Harriett by Rebecca King Read Free Book Online Page A

body and
then they could all go home. At least she fervently hoped that
would be the case.
    “ We have to wait. We don’t know if Minerva died of natural
causes or not. Because of that, we cannot simply go home and leave
her here in the middle of the rug. Not only would it be unfair and
highly ill mannered of us to leave Harriett to deal with a body by
herself, but I am certain that the constable will want to ask us a
few questions about what happened,” Mr Montague replied
matter-of-factly.
    Out of
all of them, he appeared to be the one who was handling the crisis
the best. Although his breaths still came in heavy pants, and his
cheeks were still flushed with exertion, he exuded a gentle
reassurance that made Harriett intensely glad that he was
there.
    “ Thank you, Hugo,” Harriett whispered. While she was glad that
her Uncle Charles had gone for help in Great Tipton, she knew that
he would be as useless as a colander in a rain-storm and didn’t
handle crises well at all. He would undoubtedly keep his distance
and allow Babette to deal with the ‘household’ matters of arranging
the removal of the body. Still, at least he had agreed to be parted
from his beer long enough to get help.
    “ I don’t know anything,” Madame Humphries wailed, casting
desperate eyes around the room. “How can I be questioned? I was in
a trance at the time. You saw me,” she turned toward Miss
Hepplethwaite, who once again began to make soothing noises. “I was
not aware of what was going on in the room,” she added
firmly.
    “ But you were here, and that’s enough,” Mr Bentwhistle argued,
his voice as stern as the gaze he landed on her. Whatever else
Madame Humphries was about to say remained unspoken and she, along
with the rest of the room’s occupants, lapsed into disgruntled
silence.
     
     

CHAPTER FOUR
    The next hour
passed incredibly slowly. The eleventh hour came and went as the
clock on the mantle ticked steadily on. At a quarter to midnight,
the rattle of the front door and the dull murmur of voices heralded
the arrival of Charles and the village constable, Fred.
    “ Oh, thank heavens you are here,” Babette gasped and hurried
to the door. She flicked a quick, almost dismissive glance at
Charles when she reached the hallway. Her attention was locked on
the men who entered the house behind him. She nodded politely to
Fred, and beckoned them all inside and out of the rain. Fred paused
just inside the hallway and motioned to the men behind
him.
    “ This is Detective Inspector Bosville, from Great Tipton
Constabulary and his colleague, Detective Brown,” he motioned to
the tall, distinguished looking man behind the policeman. “You know
Doctor Woods.”
    Babette
nodded at each man and entered the parlour. “Everything has
remained untouched, gentlemen. To be quite frank with you, we
didn’t know what to do.”
    Harriett
waited anxiously for the men to appear in the doorway. She had no
idea why she felt nervous because she had done nothing wrong, but
the idea of having policemen in the house unnerved her. She was a
churchgoing person who lived well and abided by the law, just like
everyone else of her acquaintance. Although she knew the village
constable, Fred Dinage, well, she had never had any business
dealings with him before. She had no idea what to
expect.
    She
stood beside the hearth and turned her curious gaze toward the rest
of the men who entered, presumably from the constabulary; some
detective something or other. She swallowed nervously and tried to
keep her face impassive while the brandy she had consumed earlier
began to gurgle alarmingly in her stomach.
    She
nodded respectfully to Doctor Woods, then turned her attention to
the man who stood beside the village’s doctor. Detective Isaac
Brown was of average height with short dark brown hair. His almost
angular face was so severe that it was almost forbidding and was
accompanied by a dark scowl. His suit was certainly nothing out of
the ordinary, but