by Sonia Parin
“They have a head start,” Caro said. “We’ll never catch up to them.”
When they sped by the gatehouse, Evie expected Edmonds to slow down and try to decide which way to turn, but he now appeared to be possessed by the idea of driving fast.
As if reading Evie’s thoughts, Edmonds remarked, “I just saw a flock of birds in the distance taking flight, milady. I assume they were startled. They have most likely gone this way.”
They all looked out the windows.
Sure enough, birds were taking flight.
Caro tapped Evie on the shoulder. “I take it you figured out the identity of the woman.”
Evie nodded.
“How?” Caro asked.
“Isabel’s sailor hat.”
“Yes, very pretty. But, what about it?”
“It reminded me of the sailor outfit Lark Wainscot wore on the first day when Batty introduced everyone. I suppose you found out when she pointed the revolver at you?”
“No. Along with the sleeping powder, I came across the skirt in her wardrobe only to realize the skirt was actually a pair of wide legged trousers. We were on our way over to tell you.”
Lark Wainscot.
Keeping her eyes on the road ahead, Evie wondered if they’d made a mistake. Everyone in the car rally group had been taking orders from someone to deliver parcels.
Someone had been determined to keep their identity a secret.
What if the woman Caro and Edmonds had seen approaching Lorenzo had merely been the messenger?
Caro cleared her throat.
“Is something on your mind?” Evie asked.
“What if we’re wrong?”
“I have just been entertaining the same doubt.” But they couldn’t be wrong. “It’s not just the skirt that identified her as the woman who approached Lorenzo. I think she’s also responsible for tampering with Tom’s tire. On the first night, Batty asked about my involvement in a recent murder case and Lark Wainscot showed a great deal of interest.”
Someone in charge of trafficking drugs wouldn’t want Evie around sticking her nose where it didn’t belong.
Caro laughed. “I’d forgotten she pointed a revolver at us. That, more or less, gave her away.”
“We’ll soon find out.” Evie pointed ahead. “Is that them?” Why were they slowing down? “Edmonds. You need to slow down too. Remember, she has a revolver.” Evie hoped Tom remembered that too.
Edmonds smiled. “I didn’t think she’d get far. I took out a few essential parts out of some of the motor cars, and others had most of their gas emptied out.”
“I see another motor car up ahead. That’s why they’ve slowed down.” Caro cheered. “It’s the police. They’re blocking the road.”
“What is she doing now?” Evie craned her neck but the road had dipped slightly so she couldn’t see clearly, especially as Tom’s car kept getting in the way.
Edmonds cleared his throat. “I believe she is trying to turn.”
Caro gasped. “She’s heading straight for Tom.”
At the last minute, Tom swerved out of the way.
“Fabulous. Now she’s headed straight for us.” Caro ducked. “Tell me when it’s over. I can’t watch this.”
When she saw Edmonds steer the motor car toward the shoulder, Evie reached for the steering wheel and adjusted it.
“Milady?”
“Our car is bigger. If she tries to steer out of the way, you get in front of her. I doubt she’ll keep going much longer. You said she doesn’t have much gas left.”
“She might have enough,” Edmonds whispered.
Tom had turned his motor car and had set off in pursuit again with the police now closing in.
Noticing Isabel had been unusually quiet, Evie turned and saw her staring straight ahead, her eyes not blinking, her face pale.
Caro peered out from the back seat. “My goodness. She’s still heading our way.” Caro pressed her hands to her face but Evie could see her peeking from between her fingers.
“She’s holding steady, milady. I think she’s challenging us.”
Evie narrowed her eyes. “Heavens. She’s aiming the revolver at us. Everyone, get down.” Evie’s voice hitched as she called out, “Swerve, Edmonds.”
Everyone dived for cover.
Everyone except Isabel.
Edmonds sunk into his seat but he managed to get the Duesenbert to swerve away from the oncoming motor car.
“Stay down, everyone.”
Evie’s shouted command lingered for a moment only to be drowned out by the report of a revolver echoing around them.
Chapter Thirty
Silence settled inside the motor car followed by an eruption of frenzied questions.
“Who’s been hit?” Caro demanded. “Please tell me it’s not me.”
As Edmonds straightened and brought the Duesenbert to a stop, Evie swung back to look at Isabel.
She looked quite content and calm.
“Isabel?” Evie’s gaze dropped to her lap.
A revolver?
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tom’s car drive by, followed by the police. She then saw Lark Wainscot’s car limping to a stop.
“Um, why does Isabel have a revolver?” Caro asked.
For the first time, since climbing into the car, Isabel responded with a smile. “I always carry one and I’m quite a good shot, if I do say so myself.”
Evie had found Isabel’s earlier silence disturbing. The calmness she heard in her voice now stunned her.
Isabel looked over her shoulder at Lark Wainscot’s vehicle and shrugged. “She got what she deserved.”
Caro gasped and swung around. “Did she… Did she kill her?”
“No.” Evie’s voice sounded flat. She scooped in a breath. “She got the tire.”
Isabel’s smile widened.
