Page 87 of Murder at Hambledon Hall
“Will it help your conscience if I tell you why I did it?”
“I think I already know. At first I thought it was to keep the bloodline pure. Esmond was young enough to marry and have legitimate children, and you didn’t want the Kershaw title to be tainted by the lower orders. But you lack the snobbery for that to be your motive. Now I think it’s because Esmond was a horrid man and you simply wanted to keep him from destroying your lives.”
“I am glad you came to exclude your original theory. It makes me sound monstrous. You are quite right about not wanting Esmond to take over. His demand to close the bridleway was only the beginning, a way of keeping Faine and Gordon happy until he was ready for the next stage. Esmondthreatenedmy nephew, telling him he would demand he relinquish the title when the time was right. I couldn’t allow such a despicable person to become earl, to live in this house, andruinit all. My nephew and his wife don’t deserve the humiliation. This is their home. It’s their children’s home. If Esmond didn’t gamble it all away, he would have lost it through mismanagement eventually. Even if Esmond never had children, and my great-nephew inherited after him, there would be nothing left to inherit.”
“You would have lost your home, too,” I pointed out. “Unless Esmond was gracious enough to allow you to spend your remaining years here.”
She barked a laugh. “Gracious is not a word you could associate with that man.” She readjusted her grip on the head of the walking stick. “What happens now, Miss Fox? Will I be handed over to Sergeant Honeyman?”
“Would he do anything if you were?”
“If the evidence is incontrovertible, he would have to.”
I studied the rifle, still in my hand. “This is a modern weapon, entirely made in a factory. It’s impossible to compare a bullet fired from it to the one removed from the body. Microscopes simply aren’t strong enough to detect such minor striations, if they exist. The paint smudge on Lord Kershaw’s finger is circumstantial, at best, and won’t hold up in court. Added to which, I doubt a jury would convict a lady of good character who is respected by villagers and peers alike.”
“Or an elderly lady, which is sweet of you not to mention.”
“It would come down to me recounting your confession in court, and whether a jury would believe me. I’m not sure I want to go through that. It would upset my aunt and uncle, and Aunt Lilian has enough on her plate. Also, to be quite frank, Lady Elizabeth, I don’t think you’re a threat to society.”
She nodded. “Not to mention Esmond wasn’t worth the trouble. No one is mourning him.”
“Not even Mrs. Browning?”
“He spied on her daughter in the privacy of her bedroom. Not even Cicely could love him after that. Besides which, a court case would lead to the truth about Esmond’s birth and I don’t think Cicely could cope if she found out her lover was her half-brother. I suspect that might send her down the same path your aunt has taken.”
I returned the rifle and bullets to their hiding place and closed the panel. Once shut, it was impossible to tell it was a door. I then handed over the two torn pages of church records. “I believe you’ve been looking for these.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.” She held them at arm’s length and squinted to read them. “My nephew searched the gamekeeper’s cottage after Esmond’s death but couldn’t locate them.”
So it was Lord Kershaw who’d been in the cottage before Harry and me, leaving behind evidence of his search. I suspected it was Esmond himself who’d moved the photo of Susanna after he read Mabel’s letter.
“There’s a price for my silence,” I said.
She arched her brows. “How much do you want?”
“It’s not for me. It’s for Miss Crippen. She’s going to have Esmond’s baby soon, and as an unwed mother, the road ahead will be difficult for her. I’d like you to pay for the child’s upbringing.” I’d promised Miss Crippen I wouldn’t divulge her secret to anyone, but I felt an exception needed to be made, for the baby’s sake.
Lady Elizabeth nodded without hesitation.
I gave her Miss Crippen’s address. “Goodbye for now. I’ll see you at Janet’s wedding.”
“Goodbye, Miss Fox. Close the door on your way out.” She turned to the window, her palm resting on the torn pages, and stared up at the sky, as clear and cloudless as her eyes. The white hair, deep wrinkles, and heavy reliance on the walking stick were testament to her age, but there was a defiant, inner strength and sharp intelligence that rejected pity and sympathy. She regretted nothing.
Would she have murdered Esmond if she’d been younger, with her future ahead of her and more to lose? It was impossible to say. All I knew was that she was a complex woman who was no less complex now than she had been decades ago with her whole life to look forward to. Age didn’t change that.
I sought out Lord and Lady Kershaw and informed them that I’d finished my study of their masterpieces. Lady Kershaw expressed her surprise. Lord Kershaw’s gaze flew to the staircase. I suspected the moment I was gone, he’d check on his aunt.
I left the house, only to stop on the drive on the spot where Esmond died. I glanced back at Hambledon Hall, a commanding and stoic structure that wouldn’t look out of place in Medieval times. Its appearance was all pretense, however, a lie created by Lady Elizabeth’s father to make it seem as though the family’s wealth and power stretched back many centuries, not just one or two. He’d continued the lies by excluding his firstborn grandson, Esmond, from the line of inheritance. The lie wouldn’t die completely, not until everyone who knew the truth was gone. I was quite sure the only three people who knew Esmond should have been the sixth earl instead of his younger half-brother would never tell. Lord Kershaw and Lady Elizabeth would take it to their graves. I doubted he would even tell his wife or children. And I wouldn’t tell anyone either, after I informed Harry, of course. That would make four people to know the truth, not three. None of us would speak of it again.
Something moving in one of the windows on the first floor caught my eye. I wasn’t precisely sure which window belonged to Lady Elizabeth’s bedchamber, but I suspected she was sitting there watching me. I lifted a hand in a wave, then turned away. My steps quickened without me realizing it at first. It wasn’t until I found myself at the edge of the village, out of breath, that I realized I’d maintained a fast pace because I was eager to see Harry again.
Chapter19
“Keeping secrets does more harm than good,” I told Uncle Ronald. “Secrets have a way of exploding at the worst possible time, causing havoc.”
We sat in his office in the late afternoon. Clouds had crowded into the sky and darkened the room. He worked by strong lamplight that fell across his face, creating shadows below the bulges and making him look exhausted. Perhaps he was exhausted. Aunt Lilian’s health must be weighing on his mind.
He’d greeted me amiably, if somewhat cautiously, knowing I’d just come from Hambledon Hall. He must be expecting me to announce I’d found the killer. He must also be worried the killer was one of Lord Kershaw’s family.
