Capturing Sir Dunnicliffe (The Star Elite Series) (14 page)

That left him with
several more questions. Was the poisoning of the apple pie meant for him? Or had someone deliberately targeted Harriett? If so, were they trying to make her ill, or kill her? Yes, she had been seriously ill and, during the long night, they had thought that she might not make it. But had that been a mistake? Had someone intended just to make her life uncomfortable? It didn’t seem likely, but it was a possibility he couldn’t ignore.

Immediately his thoughts turned to Romilla. Although he hadn’t met her yet, Hugo had heard enough to know she could be disgruntled enough to seek spiteful vengeance. But was she a murderer in the making?

Having checked the rest of the cottage, he found that the mess he had made in Harriett’s workroom had been cleaned, the beds neatly made and, unless he was mistaken, the sheets washed. The floors had been scrubbed and everything polished to within an inch of its life – he felt that he daren’t touch anything in case he left finger marks on it. Even the fireplace had been neatly laid, ready for the fire to be lit.

Shaking his head, he quietly left the cottage and searched Harriett’s neatly tended gardens for any sign of anything disturbed, but found nothing other than a few broken branches on the bushes at the end of the garden, where Harriett said she thought she had seen someone lurking.

Was that someone the would-be murderer, watching to see if their poison had worked? It didn’t seem likely that they would enter the cottage unnoticed, while Harriett was in the garden, poison the pie and sneak back out again without either Hugo or Harrold noticing from inside either.

If the poisoner
was the same person who had tried to kill Hugo, they were very inept. If it was, missing the intended target once was bad enough, but twice would make them even more determined that on the third attempt, they wouldn’t fail.

He turned and headed back toward the village, nodding
to several villagers who hailed him, and putting his hand up in a casual wave to several who were too far away. Everyone he passed made a point of acknowledging him with cheery enthusiasm, which left him slightly surprised, but delighted for Harriett.

Having only spent a brief time in Padstow before, he decided to scout the area and mentally map the roads. It was something he had learned to do
during the time he had been working for the Star Elite – always make certain of your escape route. He had no idea if the murderer was still in the area, but wasn’t prepared to be caught out. It had nearly happened in Port Isaac, and it wasn’t going to happen here, in Padstow.

It was mid-afternoon by the time he found himself standing at the wall of the back yard to Joshua’s house. Eyeing the curtained window of the bedroom, he decided to check on Harriett again, just to make sure she was al
l right. Although he had stayed last night, he couldn’t impose on Joshua’s generous hospitality tonight, and was going to stay at the cottage until Harriett was well enough to join him. He just had to tell Harriett that.

His knock at the front door had remained unanswered, so he decided to go around to the back door in the hope that Marion would let him in.
He frowned when he lifted the latch of the gate, only to find it locked. He scowled at the wall for a moment before glancing up and down the empty road. He took several steps back and, with a grunt, hefted himself up and over the top, only to curse when he landed on the ground. It wasn’t Joshua’s yard as he had hoped, but another smaller yard belonging to one of the neighbouring houses; the wall on the opposite side of the yard was the one that led to Joshua’s house.

Being as tall as he was, he could see over the top of
the wall without having to heave himself up, and was about to climb over that too, when the gate at the opposite end of the yard suddenly opened. It was so quiet, so swift, that at first Hugo missed it opening. It was only the black figure of a man appearing at the side of his vision that made him pause. Instinctively he melted back toward the brickwork to stand still and silent, and watch.

He didn’t know what made him stop and watch, but there was something
suspicious about Joshua’s furtive movements, and his instincts warned him to pay close attention.

Joshua looked down
thoughtfully at a small disc in his hand before folding it carefully in a kerchief and tucking it into his cloak pocket. But, rather than carry the cloak into the house, he tucked it under a pile of old boxes heaped haphazardly next to the gate, covering it with a box. He then brushed himself off, righted his jacket and slammed the gate shut, stalking toward the house as though he had just arrived.

