Murder at the Marlowe Club by Kate Parker

Author:Kate Parker
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: JDP Press
Published: 2020-01-06T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

Lucky Marlowe had the attention of everyone in the barn. When the silence lingered, I asked, “Did she know?”

“Yes.”

“What about…?” my grandfather asked.

“I was over her a long time ago,” Marlowe said in a rush. Then he grinned. “Really, she was over me.”

“Was the notorious Lady Roxanne willing to leave her husband, her wealth, and her title for you?” I asked. Lucky Marlowe was devilishly handsome, emphasis on devil, and I could see how he could appeal to some women. Including a woman who seemed to thrive on notoriety.

“Yes.”

A couple of the men, including Petey, made scoffing noises.

“It’s true. She couldn’t stand her husband, and the title was just a courtesy one,” he said defiantly and then expanded his story. “He was always gambling, always drinking, always taking cocaine. And his family didn’t see what a danger he was to everyone. I had already begun to wind up my business affairs when her husband died.” He stared straight into my eyes. “She was free, and we were going away together.”

“Is that why he had to die?” I asked.

“No. She’d have left if he were dead or alive.”

“You’re certain of that?”

“Yeah, I am.” He gazed into my eyes, and I found I believed him.

“Where were you planning to go?” Where could the widow of a duke’s son and a man from the East End escape to be together?

“Australia. We had booked passage on the Queen of the Orient sailing in a few days.”

“Did Lord Theo’s family know? She was still living in their house.”

“She said she hadn’t told them yet, and I don’t know if she would have even on the day we sailed.”

He might still be able to tell me details that would help find Roxanne’s—find Lady Theo’s—killer. And I was curious. “What was Roxanne like?”

“She was bold. Outspoken. Honest. Funny. That was what originally drew me to her. She had only been married a month or two when they came into the club the first time and was still trying to learn how to be part of the Wallingford family. The duchess and the family were pulling her one way, constantly finding fault with her words, her behavior, her walk. Theo and his friends pulled her the other way, into debauchery.”

He shook his head. “She didn’t like either way, and she was unhappy. She tried to please her husband, but there was no pleasing him. She tried to please his family, but that got her nowhere. Even when she took the blame for a couple of his idiotic stunts.”

“Such as?”

“The infamous carriage race down Pall Mall. Lord Theo made the bet, and Lord Theo drove their carriage. After the crash, Roxanne put Theo inside the carriage and took the reins herself. The police never knew Theo was hiding inside on the floor of the carriage. The duke got the police charges dropped because he knew it was his son who’d caused all the damage, but he never told his family who’d been driving and he never thanked Roxanne for her quick thinking.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.