asked the little girl.
Holding her doll tight, Rebecca solemnly nodded, sensing something was wrong.
âWonderful,â Prudence said with relief.
The three of them quit the room, and I tried to edge out in their wake as Cassie told Sean about the incident. I wanted to know what the constable had to report even though I already knew the grisly details, but I didnât want to face another interrogation over the matter. That meant I had to find a good place for eavesdropping before Sean, the earl and Warwick went to the library to meet with the constable.
âWait for me, Andrie,â Cassie said, stopping me before I made it through the door. Her request surprised me. Knowing my sister as well as I did, I had expected her to insist on accompanying Sean and the earl to the library.
âMrs. Killdaren, not so fast,â Sean said as Cassie hurried my way. âWhat is it that you are not telling me?â
Cassieâs gaze met mine, and she lifted one brow before turning to Sean. âI think I remembered everything,â she said, giving him a brilliant smile.
He narrowed his eyes to a âweâll talk laterâ glare as I grabbed Cassieâs hand and pulled her out the door.
âHurry,â I hissed under my breath, dragging her along the corridor toward the library. At the center hall, I ducked behind a statue of a David-like man, except for the strategic placement of leafsâan example of the castleâs more conservative art.
âTake off your shoes,â she whispered.
âWhatever for?â I asked.
âThe marble. Itâs the best way to sneak across it and not be heard.â A very telling statement of Cassieâs time investigating Maryâs death. I almost envied my sister the adventure sheâd had.
Mr. Murphy shut the library door, apparently having just seen Constable Poole into the room, and headed toward the kitchens. The second he passed our hiding spot, we flew across the marbled entryway, down the corridor, and slipped into the room adjoining the library. Slightly breathless, I stood inside the door, my heart thumping.
A sliver of pale moonlight cut an eerie path through the objets dâart , many of which were statues of Greek gods, making a person wonder if sheâd suddenly stepped into the middle of Zeusâs decadent court.
âWhy eavesdrop when you could have requested to see the constable?â Cassie asked in a whisper as we moved closer to the wall separating us from the library.
âI didnât want to have to answer more questions about today. Besides, men tend to tell more and speak more freely when women arenât present. I discovered that you can hear a conversation going on in the library rather well from this wall when I was examining the statues not long ago.â
Cassie slid into place beside me. âI feel like Iâm seven years old again, and weâre trying to discover our Christmas surprises with our ear to our parentsâ door. Who did you overhear in the library?â
âYou and Bridget talking about a vampire book, about lovers no less.â Cassieâs mouth fell open in shock that matched what mine had been when I discovered what book my most proper sister and her newfound friend were reading. âShh,â I said, as I heard Sean greet the constable in the library.
âDid you learn the identity of the poor fellow?â the earl asked.
âI did. Wouldnât be calling the gentleman poor, though, nor let any sympathies rest upon him. His name was Prichard, Miles Prichard. Lived north of here, between Dartmoorâs End and Falmouth.â
âThe chap was a bad sort then?â This from Sir Warwick.
âQuite possibly,â the constable said. âI found his wife strangled to death, propped up all prettily in her bed. Itâs likely that he killed her. The neighbors say they kept to themselves and that he was a mean chap, yelling and ordering his wife