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Back The Old Success Save as PDF
Chapters (53)
  1. Cover
  2. Also by Martha Grimes
  3. MARTHA GRIMES
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. PART I
  7. 1
  8. 2
  9. 3
  10. 4
  11. 5
  12. 6
  13. 7
  14. 8
  15. 9
  16. 10
  17. 11
  18. 12
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. PART II
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. PART III
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. PART IV
  39. 30
  40. 31
  41. PART V
  42. 32
  43. 33
  44. 34
  45. 35
  46. PART VI
  47. 36
  48. 37
  49. 38
  50. 39
  51. PART VII
  52. 40
  53. Back Cover

“There’s always the other half.” Jury asked for the cognac to be brought later. When the waiter disappeared into the ephemeral light of this restaurant, Jury said, “Manon came back to Paris with the baby?”

Gaby shook her head. “No. I don’t know what happened. She did get Gerald Summerston to admit to paternity, if it turned out she was pregnant. Manon was no fool.”

“What do you mean?”

“That she wouldn’t tell anyone, wouldn’t make a fuss, but only if he’d put it in writing to leave the child some part of his fortune; he was very rich, you know.”

“And did he?’

“Yes. I have the note he signed.”

“So she stayed in Paris for six years without returning to England until now. How did she seem? Excited? Upset? How?” Jury had to wait out this answer for the time it took the waiter to set down their crème brûlée and vanish again.

“Neither one. Manon didn’t really show her feelings that way. She was quite calm.” Gaby took a bite of the custard and closed her eyes.

No wonder, thought Jury, as he spooned some up. “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten such silken food in my life.” But he was so full he couldn’t eat any more of the rich dessert and pushed it to one side. “So Manon told you nothing, except about this agreement? You have no idea why she ended up on the tiny island of Bryher?”

“Maybe there was someone she wanted to see there.”

“But the only person she knew beside Summerston’s wife was dead. Daisy Brownell.”

“Daisy … that name is familiar, yes.” Gaby then said nothing until she’d finished the crème brûlée. She put her spoon down and said, “But that isn’t the only person she knew, is it?”

“Who else was there?” Jury was puzzled.

“What about the baby?” She looked at Jury’s crème brûlée. “Are you going to eat that?”

PART IV

Bookaboy

30

At the same time Richard Jury was walking the streets of Paris, Melrose Plant was opening his front door—Ruthven being busy with taking tea to the hermitage—to find a lad of perhaps twelve or thirteen with a canvas bag and a determinedly “I’m not buying” look for whatever Melrose was selling. He dropped his canvas bag long enough to pull a bit of paper out of his pocket.

“You this—Mr. Plant, then?”

Suddenly recalling this appointment he’d all but forgotten, Melrose said, “You must be Gerrard.”

“Maybe,” said Gerrard, covering his bases.

The lad was apparently prepared to debate his own identity. “In the event you are, please come in.”

That invitation, with its margin for error, must have satisfied Gerrard, and he entered.

Melrose held out his hand. “I’m Lord Ardry.” He tried out the title to see how the boy would take to it.