Page 12 of Death at Inishmore Castle

“Is she always this bossy?” Gordon asked.

“Yes,” Scott and Rob replied at the same time. “But it comes in handy. We’ll cover things here. You go investigate the scream.”

Gordon and I headed down the long hallway.

“Besides our crew, how many others are here for the weekend?” I asked. We passed several rooms and doors that were closed. This place never seemed to end. If it weren’t for Gordon, we would have been lost long ago.

“That’s my wife’s side of things, but I think we have thirteen, including your group. Well, I guess twelve now. I cannot believe this has happened. It’s such a shock, and it hasn’t sunk in yet. My poor wife.” He sighed. “She’s worked so hard to turn the familyenterprises around. If it weren’t for her, we would have lost all of this years ago.”

The ornate sconces along the hallway flickered off and on, and Gordon kept his flashlight on as he guided us along the way.

“But it’s your family’s legacy.”

He nodded. “Since the day we married, she’s taken it all on her shoulders. I’m a distiller at heart. Everything else is all her. She came up with the business ideas and revamped the estate. It has taken years, and this was supposed to be the weekend of her dreams. My heart is broken for her. I love her and I wish she didn’t have to deal with all of this.”

He was sweet and sincere. He dearly loved his wife. And though I hadn’t taken him off my suspect list, I couldn’t imagine him doing something that might upset Nora.

“And how long has the castle been open as a hotel?”

“Only a month or so. We did some trial runs to make certain we had the right number of staff and could handle the business. This is the first official weekend for all our events and classes.

“We’ve been doing the whiskey tastings for years, though. But visitors would only come for the tastings and then leave.”

“And do you know any of the guests this weekend personally?”

“No. Well, apart from our accountant, Maximillian, and Lolly. She and my ma were friends for years. Bless her soul.” He made the sign of the cross. “I’ve known Lolly my whole life, and she and my wife have become friends. It was Lolly’s suggestion to invite your group to help spread the word. And now, all of this has happened. We’ll never get off the ground.”

“I don’t think you need to worry about that. We’re good and fair people. This place is gorgeous. And this death isn’t your fault.” At least, I hoped not. “And you didn’t know the priest?” I went on.

“No. He was a guest just like the others. Like I said, he asked a lot of questions. But mostly he’s been keeping himself to himself. He asked for access to the books in the study. We didn’t see any reason to say no.”

“That’s odd, right? Why was he so interested in those old books? I mean, if he was a priest.”

“You think he was misrepresenting himself?” Gordon’s eyes opened wider in surprise.

Once again, I’d stuck my foot in my mouth by not curbing my thoughts. I had a tendency to talk to myself so much, that sometimes those words came out around others. It was my writer’s brain trying to figure things out. I decided to switch the subject.

“How did you and your wife meet?”

“Oh, we were wee ones. Our mothers were friends and both great gardeners. My wife followed in her mother’s footsteps and brought her love of nature to the estate when we wed.”

I smiled. “How long have you been married?”

“We’re going on thirty years. We were friends most of our lives but didn’t start dating until she came home from university. She has quite a business mind. I’d been so focused on the distillery that I’d let the rest of the estate go. But she turned things around. Mind you, if she hadn’t come up with this hospitality idea, we would have lost it all.”

“She sounds brilliant.” I loved that he was so proud of his wife and her business sense. The appreciation of her was evident in his voice. “But you have all this art on the walls, and antiquities. Could you not sell some of those?”

He shrugged. “It isn’t worth as much as you might think.”

I wondered what he meant by that.

“Anyway, you’re right. She is brilliant. Part of me feels guilty for pulling her into all of this.”

“Why is that?”

“There have always been rumors that this place was cursed, and there are times when I believe it. Like tonight.”

“You can’t blame yourself for what happened.”

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