Page 66 of Murder at the Mayfair Hotel
I took the lift to give myself time to calm my nerves. I thought John’s easy chatter would help, but he couldn’t stop talking about the dismissals in worried tones. I was glad to get out, but my anxiety returned as I knocked on my uncle’s office door.
He heaved a sigh as I entered. “I’ve never been more glad to see a friendly face,” he said, indicating the chair for me to sit. “The only people who’ve come to see me today are ones asking me where things are, what they should be doing, and how to do this or that. They seem to think I ought to know every little thing Hobart and Armitage did on a daily basis.”
“There’s a way to stop all those questions.” At his inquiring look, I added, “Reconsider your decision.”
His brow plunged. “No.”
“Please, sir, hire them back so life here can return to normal.”
“I never go back on my word.” He waved his hand, dismissing me.
But I would not be dismissed. Not with something so important at stake. “Could you not this time? For the sake of two very good, loyal employees with an exemplary record for all the years they’ve worked here.”
He wagged a finger at me. “I didn’t expect this from you, Cleo. Not after it was you who brought Armitage’s crime to my attention.”
I closed my eyes and winced. “I wish I hadn’t. I thought I was exposing a murderer, and I feel foolish now for ever considering Mr. Armitage the poisoner.”
He gave a harsh laugh. “Ironic, isn’t it? If Armitage’s father had done his job more efficiently, his son’s theft would never have been uncovered.”
“The blame for this is all mine.”
“Nonsense. You are the only blameless one in this entire debacle.”
I shook my head. “It’s kind of you to try to make me feel better, but I will always feel guilty. Please, sir, overturn your decision and give them their positions back.”
He stabbed a finger into his chest. “And make it look as thoughIwas in the wrong?”
“Youarein the wrong,” I snapped.
He went very still. “I beg your pardon?”
I drew in a breath and gathered my nerves. If I was going to make amends, then I had to be prepared to suffer the consequences that Mr. Hobart and Mr. Armitage had suffered because of me—dismissal. Dismissal from the hotel, the family… From what I knew of my uncle, it was a very real possibility. “Neither man deserved to—”
“They lied to me.”
“Listen to me!” I clasped my hands in my lap, twining my fingers together. “Please, just let me finish. Mr. Armitage was an orphan.”
“I know that.”
“Yes, but you don’t know what it was like to be orphaned at such a young age. I do, and I can assure you, it’s a lonely position to find yourself in. But I was fortunate, compared to him. I had my grandparents, and your generosity in providing me with an allowance. He had no one.”
“Your sympathy for his plight is understandable, considering your circumstances. I can see that Mr. Armitage’s story upsets you. You’re a woman, and I would expect you to feel sorry for him. But I’m a businessman, Cleo. If word reaches those vipers waiting outside, I hate to think what will happen to The Mayfair’s reputation. Reputation is everything in this business. Hobart knew that. He built his career with that at its core. But it was all built on a lie, a rotten core, and I can’t condone that. I’m sorry you’re upset.”
“Spare me your lecture,” I spat.
His lips parted and his gaze lifted as I stood.
“I may be a woman, and you a man, but which of us acted rashly, emotionally?” I pointed at him. “You did. And which of us has more common sense?” I pointed at myself. “Me, because I can see that your business is going to suffer with them gone. Mr. Chapman and Mrs. Kettering are not up to the task of performing the manager and assistant manager’s duties in addition to their own. And have you forgotten that one of them might be stealing your silverware? I also doubt you’ll find suitable replacements for Mr. Hobart and Mr. Armitage soon—perhaps not for a very long time. And when—if—you do find replacements, it will be months before their knowledge of the hotel matches Mr. Hobart’s and Mr. Armitage’s. Perhaps even years. Can The Mayfair survive that long?” I turned to go but thought of something else, something which might get through to him more than anything else I’d said. “Added to which, if they return, they have every incentive to keep Mr. Armitage’s childhood arrest quiet. Right now, what’s stopping them from telling the newspapers? It will only hurt you. It can’t hurt them any more than it already has.”
“They wouldn’t dare.”
“If I were in their position, revenge would be a very tempting carrot.”
My uncle stared at me like he’d only just begun to see me.
I felt no satisfaction as I marched out of his office. It was a relief to have spoken to him finally, but the weight that had been pressing down on my chest ever since he’d dismissed Mr. Hobart and Mr. Armitage was still there, as leaden as ever.
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