by Kate Parker
“Marlowe thought that sounded like a bad idea, letting someone else in on the secret, but Lady Westkirk said he was reliable. Marlowe lent them the use of the back stairs and went down to his office. He said it made him nervous, but they assured him Lady Abbott became overexcited and just swooned and died.”
I had never heard of a woman dying that way. I suspected men were gullible, or overconfident, at heart. Dying from overexcitement, indeed.
“He swears he knows nothing of the carriage race or the stolen carriage that Lady Abbott’s body was discovered in. He says he didn’t know she was strangled, which we had already learned from our pathologist.” James squeezed my hand when I shuddered.
“Lady Westkirk told me a different story this morning when she was questioned. She said Jeb Marlowe helped get rid of the body and tip the carriage over in the park with Victoria’s body inside.” He shook his head.
“Once again, we can’t charge anyone on such little evidence and so many charges and countercharges.”
“It sounds like the only people who could have strangled her were Lord Theo or Lady Westkirk,” I said.
“I’ll get to the rest of Lady Westkirk’s statement in a minute. Marlowe had a lot to say about Lady Theo’s death, too.”
“Did he admit he and Lady Westkirk carried her out of the tunnel and over to the park?”
“Yes, but he says Lady Theo was already dead when he reached the tunnel.”
I felt my eyes widen. “Neither one admits to killing Roxanne?”
“Yes. Marlowe’s story is Lady Westkirk told him to meet her in the mews behind the Wallingford mansion. It was dark out there, and he didn’t see her until she was right in front of him. Lady Westkirk said she needed his help and led him down into the tunnel. He said he didn’t know the tunnel existed.
“He said he was shocked when he found Lady Theo with her neck slit. Lady Westkirk said she found her that way. He wanted to leave her, but Lady Westkirk wanted her moved. She said there would be a hunt for Lady Theo and we, the police, would take his club apart. He couldn’t afford that.”
That explained why Jeb Marlowe wanted the body found quickly. But why did Lady Westkirk?
“Marlowe said he helped Lady Westkirk undress the body because there was blood all over her clothes. She put the scarf on Lady Theo’s neck to hide the cut. And she put the clothes in the hold-all. He doesn’t know why there was no blood on the cape Lady Theo was wearing, but there wasn’t, so they wrapped her in that to carry her.”
“What happened to Roxanne’s missing clothes?”
“We found them in Westkirk House, stuffed in a corner of the attic.”
“Why did it matter that there was blood on the ball gown? Marlowe shouldn’t have cared about that.” Their actions were making no sense.
“I suspect he did it because Lady Westkirk told him to, but what I suspect is worthless as testimony. Marlowe admitted he’d become frightened of her, thinking he was next. That’s why he said he sold his share of the club and made plans to emigrate.”
I shook my head as I looked at James. “That makes no sense. Why did he buy two passages to Australia if he were afraid of her?”
“That’s what we asked him.” He smiled.
“And?” I couldn’t imagine what he said.
“That’s when he decided he was tired of talking to us and wouldn’t say another word.”
“Has he mentioned who his partner is in the club? You said he sold his share.”
“Lord Armstrong. And we can’t touch him without very good evidence of a crime because his wife is a royal. The higher-ups at the Yard don’t want to run afoul of the Palace.”
“Then you don’t want to question him about what he knows of these murders?”
James shook his head. “So far, neither Marlowe nor Lady Westkirk have implicated him in any crime except for moving a body, and I can’t see taking that to my superiors.”
“Are your superiors interested in Lord Armstrong’s ownership of a club where a murder took place along with being a bawdy house and a gaming den? Lady Westkirk also told me Lord Armstrong was the purveyor of cocaine at the Marlowe Club.”
“No one will tell us lowly detectives, but I suspect word will get back to the royals by way of my superiors having a quiet chat with Palace officials. And I wouldn’t want to be Lord Armstrong when that happens.”
I felt satisfied that Lord Armstrong would face some sort of punishment for his part in this ghastly affair. But the killer? “What did Lady Westkirk tell you?”
“She just kept repeating that Marlowe had threatened her and everything she did, she did by his order. Moving Lady Abbott’s body. Moving Lady Theo’s body. Hiding her clothes and jewels. And she claimed Willard, the new Lord Westkirk, killed his father in a fit of rage when his father said he was changing his will to favor Lady Westkirk.”
“Do you believe her?” I certainly didn’t.
“The bruising on the old Lord Westkirk’s neck was from much smaller hands than his son has. After we told her that, she refused to say another word.”
“It’s enough to convict her?” I asked. I hoped it was. There was no way she’d pay for her role in the notorious Lady Roxanne’s death.
“It’s enough to hang her.” A look of suspicion grew in his gray eyes. “Why are you so interested? You never met Lady Abbott or Lady Theo in life.”
“From what I heard, someone, perhaps Lady Westkirk, began spreading terrible rumors about Lady Theo. And the Duchess of Wallingford blamed Roxanne for the evil things Lord Theo did. Her life was made a misery through no fault of her own, and then that life was cut short. And Lady Victoria Abbott was barely out of the schoolroom. Her life ended before it began. These murders weren’t right. They weren’t fair.”
I took a deep breath to fight the tears threatening to spill down my cheeks from frustration and added, “Lady Abbott’s killer is dead, but Roxanne’s killer is still alive to face a judge and the hangman.”
I thought again about why Lady Westkirk would face a judge. “I’ll never understand why she killed her husband. Unless she thought with him dead, she’d be able to escape to the ship and leave England without being stopped. Perhaps she thought only the old Lord Westkirk would think to have her followed, and the new Lord Westkirk would have the doctors hide his cause of death like Lord Theo Hughes’s.”