“I take it Lark Wainscot is the woman you were too afraid to identify,” Evie said.
“That was then, this is now. She gave herself away.”
They all watched as Tom and the police rushed toward Lark’s motor car. The police had their weapons drawn. Tom, thank goodness, stepped aside to let them do their job.
“What will happen to her now?” Caro asked.
“I suppose the police will take her into custody and question her.”
To her credit, Lark Wainscot did not put up a fight.
Evie straightened and looked ahead. Something didn’t feel right. Why would she try to make a run for it? All this time, she had managed to keep her identity secret…
Caro had said she’d found the sleeping powder in her room but anyone might have had that in their possession for their own private use.
Lark Wainscot could have talked her way out of it. She could have made something up. Why hadn’t she?
Edmonds cleared his throat.
Evie nodded. “I suppose we should return to the house. We could all do with a cup of tea.”
***
Wilson, the butler, stood back and watched them all filing into Warwick Hall.
“I see we are short one guest. I missed all the excitement,” Sir Richard remarked as he met them in the hall.
Unable to find any words of explanation, Evie left Caro to fill in the gaps for Sir Richard.
Lark Wainscot had been escorted to the village where she would be placed under police custody and questioned.
Isabel retired to her room saying she’d had enough excitement for one day.
Hearing the sound of tires crunching on the gravel, Evie turned and saw Tom’s roadster pull up.
After a few moments, he climbed out of the car and made his way inside. As he strode toward Evie, his eyes pinned on her, she tried to read his stern expression.
“Did you feel it absolutely necessary to follow us?” he asked.
Evie lifted her chin. “We followed at a safe distance.”
“And what were you planning to do when Lark Wainscot headed straight for you?”
Tom didn’t need to know she
had ordered Edmonds to stay on course. “As you can see, we’re alive and well.”
His eyes narrowed. “You were lucky.”
She didn’t need reminding. “Someone needs to tell the others. You’ve drawn the short straw.”
Pushing out a breath, Tom went into the drawing room to break the news to the car rally group. When he finished, he turned to Evie. “If you need me, I’ll be in the stable yard.”
Accepting a cup of tea, Evie watched as everyone fell silent. Either out of loyalty to Lark or from utter disbelief that she could have been in any way involved.
Phillipa rushed into the drawing room. When she spotted Evie, she hurried toward her and threw her arms around her.
“Everything happened so fast. I had to call the police and then I couldn’t get my car started so I couldn’t follow you. You have no idea what it’s like waiting to hear news.”
“Actually, I do. You seem to forget we were both in the same boat not long ago when Henrietta wouldn’t let us set foot outside the dowager house when the police were running around the village looking for the killer.” Evie signaled toward the door and whispered, “Meet me in the library.” She set down her cup of tea and worked her way to the door.
In the library, she picked up the copy of Burke’s Peerage and skimmed through it.
Why had Lark made a run for it? Evie’s mind failed to yield any worthwhile ideas. She tried to settle down but she couldn’t stop fidgeting.
What if…
“Someone told her to run,” she murmured. Someone in the group had been issuing instructions. What if they thought the detective had been getting closer to finding the ringleader?
Evie sat up. “They would create a distraction.”
Edward Spencer and Lark Wainscot had been constant drawing room companions. Had they been plotting together or had Lark been listening to instructions and carrying them out without question?
When Phillipa strode in, she took the chair opposite Evie. “You look uneasy.”
“That’s because I am.” Evie looked at the copy of Burke’s Peerage. Huffing with frustration, she set it down. “I am obsessing about Lark lying. Why would she need to lie about Alexander’s title?”
“She might have been having a quiet moment,” Phillipa offered. “No one in the group is keen on quiet moments of reflection. So, they create their own entertainment. She probably wanted to amuse herself.”
Really?
Evie sat back and tapped her chin in thought. “But… Everyone knows him by his title.”
Phillipa laughed. “If I decided to call myself the Countess of Champagne, everyone would go along with me.” Phillipa leaned forward. “You’re not convinced this is over.”
Evie shook her head. “Before I start pointing fingers of suspicion, I really should wait for the detective to question Lark.”
“And I should be taking notes for my Countess X mystery books.”
“Are you going to make her a masked sleuth?”
“Well, you don’t exactly go around promoting yourself as a sleuth. In fact, you made a point of denying it.”
Evie got up and paced from one end of the library to the other.
Phillipa said, “Unlike you, I’m relieved this is finally over.”
“Is it?”
“Lark is in custody.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t stop thinking about it. I wonder what it takes to become a trafficker? I’m guessing you’d need financial backing. Do you think Lark has money?”
“She could be working for a bigger fish. In a roundabout way, we were all doing that,” Phillipa said. Laughing, she added, “It would be amusing if Sir Richard turned out to be involved.”
Evie managed a laugh. “I already suspected him, ungrateful guest that I am.”
Phillipa continued, “He said his sons are abroad. Perhaps they’re involved in organizing the trafficking.”
The door to the library opened. The detective removed his hat and made his way to the couch.
“Detective? Here already?” Evie gave him a minute to settle down before asking, “Did you get a confession out of Lark Wainscot?”