Hugo frowned and watched Joshua disappear into the house. He wished some of the shutters downstairs were closed, and he could be certain Joshua wasn’t able to see him
climb back over the wall, but he certainly couldn’t stay where he was. Even he would look suspicious if he kept clambering over garden walls, but he needed to get out of there, preferably the way he came, and that meant climbing the high wall again.

Moments later he was brushing himself off as he walked down the narrow road toward the harbour, a dark scowl on his face. He knew one place that had to be investigated at the first opportunity; he just had to wait for Joshua to go out first.

As he approached the harbour, the scent of pasties wafting on the air reminded him that he had only eaten a small piece of toast hours earlier and was starving. Unable to resist the promise of delicious food, he purchased a large pie, and moved to sit on a rough wooden bench facing the sea to enjoy his treat.

The taste of turnips, meat and gravy exploded in his mouth. It was all he could do
not to groan at the delicious-tasting feast, and he jumped when Simon sat down beside him, holding a pasty of his own.

“Hugo.”

“Simon.” Hugo acknowledged the man with a brisk nod. They munched their pasties in wary silence, staring out at the fishing boats in the harbour for several long moments while the villagers bustled around them, going about their daily business.

“What do you know about the doctor?” Hugo asked, swallowing the last of his pie
. He settled back against the seat with a sigh. It would have been lovely to sit and simply enjoy easy companionship and delicious food with an acquaintance, if it wasn’t for the looming spectre of a would-be murderer standing between them, making the silence distinctly awkward.

Simon glanced at him and swallowed his mouthful before twisting his lips ruefully.

“Not a lot, I am afraid.”

Hugo glanced at him swiftly. “He hasn’t been here long?”

“Oh no, only a few weeks,” Simon replied, finishing the last of his own pie and scrunching the paper up into a tight ball. “The old doctor disappeared practically overnight. Joshua is the nephew or something, and came to take his uncle’s place within the village.”

Hugo thought about the strange comment Joshua had made on the night of Harriett’s poisoning. He hadn’t referred to the previous doctor as his uncle, just ‘the doctor at the time’. Hugo pushed the clue to one side to analyze later, and turned his attention back to the man beside him.

“Have you seen Harriett today?”

“I went
round earlier, but Marion said she was sleeping, so I plan to go there now,” Simon replied, quirking a brow at Hugo. “Are you coming?”

“In a minute.
I want to ask you a few questions first,” Hugo said, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees and stare down at his feet.

“Go right ahead,” Simon replied, clearly going nowhere while Hugo needed his help.

“Is Marion new to the village too?” Hugo asked quietly, turning his gaze to the fishing boats bobbing about in the harbour.

“Yes, I don’t
think she is related to anyone here, and moved in about the same time as Joshua. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, no reason,” Hugo replied nonchalantly, not willing to reveal his suspicions to anyone until he had more information.

“Are there any villagers that you know of who would have enough of a grudge against Harriett to try to make her life uncomfortable?” Hugo asked, glancing around the seemingly tranquil little village. Was there a viper in the bosom of this little community? Somehow he rather thought there was, but the identity of the viper had yet to be revealed.

“No,” Simon replied confidently. “The
wives who had husbands sentenced to gaol for a long time have mostly moved on. The wives whose husbands were released from prison are here. The husbands are too grateful to have been given a second chance to provide for their families to risk being put behind bars again or, worse, hung.”

Hugo nodded wisely. It didn’t seem possible that anyone would be that venomous. So, did that mean that a French agent had been trying to get him? Had his presence in Harriett’s cottage brought about an attempt on her life that was meant for him?

His thoughts turned once more to the man beside him.

“Tell me something
, Simon. Why would a man willingly remain apart from his daughter for five and twenty years?” Hugo’s voice was calm as he asked the question that he knew could prod Simon’s temper.

