Murder by Misunderstanding Read online

  “Lucky for us she never counted on you digging into the case as well, madam,” Maggie said, grinning with pride. “You solved it all.” The maid glanced at Michael, and her eyes widened slightly. “Oh, and you too, of course, Detective Chief Inspector Gibson.”

  Chuckles filled the air from around the table until Shrewsbury cleared his throat.

  Maggie looked at him too, crimson flushing her cheeks. “And you as well, Shrewsbury!”

  Laughing, Hazel continued. “Anyway, once I realized that Lady Wakefield would have seen the receipt that was delivered from Lady Etienne’s, it sparked the idea. She’d been so proud to tell me she personally handled all the mail and deliveries for the Farnsworth household that first day I’d gone to the abbey. Then, when I saw a clump of hair Dickens here had shed, it was just a matter of connecting the dots. After discussing that cloth for the shawl with her, I knew it was likely from the haberdashery’s location that she’d seen Doris and Thomas at the train station together that day she was buying her silk. They were seen together by someone else and it’s likely she saw them too. Add in the fact she wasn’t in the turret room when Betsy got there, and the conversation I’d overheard between her and her daughter that day at the restaurant, and it all became clear.”

  “Imagine,” Alice said, shaking her head. “And she was the one Betsy heard Doris arguing with in the study that day too.”

  “Yes.” Hazel put a squirming Dickens down on the floor. “We knew it couldn’t have been Lord Wakefield, since it was already confirmed that he’d been across town at Mrs. Pommel’s that night. But it had to have been a member of the Wakefield family, since two servants wouldn’t have risked being in the study alone. And it didn’t make sense for Thomas to fight with her, given we thought he and Doris were lovers and he’d already scared off Alphonse Ash.” She shrugged. “And Doris and Eugenia were friends. The only other person left was Lady Wakefield. It made sense that she would try to buy Doris off to keep her from sinking her claws into Thomas and the Wakefield fortune.”

  “But Doris was too loyal to Eugenia to accept her bribe,” Maggie said.

  Michael sat back and crossed his arms, narrowing his gaze on Hazel. “I noticed you let Lord Wakefield’s little secret out of the bag.”

  Hazel frowned. “You mean about him going to Grove Street instead of his club every other Thursday?” She sniffed. “Well, honestly, I didn’t see a way around it. And it was time for all of the Wakefields to come clean about their secrets, anyway.”

  “How did you figure out it was Eugenia who was pregnant, madam?” Alice asked.

  “Things didn’t add up. Why would Thomas and Alphonse argue like that? If it was over Doris, then that meant Thomas had won, he’d run Alphonse off, and therefore had no reason to kill Doris in a fit of rage. On the other hand, Alphonse couldn’t have killed Doris either, since he was too far away at the time. Besides, Eugenia had been acting so strangely. Plus, she was deathly pale and not eating. She seemed unusually nervous too, when I mentioned Doris’s trip. I remembered Alice mentioning that day when we made the tarts about knowing someone who went away to have her baby and the sister brought up the child. I figured why couldn’t Eugenia and Doris have a similar arrangement? If Doris raised the baby, Eugenia could avoid bringing shame on the family name, and she could still help support Doris and her child in secret.”

  “What about the baby’s father? Alphonse?” Alice asked. “They found him, right? Is he going to be made to take responsibility?”

  “Yes, I found him,” Shrewsbury said. “But he wants no part in the child’s life, sadly. Probably for the best, since I don’t think he’ll be working…or much else for a while.”

  At the odd comment, Hazel raised a brow at her butler, but he remained silent. He was wearing white gloves tonight too, which wasn’t a usual part of his wardrobe. She remembered his ominous threats from earlier regarding the missing chauffeur and had a feeling Shrewsbury had taken matters into his own hands. Literally. Well, she couldn’t say she blamed the man. Alphonse needed to learn there were consequences for his actions, no matter how harsh.

  “Eugenia’s better off without him, in my opinion,” Michael said. “Lady Wakefield still seems enamored with the idea of a grandchild, despite all the troubles ahead of her. Hard to tell if it’s just an act to gain sympathy for her trial or not, but I suspect so considering she didn’t seem quite as enamored when she thought the grandchild was the product of her son and a lowly maid. And Thomas seemed quite supportive and prepared to stand behind Eugenia and her baby through everything. Even Lord Wakefield seems to have softened toward his daughter and her predicament. She doesn’t need the likes of Alphonse Ash.” Michael hiked his chin. “She told me she’s naming the baby after Doris, if it’s a girl.”

  “Too bad Lady Wakefield will only be able to enjoy her first grandchild from a prison cell,” Alice said. “But I guess that’s no more than she deserves, after what she did.”

  “No one’s above the law.” Michael looked at Hazel. “She took a life and has to pay the price.”

  “Well, I say job well done all around,” Maggie said. “Here’s to lessons learned.”

  “Indeed.” Hazel smiled and raised her teacup in a toast to her staff. “And new friends made. I have all of you to thank. Michael and I couldn’t have solved this mystery without you.”

  “Hear! Hear!” Duffy toasted everyone with his mug then grinned. “So, when’s our next case?”

  *********

  Read more books in this series:

  Murder at Lowry House (book 1)

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  Hazel Martin Historical Mystery Series

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  Murder at Lowry House (book 1)

  Murder by Misunderstanding (book 2)

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  Killer Cupcakes

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  About the Author

  USA Today bestselling author, Leighann Dobbs, discovered her passion for writing after a twenty year career as a software engineer. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix Mojo and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty. When she's not reading, gardening, making jewelry or selling antiques, she likes to write cozy mystery and historical romance books.

  Her book "Dead Wrong" won the "Best Mystery Romance" award at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention.

  Her book "Ghostly Paws" was the 2015 Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem First Place category winner in the Animal Mystery category.

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