Butterfly Palace (28 page)
Jane twisted her hands in her lap. “It was Cook’s night off.”
“Answer the question,” he barked.
“Yes, sir. Alone.”
“Did you speak with Mrs. Karr? To get to the butterfly room, she would have had to come into the kitchen.”
Lily leaned forward. “She didn’t see her, Officer Pickle! None of us know how she got down there. And her body was cold. I touched her ankle.”
Pickle quelled her with a cold look. “Please be quiet, or you’ll have to leave.”
She sank against the hard chair back.
Lord, keep Jane calm. Let this man see she had nothing to do with this
.
Pickle turned his attention back to Jane. “Did you speak to her? Remember, if we find you’ve lied to the police, any trouble you’re in just got worse.”
“I—I . . .” Jane gulped. “Yes, sir. I spoke to her.” Her shoulders slumped and she shuddered.
Lily couldn’t hold back a gasp. She stared at her friend. What was going on? Then she remembered Jane had pointed out the body first. She didn’t want to believe Jane could have had anything to do with this. She was a kind, gentle soul.
“What was the conversation about?”
“She told me if I didn’t let her go to the butterfly room, she would tell my employer a lie about me.”
“What lie?” Pickle’s voice was hard.
Tears hung on Jane’s lashes. “That I’d been a prostitute and that’s why I had a baby.”
“Was it true?”
Jane shook her head violently. “She knew it wasn’t true because it was her fault I became pregnant. She and her husband sent a-a man to my room. I’m a good girl, Officer Pickle. I had never even held hands with a man.” She swallowed hard. “She and her husband ruined my life.”
Pickle’s expression was stony. “So you killed her. I understand. She deserved it, didn’t she?”
Jane hung her head. “I didn’t kill her.”
“So what happened then?” His icy gray eyes bored into her.
“Mrs. O’Reilly gave me her keys to get some wine. I still had them when Mrs. Karr came to the door. I—I let her go to the butterfly room.”
Lily gasped and stared at Jane. “Oh, Jane.”
Jane twisted her handkerchief in her hand. “It was wrong—I know that! But I couldn’t let her destroy the new life I was trying to make. She said she just wanted to take a look at it and make sure the new butterfly was really all Mr. Marshall claimed it to be. She went down there smiling like she’d won.” Jane’s voice held distaste.
“And then what happened?” Pickle demanded.
“Nothing. I did my work and kept wondering where she was, but I didn’t have time to look for her. Not when I was doing the cooking by myself. Then Lily came and said she had to go get that butterfly for Mr. Marshall. I suddenly realized just how long she had to have been down there, so I went along.”
Even Lily could see Jane’s argument was weak. So she wasn’t surprised when Pickle stood and said, “Miss White, you’re under arrest for the murder of Mrs. Karr.”
L
ily couldn’t remember when she’d been so angry as she paced the kitchen with Hannah in her arms. Nathan had gone down to the police station to see what he could do, but the baby would be crying soon for milk.
“The police actually locked her up?” Emily flipped the mound of dough over and began to roll it out.
“She was crying when they dragged her off to the cell. It was horrible.” Lily brushed her lips across the baby’s soft hair. “What am I going to do about Hannah?”
“Our neighbor has a goat,” Mrs. O’Reilly said. “I’ll ask for some milk. Emily, you run to the general store and buy a couple of bottles. It will have to do.”
Emily dusted the flour from her hands onto her apron. “What about preparations for lunch?”
“We have ham and cheese in the larder. I can whip up sandwiches when I get back.”
“Won’t we get in trouble?” In spite of her protest, Emily’s eyes were gleaming as she took off her apron.
“I’ll explain to the missus. No woman could stand back and let a baby go hungry.”
Hannah swiped a tiny hand at a wisp of Lily’s hair. Lily kissed
the small fingers. What would happen to the little mite if Jane went to prison? Not that she could possibly be guilty, but the police didn’t seem to care about the truth. They thought they had their murderer all sewed up and wouldn’t be looking around for the real culprit.
The women had barely gotten out the back door when Belle stepped into the kitchen. “Where is Jane?”
“It’s been a trying morning.” Lily told her what had happened at the police station.
Belle’s face softened as she listened. “You can’t take care of the baby, Lily. Surely you see that. Jane worked part-time in the kitchen so she could pop back and forth to the little house when she needed to. That won’t work long-term.” Hannah stared up at Belle, then smiled a toothy grin. Belle smiled back. “She’s the sweetest thing.” She held out her arms and took Hannah.
Hannah grabbed her necklace and yanked.
“Careful, she might break it.”
Belle extracted her necklace from the baby’s chubby fingers. “How will you feed her?”
At least Belle wasn’t ordering her to give the baby to the orphanage, which was what she’d expected in spite of Belle’s earlier agreeability. “Emily went to get a bottle, and Mrs. O’Reilly stepped next door to ask for goat milk.”
“Does the child have any other clothing?” Belle wrinkled her nose.
“She smelled quite sour earlier so I bathed her, but the gown has been mended a dozen times. I think she needs to be bathed again. She has one other gown. It’s clean. I can run get it and give her another bath.”
“I’ll start her bath. You go get the gown. We’ll go shopping for more clothing this afternoon.” Belle carried the baby to the sink.
“Let me help you.” Lily grabbed the hot water from the stove
and poured it into the sink, then pumped cold water until it was a comfortable temperature. “I’ll go get the clean gown.”
She raced to the empty shack and grabbed the gown and a clean diaper. By the time she got back, Belle had Hannah in the water. The baby was cooing and splashing. Maybe the other house had running water, but Lily had only seen Jane sponge the baby clean.
