“I was told they suspect that the cravat was stolen earlier in the evening from some gentleman the killer robbed,” Howard explained.
“A bit of a stretch,” Tobias muttered.
He sounded exceedingly callous, Lavinia thought. “That is quite enough, sir.”
There was a short pause.
Howard and Tobias met each other’s eyes for that moment. Lavinia recognized the look as one of those silent, extremely irritating, man-to-man exchanges that completely excluded women.
“Who found the body?” Tobias asked.
Howard shook his head. “Does it matter?”
“It might,” Tobias said.
Howard rubbed his temples again, concentrating. “I believe the man who came to inform me of Celeste’s death mentioned that one of the street lads who sleep in the abandoned buildings near the river led the authorities to her. But there is more to this. Something else has happened that I must tell you about, Lavinia. Something very odd.”
She touched his shoulder. “What is it?”
“I received a caller late last night.” Howard gave her a stark look through a fan of spread fingers. “Indeed, it was nearly dawn when he arrived. I had sent the housekeeper away because I could not bear to have anyone else around while I came to terms with my grief. The stranger pounded until I awoke and went downstairs to open the door.”
“Who was he?” Lavinia asked.
“A most unpleasant little man who wouldn’t step into the light, so I never got a good look at him.” Howard slowly lowered his hands to his thighs. “He called himself Mr. Nightingale. Said he was in the business of arranging certain types of transactions.”
“What sort of transactions?” Tobias asked.
“He told me that he acts as a go-between for those who wish to buy and sell antiquities in what he called an extremely discreet manner. Apparently he guarantees anonymity for both buyer and seller.”
“In other words the transactions are not always of a legal nature,” Tobias said.
“I got that impression, yes.” Howard sighed heavily. “This man, Mr. Nightingale, told me that he had heard rumors to the effect that a very valuable antiquity had recently been stolen and that Celeste had been involved in the theft.”
Lavinia was dumbfounded. “Celeste stole a relic?”
“I do not believe that for a moment.” Howard waved the possibility aside with an impatient movement of one long-fingered hand. “My Celeste was no thief. Nevertheless, Nightingale claimed that word had gone out in the underworld to the effect that she was murdered for the damned thing.”
“What was the nature of this antiquity?” Tobias asked, showing the first signs of genuine interest in the proceedings.
Howard’s brows bunched together in a line above his patrician nose. “Nightingale described it as an ancient gold bracelet of Roman design. It was originally discovered here in England, a remnant of the days when this country was a province of the Roman Empire. It is set with a strange blue cameo carved with the image of Medusa.”
“What did Mr. Nightingale want from you?” Lavinia asked.
“Apparently the bloody thing is most unusual and is considered quite valuable to a certain sort of collector.”
“And Nightingale makes his living off unusual collectors who favor odd antiquities?” Tobias concluded.
“So he claimed.” Howard did not look at him. He focused his attention entirely on Lavinia. “Nightingale assumes that I know something concerning the whereabouts of the missing cameo. He made it clear that he can arrange to sell it for a fortune. He offered to pay me a fee if I will turn it over to him.”
“What did you tell him?” Tobias asked.
“What could I say?” Howard spread his hands. “I explained that I knew nothing about the Medusa. I don’t think that he believed me, but he warned me that I am in grave danger, regardless of whether or not I told him the truth.”
“Why are you in danger?” Lavinia asked.
“Nightingale said now that word has gone out that the cameo is floating around somewhere in the underworld, any number of collectors will be searching for it. Some, he says, are extremely dangerous men who will stop at nothing to obtain what they desire. He… he likened them to sharks in the water circling a sinking ship. He said that I was in the position of the sole survivor clinging to the wreckage.”
“He tried to frighten you,” Lavinia said.
“And succeeded rather well, I must tell you.” Howard seemed to fall into himself. “Nightingale claimed that the only safe course of action was to deliver the relic to him immediately. He promised to make it worth my while. But I cannot possibly do that because I do not have it.”
There was a short silence while they all contemplated that news.
Tobias shifted position a little, propping one shoulder against the windowsill and folding his arms. “What else do you know about this antiquity?”
Howard did not look at him. He continued to focus his gaze on Lavinia. She did her best to appear encouraging and sympathetic.
“I’ve never seen the damned thing,” Howard said. “I can only tell you what Nightingale told me. He referred to it as the Blue Medusa. The name is no doubt due to the peculiar color of the stone.”
“Medusa,” Tobias repeated thoughtfully. “A once beautiful woman with glorious hair who managed to offend Athena and got herself turned into a hideous monster for her efforts. She became one of the three Gorgons.”
“The one whose gaze turned men to stone,” Lavinia said.
“No man could slay her because to look at her was to die. She was eventually killed by Perseus, who-rather cleverly, I always thought-backed toward her while she slept, using his shield as a mirror to reflect her image. That way he did not have to look directly at her while he hacked off her head.”
“Not what one would consider a particularly charming image for an item of fashionable jewelry,” Howard muttered.
“Actually, Medusa was a very common theme for ancient jewelers,” Lavinia said. “I saw any number of old rings and pendants set with Medusa-head cameos while I was in Italy. Her image was believed to be able to ward off evil.”
“Turn your enemy or the source of a threat to stone, hmm?” Tobias shrugged. “There is a certain logic to that thinking.”
Howard cleared his throat. “Mr. Nightingale told me that the cameo in this particular bracelet is a unique version of Medusa. It is believed to be the emblem of some ancient, obscure cult that flourished in secret for a time here in England. In addition to the familiar figure of a woman’s head with staring eyes and snakes twisting in her hair, there is a small rod or wand carved into the stone beneath the severed throat.”
“Did Mr. Nightingale tell you anything else about the relic?” Lavinia asked.
Howard furrowed his brow. “I believe he said that the bracelet itself is fashioned of gold of a very pure and excellent quality that has been pierced in any number of places to create a distinctive pattern of intertwined snakes.”
“Pierced work,” Lavinia said softly.
Tobias glanced at her. “You have seen such antiquities?”
“Yes. I saw a pair of gold bracelets in Italy that had been worked in such a fashion. Several gemstones of various colors were set into them. They had been discovered in a tomb, together with some coins from the fourth century. Quite incredibly beautiful, I must say. The piercing created a pattern of twisting leaves that was so fine and delicate it looked like so much gold lace.”
Howard continued to watch her as though she was his only source of hope. “I can tell you nothing more about the Blue Medusa. Nightingale claims Celeste was killed because of it. But I do not believe that. At least, not entirely.”
“What do you think happened?” Tobias asked.
“I have spent hours pondering the circumstances of her death,” Howard admitted sadly. “I have come to the reluctant conclusion that, although my Celeste was, by nature, no thief, she was young and impulsive. She may have been led astray by her lover.”