CHAPTER TEN

I wake the next morning still reeling from the events of the previous day. If breakfast hadn't arrived with no sign of the children, I might have believed I'd hallucinated Alistair's appearance. But he did arrive, and against all odds, he took the three younger Carltons away like a genie sweeping into the household to grant the wishes of every young spirit oppressed by the obligations of wealth and breeding.

One of those young spirits, of course, being the author of a letter that suggested a desire to murder a missing girl. Their brief conversation indicated that Alistair talked him out of drastic action, but was that drastic action the sending of the letter or acting out its intent? And if the family permitted all of those excesses Alistair roped their children into, then why would Sebastian still react so furiously to the mention of a simple letter?

I'm missing something. Perhaps, with the children gone and Sebastian at work, I might learn from Veronica what that missing piece is.

I begin by asking about Alistair as soon as Sebastian leaves. "Ma'am, I don't mean to pry, but who exactly is Alistair? He introduced himself as Sebastian's second cousin, but he looks… well…"

She smiles slightly. "Young?"

"Well… yes. Among other things."

She laughs. "Yes, Alistair is both Sebastian's second cousin and other things. I'm afraid that Harriet Carlton ignored the well-meaning advice of Sir Robert Carlton back in the day and chose to marry an air force pilot by the name of Garth Finchley. The Finchleys and the Carltons have retained close ties, but the Finchleys, needless to say, did not inherit the Carltons' love of dignity and tradition. Still, it's refreshing to have someone in the family who doesn't feel a need to be bound by rules."

"Yes. I suppose so."

She arches her eyebrow at me. "You're wondering why I allowed Lucas to join him."

"Oh, that's not my place, ma'am. I'm sure you'd never allow him to be unsafe."

"No," she says, a touch of steel hardening her voice. "I wouldn't." Her voice softens again. "In any case, Alistair, as I'm sure you inferred, has a flair for the dramatic. He won't actually push Lucas into bed with strange girls, and if Lucas drinks any alcohol, it will be one mild cocktail and monitored closely by Alistair himself. Oliver and Eliza are of age, and there's little I can do to stop them from doing what they will, but they're smart enough to know their limits. It will be a few days of harmless fun, and then they'll be back home. Alistair will be on his way, and things will return to normal."

I decide to probe a little further. "Does Alistair drop in like this often?"

She chuckled. "Well, he used to, but it's been several years since the last time. He actually found some success with an investment venture and moved to Japan with his own money. I'll admit I'm surprised he stayed away as long as he did, but I suppose his luck finally did run out."

"Oh, so he's here for money."

I realize what I've said and quickly apologize, but Veronica laughs it off. "Oh, dear, there's no need to pretend. Money is always why he arrives. He's a charming young man, and I enjoy his company, so I tolerate his presence, as does Sebastian. Sebastian will write him a check, he'll leave with fanfare, and we'll see him again when that money runs out."

That she can so casually dismiss such a waste of money is astonishing to me. Perhaps they've decided that Alistair is less of a threat to their reputation if he's allowed to gallivant off to parts unknown for months or years at a time.

Or perhaps he knows things that make keeping him sated more prudent than cutting him off.

"Ma'am… I know it's not my business, but… I was cleaning Oliver's room, and I came across some letters."

"From Minerva?"

"Yes… and one from Oliver."

She nods and sighs. "Yes. I warned him against that dalliance, but there's no stopping young people who think they're in love. It's my fault. I allowed her to spend her days here. They were the same age, and until Oxford opened the campus here last half there were no other people their age. Of course, they fell in love. It ended badly, as all such youthful affairs do. Don't tell Oliver you found the letters. He'll be dreadfully embarrassed. You saw yesterday how he reacted when Alistair brought it up."

I saw how you all reacted.

I hesitate before asking the next question, but I feel that I'm close to unraveling this mystery, or at least learning some crucial bit of information that will propel me to the next step in this investigation. So, I summon my courage and ask, "Why does Sebastian refuse to talk about her?"

She meets my eyes, and I'm afraid I've gone too far, but she only smiles wryly and says, "Sebastian is very careful with his reputation. When the news reported that Minerva was last seen alive here, the scandal was, as you can imagine, quite devastating for him. His solicitors fought madly to hush the affair up. They succeeded, of course. There's nothing to be gained by hunting phantoms. The police realized that none of us were involved and chose not to waste their time."

She pauses before continuing, "But the scandal lingers. You aren't aware, of course, but in certain circles, we're very well-known." Her smile fades. "Now our reputation is tainted, and that is something Sebastian cannot forgive, especially since we've done nothing to earn that taint. He exaggerates his reaction, of course, but," she waves her hand dismissively, "that is simply how he is."

The doorbell rings, interrupting our conversation. "Another long-lost cousin?" I ask dryly.

