Page 75 of Death of a Courtesan
‘He delivered the wine to the premises and probably wouldn’t have been able to hide his disgust for what went on in there,’ Jake replied. ‘She would simply have had to spin him a yarn about being forced to do what she did against her will. That would put him in mind of his mother, although Mirabelle couldn’t have known that. If we are right, she must have thought that all her Christmases had come at once when Ray fell for her yarn so easily. My advice, Riley, for what it’s worth is that if she doesn’t come to you tomorrow then you should call her in and put that suggestion to her. She will let Ray take the fall in order to save her own skin, you just mark my words.“Oh yes, inspector. Now you come to mention it I did see the man who delivers the wine acting strangely. He seemed to be obsessed with Adelaide but never could have afforded her”Jake shrugged. ‘Or something of that nature.’
‘Thank you, Jake, and you, Daniel,’ Riley replied. ‘It helps to see things more clearly when I discuss them with those not directly involved.’
‘Those with a modicum of intelligence is what you meant to say, I think,’ Daniel said good-naturedly.
Riley laughed. ‘Very likely.’
‘Come along, gentlemen,’ Jack said, returning his attention to the rest of the men, still seated at the table and making steady inroads into the port. ‘Shall we rejoin the ladies?’
Riley trailed behind the rest of the men and was the last to enter the drawing room.
‘Come along, Uncle Riley.’ Cabbage danced forward. ‘We are going to play whist and you must partner me.’
‘Must I indeed.’
‘Oh, I think you should. Uncle Daniel is to partner Carolyn and she is a much better player than I am so you are needed to make the game more even.’
Riley felt the travails of his working day falling from his shoulders in the company of his enchanting niece. She was a far better player than she had led Riley to believe, had a good memory but found so much else to occupy her attention that she frequently forgot to concentrate. As a consequence she and Riley were narrowly beaten.
‘Oh dear,’ she said, smiling angelically. ‘Well done, Caro. I shall just have to practise some more so that I don’t let people down.’
Riley patted her shoulder, stood up and strolled towards the window, watching the two tables still at play, one of which included Amelia. His gaze was frequently drawn towards her, his ears exclusively tuned to the sound of her musical laughter.
‘She really is very lovely.’
Olivia’s voice startled Riley. He hadn’t heard her approaching. ‘Matchmaking, Olivia?’ he asked in a tone of mild rebuke.
‘Absolutely not. I shall have quite enough of that on my hands once Caro comes out. I was simply making an observation.’
Riley smiled. ‘Of course you were.’
‘Even so, you could do worse.’
‘I expected a little more subtlety from you.’
‘And you would have been assured of it, had you not made your interest in Amelia quite so obvious.’
‘Obvious?’ Riley arched a brow, irritated to have unwittingly given Olivia a reason to broach the subject. ‘Amelia and I are friends.’
Olivia flashed a knowing smile. ‘Is that what they are calling it nowadays?’
‘She has made it abundantly clear that friendship is all she wants from me.’
‘Ah, I suppose she would have.’
Olivia’s statement assured her of Riley’s full attention. ‘Whatever do you mean?’
‘You know, I suppose, that her marriage was a complete disaster. A very unhappy period in her life that has left her scarred and wary of the men generally.’
Riley nodded. ‘I assumed that must be the case but I have never asked her about it. If she wants me to know, I imagine she will volunteer the information.’
‘She and I have compared notes at considerable length. We are both survivors of brutal and loveless first marriages.’ Olivia frowned as she absently played with the tassel that edged the thick velvet curtain immediately behind her, forcing herself to dwell upon a period of her life that, Riley suspected, had gradually faded from memory in lieu of years of happiness with Jake. ‘I have tried to convince Amelia that not all men should be viewed in the same light, but she is understandably cautious.’
‘Perhaps she is content with her life the way that it is now. She has her freedom and financial independence, enabling her to do more or less as she pleases. There is a lot to be said for that.’
Olivia chuckled. ‘I had managed to convince myself that I felt the same way. I had not only been married to a brute but also accused of murdering him. That is not the sort of situation one recovers from overnight.’ She paused. ‘At least Amelia has been spared the indignity of being publicly branded as a murderess.’
‘No one who knew you at the time could possibly have thought that way.’
