When Emma nearly danced in front of her path for the half dozenth time, Wayland leaned down and scooped the dog off the floor. “Harriet? Would you mind keeping a hold on her? We don’t want Katherine to trip.”
Katherine inwardly sighed. “I have enough coordination to walk around her.”
“But your ankle is still tender…”
“Not that tender—”
Pru and Annandale giggled again.
Katherine gritted her teeth. “Frankly, you should count yourself lucky that I haven’t decided to exercise outside.” When she stepped wrong and her ankle tried to crumple, Wayland caught her by the elbow. She shook him off again. “It’s not painful, only a tad weak.”
“Don’t overtax yourself.”
She glared at him. “I do this every day. I don’t need your help. Sit.”
“I will when you do.”
Perhaps she ought to give this up and return to her seat. Her ankle was starting to ache, but she was stubborn and didn’t want to look as though she were still in pain over a week later.
After a moment, Wayland said conversationally, “You know I have experience with this sort of thing. I’ve helped soldiers recover from injuries, and I’ve had to relearn to walk again myself.”
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, but couldn’t read his expression. “You’ve turned your ankle?”
He raised his eyebrow. “Something a good deal more serious, and I have the scar to prove it.”
Katherine scoffed. “There you go then. I’ve only twisted my ankle, and it isn’t serious in the least. I will survive.”
“Watch where you’re walking,” Wayland said when she almost collided with the stand containing the illustrious fire poker. The metal rang against the rack, and he steadied her elbow.
“Perhaps I would if you’d stop distracting me.”
He dropped his hand. “Very well, then tell me more of what happened with Mrs. Campbell.”
Katherine shook her head. She had already given him, Lord Annandale, and Lyle a fit description of the event shortly after Pru arrived to rescue her. In fact, once Lyle arrived, Mrs. Campbell had been revived and with no other choice, she had confessed to every last detail she had given Katherine. She was now awaiting trial.
Wayland continued to push the issue. “Why is it that you never included her among the suspect list?”
Katherine made a face. She didn’t like her inadequacies thrown in her face. “I don’t know why. Perhaps I should have. After all, she mixed up many of the herbal remedies Dr. Gammon used. She made the poultice for Lord Westing’s maid, but I assumed that she had done so in conjunction with Dr. Gammon. I hadn’t stopped to consider that perhaps she had a fondness for the staff. Of course, I should have because her niece worked there.” That mistake had nearly cost Katherine her life. She swallowed hard. “Perhaps I discounted her because she discovered the body. I assumed she was in shock and grieving. I will admit she was clever, icing over the walkway thinking that would make me stop investigating.”
Wayland made a disgusted sound. “Or perhaps she was trying to kill you then too. If you had hit your head…”
Katherine glared at him. “Are you a mother hen?”
He turned his face away, mumbling something under his breath about having buried too many people he cared about.
Across the room, Lord Annandale cleared his throat. “I talked with Dr. Sumner. It turns out that he and Dr. Gammon had been discussing their old cases and had noticed something odd about their treatment of Lord Westing. ’Tis why he was out visiting, ye see. Poor chap doesn’t go out often. It’s nearly impossible for him to get around, seeing as he can only walk a few steps without needing to sit. In any case, he said he knew Dr. Gammon was worried that something amiss had happened with Lord Westing’s death, but he admitted that he ne’er thought it had ought to do with Dr. Gammon’s death. He just assumed it was his time, as they’re both getting on in years.”
Katherine paused in her tour of the room to rest her ankle as she met Pru’s gaze. Pru had believed her after all. That was why she’d returned. She’d wanted to explain that she’d been distracted with wedding plans, but if Katherine felt that Dr. Gammon had been murdered, then that was good enough for her. She’d returned to try to talk the case over with Katherine and to come up with new suspects. Luckily, she’d arrived in time to stop Mrs. Campbell from poisoning Katherine. Though Katherine was sure she could have gotten out of that on her own, Pru bashing the woman over the head had come in handy.
The fact that Pru had believed her and had not lost her zest for investigating was bittersweet. Pru would reside in Scotland for the foreseeable future. Who would take her place in these investigations? Wayland? Somehow, that wouldn’t be the same. Katherine bit her lip, turning her face away from the man at her side as she crossed to the armchair.
