“Alec will take that into account, of course.”
“So he’s officially investigating the poor old b—fellow’s death? Raymond’s, I mean?”
“He was unofficially looking into that. It may well turn out to have been an accident. But now that Vincent has been attacked…”
“For the second time?”
“I don’t know. And I’d better not talk about all this or I’ll say something Alec wants kept quiet. Ben’s in the nurseries, according to Ernest. The three of them are playing cards.”
Frank grinned. “That sounds safe enough, as Ben hasn’t got a penny to gamble with. Not to mention Mrs. Gilpin’s eagle eye.”
“You’ve fallen afoul of Nurse Gilpin, have you?”
“She didn’t like me calling Belinda Bel. ‘That’s Miss Belinda to you,’ she said, very toffee-nosed.”
“Oh dear, I’m sorry.”
“Not to worry. I’m careful to call her Miss Belinda in the nursery. And Bel elsewhere. She and young Derek have been absolute bricks, as Derek would say, to Ben. Almost everyone here has been very kind and accepting—”
“Almost?”
“Except Vincent and Mrs. Vincent, who are just snooty, and the late, unlamented Raymond, who passed some nasty remarks about the horror of being related to a kaffir. I was angry, but things are different in South Africa from at home, and I wouldn’t kill him for being an ignorant bigot. Do you or your husband think Ben is in danger?”
“It’s possible. I was on my way up to check on them when Alec lumbered me with this stuff. I wonder how many people know he has a brother at home?”
“I see what you mean,” he said thoughtfully. “I don’t recall talking about Jacques to anyone. Maybe mentioning more young ’uns at home but nothing more specific. You reckon it’d be a good idea to make sure everyone hears about him?”
“It can’t hurt. If we can come up with a way to encourage Ben and the others to talk about him, without alarming them … His name is Jack?”
“Jacques, the French name. We’re a mixed bunch in Trinidad.”
They reached Daisy’s room. Frank handed over the documents and went on. Daisy bunged Vincent’s slashed clothes into the bottom of the wardrobe, pushing them to the back, and stuffed the case of papers into one of Alec’s drawers, under his socks, vests, and pants. Then she went to Martha’s room. Knocking, she hoped she wasn’t interrupting an intimate reunion . To her relief, Geraldine’s maid came to the door.
“Oh, it’s you, madam. I’m just helping Mrs. Samuel get herself to bed. She’s fair exhausted what with all the excitement.”
“Mr. Samuel isn’t here?”
“No, madam. He stopped while she drank her tea—not that it’s what I’d call tea, that nasty stuff Mrs. Warden sent up. When I came along according to her ladyship’s instructions, to see if Mrs. Samuel could do with a helping hand, Mr. Samuel said he was going to look for the nurseries to meet the rest of his new relations. So I told him how to get there, seeing it’s confusing what with all the passages and stairs and whatnot. I’m sure I hope I did right, madam.”
Having reassured her and sent a “sweet dreams” message to Martha, Daisy followed in Sam and Frank’s footsteps up to the nursery.
Had Sam gone straight there after leaving Martha, or had he sneaked out and stuck a knife into Vincent, then dashed back? It would be hard to do without someone noticing, at least hearing hurried footsteps on the stairs, even in this solidly built house. How long had the maid been with Martha? Small chance of either having noticed the time!
Frank, alone in the billiard room on the ground floor, would have found it much easier to manage the attack unseen and unheard. The attack on Raymond also would have been much more difficult for Sam than for Frank.
If Raymond had been attacked …
Alec badly needed competent colleagues to help him find out who was where when.
TWENTY-EIGHT
Before she reached the nursery, Daisy could hear laughter. It made her smile, but she was going to have to spoil the fun. Though Raymond had not made himself popular, he was a relative and fellow guest. A certain sobriety was due to his memory on the day of his death, even if no one went into deep mourning.
Frank had already joined in a game of cards, sitting at the battered table with Sam and the kids. Nana snoozed at their feet. Daisy watched and listened for a minute before they noticed her presence.
Belinda saw her first. “Mummy, come and play!”
“Uncle Frank is really, really good at cheating,” said Derek.