CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

I head immediately to Veronica and Sebastian's room. I have no idea if Lucas is still working on his homework or prowling the grounds, or if he's run off to parts unknown. I have to admit I've been a poor governess to him. He's older, yes, but prior to Alistair's arrival, I got the distinct impression that I was the only good influence in his life.

And I've thrown it away for a dead girl. The poor lad. He deserves better than me, and if I find what I need to put Minnie's killer behind bars, I will at least do what I can to ensure he finds it.

But I'm so close now! If I can find the evidence Alistair refers to, then I could have what I need to bring Minnie's killer to justice tonight!

So as soon as I arrive at the bedroom, I enter and head straight for the dresser to the left of the bed. I venture a guess that it's Veronica's, but that guess proves to be wrong, so I cross to the other side. As I do, I'm struck by the relative plainness of the furniture. It's not cheap by any means, but it's certainly not the grand arrangement I expected, considering the rest of the house. The furniture is plain gray wood, and the mattress, while comfortable, is adorned only with plain blue sheets and white pillows. The vanity mirror on top of the chest of drawers is a run-of-the-mill rectangular unit, and there's limited scrollwork on the dressers, bedposts, and armoire. I suppose since no one will be here to see the room but the married couple, there's no need to display their wealth.

I open the other dresser and check the drawers. The top one is full of blouses and shirts. The second contains various pants and leggings. The middle contains an astonishing amount of socks, pantyhose, and bras.

It's the fourth drawer that finally reveals the panties Alistair is referring to. I blush a little when I realize he wasn't kidding about the lace. Whether it's for Sebastian or the mystery men Veronica cheats on him with, they're lucky.

I dig underneath the panties but find nothing but the hard bottom of the drawer. Perhaps Alistair was wrong. I certainly hope not, because if anyone walks in on me doing this, I'll certainly be fired.

I laugh at that. I'm stalking a murderer, and I'm worried about my job. Hell, if I find proof of the murder, I'll probably lose it anyway. The silly reasons my mind comes up with to avoid danger.

On the third go-around, my finger comes across something cool to the touch. I pull it out to see a key. It seems Veronica has done a better job of hiding this secret correspondence. But what does the key open?

I look around the room and see nothing with a lock on it. There's a wall safe, but it requires a code, not a key. I check the walk-in closet, but while I find what one would expect—dresses, suits, an obscene amount of shoes—I don't find anything that this key might fit.

She couldn't be keeping it hidden under the bed, could she? I check there and am surprised to see that it does, in fact, appear as though she's hidden her letters under the bed. Presumably Sebastian never checks there. Or perhaps he doesn't check at all, and she simply ran out of space to keep them in her underwear drawer.

I pull the small wooden chest out and insert the key. I chuckle a bit at the odd fixation this family has with hiding things in boxes: Lucas's photographs, Oliver's letters, and now Veronica's letters.

I spread them out on the bed, heart pounding. God, I don't know where to begin. There are dozens, no, hundreds of letters and cards. How can I tell which one is the father of Minnie's unborn child?

I scan the letters to look for familiar names first. Many of the letters are many years old, and in a few cases, I can't quite read the names. But the letters I'm looking for wouldn't be that old, would they?

I get through all of the letters and don't find anyone I know. That's irritating. It makes it that much harder to find out which of Veronica's many boyfriends also had an affair with Minerva Montclair.

But Alistair seemed so sure. I'm not ready to give up yet.

I look at the old letters again and read through the first one. The tone is somewhat sappy and syrupy—typical of a love letter—but it gives me the information I want when I reach the end and find that Veronica has recorded the recipient's name again at the bottom.

I have to read that name several times before I'm sure I've read it correctly. When I'm sure, I still don't believe it, so I read the other old letters.

All of them are addressed to the same person. The last one is dated twenty-six years ago.

The person addressed is Rupert. No last name is mentioned, but it doesn't take a nuclear physicist to infer that the Rupert mentioned is none other than the illustrious Dr. Chalmers.

The final letter appears to be a break-up letter. In it, she apologizes for choosing Sebastian over him, but protests that with Sebastian, she can have a real future.

She ends the letter with the line, This doesn't need to mean the end of our love, only the end of our courtship. You will always remain the first and brightest star in my sky.

I set the letter down and think about what I've just read. There are no more letters between them. That could suggest that their romance did indeed end despite Veronica's promise.

But I saw the look in Rupert's eyes when he came to visit. Clearly he still loves her. Yet, at the same time, Veronica was almost annoyed by him and eager to leave. It could simply be that she didn't want me to realize how close they were. But then, if their dalliance ended decades ago, before she even married Sebastian, then why would Rupert still be chasing her? And why would he agree to help cover up Minnie's pregnancy?

The more I think about the doctor, the more suspicious it all becomes. He is clearly in love with Veronica, but just as clearly he lusts after Eliza. And it seemed very much that Eliza was attracted to him. Probably she doesn't know about her mother's relationship with the doctor, but it certainly doesn't paint the doctor in a flattering light that he is such a womanizer.

And Eliza is near in age to Minnie. That is evidence of Rupert's attraction to younger women. But he still wants Veronica, so it's not an exclusive perversion, as is the case with most violent sex offenders.

And he claimed Alistair was the killer. Not in so many words, but it was clear what he was insinuating. Then again, it's clear Alistair holds no love for him. It's equally clear Alistair suspects him.

One of them is lying. One of them is trying to frame the other to remove suspicion from himself. Or possibly both of them are lying, and they're trying to obfuscate things so that no answer is ever found. Unlikely as it seems, I must also admit that it's possible that neither of them are lying. Both genuinely feel the other is responsible but also feel that they're not in a position to do anything about it. If that's true, then it means that once more, I'm chasing a red herring.

One thing is true: Dr. Chalmers knows more than he admits. It looks like I'll need to make another appointment with him after all.

I hear noise coming from downstairs, and a moment later, Veronica's voice calls, "Lucas, darling? Are you here?"

I quickly throw the letters back into the box, lock it, and place it under the bed. I start to rush from the room, then remember the key. I curse and run back to the dresser, tossing the key back into the drawer. I hear footsteps climbing the stairs and curse again.

I rush from the room and reach the other side of the twin staircase, descending just before Veronica says, "I'm just going to change, then I'll call Henri and see about an early dinner!"

Lucas calls back, "All right. Hey, have you seen Mary?"

"I'm here," I call, reaching the first floor. "Have you finished your schoolwork?"

He pokes his head out of the study. "There you are. Yes, I've just finished. I'm caught up now."

"Wonderful! Just in time for the weekend."

I keep that smile and go through the motions of checking his work. All the while, my heart is pounding with a mixture of fear and excitement.

I can almost taste victory. Just a little more work, and Minnie shall have justice.

I will have accomplished my purpose.