“At last,” he murmured under his breath.
She ignored him as she seated herself and lifted her ankle onto the stool. Harriet immediately fetched her a cup of tea, juggling it and Emma in her arms. When she leaned forward to deliver it, the dog took advantage and licked Katherine’s cheek eagerly.
Wiping it dry on her sleeve, Katherine glanced around Harriet to ask Lord Annandale, “Why did you visit Dr. Sumner? We had already solved the murder.”
The burly man shrugged. “He was partners with Dr. Gammon, was he nae? It seemed fair tae tell him what had occurred with his friend’s death. He deserved to know.”
Katherine thought about that moment before she nodded solemnly. “I informed Mr. Gammon for the same reason.”
“Oh?” Pru asked, leaning forward with eagerness. “Did he mention anything about his courtship of Miss Ball?”
Katherine stared at her, agog. “Since when have you cared at all about Lady Dalhousie’s niece? I didn’t even know you knew her name.”
Pru gave her a cheeky smile. “I listen when you speak. And besides, I enjoy a story about true love. It isn’t as though one is happening in this house.” She trailed off, glancing to Katherine’s right, where Wayland sat in the kitchen chair he had brought a week ago.
Flatly, Katherine said, “No, there isn’t.” She had never confessed to Pru about the times she’d fancied that Wayland might kiss her. Now, she vowed she never would. She cleared her throat and added, “Miss Ball visited me two days ago, along with Lady Dalhousie. They spoke of him, in fact. They wanted my frank opinion on the match.”
“Did you encourage it?”
“I told Miss Ball to do what she thought was right. Given that he is still in deep mourning from his father’s death, there seems time before she has to make a decision, but she seemed rather smitten to me. She seems to like that he’s a surgeon and saves lives.”
Lord Annandale grunted. “Who would nae?”
Katherine swallowed a smirk behind a sip of tea. Lord Annandale stretched, laying his arm along the back of the loveseat. Given how Pru took the opportunity to nestle into his side, Katherine suspected it was a practiced movement. The two were so hampered by convention in public that it was nice to see them treat Katherine’s drawing room as their own special refuge to show affection. The longer they remained in each other’s company, the more comfortable and contented they became.
With a teasing smile, Lord Annandale said, “I hope you are nae too fond of clunking people over the head. I’m afraid there will nae be much cause for that up in bonny Scotland.”
Pru wrinkled her nose at the teasing, though her eyes sparkled. “There are no murders up in Annandale Castle?”
“None at all, lass. None at all.”
More books in the Lady Katherine Regency Mystery series:
An Invitation to Murder (Book 1)
The Baffling Burglaries of Bath (Book 2)
Murder at the Ice Ball (Book 3)
A Murderous Affair (Book 4)
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About Leighann Dobbs
USA Today bestselling author, Leighann Dobbs, discovered her passion for writing after a twenty year career as a software engineer. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix Mojo and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty. When she's not reading, gardening, making jewelry or selling antiques, she likes to write cozy mystery and historical romance books.
Her book "Dead Wrong" won the "Best Mystery Romance" award at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention.
Her book "Ghostly Paws" was the 2015 Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem First Place category winner in the Animal Mystery category.
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About Harmony Williams
About Harmony Williams
If Harmony Williams had a time machine, she would live in the Regency era. The only thing she loves more than writing strong, funny women in polite society is immersing herself in the nuances of the past. When not writing or researching, she likes to binge-watch mystery shows and spend time with her one-hundred-pound lapdog in their rural Canadian home. For glimpses into the secrets and settings of future Regency Matchmaker Mystery books, sign up for her newsletter at http://www.harmonywilliams.com/newsletter.
This is a work of fiction.
None of it is real. All names, places, and events are products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to real names, places, or events are purely coincidental, and should not be construed as being real.
MURDER ON CHARLES STREET
Copyright © 2020
Leighann Dobbs Publishing
http://www.leighanndobbs.com
All Rights Reserved.
No part of this work may be used or reproduced in any manner, except as allowable under “fair use,” without the express written permission of the author.
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Murder on Charles Street (Lady Katherine Regency Mysteries Book 5) Page 19