Belle’s face shone. “She’s very pretty, isn’t she?”
Lily smiled. “She looks like her mama. Her big blue eyes are very appealing.”
Her smile faded when she remembered how Jane came to have the baby. What a terrible thing, to be betrayed by someone you knew well.
“I need a towel,” Belle said.
Lily grabbed a clean dish towel. “This will do. She’s small.”
Belle lifted the wriggling, dripping baby from the water, and Hannah wailed with protest. Lily dried her off while Belle held her still, then together they managed to get her into a clean diaper and gown.
“What is all the caterwauling?” Mrs. Marshall stood in the doorway to the kitchen with her hands on her hips. She wore an elaborate pink gown with a matching hat. She had her gloves on too, so either she’d just come in or she was preparing to go out.
“Aunt Camille, the most terrible thing has happened!” Belle told her aunt about the morning and Jane’s predicament.
“I should have known better than to hire a woman like that. I trusted her.” Mrs. Marshall stared at Lily. “And you. You recommended her.”
“I stand by that recommendation. This is a terrible mistake, Mrs. Marshall. You’ll see.”
The older woman pursed her lips. “To think we harbored
someone who would help steal Everett’s prized possession. She will no longer be in our employ, even if she didn’t murder that poor woman.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Isn’t the baby darling though?” Belle hugged Hannah to her chest. “I want to help take care of her until Jane is released. And if she never gets out, I’ll keep her.”
“You’ll do no such thing! You’re taking on a huge responsibility, and your future husband may have something to say about it.”
“We’ll see.” Belle’s chin tipped up. “I’m sure Stuart will have no objections.”
The open draperies did little to block the afternoon sun slanting into the drawing room. The space felt stifling, and Drew tugged on his tie.
Dressed in a gray morning coat, Everett stepped into the room with an abstracted air. He shook Drew’s hand. “It’s a nasty business, Drew. You heard one of our housemaids was arrested?”
Drew’s next breath hitched in his chest. “No, I hadn’t heard. What’s happened?”
“Our cook’s assistant, Jane White, let that woman in to steal the butterfly I’d just received. She and Mrs. Karr were at odds in the past, and the White girl has been accused of the murder.”
Drew exhaled. At least it wasn’t Lily in trouble, but he liked Jane and knew Lily would be distressed. He couldn’t imagine quiet Jane killing anyone. “I’m sorry to hear it. Has your butterfly been found?”
Everett shook his head. “I told Karr if I got it back safe and sound, I wouldn’t press charges, but he looked me in the eye and
denied he had it.” He moved to the table and poured himself a drink. “Scotch?”
“No, thank you.” Everett glanced at the window, then frowned. Drew turned to look too and saw Lily and Belle getting out of the carriage. Belle was carrying something, and a closer look revealed she held Jane’s baby. Lily had several bundles in her arms.
“What the devil is she doing?” Everett muttered. The entry door opened, and he called his niece’s name.
When the women entered the room, Drew moved to help Lily with the bundles. The items were soft, likely clothing. He tucked them under his arm.
“This is Hannah, Uncle Everett.” Belle’s smile was coaxing. “Isn’t she adorable?”
“Where did you get this child?”
“Her mama is Jane White, who is in jail. Someone had to take charge of her, so I decided to do it.” Belle kissed the little one’s cheek.
His brow raised, Drew glanced at Lily, who shrugged. While it was good news for Hannah that Belle had taken such interest in her, he had to wonder how long it would be before her interest waned. She didn’t seem the motherly type, but maybe he was wrong.
“I bought her some things, and I’m putting her in my old nursery. My old baby bed is being scrubbed and assembled.”
Everett tossed back another Scotch. “I’m surprised at you, Belle. The child’s mother is a common thief.”
“Where’s your charity, Uncle? The poor waif must be fed and clothed. I’m not turning her over to the orphanage.” She smiled and turned the baby to face him. “And while I was in town, I stopped by the newspaper office. They’re sending out a photographer to take a picture of you with the baby. Your generosity will be front-page news the week before the election.”
Everett stared at her, then smiled. “You will be the consummate wife of a politician. I’m astonished at how well you think things through.”
Belle smiled and went to sit on the sofa with the child. “Stuart doesn’t know what he’s getting yet, does he?”
“Does he know you’ve taken on this child?” Drew asked. They had to get more details from Vesters. The election was approaching much too quickly, and they still didn’t know how he planned to murder Everett.
“Not yet. He’s coming by this afternoon, and I’ll tell him them.” Belle reached forward and selected a cookie from the silver tray on the table.
The baby squawked, and Lily hurried to take her. “She is hungry. I’ll feed her in the kitchen.”
“Bring her back to me when you’re done.”
“I’ll go with you.” Drew was eager to find out what had brought about the transformation in Belle.
Belle smoothed her hair, then pinned on a smile and stepped into the parlor. She should go on the stage. It was quite clear she had acting ability. “Hello, Stuart, I’ve been counting the minutes until you arrived.” She offered her cheek to him and managed not to grimace when his whiskers ground into her skin.
She skittered away as quickly as possible. “I’ve ordered tea. A reporter from the newspaper is coming soon to take a picture of me.”
His eyes went wide in his round face. “Whatever for?” He smiled. “It seems I came at the right time. Is it for an engagement announcement?”
“Partially. I don’t think you’ve met our kitchen maid Jane.” She
told him about the events that had transpired since dinner the night before.
Stuart absorbed the news silently at first. He turned his back and went to pour himself a drink at the sideboard.