Simon stared at him for several long moments. “You have been thorough,” he murmured softly. “Or has Harriett been confiding in you?”

“Would it matter if she had?” Hugo glanced at him, but could see nothing but stoic acceptance at his probing questions.

“Not a bit of it. But I hope you will give me the opportunity to explain before you judge.  There is a lot that even Harriett doesn’t know.”

Hugo leaned back in the seat and waited. He heard Simon’s sigh and wondered if the man was going to try to put him off by suggesting they meet another time. It surprised him when Simon started to talk.

“
You will know that I had an affair with Harriett’s mother, Helena, while I was married. It wasn’t intended, and I don’t regret it. Regardless of what the gossips say, I adored Helena. My biggest regret was that I wasn’t in a position to be able to marry her. Unfortunately at the time, I had inherited the estate and several tin mines from my father, and they were in deep trouble. My wife’s family sank a lot of money into the Manor to keep it going while I worked on turning the tin mines around to pay them back. But that left me indebted to my wife and her family, and meant that I wasn’t in a position to be able to divorce my wife, Estelle, without losing everything. Estelle found out about the affair and threatened to ruin everything if I didn’t sever all ties with Helena. But I couldn’t, and eventually Helena found out she was carrying Harriett. I was overjoyed, and vowed to stick by them both as best I could. I worked doubly hard at the mines trying to turn them around so I could divorce Estelle.”

Simon sighed deeply and felt the familiar ache begin to grow around his heart. It happened every time he uncovered the painful memories of his past and, if it wasn’t for Harriett, he wouldn’t lift the lid on his memories at all. But the man beside him needed to understand just how much he had sacrificed, and would sacrifice, for his daughter.

“I loved Helena, and was prepared to lose everything just to be with her. But then Estelle started to spread her poison around the villagers. Some of the older matriarchs painted Helena as some sort of whore who had seduced a weak, married man. It brought Helena a lot of censure from the villagers, to the point that she was almost cast out. Helena was struggling to survive and told me that if I didn’t stop visiting her, she would move away and make sure I never knew where Harriett was.”

He glanced at Hugo, sensing his sympathy. “I had no choice. I couldn’t bear the thought that I would never see either of them again, so I had to accept that I couldn’t call upon her anymore. Not that it was sexual towards the end, but I just wanted to be able to see them and spend some time with them. Harriett was beautiful. A tiny little moppet with gorgeous curls and huge green eyes that made your heart melt. I
agreed to stay away on the understanding that I provided for them both. Helena refused, but I insisted. I said she wouldn’t get very far before I tracked her down and I would take Harriett off her if I had to.” He glanced at Hugo sadly. “It got messy in the end. Helena was angry with me, and I don’t blame her. But I couldn’t bear the thought that she and Harriett would struggle to survive, so I gave them a monthly allowance and stayed away.”

He stood up, unable to sit and reminisce o
ver such painful memories. Motioning for Hugo to follow, he began to saunter slowly around the harbour. He had no idea where they were going, but he couldn’t sit still any longer.

“So you stayed away until Helena died.”

“I saw them - Helena and Harriett - several times,” Simon sighed. “I made sure I was in the village on numerous occasions when I knew they would be around, just to catch sight of either of them. I needed to know they were all right and desperately needed to see them. Eventually the villagers realised they needed Helena’s services and started to go to her for help and things settled down.”

“What about your wife?” Hugo asked, wondering if this was where Romilla’s spite came from. A lot of children picked up on their pa
rent’s attitudes towards things, and people, in life – was this one of those events that led to a child’s warped view on life?

“My marriage to her was over. Although she tried to resurrect
it, I made it clear to her that I wasn’t married to her through choice. I worked harder at turning the Manor into a business, in order to pay off Estelle’s family, which I did far earlier than planned, and had plans to divorce her at the earliest possibility, scandal or not. The tin mines though have proven problematic, and prevented me from carrying out my plans.”