“Doesn’t that strike you as odd?” Tobias asked.
Mr. Nightingale squinted in the shadows. “Odd?”
Lavinia glanced at Tobias. “Why do you find it strange?”
“Given the value of the Medusa in certain quarters, I would have expected the killer to contact a man of business in the antiquities line, a professional such as Mr. Nightingale here, as swiftly as possible. One would think that the villain would be anxious to turn a profit immediately.”
“Perhaps the thief is waiting until the furor over the murder fades,” Lavinia suggested.
“But holding on to the bracelet puts him at great risk,” Tobias said. “It is dangerous to keep it in his possession, because it is evidence of a murder that could send him to the gallows.”
Lavinia contemplated that briefly. “You have a point. Furthermore, the killer is no doubt aware by now that we are looking for him. One would, indeed, think that he would want to get rid of the Medusa as swiftly as possible.”
Mr. Nightingale studied Tobias from beneath his slouchy cap. “The murder is your affair. I told ye, I’ve got no interest in it. I’m a simple man of business, and me only concern here is for the profit that’s to be made if this thing is handled properly. Well, sir? Have we got a bargain?”
“Mrs. Lake is correct,” Tobias said slowly. “If we recover the bracelet, it must be returned to its rightful owner.”
“Now, see here,” Mr. Nightingale began heatedly, “I thought ye just said-”
Tobias cut him off with a raised hand. “However, as you noted, the owner is not in the best of health, and the lady who is in line to inherit apparently has no particular interest in antiquities. For a fee, I would be willing to put your offer before her. I cannot guarantee that she will deal with you, but at least you would have a chance of obtaining the Medusa.”
“Huh.” Nightingale mulled that over for a long moment. “The profit would not be nearly so high if I must first purchase the Medusa from Banks’s heir. I would no doubt be obliged to give her a fair price for the damned relic. And then there would be your fee on top of it, March.”
“Something tells me you would do very nicely out of the arrangement,” Tobias said easily. “Your clientele is not the sort to quibble over your inflated prices. All they care about is acquiring the Medusa.”
“And just think of the advantages, sir,” Lavinia said smoothly. “Any bargain you struck with Banks’s heir would be legal and without risk.”
Mr. Nightingale waved that aside with a cramped hand. “Takes some of the sport out of it, if ye ask me.”
“Nevertheless,” Tobias said, “that is all we are prepared to offer. Take it or leave it.”
“Damn yer eyes, March, can’t ye see there’s more profit in this for all of us if we keep the heir out of it?”
“Unfortunately, we’ve got our professional reputations to consider,” Tobias said. “Can’t have gossip going around that March and Lake are in the habit of taking advantage of heirs. Not good for business.”
“Humph.” Mr. Nightingale rapped his walking stick on the ground a couple of times. “Very well, if that’s your only offer, I’ll accept it. Mind ye, though, if the Medusa falls into me hands from some other source, our arrangement no longer stands. I won’t owe ye or Banks’s heir a penny.”
He turned away without another word and made to move off into the shadows, one foot dragging heavily.
“I understand,” Tobias said quietly to his back. “But if matters transpire in that fashion, do not be surprised if the heir hires us to recover her stolen bracelet. In which event, we would know precisely where to look.”
Mr. Nightingale halted and looked back over his hunched shoulder. “Is that a threat, March?”
“Consider it more in the nature of a bit of professional advice,” Tobias said softly.
“Bah. I’ll give ye some advice in return. If ye and your lady hope to make your fortunes in the investigation business, ye’d best develop a more practical attitude toward matters of a financial nature.”
Nightingale slouched off around the hedge without waiting for a response.
There was a short silence. When he was certain they were alone again, Tobias took Lavinia’s arm and started toward the bright lights of the ballroom.
“There is something I have been meaning to tell you,” Lavinia said quietly.
“A shudder of dread passes through me whenever you say those words, madam.”
“It is about Mrs. Rushton, Banks’s heir.”
“What about her?”
“I suspect that she may be involved in this in some manner.”
He stopped and turned so that he could examine her face in the glow that spilled from the ballroom windows. “What the devil are you talking about?”
“I may have neglected to mention that after we got Banks’s name from Tredlow this afternoon, Emeline and I called at the Banks mansion.”
“Yes, you certainly did neglect to mention that little tidbit,” he said evenly. “Why?”
She made a face. “If you must know, I was saving it for a surprise.”
“Allow me to inform you, Lavinia,” he said, aware of a painful tightness in his jaw, “that there is nothing I hate more than a surprise in the course of an investigation.”
“Yes, well, it was only a small one,” she muttered. “I suppose I wanted to impress you. Or maybe simply make a point.”
“What the devil is your point?”
Irritation flared in her eyes. “My point is that you are forever assuming the role of instructor and expert in our partnership. Always going off to consult your private connections. Connections, I might add, that you refuse to introduce to me.”
“Damn it, Lavinia-”
“I wanted to demonstrate that I was perfectly capable of conducting my share of an investigation.”
He said nothing.
“You need not look at me like that, Tobias. We are equals in this partnership, and I have every right to pursue my own inquiries when the opportunities present themselves.”
“Bloody hell.”
“Calling at the Banks mansion was a perfectly logical thing to do. After all, Mrs. Rushton might be a suspect.”
“A suspect? Mrs. Rushton?”
“You are the one who has pointed out on more than one occasion that heirs sometimes grow impatient.” Triumph blazed in her eyes. “Furthermore, if she is not a suspect, she may well be a potential client. After all, as a victim of theft, she has a great interest in recovering the Medusa. She may be persuaded to pay us a fee to find it for her.”
He could not quarrel with her logic, he thought. But that did nothing to improve his temper.
“Did you speak to Mrs. Rushton?” he asked.
“No. She was out for the afternoon.”
“I see.” He relaxed slightly.
“Taking her weekly mesmeric treatment,” Lavinia added very deliberately. “It seems the lady suffers from delicate nerves.”
He could see that she was extremely pleased with herself. “The news that Mrs. Rushton is taking treatments from a mesmerist is your big surprise?”
Her delight faded to a disgruntled expression. “You must admit that it is a striking connection.”
“Lavinia, half of London takes mesmeric treatments for nerves or rheumatism.”
“Not half.” She glared. “You must admit that there is more than a mere hint of a coincidence here. Our case involves a dead woman who was intimately associated with the practice of mesmerism, and now we have a possible suspect who takes mesmeric treatments. I intend to investigate Mrs. Rushton more closely.”
“When?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
He gripped the edge of the terrace wall while he contemplated the possibilities.
“I will accompany you,” he said finally.
“Thank you, but that is not necessary.” She gave a disdainful little sniff. “I can handle this by myself.”