Tess’s garbled words, punctuated by her sobs, were unintelligible.
Daphne looked helplessly at Rodney, who muttered, “You’re not going to get anything out of her while she’s like that. Let her go to bed. We can talk in the morning.”
Tess struggled to control her weeping. “I s-said, I don’t know who she is.”
Rodney muttered something under his breath. “Well, that’s that, then.”
“No,” Daphne cried. “We have to find her and talk to her.”
“How did you know Mr. Sutcliffe had a woman in his room?” Elizabeth asked gently.
Tess’s answer was muffled, but Elizabeth caught one word.
“Sadie? Sadie told you?”
Tess nodded.
“I’ll have a word with her first thing in the morning,” Elizabeth said, wondering how on earth Sadie had managed to get herself involved in this mess.
Daphne immediately turned to her. “Oh, would you? I would feel so much better if I knew someone intelligent was looking into the matter. I don’t trust that constable. He doesn’t appear to be all that astute.”
“He does seem a little senile for the job,” Rodney commented.
Elizabeth sighed. “George, and his partner, Sid, were coaxed out of retirement to take the job, after our constables were called up for military service. I’m afraid they rather regret their circumstances, but they are stuck with it now until the war is over and our younger men return.”
“That doesn’t give him the excuse to accuse innocent people of murder then hold them against their will.” Rodney undid the sash of his smoking jacket and cinched it tighter around his waist. “I shall have a strong word of protest for the inspector when he gets here.”
“I should warn you,” Elizabeth said, as she crossed to the door, “the inspector is not at all like George. He’ll not take a case of murder lightly. I wouldn’t expect too much sympathy from him. On the contrary, in fact. He can be quite merciless at times.”
Rodney met her gaze without flinching, though Tess received this news with a wail of fright.
“In that case,” Rodney said evenly, “we shall just have to answer his questions as best we can.”
“Please, your ladyship,” Daphne whispered. “Please find out who did this.”
Elizabeth sighed. “I’ll do my best. That’s all I can promise.” She bade them all good-night and left, with the uneasy feeling that this time her best might not be quite good enough.
The next morning Elizabeth confronted Sadie at the breakfast table. Martin had already departed to carry out his “duties,” which normally consisted of a morning stroll around the grounds, followed by an inspection of the Great Hall, where he invariably insisted he encountered the late Earl of Wellsborough. After lunch, more often than not, he would retire to the library, from where he could reach the front door within a reasonable amount of time should a visitor summon him with the bell.
Violet was at the stove when Sadie made her appearance in the kitchen. Sunday was Polly’s day off, so Elizabeth was alone at the table when the housemaid sat down. She wasted no time in getting to the point.
“Tess tells me you informed her that her friend, Mr. Sutcliffe, entertained a young woman in his room at the Tudor Arms. Is that correct?”
A flush crept across Sadie’s cheeks, and she avoided Elizabeth’s gaze, pretending instead an avid interest in a piece of dry toast. “I know it was none of my business,” she mumbled, “but I thought she should know. I don’t like the look of that bloke, and if someone was double-crossing me like that I’d want someone to tell me.”
At the stove, Violet turned to send a scathing glare at Sadie. “When are you going to learn to mind your own business, Sadie Buttons? Don’t you know you cause more trouble by sticking your nose in where it’s not wanted?”
Sadie opened her mouth to argue, but Elizabeth forestalled her. “It’s all right, Violet. I just want to ask Sadie a few questions. I prefer that she answer honestly, so I’d rather you didn’t interfere.”
Violet rolled her eyes at the ceiling and turned her back on them again. The ferocity she used on the unfortunate saucepan in her hand, however, clearly demonstrated her resentment.
Elizabeth pushed a dish of margarine closer to Sadie. “How did you know Mr. Sutcliffe had someone in his room?”
“I saw her, didn’t I. See, I took Tess down the pub with me Thursday night ’cos she said she was bored, and the minute we gets inside she recognizes this bloke, Brian. She was really shocked to see him. He’d followed her down from Cambridge just to be with her. She told me her father hated him and didn’t want her seeing him. She was afraid Brian would turn up at the wedding and her dad would cause a big scene and throw him out.”
Elizabeth winced as Sadie smothered her toast with the margarine. She’d used half her ration on one slice of bread. “So when did you see this woman go into Mr. Sutcliffe’s room?”
“It were the next night. Tess had to go to a rehearsal for the wedding so I went to the Arms on me own. I was on me way to the loo and I saw this woman going up the stairs with Brian so I followed them. Tess is me friend, and I always look out for me friends.”
“Butt into their business, you mean,” Violet muttered.
Ignoring her, Sadie went on. “They were giggling and carrying on when they went inside and shut the door, so I knew they was up to no good.”
“Did you recognize the lady?”
Sadie made a sound of disgust. “That weren’t no lady, m’m. All done up like a tart, she was.”
“But did you recognize her?”
Sadie nodded, her mouth full of toast. “Not until the wedding, though,” she said, when she’d swallowed it down. “I didn’t know she was Prissy’s friend at the time or I might have said something to her.”
Elizabeth stared at her. “Fiona? Are you saying it was Fiona in that room with Mr. Sutcliffe?”
Sadie grinned. “Shocker, ain’t it. Could have blinking knocked me down with a feather when I saw her prancing down the aisle like Lady Muck. That’s when I thought I should tell Tess, seeing as how they were bridesmaids together. I was afraid she’d find out from the tart herself, and that would have been even nastier for her.”
“I see.” Elizabeth leaned back in her chair. She distinctly remembered Fiona saying that Priscilla didn’t know the victim. But Fiona didn’t mention the fact that she knew him, either. Then again, she probably wouldn’t want to advertise the fact that she’d visited the man in his room. Especially in front of Malcolm, who seemed to have a proprietary interest in her.
“I didn’t tell Tess before the wedding, of course,” Sadie said, reaching for her teacup. “I didn’t want them having it out with each other and spoiling everything for Wally and Priscilla. So I waited until we were at the reception before I said anything.”
Elizabeth pursed her lips. “Was that before the cake was cut, or after?”
Sadie frowned. “Before. Soon after we first got there, actually. I saw Brian dancing with Tess, then Fiona came in and I knew there’d be trouble so I told Tess right then. She was really upset, so I told her we’d go down the pub as soon as Wally and Prissy left. She was only too happy to get out of there. Practically dragged me out, she did.”
“Did she say anything to you about her argument with Mr. Sutcliffe?”
Sadie’s eyebrows rose. “No, she didn’t. I didn’t know she’d said anything to him. What’d she do? Send him packing back to Cambridge?”
Violet turned, a lump of porridge dripping from the wooden spoon in her hand. Her expression mirrored the thought going through Elizabeth’s head, but she mercifully kept her silence.
“I’m afraid Mr. Sutcliffe met with an unfortunate accident yesterday,” Elizabeth said quietly. “He won’t be going anywhere.”