Page 32 of The Wise Daughter
Chuff handed Aaron a soot-covered satchel. “This is the man’s bag.”
“See for yourself what’s inside, Derricott.”
Aaron looked inside. His mother’s favorite spoons, forks, and butter knives, all of the finest silver, though tarnished, sat in a jumble inside. Could the chimney sweep have known they were heirlooms that had been in the family for generations? Aaron didn’t know how often his father had used them, but as a child, Aaron remembered his mother requesting them for only the most special occasions.
“I-I don’t know how those ended up in my satchel, Your Grace. I swear. I only brought a few tools in there. I-I’m a simple sweep. I’m no thief.”
Ruthers related to Aaron exactly what had happened, how the sweep had been asked to work on the chimney, but shortly after, he was seen leaving with his bag clanking and the evidence too apparent not to investigate.
Aaron took a deep, regretful breath. “I’m sorry, Mr. Rowe. I have no tolerance for thieving. I must see that you are met with justice.”
“Please, Your Grace!” His pleading eyes grew large. “My wife just gave birth to our fourth child. Our oldest is not yet eight. They’ll have no way to support themselves if anything happens to me.”
Aaron frowned. This was the part of being a duke he had dreaded. Respect and authority were fine and grand until he had to proclaim such a consequence on the head of a poor man and by extension, his innocent family, in such a pitiable state. Aaron made a note to see that his wife and children had what they needed.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Rowe, but stealing from me is no way to provide for your family. If only you had come to me to begin with. I might have been able to do something for you, but now…” He trailed off, not wanting to complete the sentence.
“Your Grace?”
A light touch landed on his arm. He had almost forgotten Nora was witnessing everything.
“I have a few questions for Mr. Rowe.”
“Of course, Nora.”
She clasped her hands in front of her. “Mr. Rowe, we’ve heard Mr. Ruthers relate what he saw, but would you please tell us what happened from your perspective? Start with when you arrived at the castle, right from the beginning, who you spoke with, who showed you here, and such.”
Facing Nora, who looked perfectly at ease, the chimney sweep’s shoulders relaxed, and his breathing visibly slowed. “I met Mr. Chuff at the door. He showed me here. I was surprised because I had worked on this chimney not long ago. It seemed too short a time to be clogged again. Never minding, though, in case I didn’t clean it thoroughly enough last time, I set to work. I soon saw there wasn’t much to do. It really didn’t need my help after all. I don’t think a fire’s been lit here for some time.”
Aaron looked at the fireplace for the first time since coming in. The sweep was right. The grate looked fairly clean and free of ash. No smoldering logs or coals warmed the chilly room nor did any sit unused.
Nora nodded. “Yes, go on.”
Mr. Rowe swallowed. “With the intent to leave, I gathered my things. I had all my tools, but I couldn’t find my satchel. It wasn’t anywhere in the room. I stepped out to look for Chuff in case he saw where I might have misplaced it, or I thought maybe someone had come in and cleaned it up while I was at work, not realizing it was mine. But Chuff didn’t have any clue where my satchel was. I checked in here one more time and found it in the corner.”
“Does that sound accurate to you, Chuff?” Nora asked.
Chuff arched a brow and sniffed. “Yes.”
Nora nodded. “Do you think, Mr. Rowe, that you merely hadn’t noticed your satchel in the corner earlier?”
Mr. Rowe looked between Aaron, Ruthers, and Nora. With a short frantic head shake, he said, “No. I don’t think so. I’m not sure what happened. Maybe a maid took it in her tidying, then returned it. Maybe my satchel was confused with another. I don’t know.”
“Hmm.” Nora tapped her chin. “Your Grace, how far away are the kitchens and scullery from this room?”
“Two floors down at the opposite end of the castle.”
“Mr. Rowe, how long have you been at work in the castle today?”
The sweep swallowed again. “Wasn’t even an hour before Mr. Ruthers took hold of me.”
Ruthers stepped closer and grumbled. “He had more than enough time to make his visit to the silverware cabinets.”
“Yes, he likely did have time.” Nora agreed, a small smile sitting confidently on her lips. “That is, if he went straight to work navigating through these corridors to arrive, swipe the silverware and make his return. But if you look at the floors, I can see that Mr. Rowe is leaving footprints. I mean no disrespect, sir, but you are also shedding a light dusting of soot as you move.”
“Forgive me, Your Grace. A messy work, cleaning chimneys.”
Aaron realized the man was addressing Nora as if she were already the duchess. Other than a slight pause, Nora gave no indication that she thought anything of it or had even noticed.
