A Beautiful Blue Death (34 page)

But he laid it aside after a few moments, to write down several thoughts he had had about Barnard, and made a note to ask McConnell for his opinion before picking the book up again.

He looked out the window. Yes, he thought, he was very comfortable—very happy here, among his family. But he would only stay for another ten days, not another three weeks as planned. And though he smiled at the prospect of the ten days, he smiled, too, at the prospect of being back on Hampden Lane, where any ring at the door could mean a new case.

His thoughts were interrupted, though, when he saw a single figure on the skyline. It occurred to him that he had been waiting all day to see such a thing, for it was the day when Lady Jane had said she would come up from the city to visit her brother, who had only recently become the next earl, after their father’s death.

He had been keeping an eye out for a carriage—but of
course, he realized, she would ride. She was an excellent rider, even in winter, and had been since they were children and rode all across the county together. It was typical of her, Lenox thought, his feet up on his desk and his back to the fire—a singular strand of strength, beyond most women, ran through her, even when she seemed weak. So very few women rode.

A few minutes later the reunion was complete. She had kissed Molly and Edmund, given the boys (who had been permitted to leave their schoolroom) a small present, and said hello to Lady Milton. And lastly, she had given Charles a kiss on the cheek and looked into his eyes happily, while her hat brushed against his hair, and said she was very glad to see him again, and London had been lonely without him.

Chance had it that it was nearly

, and all of the party consented, graciously, to stay, though Lady Milton said that she had really better be going afterward.

One thing Charles could say for Molly was that she served an excellent generous tea, almost as good as his mother’s. There were hot muffins and biscuits, and there were a few sandwiches for the boys, who gulped them down as Charles and Edmund once had. Then there was a slice of cake all round, and after half an hour Lenox and Lady Jane had fallen into easy, happy conversation together while the group broke into smaller parts and everybody helped themselves to a third cup of tea.

Soon, unfortunately, Lady Milton would be obliged to go, and Sir Edmund returned to his office to look over a new report on the French alliance, and the boys went outside to play a complex ongoing game, which nobody but them could understand. Molly and her friend went upstairs to have a little time to themselves before Lady Milton’s departure, and the two neighbors were left alone.

“I should be going, I’m afraid,” said Lady Jane, “before it becomes dark.”

Charles looked through the window. “It’s started to already,” he said. “May I ride back with you?”

“Oh, you needn’t—it’s awfully cold, you know.”

“Ah, but I’ve been to get new boots, and I never get too cold, anyway.”

“Well, then,” she said, “yes, thank you,” and they took their coats from the butler and walked out to the parkway, where they only had to wait a moment for their horses.

“You shall have to come over for supper tomorrow,” said Lady Jane, while they waited. “Stephen”—her brother—“wanted me to ask.”

“Of course,” said Charles. “How long do you plan to stay?”

“Oh, two weeks or so.”

“Well, we shall see a lot of each other, I daresay.”

“Yes,” she said, and smiled.

The air was cool, but it was a beautiful night, and they rode off in tandem, galloping out of the park and into the countryside. They rode briskly to the west, talking and laughing together, until some minutes later Edmund, glancing up by chance in his library, could only see their twinned figure against the pale darkness of early evening, blurred together into one, far off in the distance.