Page 14 of The Trick of the Treasure
“Am I likely to come upon her swains prowling about the house?”
“Of course not.”
He straightened and heard her sigh of relief. “Then we shall say no more about it for now. I’ll speak to Garrick and put a stop to young Devine treating the house like his own.”
*
The Lloyds’ staffseemed to be everything good domestic servants should be, loyal and close-mouthed to strangers, even under instructions from their master to co-operate.
Constance and Solomon spoke first to Garrick, the haughty butler, whom they found in the kitchen conferring with the cook, a grim-faced woman of middle years who looked more likely to curdle the milk than produce food to make the senses sing.
Garrick’s nostrils flared at sight of them in his domain. The cook turned away, banging the rolling pin in her hand down on the table with unnecessary force.
“Forgive the intrusion,” Constance said amiably. “We shall not disturb you for long. I believe Mr. Lloyd has already informed you we are looking into the mystery of his missing treasure.”
“Indeed,” Garrick uttered.
Constance persevered in the face of his obvious discouragement, bestowing an understanding smile upon him. “It would help us enormously to know what you observed on the evening and during the night of Mr. Lloyd’s return.”
Garrick said nothing.
“When did you first see the treasure chest?” Solomon asked.
“When it was brought into the house. Sir.” There was just enough of a pause before thesirto be insolent.
Solomon ignored it. “Who brought it in?”
“Harry and John. Footmen.”
“Where did they take it?”
“Upstairs, to the drawing room.”
“Directly? Or did it lie in the hall for a while.”
“Directly.”
“How was it closed?”
“It was bound with rope.”
“What happened once the chest was in the drawing room?”
“You must ask the master. I was not there.”
“Then the family was already in the drawing room?”
“Indeed.”
“When you brought wine to the drawing room, was the chest open or closed?”
“Closed.”
“Bound still with the rope?”
For the first time, Garrick hesitated. “I couldn’t say.”
“And when you announced dinner?”
