“Go ahead,” said Melrose. “I’ll wait for you down here in the library.”

The cook kindly brought him in some tea and he was standing, drinking from his cup, when he heard laughter overhead and saw, up on the little balcony, Gerrard and Bub wielding the pole the maid used to pull the chandelier towards the balcony. Melrose told them to cut it out, and, reluctantly, they did.

“You ready to go?” he called up to Gerrard.

“Okay.” Gerrard said a few words to Bub and the next thing Melrose knew, he was in the library. “The kid knows how to have fun.” He was looking up at the chandelier. “I’ll say that for him.”

“I won’t,” said Melrose. “Let’s go.”

They stopped by the kitchen where Melrose poked his head round the door and thanked the cook for the tea.

“Find out anything?” he asked Gerrard.

“Nah,” said Gerrard. “Except he really liked Tony. And the fight was started not by him but by Flora. Who I kind of get the impression he’s not all that crazy about.”

33

A half hour following their return to Ardry End, Melrose looked out of the longcase window facing his drive to see a red Ferrari parked there. He called for Ruthven, who came immediately.

“Ruthven, whose car is that?”

“Mr. Rice’s, m’lord. He arrived whilst you were out in the library and asked me not to bother you. He’s come to see Miss Sydney. Or rather, she’d asked him to come.”

“And where are—”

“In the stables, sir. Mr. Rice came to the kitchen a while ago to ask me to call—”

Melrose didn’t wait for the call, but headed toward the rear of the house. “That’s where I’ll be,” he called back over his shoulder.

“Vernon! Nice to see you. I didn’t know—” He stopped talking when he saw Sydney’s tear-stained face and the handkerchief she quickly applied to it. “What’s wrong?”

Vernon answered for her. “Sydney’s feeling very bad. She’s waiting for her grandfather. I asked Ruthven to ring him at the farm and to ask him to come, which he said he would do right away.”

“But what happened?”

In a choked voice, Sydney said, “It’s nothing to do with you or Ardry End. Can we wait for Granddad?”

“Of course. But come into the house.”

She shook her head. “I’d rather be out here with Aggrieved. And Vernon. Please.”

The wait wasn’t long. Thirty minutes later, Tom Brownell was there in the stable, looking bewildered. “Sydney?”

She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She turned to Vernon, gave him an imploring look, but he shook his head. Then, looking at her downturned face, changed his mind and spoke. “It’s about her mum, Tom. She’ll tell you.”

“About Daisy, sweetheart? What?”