The Sign of Death (Victorian Book Club Mystery 2)

He shook his head. Lord knew he had enough to worry about with Mother moving into his house.

“My lord, a note has arrived for you.” His butler, Madison, entered the library and held out a folded piece of paper.

William opened the note and frowned. It appeared that Mr. Harding was ill and unable to attend him. He looked up at Madison. “Thank you. No response is required.”

He stared at the note on his desk, considering this latest development. When had he started mistrusting James? A little more than three years together, and only recently had he felt a shift in their arrangement. Hopefully the man was legitimately ill and not just avoiding him.

William stood and strolled over to the window, his hands clasped behind his back. The garden was bleak as the day: cloudy, damp, and dismal. This time of the year was his least favorite. The merriment of Yuletide had ended, and nothing would appear on the horizon for a few months.

Shaking off his gloom, he strode from the room and made a last-minute decision to call on Lady Amy. He always smiled when he thought of her. She was a fellow member of the Mystery Book Club of Bath as well as a congregant in his church, St. Swithin’s.

Several months before, they’d worked together on solving the mystery of the death of her ex-fiancé, Mr. Ronald St. Vincent. As unusual as it sounded for there to be a gently reared young lady involving herself in a murder investigation, the subject of homicide was not something completely unfamiliar to Lady Amy. Unbeknownst to the public, she was the very well-known murder mystery author E. D. Burton, a fact he had learned during the course of their investigation.

He still smiled whenever he thought of that.

“I will return in time for dinner,” William said to Madison as he shrugged into his coat.

“Very good, my lord. I will advise Cook.”

He strode to the small stable at the back of his home to tack his horse, Major. The Cleveland Bay had been carrying him about town for many years.

The familiar, comforting smell of hay and animal greeted him as he approached Major’s stall. He ran his palm down the horse’s satin nose. “I promise I will take you for a good run sometime soon. I’m afraid right now we’re only traveling to Lady Amy’s house.”

Almost as if the horse understood, he stomped his foot and shook his head. William spoke soothing words to the animal as he finished tacking, then led him from the stable and mounted. With a squeeze of his thighs, he headed away from Wethington Manor toward Amy’s house.

* * *

Lady Amy Lovell tapped her pen against her desk as she considered the next red herring in the murder mystery she was currently working on. For some reason, she had been having a hard time concentrating the last few days.

It could very well be the dreary weather. She glanced out the window and rested her chin on her hand. Nothing of interest ever happened this time of the year, now that the social events of the holidays were over. It was too early for spring and her annual retreat with Aunt Margaret to Brighton Beach.

Amy stood and stretched, dropping her dog to the floor. She scooped the Pomeranian up. “I’m so very sorry, Persephone. I forgot you were sitting on my lap.”

The dog regarded her with disdain. It amazed her how she could ascertain her dog’s moods. Of course, no one believed that her dog had moods and that she could determine them. But when Amy did something of which Persephone didn’t approve, the dog would raise her nonexistent tail in the air and stroll away as if she were the queen.

What Amy needed was to get out of the house. Go for a walk. Even in the damp, cool weather, a stroll could help clear her brain. Her mind made up, she shuffled her papers and stacked them neatly on the corner of her desk.

“Persephone, let’s go for a walk.” She reached out and pulled the dog to her chest. “We will take a nice walk and get some fresh air. You are beginning to put on weight and need some exercise.” She rubbed her nose in the dog’s soft white fur and glanced out the window again. “Well, maybe not fresh, but better than indoor air, at least.”

Perhaps her close friend, Eloise, would be up for a stroll. They could tak

e a walk to the Pump Room and hope the entire time that the threatening clouds did not dump on them.

She hurried down the stairs, the idea sounding better every minute. She handed Persephone off to her butler, Stevens, while she buttoned up her coat. Just then, the door knocker sounded and Stevens opened the door.

William stood there, bringing a smile to her face. After that ghastly business with her ex-fiancé’s murder, she and William had celebrated by getting a wee bit tipsy. Unexpectedly, he had kissed her, and now their relationship had shifted. Nothing about courting had been formally announced, but there was definitely something in the air whenever they were together.

“What brings you here, my lord?” Amy asked, aware of Stevens standing next to her. She felt it important to maintain formality whenever she and William were not alone.

“I thought perhaps you would like some company, but it appears you are on your way out.” Was that disappointment she heard in his voice?

“Actually, I was just about to take a walk, possibly to the Pump Room. I felt the need to get out of the house. My brain is having a hard time focusing, for some reason.”

“Then I suggest we stroll together.” He stopped and considered her for a few seconds. “Unless you were meeting someone else?”

“No.” She shook her head. “I thought to stop at Eloise’s house to see if she was up for a walk, but now I won’t have to drag her out of the house.” Amy laughed. “She is not overly fond of walking.”

He glanced at the dog snuggled in her arms. “Are you taking Persephone with you?” He tried his best to look unconcerned, but she knew he was not enamored with her beloved dog. He didn’t exactly dislike her, but the animal did seem to enjoy snubbing him. Almost from their first encounter, they had seemed to regard each other with uneasiness.