“Sir Holstein sent around a note today that he spoke with the police and they were not very helpful.”
William snorted, and Eloise, who had been listening to the exchange, shook her head.
* * *
The afternoon after the book club meeting, Lacey ushered Detective Marsh and Detective Carson into the drawing room. Amy smiled at the men and offered them a seat. They didn’t smile back and sat down.
She sighed and rearranged her skirts and waited for them to begin. She’d received a note that morning from Marsh requesting an interview. It was her duty to assist in the investigation of St. Vincent’s murder, but she would much rather spend her time conducting her own inquiries than answering their questions. Particularly since she was still convinced they only wanted to charge her with the murder and close the case.
“How may I assist you, Detectives?”
Detective Carson began. “It has come to our attention that you have hired a private investigator to work on this matter.”
She wanted so badly to feign innocence and ask what matter he was speaking about, but annoying the man would only do her a disservice. “I have not hired anyone, Detective. I was as surprised as you were when Sir Holstein sent along a note that he wished to sp
eak with me. It appears my father employed the man upon recommendation from Lord Carlisle, who is great friends with the investigator.”
Detective Carson scowled. “It seems odd for the pompous Lord Carlisle to be friends with a lowly private investigator.”
“Sir Holstein did some investigative work for Lord Carlisle some time ago and they remained friends. However, just to be clear, I do not pass judgment on friends of my friends.”
He dismissed her remark with a wave of his hand. “Just as long as he doesn’t get in our way. We don’t appreciate having private citizens do police work.”
Since that was not a question, she merely continued to look at him, waiting for his next remark. She doubted the only reason for their visit was to warn her not to allow her investigator to get in their way.
“Is there anything else, Detective?”
“Yes.” Marsh opened a notebook and flipped through the pages. He looked at her with what he most likely thought was an intimidating look. “What do you know of a Miss Eva Hemphill?”
So, the woman who had anticipated marriage with St. Vincent had come to their attention. “Not much. I met her briefly at a sewing circle last week.”
“Did you know she was expecting to marry your fiancé?”
“Ex-fiancé.”
Carson jumped in. “Do you know why he proposed to you instead of her?”
Honestly, the man could come up with the oddest questions. “No. I can assure you I have no idea what Mr. St. Vincent was thinking. I had no knowledge of his relationship with Miss Hemphill.”
“How did he come to be betrothed to you?” Carson continued the questioning while Marsh took notes.
“We spent some time together. We got along well. He seemed to be a nice sort of person. Without speaking to me first, he traveled to London, met with my father, and made his offer.”
Detective Marsh smiled for the first time ever. “Do toffs still do it that way?”
Amy shook her head. “I have no idea if ‘toffs’ do it that way; I can only tell you what happened in my situation.”
“Excuse me, Lady Amy, but you do not seem like the sort of woman who would accept an offer from a gentleman who worked it out with your father first.” Detective Carson also offered his very first smile.
She raised her chin. “You are correct, Detective. However, my father was quite persuasive when he presented the offer to me. That was one of the reasons I decided to break the engagement. I do not like being coerced into anything.”
Detective Marsh looked up from his notes. “You said in our first interview that you broke your engagement because the two of you did not suit. Now you said one of the reasons you ended the relationship was because it had been your father’s coercion.” He leaned forward. “What are the other reasons, Lady Amy?”
“As I noted before, I disapproved of his involvement with opium. Due to that and other reasons, I felt we did not suit, and I prefer to make up my own mind about such an important step as marriage.”
“A reason to kill him?”
She narrowed her eyes at the man. “Really, Detective, do you honestly think I would have to kill a man to be rid of him? There are truly more civilized ways of discouraging a suitor. I invited him to my home and told him I was breaking our engagement. He left with the ring he had given me. He returned four nights later, for what reason I have no idea, and ended up dead on my library floor.”