Page 136 of The Christmas Invitation
‘I suspect that’s because she’s realized that though she might have lost Mark, she still has a bird in the hand with Rollo.’
‘You think she’s going to set her sights on him, now?’
‘He’s dependent on her at the moment. He can’t escape, even if he wants to,’ I pointed out. ‘But good luck to her. I’m starting to think she could even cope with his ghastly mother, too. Clash of the Titans.’
After a few minutes of wall scraping I said, ‘I did feel worried about Zelda falling for Mark, when he seems so quick to switch from one girl to another.’
‘So did I,’ Lex admitted. ‘But she seems to know what she’s doing – and that’s rearranging Mark’s plans for Underhill to suit their future life together, just the way she wants it!’
I laughed. ‘Including the winters in Italy and skiing! You know, I think they’re made for each other.’
We set to again with the scrapers and there’s something very satisfying about peeling off long damp tendrils of old wallpaper, several layers deep, to reveal the plaster beneath … even if it was the bedroom of the person I suspected had tried to kill me.
That was a bizarre thought.
On the way back to the Red House, Lex suddenly surprised me by saying, ‘There’s been something on your mind all morning, hasn’t there? You were looking very oddly at Sybil at breakfast, too.’
‘Was I? I was tryingnotto look at her.’ I paused, then made up my mind to tell him, even if he thought I was mad.
‘Remember at dinner last night, when we were talking about Sybil’s perfume? It’s overpoweringly distinctive, isn’t it? I knew I’d noticed that scent before.’
‘Yes, you said – at the Gathering.’
‘I assumed that was it, but when I woke this morning I realized that I’d found it unsettling because I connected it with that moment when I nearly went off the ledge.’
He pulled into a passing place and turned to stare incredulously at me. ‘You mean … ?’
‘Yes, I really am sure now that I was pushed and, however ridiculous it seems, I think Sybil did it.’
‘But why on earth would old Syb try to kill you?’ he said blankly.
‘I don’t really know, unless it was just a sudden impulse when she saw me standing there alone in the dark.’
‘That’s not exactly a reason,’ he pointed out. ‘When I spotted you, there was no one remotely near.’
‘She could have slipped away quickly, and she was wearing a dark blue ski jacket and trousers.’
He looked frowningly at me, as if I might indeed be mad, so I said, ‘I’ve been giving it a lot of thought and I think she still saw me as a threat to Mark’s inheritance, even if she was putting a good face on it. But afterwards, at the Gathering, she noticed Mark was …’
‘All over you like a rash?’ he finished.
‘Something like that. Sothenshe got the misguided idea that he was seriously interested in me, and of course, if we were to get married, that would make his position safe.’
‘But it’s all so far-fetched! I mean, even if you or your mum made a claim, there’s no guarantee you’d get anything,’ he said.
‘Neither Mum nor I would dream of doing that anyway. I’m happy to have found out about my heritage, but it doesn’t mean theyfeellike family – or not Sybil and Mark. Henry and Clara do, and I’m very attached to Teddy.’
‘And do I feel like family?’
‘No, not in the least,’ I said frankly.
‘Good,’ he replied enigmatically, and pulled out into the lane again.
He was frowning. ‘I don’t know if I believe it or not, but I think I should tell Clara and Henry what you suspect,’ he said, to my dismay.
‘Oh, please don’t tell them, Lex! Let’s just forget it.’
‘You can’t simply forget attempted murder. And what about Zelda?’
