bungalow, and Jane had insisted they take her back to Sunnybank. Jane had accompanied her in Anna’s car, declining to answer Anna’s questions as to what was going on. She seemed a little calmer than when they’d found her, but de Silva saw that tears were not far away. When she put down her cup, her hand was trembling, and she knocked the teaspoon off the saucer. He was concerned that she had tried to run away from the scene of a crime, but he didn’t want to be too hard on her; he would be very surprised if she was involved in Clarence’s murder. All the same, he needed to know why she had been at the plantation.

‘I came to see Robert,’ she said shakily. ‘We were supposed to be meeting at the club this afternoon for tea, and he didn’t come. It isn’t like him to let me down.’

‘Did he talk to you about his cousin?’

‘Sometimes.’

‘What did he say about him?’

‘Robert didn’t know the count and his wife until they came here. We were rather surprised at first that they’d travelled all this way to visit relations they’d never met, but the count said that it was one of his mother’s last wishes that he should visit her brother, Clarence. Yet, I had the impression from Robert that he wasn’t convinced that the Arcantis’ motives were entirely honourable.’

‘Did Count Arcanti give a particular reason for his mother encouraging the visit?’

‘Well, Clarence can be very difficult, particularly as his health has worsened over the last few months. He often was mean and ungrateful with Robert, and I imagine he could have been the same with his sister. According to the count, his mother was nevertheless very sorry she and her brother had grown apart; she wanted the family to be reconciled, and she’d grown too old to make the journey herself.’

She frowned. ‘Inspector, why were you and Mrs de Silva at the house? Is something the matter? Robert’s not come to any harm, has he?’

‘I’m afraid I have bad news for you,’ said de Silva. He spoke with careful deliberation. ‘Clarence Rushwell has been murdered. Your husband’s cousin, Count Arcanti, was wounded in the same incident, and Robert is missing.’

Anxiety turned to dismay on Anna Phelps’s face. ‘You can’t possibly believe this has anything to do with Robert! Why, he wouldn’t hurt a fly. He never even talked back to his uncle, whatever the provocation. Despite everything, he put his heart into keeping the plantation going. And he had no grudge against his cousin even if he didn’t entirely trust him.’

‘Miss Phelps, I’m afraid we have testimony to the contrary. Countess Arcanti claims that her husband and Robert had a violent argument in the early hours of this morning after the party at the Residence.

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