Page 39 of Murder at the Dinner Party
“We’re trying to find out where he worked before coming here. If Hardy is an assumed name and he went by another, it will be easier to show his photograph to see if he’s recognized.”
“I see. There are no photographs that I’ve come across, and I’ve searched through his desk and his personal belongings. There’s nothing of a personal nature at all, not even the name of a family member to send his things to. It’s very sad.”
It was also odd. “Can you describe his appearance?”
“He was tall, slim, but not too thin, and quite handsome. He wasn’t going bald, like some his age. He had a full head of thick gray hair.”
Her description was almost as thorough as Mr. Gannon’s had been. There was one telling feature she’d omitted, however.
“Did he have a cleft in his chin?” I asked.
“I don’t know. He had a beard. It was neatly trimmed, but it obscured his chin and jaw.”
I was disappointed, but Harry’s suspicion was piqued. “In my experience, butlers and footmen are always cleanly shaved.”
“The Campbells didn’t seem to mind the beard. They don’t worry about appearances like some. Oh, I did forget one thing. Mr. Hardy had a limp. I never asked how he got it. I didn’t like to pry, and I worried he might be sensitive about it. You know how some men are, Miss Fox.”
“Indeed. But a limp is also an unusual trait for a butler. You say the Campbells weren’t concerned about appearances, but a limp is different to a beard.”
She glanced at the door, then leaned forward. “While I was cleaning out his belongings, I saw his letter of offer. He wasn’t being paid much. In fact, he was paid the same as me. Usually, a butler receives more, even though they do less. I’ve been thinking for some time that the Campbells might be in some financial difficulty and seeing that letter confirmed it. I think they hired a butler with a limp because he was inexpensive. He couldn’t get work in the better households with a deformity, so he took the position here where he had to accept less. Not that it was a deformity in my eyes, you understand. I thought it made him even more dashing. But you know how toffs are, Miss Fox.”
The limp didn’t matter to me as much as the beard did. If Hardy had a cleft in his chin, the beard would hide it. It was quite possibly the reason he grew it in the first place. If he was indeed Rupert, it was definitely the reason he’d grown it.
“Speaking of the Campbells,” Harry said. “Do you know how long they’ve been friends of the Whitchurches?”
Mrs. Turner thought about it for a moment. “Ten or eleven years, I’d say.”
Not long enough to have known Rupert then. They could very well have unwittingly hired their friend’s brother.
Mrs. Turner followed us out of her office after we thanked her and called for Betty to see us to the door. Betty couldn’t be found, however.
“Was she summoned upstairs?” Mrs. Turner asked the cook.
Mrs. Cook shrugged and returned to her workbench.
Mrs. Turner sighed. “I know she’s upset about Mr. Hardy, but we all are, and we don’t disappear at the drop of a hat, do we? She needs to learn to get on with it when there’s work to be done.”
While she went in search of Betty, Harry and I saw ourselves out.
He waited until we were walking away from the house before speaking. “Do you still think Hardy and Rupert are the same person?”
“Even more so,” I said. “There are no photographs of him, nothing personal from family members, and he grew a beard. What better way to disguise his appearance? The rest of Mrs. Turner’s description could match an older Rupert, except the limp, which could have been acquired in the last twenty-two years.”
“My thoughts exactly. So where to now, Lead Detective?”
I eyed him carefully. “Are you upset that I introduced you as my assistant, not associate?”
“No. I am your assistant this time. It’s your case.”
We walked on, but I could feel the tension thickening between us. I really didn’t like it, but I didn’t know what to say to alleviate it.
Harry, however, had no such qualms. “Are you upset that I made a joke in there about you enjoying my company?”
“You said you were excellent company, not that I enjoyed having you around. And no, of course I’m not upset. Some people do find you excellent company.”
“You being one.”
I laughed. “Have you always been this arrogant, or am I just now being exposed to it?”
