The Regal (A Series of Worthy Young Ladies Book 6) by Kate Archer

Author:Kate Archer [Archer, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical
Publisher: Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2022-12-07T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

A hush fell over Lord Ryland’s dining room as his guests read through the case he had prepared for this year’s mystery supper. If Isabel could hear anybody speaking aloud at all, it was only Lady Featherstone.

“Oh, I see, well, yes, of course, it could not be more clear, I believe I begin to see how it was,” the lady said, lorgnette firmly applied to her eyes.

Isabel began to read her own paper, fairly certain that she would not be able to see how it was.

Mrs. Lydia Roberts, age 46, was found dead in her garden on the afternoon of July 14, 1813. She was discovered there by her housekeeper, who had been out doing an errand for her mistress. Mrs. Roberts was found with her lower torso on the ground, and her upper torso hanging over the side of a fountain, her face submerged in the water. Dried blood splatter was noted on the edge of the fountain.

Mrs. Roberts had been widowed for 18 months, having been the longstanding wife of the local doctor. They had no children.

The housekeeper, Mrs. Jenkin, age 55, pulled her mistress from the water and then ran to get help. As she passed by the doors to the dining room, she made a second gruesome discovery. One of Mrs. Roberts’ suitors, Mr. Elliot Greg, age 52, was slumped in a chair at the table, and was also expired.

The magistrate was called in and made a thorough report on what he observed upon entering the scenes of both deaths, which was as follows:

The first scene was the garden: thirty feet wide and forty feet deep, it was filled with a variety of flowering plants, including the foxglove clutched in Mrs. Roberts’ hand, amaryllis, lilies, monkshood, dog roses, sweet peas and delphiniums. A path led from the kitchens to the fountain, and then made a circle round the fountain. Smaller offshoots of graveled walkways led to all four corners of the garden. The entirety of the garden was surrounded by a five-foot stone wall. Behind the wall was forested land with no neighbors in view.

The second scene was the dining room: of usual size for a well-laid out cottage with a table to accommodate eight persons. There were two place settings on the table, as well as a platter with a small roasted beef gone cold, salt, pepper, a small dish of horseradish, a wilted salad, and a cheese board. The plate in front of Mr. Greg was half-eaten roasted beef, horseradish, a buttered roll, and a thick slice of cheddar cheese. The other plate situated at the head of the table was clean and unsullied.

On the day of the gruesome discoveries, the magistrate could get little from the hysterical housekeeper. All she was able to communicate was that her mistress had sent her to the butcher. The butcher frequented by the household confirmed that fact and though he had not been in attendance when the housekeeper came and went, his assistant remembered taking her custom.

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.