James gave me a skeptical gaze, but he didn’t question my words. “She is crazy if she thinks that.”
“I think maybe she is crazy. Both her and Lord Theo Hughes.” I couldn’t hide my shudder.
“Where do you get all these ideas and information about people?” He sounded both amazed and angry.
“I meet all sorts of aristocrats, most of them with disreputable secrets. And they all gossip. Lady Westkirk and I had a long talk at the club last night. At gunpoint.” When he continued to look stern, I became serious. “I’m glad this is over, James. I just want to make beautiful hats and spend time with my family and friends. I don’t want to do any more investigating. That’s your job.”
He muttered, “If only you weren’t so good at it,” before he kissed me again.
This time when we came up for air, I asked, “Will you stay for dinner?”
“I wish I could, but I have a great deal of paperwork to clean up from this case and questions to answer, starting with whose money was in the hold-all. Both Marlowe and Lady Westkirk are claiming it.”
“I think most of it is Jeb Marlowe’s from when he sold the club. Is he being charged?”
“They’re still debating that in the commissioner’s office. It is a private club, after all, and a degree of latitude is allowed. Something Lord Armstrong is counting on.”
“Dinner tomorrow night?” I asked, making no attempt to keep the hope out of my voice.
“I’d love to. Eight?”
My reply was swallowed in his kiss. We lingered that way for a while before James pulled away. “I have to get back.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow n
ight.”
A few more kisses and he was gone.
I finished straightening the shop, smiling to myself about James’s kisses, before I recalled I was due at Lady Kaldaire’s for tea. She’d want answers from me, and I was finally in a position to give them to her. Something I couldn’t do in my shop. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Duchess of Blackford, the former investigator and bookshop owner, was there, too.
As much as I hoped I’d never have to repeat this experience, I suspected the time would come when Lady Kaldaire would insist I solve another crime. And since my father and his family would never give up their illegal careers, I was certain I’d have to cooperate.
If I ever had to carry out another investigation, I hoped the Duchess of Blackford would assist. Lady Kaldaire had the determination, but the duchess had the experience. And with me now having been involved in two successfully concluded investigations, Lady Kaldaire would no doubt consider us unstoppable.
I wished I had her optimism.
I shouted up the stairs to Noah that I was invited to tea and would be home soon, put on my hat and gloves, and headed out to give the ladies a full report.
* * *
I hope you’ve enjoyed Emily’s newest adventure. I’m giving away a short story, Emily’s First Case, to readers of my enewsletter. This story takes us back to the reign of Queen Victoria as a stubborn tomboy Emily learns about investigating—and the power of family. If you’d like a FREE short story, click on https://dl.bookfunnel.com/r8bz6j3vsu and sign up for my semiannual newsletter. In between newsletters, keep up with my latest news at www.kateparkerbooks.com and www.facebook.com/Author.Kate.Parker, or check out www.bookbub.com/authors/kate-parker
Author’s Notes
Part of this story was born of the CDC War on Opioid Addiction. At the time of this story, sale, possession, and use of cocaine was legal and totally unregulated in the US and the UK. Twenty years before this tale, doctors were recommending its use as a stimulant similar to caffeine. By 1905, there was a great deal of anecdotal evidence blaming the use of cocaine for insanity and deaths, and many people believed it should be banned. However, regulation and prohibition of the use of cocaine didn’t come until more than ten years after the events of this story in both the US and UK. Organized treatment for cocaine addiction was even further into the future.
Of interest to some readers may be the appearance of Georgia and the Duke of Blackford. Seven years has passed since their wedding at the end of The Detecting Duchess, and there have been changes to their lives, notably in the form of three children. Changes have come to the lives of John and Emma Sumner as well, but Georgia and Emma remain the closest of friends. I hope you’ve enjoyed the introduction of some of the Archivist Society members into Murder at the Marlowe Club and into Emily’s investigation.
I’d like to thank Hannah Meredith, Jen Parker, Eleanor Shelton, Elizabeth Flynn and Jennifer Brown for their help in making Murder at the Marlowe Club the best it could be. As always, mistakes are my own.
I hope you’ve enjoyed Emily’s adventures. If you do, tell someone. Word of mouth is still the best way to discover good new reads. Reviews are also a good way to tell others about books that you’ve enjoyed. And your enjoyment of Emily’s adventures is the reason this book is out in the world.
Also by Kate Parker
The Victorian Bookshop Mysteries
The Vanishing Thief
The Counterfeit Lady
The Royal Assassin
The Conspiring Woman
The Detecting Duchess
The Milliner Mysteries
The Killing at Kaldaire House
Murder at the Marlowe Club
The Deadly Series
Deadly Scandal
Deadly Wedding
Deadly Fashion
Deadly Deception
The Mystery at Chadwick House
About the Author
Kate Parker caught the reading bug early, and the writing bug soon followed. She’s always lived in a home surrounded by books and dust bunnies. After spending twelve years in New Bern, North Carolina, the real-life location for the town in The Mystery at Chadwick House, she packed up and moved to Colorado to be closer to family. Now instead of seeing the rivers and beaches of the Atlantic coast, she has the Rocky Mountains for scenery.
Now that with Murder at the Marlowe Club Kate has brought out the second of the Milliner Mysteries, she is hard at work on the fifth in the Deadly Series, Deadly Travels. This new story will introduce us to Olivia’s life as 1939 brings the world closer to war. Kate reports she is having fun creating new stories to entertain readers and chaos to challenge her characters.
Follow Kate and her deadly examination of history at www.KateParkerbooks.com and www.Facebook.com/Author.Kate.Parker/ and www.bookbub.com/authors/kate-parker.