“I certainly did. And I think you know that already,” he said. “She didn’t even wait to get to the police station.”
Surprised, Evie said, “She is pleading guilty.”
He nodded. “She even admitted to damaging your tire.”
“Did she say why she did it?”
“She killed Lorenzo because he wanted to take over her territory. As for your tire, she’d heard of your involvement in a previous case and worried you might catch on to what they were doing. She wanted to scare you into returning home.”
Evie grinned. “She gives me too much credit.” Sitting down again, Evie sighed. “I’m not convinced of her guilt.”
After a brief silence, the detective said, “No, nor am I.” He brushed his hand across his chin.
Evie couldn’t hide her surprise. “You actually agree with me?”
“I’ve never known a criminal to be so co-operative. Not unless they had something to gain and we haven’t offered her anything in exchange for information.”
Evie couldn’t believe Lark Wainscot would be prepared to go to prison for someone else. There had to be a mastermind behind it all.
She turned to Phillipa. “The first time you found a package in your car with instructions, did you tell anyone about it?”
As she shook her head, Phillipa’s cheeks colored slightly. “I feel so foolish now. I’ve since spoken with a few of the others and none of them thought to question it when they found packages with instructions. Don’t get me wrong, we’re all aware of what goes on. We just didn’t think what we were doing had anything to do with drug trafficking. It simply never occurred to us.”
“Phillipa.”
“Yes?”
“Despite Lark being taken into custody, is there anyone in the group you might suspect? I’m thinking her imprisonment might have thrown light on the matter and sparked off your suspicious nature.”
“I don’t really have a suspicion nature,” Phillipa admitted. “Let me think…” Phillipa clasped her hands together. “I couldn’t even take a wild stab at it. What about you? You’ve mentioned Edward Spencer but I honestly don’t see him as the mastermind behind a drug trafficking business. He loves music and poetry. I might even go so far as to say he has a gentle, sensitive soul.”
Evie brushed her hands across her face. Isabel had been threatened into silence. However, when the time had come, she had stepped up to the plate and she’d taken action. What would it take for Lark Wainscot to realize how much trouble she had landed herself in? Admitting to killing a man would send her to the gallows. She had to know she would pay for her crimes with her life.
The detective looked down at his hands and cleared his throat.
Both Evie and Phillipa turned their attention to him.
“Edward Spencer was seen at the Automobile Club a few weeks ago. Lorenzo Bianchi stopped there for lunch before going on to Brooklands.”
“Are you saying someone at the Automobile Club gave you that information?”
The detective nodded. “One of the waiters finally talked.”
“And he saw Lorenzo with Edward?”
“No. But it’s enough to know they were both in the same place. It’s too much of a coincidence.”
Evie crossed her arms. “Are you going to question Edward Spencer again?”
“That’s why I returned to Warwick Hall, but I’m giving him some time to get comfortable and think Lark Wainscot has convinced us of her guilt.” The detective looked at Phillipa.
Phillipa shot to her feet, her tone carrying the indignation she obviously felt, “I think I know what you’re thinking. No, I will not warn him. Yes. You can trust me. However, I am having a difficult time believing Edward is in any way involved.”
“He’s the least likely person to be involved,” Evie reasoned. “The fact you believe him to be innocent proves how well he carri
es his disguise.” Getting to her feet, Evie said, “I’m going to stretch my legs.”
“Please try to remain within sight of the house,” the detective suggested.
“Yes, of course.” And, along the way, she wanted to find Tom and start making plans for their return home.
“I’m coming with you,” Phillipa said. “You’ll be my alibi, just in case the detective decides I am not to be trusted.”
Chapter Thirty-One
“You should study the Peerage, Gerald. It is the one book a young man about town should know thoroughly, and it is the best thing in fiction the English have ever done!” Oscar Wilde (A Woman of No Importance)
Seeing Phillipa looking somewhat downcast, Evie asked, “Will you continue on with the car rally? If you’re not up to it, I want you to know you are always welcome to return to Halton House with us.”
That cheered her up. “Oh, yes. I’ve been trying to work up the courage to ask if I could spend a few days there. This business has left me feeling slightly shaken.”
The more the merrier, Evie thought.
“Oh, wait. You want a buffer between you and Isabel.”
Grinning, Evie said, “Well, there is that. Although, I’m not sure what her plans are. Either way, I think we both win. You get a roof over your head, and I get to enjoy your company. I might also need you to help me with the dowagers.”
“Are they making your life interesting?”
“That’s an understatement, but… yes. I think they’re doing their best to keep my attention engaged.”
“Perhaps they’re afraid you might tire of life in the country.”
“You might be right. It hadn’t occurred to think they might wish to make sure I stay. They know I have a choice and I can live wherever I wish to live.” And she had chosen to settle at Halton, but only after being away for two years.
Turning into the stable yard, Evie saw Edmonds but not Tom.
“I have been restoring the motor cars back to working order,” Edmonds said. “The detective has asked me to fix them. Mr. Winchester went back inside looking for you, milady.”
“Have you had a break?” Evie asked.