Cecily’s stomach churned and she placed a hand over her midriff. “Oh, my. Who is it this time?”
“It’s Henry Farnsworth. He’s the gamekeeper up at the Bellevue estate. Or he was, more like it. Lord Bellevue sent us the message. Luckily I got my bicycle mended so I can get around again. I got right on it and went up there.”
“Did he tell you what happened?”
“No, m’m. The butler did. Seems Henry was out there early this morning shooting pheasants for a dinner party tonight. One of the gardeners found him. He’d been shot with his own gun.”
Cecily felt a chill course over her entire body. “I suppose there was a gold angel on his forehead?”
Sam nodded.
“And a missing lock of hair?”
“Yes, m’m. Not that Henry had much hair to begin with. Just about took it all, that maniac did.” Northcott ran a hand over his own bald head. “He wouldn’t have much luck with me, would he, m’m.”
His laugh held no humor, and Cecily couldn’t even raise a smile. “Did you speak with the gardeners? Did they see anything?”
“Not a thing. They heard the shots, but since they knew Henry was shooting at pheasants, they took no notice. It wasn’t until one of them went to cut some holly for the mansion that he found Henry.”
“What about Lord Bellevue and his wife? Did they see anything?”
“I couldn’t talk to them, m’m. The butler said they were too upset to speak with me. Which is why I came up here.”
Cecily thought she understood. “Would you like me to speak to them?”
Northcott looked relieved. “Yes, m’m. They won’t turn you away, being as you’re a lady. I’d be most grateful if you could see what you can find out.”
“I’ll do my best, Sam. I suppose you searched the area thoroughly?”
“I put my best men on it. They didn’t find nothing, though.” He shook his head. “They didn’t find nothing at all at the other murders, neither. Whoever did this is really good at picking up after himself.”
“So it would seem,” Cecily murmured. “It seems we are dealing with an exceptionally clever killer.”
Northcott drew a handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his brow. “I’m never going to get away for Christmas at this rate. I might as well tell the missus to go without me.”
Personally, Cecily thought, the constable was entirely too concerned with his holiday, but she refrained from saying so. “Don’t give up just yet, Sam.” She stood, forcing the constable to leap to his feet. “Our killer has committed four murders now without being detected, or thinks he has, and sooner or later he will make a mistake and give himself away.”
“I hope you’re right, m’m.” Northcott bent down to retrieve his helmet. “And I certainly hope it’s sooner rather than later. The inspector is going to find out about all this any minute now, and he’ll be breathing fire down my neck, make no mistake about that.” A light tap on the door turned his head. “Would that be the brandy, by any chance?”
“No doubt.” Cecily crossed the room and opened the door. Pansy held a tray containing a brandy bottle and two glasses. “Your carriage is on the way, m’m,” she announced, bending her knees in a curtsey.
“Thank you, Pansy.” Cecily reached for the tray. “I’ll take this. Go back to the foyer and watch for the carriage. Let me know the minute it arrives.”
“Yes, m’m.” Pansy disappeared, and Cecily carried the tray to her desk and set it down. “Help yourself, Sam. I must go up to my suite and get ready for my visit to the Bellevue mansion.”
“You don’t have time to join me, m’m?”
He didn’t look too disappointed when she shook her head. “Not this time. I think perhaps Mrs. Chubb might have some mince pies in the kitchen, if you’d like to call in there on your way out.”
“Yes, m’m. Much obliged, I’m sure.”
She was about to leave when he added, “Thank you, Mrs. B. I’m really glad of your help. This is a nasty one, to be sure. Just be careful, all right?”
“I will, Sam. You must be careful, too.” She closed the door and walked slowly down the hallway, deep in thought. This latest murder would seem to exonerate Basil. He could hardly have committed the crime while he was working at the factory.
Whether or not he was responsible for Jimmy Taylor’s death remained to be seen, but that was not her concern right now. The murders were piling up at an alarming rate. Her immediate objective was to find this diabolical monster and halt his terrible rampage.
If she and the constables couldn’t apprehend the killer, the news would be all over London, and Inspector Cranshaw would waste no time in getting to Badgers End.
Not only would Sam Northcott be in deep trouble, the Pennyfoot’s Christmas season could be a total disaster. Even she would think twice about spending a week or so in a village with a murderous maniac on the loose. The Christmas Angel had to be stopped, and there was no time to lose.
“I can’t believe we’re actually going on the sleigh ride,” Gertie said, wrapping a scarf around Lillian’s head. “I was so blinking sure the snow would all be melted before we could get out there.” She smiled at Daisy. “Now you can have some time off to spend with Doris.”
Daisy bent down to button James’s coat. “Doris is really busy with the pantomime. I think I’ll take Essie out for a walk in the pram. She looks like she needs some fresh air. Her skin is as pale as a lily.”
Gertie laughed. “That’s because she lives in London. You can’t get fresh air with all that smoke and dirt.”
Daisy patted James’s head and stood. “Yeah, I know. You’re lucky the twins live down here at the seaside. It’s a lot better for them.”
“Don’t I know it.” Gertie glanced in the mirror. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes seemed to be sparkling. It had to be all that rushing around to get out. “I was lucky Lizzie didn’t have nothing to do today. She swapped her afternoon off with me. I promised her I’d bring her back some mistletoe, so I hope we find some.”
“What about the pantomime rehearsal this afternoon? Aren’t the twins supposed to be there?”
“Yeah, but it won’t hurt for them to miss one. I told Pansy to tell Mrs. Fortescue that I had an urgent appointment and had to take them with me.”
“Well, you’ll all have fun, I know,” Daisy said, sounding just a little bit envious.
Gertie gave her a sharp look. “Don’t you ever get tired of taking care of other people’s kiddies?”
Daisy shrugged. “What else would I be doing? It’s a lot more fun than being a housemaid. I never did like that job. Too much like hard work.”
“Well, I mean, don’t you ever wish you could meet someone and get married and have children of your own?”
Daisy’s face clouded over. “Not anymore. I did meet someone once, but I didn’t fit into his world, and he didn’t fit into mine.”
Gertie felt a pang of sympathy. “I remember. He was a toff, weren’t he? A bloody lord, of all things. Of course it wouldn’t work. Poor sods like us can’t mix with the toffs. That’s why I couldn’t go to London with Dan. He was used to all that high-society stuff. I’d have been bleeding miserable, just like you would have been, married to a lord.” She grinned. “Lady Daisy. Just doesn’t sound right, does it.“
“No, it doesn’t.” Daisy bent over to kiss Lillian’s cheek. “Be good, little ones. Behave yourselves this afternoon, and be nice to Mr. Russell.”
“We will,” the twins sang out together. Lillian grabbed hold of Gertie’s hand. “Come on, Mama. We don’t want to be late.”
James rushed to the door. “No! Mr. Clive might go without us!”
Daisy raised her eyebrows. “Mr. Clive?”
“They’ve heard me call him Clive for so long,” Gertie explained as she allowed her daughter to drag her to the door. “I’m surprised they remember to put the mister in front of it.”
Daisy laughed. “Have a lovely afternoon.”