Page 70 of The Devil in Oxford
Mr. Owen rubbed his thick white beard with the back of his hand. “No, but I managed to find this in his other pocket when I replaced the twine with the belt.” He handed me a familiar notebook.
I took it and flipped open the journal to a middle page. My own reassuring script looked back at me. From page to page,I scoured the book for clues I might have forgotten. My hand stilled.
“What’s wrong, lass?” Mr. Owen took another bite of his toast.
I wet my lips. “A page… a page is missing.” I ran my finger over the rough edge where it had been cut out of the journal with a blade. I flipped back a page, then returned to the missing one before going forward a few more. Cold dread inched up my spine.
Hari’s address.
The page they took had Hari’s address, along with Leona’s.
I was going to be sick.
Certain words had been underlined by an unfamiliar hand.
L. A.Leona.
ARTIFACTS
HARKER
MUSEUM
THE RANDOLPH
Tiny words, meaningless on their own, but together it told the killer that I was on his trail.
It also told them where to find Hari.
Had that stolen page inadvertently led him to Leona as well? Guilty tears pricked my eyes. “Mr. Owen, tell Ruan I’m meetingmy friendearly this morning like we discussed. I’ll be back soon.”
He wiped a few crumbs from his lap. “Of course, lamb. Is something wrong?”
Everything.But there was no time. There never was enough time. “I’ll likely be back within the hour. Two at most.”
Mr. Owen’s eyes glittered merrily as he took another sip of his tea. Inspector Beecham’s brow grew damp despite the damnably cold temperature in the kitchen. Good. The bastard deserved to be uncomfortable.
“Aye, my love. Go on and see your friend. I’ll be fine.” The mirth in his voice did not match the dangerous gleam in his eye. He was enjoying this far more than a man ought.
I brushed a kiss to his temple. “See if Ruan can make heads or tails of him, will you?”
Mr. Owen cheerfully shooed me out the door, as if we weren’t breaking dozens of laws before breakfast.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREEImposters, All
Iwas getting closer—Ihadto be, especially with Inspector Beecham coming around to try to kill the only remaining witness. While I was quite certain he killed Mr. Mueller and would have killed Annabelle—I did not believe he was acting alone. He was simply the blade, someone else was giving the orders. I blew out an uneasy breath. While the clues were finally beginning to align, they still brought me no closer to who actuallykilledJulius Harker, nor did it answer where Leona had gone? Had she been taken, or had she run? There were too many unknowns still lingering at the edges of the investigation.
I racked my brain trying to recall what other thoughts or facts I may have scribbled on the missing page but came up blank. My usually infallible ability to remember meaningless minutiae had failed me at last. The snowy streets of Oxford passed by in muted silence from the inside of the cab. I scarcely spoke to the driver, remaining nestled in the back seat watching the buildings rush by outside the fogged-up window. I rested my forehead against the cold glass and closed my eyes until the driver stopped outside the hotel.
The Randolph sat directly across from the Ashmolean like twowarring giants set in limestone. It was a grand hotel, all decorated for the holidays. And even at this early hour the lobby was bustling with guests. Mostly businessmen or travelers on their way to some far-flung location for Christmas. The electric lights burned bright as I trotted up the main stair and off to the second-floor corridor in search of Hari’s suite. I was early for our appointment, but we needed to speak in private before the imposter arrived. I checked my pin watch, eyes fixed on the smooth white enamel face. The second hand ticked away with a stuttering motion underscoring our urgency.
I rapped twice on the fine dark wood door.
Hari swung it open at once, dressed for the day aside from the fact he wore no shoes. “You are early.”
“It’s been an eventful eighteen hours. Can I come in?”
He swung the door wider, gesturing with his arm. “It is just as well. I have news too.”