Veronica laughs. "I sure hope not! We'll let Hazel answer the door. She'll tell us if it's something that should concern us or if we can risk leaving our burrow."

Hazel does answer the door. I'm too far away to hear what is said, but I can tell that the voice that responds is a man.

And that man is known to Veronica. When she hears him, her smile vanishes. She meets my eyes and says tightly. "Rupert Chalmers. Don't be fooled by the mellow exterior, Mary. This man is nothing more than a cad."

She plasters a fake smile and stands just as the door to the breakfast room opens. "Dr. Chalmers to see you, ma'am," Hazel says before vanishing into the ether once more.

Dr. Rupert Chalmers is in his early forties, perhaps ten years younger than Veronica, and while not so tall or striking in appearance as Sebastian, he is quite handsome in his own right. If Sebastian has the devastating looks of a movie star or politician, Dr. Chalmers has the wise and earnest features of an academic.

And he's in love with Veronica. The desperation in his eyes is better hidden than Alistair's when he saw Eliza, but not hidden enough to escape my gaze. When Veronica embraces him, he holds tighter than he should and for longer. When she releases him, he smiles and asks, "How are you, Veronica?" without even looking in my direction. I don't think he's even noticed me.

He notices me a moment later when Veronica says, "I'm wonderful, dear. Unfortunately, I'm also late. Feel free to stay and enjoy some tea with Mary, but I must get to the office now or we shall never finish preparations for our gala."

"Oh." He looks at me, and the disappointment in his eyes is almost endearing. Poor man. He recovers quickly and smiles. "Well, I'm sure I'll find Mary wonderful company."

"Of course you will! I'll see you later, dear." She leaves the room, mouthing I'm sorry to me on her way out.

Well, Dr. Chalmers isn't in love with me, so I'm sure I won't find him as annoying as Veronica does. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Doctor," I say. "I'm Lucas's tutor."

"Ah, yes." He looks around. "Is he here today?"

"No, I'm afraid that all three of the Carlton children are with their cousin Alistair in Madrid."

I realize my mistake instantly. Dr. Chalmers's smile vanishes, and he says coldly, "I see." Eliza must not have told him after all.

"So how do you know the family?" I ask, hoping to move past the faux pas.

"I have been a friend of Veronica's for many years," he says, "long before Sebastian was in the picture." There's no mistaking the bitterness in that reply. "I now employ Eliza as my personal assistant. I may have to reconsider that, however. She told me she was taking time off for a family emergency. I came by to make sure Veronica wasn't alone to worry over her brother, but it seems that Eliza's uncle isn't taken suddenly ill."

"Oh, I'm sorry," I say, face burning. "I've intruded. It really is none of my business."

"No need to apologize," Dr. Chalmers says. "You couldn't have known." Then, perhaps to reassure me, "I won't fire Eliza. I'll give her a stern talking-to, but she knows she's too valuable to replace. After Minerva went missing, she was a lifesaver to me."

My ears perk up. "Was Miss Montclair your assistant before Eliza?"

"She was." He looks at me sideways. "A shame what happened to her."

"Do you know anything?" I ask.

"Well… I really shouldn't say, but in her last few weeks with me, I noticed Minerva leaving with a very suspicious figure. A man, younger, but too old for her. She refused to introduce us, would always beg off, saying he was no one of consequence, but I never liked the look of him."

"What did he look like?"

He looks sideways at me again, and a small smile plays across his lips. "Playing at detective, are we?"

My face flames. "I'm only curious. I shouldn't intrude."

He laughs. "Nothing to apologize for. Unfortunately, all I can say for sure is that he was tall and had long brown hair. He dressed rather poorly, too. Nice clothing but ill-fitting and mismatched. I suspect he's the black sheep of some high-class family or another. Just the sort of lure to draw away an impressionable girl like Minnie."

My heart skips a beat. He's just described Alistair to a tee.

"I hold hope that she's still alive, that she and her black sheep are somewhere in Costa Rica enjoying a free-spirited life away from the rules that their breeding forced on them. But if I'm being honest, I don't think so. The one time I saw her young man, I saw danger in his eyes. If only I could have done something to protect her."

He turns to me and smiles. "Well, I hate to be rude, but I should take my leave. It appears my reason for visiting never existed to begin with. It was lovely to meet you, Mary. I hope to see more of you before the school year ends."

"You too, Doctor."

I walk him to the door and keep my composure until it closes behind him. Then my smile vanishes.

I realize now that Alistair couldn't have been gone for three years. Minnie went missing a year ago. Oliver wrote his letter shortly before. If Alistair was here to advise Oliver against sending that letter, then he could only have been absent for a year or so.

Veronica lied to me. They all did. They know something. They all do.

I've spent the past few days wondering which of these people is guilty. Now I wonder if any of them are innocent.