Miss Morton and the Deadly Inheritance by Catherine Lloyd

Author:Catherine Lloyd [Lloyd, Catherine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published: 2024-05-17T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

“Lady Caroline.”

Inspector Ross came into her bedroom accompanied by Letty, Mr. Frogerton, and Mrs. Frogerton, which made it rather crowded. He looked tired, tight-lipped, and disinclined to smile.

“Inspector Ross. There was no need for you to come, sir. I am hardly a priority.” Caroline was already exhausted and was finding it difficult to be polite.

“As Mrs. Frogerton contacted me in some distress, I felt it was necessary to come as soon as possible.” He glanced over his shoulder. “I would appreciate a moment to speak to Lady Caroline alone.”

“Not in her bedchamber, Inspector,” Mrs. Frogerton said crisply. “I will remain. The rest of you can leave.”

“As you wish, ma’am.” Inspector Ross sat beside the bed and produced a notebook and pen, his formality very different to his usual relaxed manner. “I assume you are well enough to give me your statement, my lady?”

“I wouldn’t have granted you access if I wasn’t, Inspector.”

“Then please tell me what happened after you left Scotland Yard. Constable Jones assures me that he put you in a hackney cab and sent you on your way home.”

“He is correct, but I had one more stop to make.”

He paused his writing but didn’t say anything, so she continued. “I went to Coutts Bank on The Strand.”

There was quite a long silence before he looked up at her. “One might have thought that Coutts would send a representative to your home.”

“I no longer have a home. It was repossessed by Coutts to pay my father’s debts.” Caroline met his gaze head-on. “I had to find a way to speak to my father’s banker, and being direct seemed the best option.”

“And you were assaulted there.”

“No, I was attacked on the corner of Half Moon Street on my return journey home.”

His brow creased. “Did you walk back from The Strand by yourself?”

“I took a hackney cab. The road was congested due to an accident, and the turn was blocked. The cab driver couldn’t get in front of the house without considerable maneuvering and asked if he could let me down just before the corner.”

Inspector Ross wrote busily in his notebook before continuing his questions. “Did your assailant steal your possessions?” His gaze moved to her throat. “Or did he take something you were wearing from around your neck?”

“He stole nothing, Inspector.”

“I don’t understand.” He looked over at Mrs. Frogerton. “I thought Lady Caroline had been robbed, ma’am.”

“That’s what I assumed when she first came in, Inspector, because I have repeatedly warned her not to go out without an escort.”

Inspector Ross turned to Caroline, his expression unreadable. “It seems we are in agreement about that, at least, Mrs. Frogerton.”

Caroline was perilously close to bursting into tears, and that would never do. “Would you see the inspector out, ma’am? I am remarkably tired, and I see no point in continuing this conversation.”

“Caroline . . .” Mrs. Frogerton came forward. “Perhaps you should finish explaining what happened. You did say you wished the inspector to know everything.”

“That would be helpful,” Inspector Ross said.

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