forget all about you.'
'You need some time alone with your memories.'
'I had that while you went to visit Mr Redmayne.' Interest brought a proper smile to her face. 'Was he pleased to see you, Susan?'
'Very pleased.'
'I thought he would be.'
'Mr Bale is the person to thank. He took me all the way.'
'And who brought you back?'
'Mr Redmayne himself. He insisted that I sit on his horse while he led it along.'
'I told you that he was a gentleman.'
'Every inch,' agreed Susan.
'What did you want to ask him?'
'Oh, there were a number of things, Lucy.'
'Did you find out if he knew a Henry Redmayne?'
'It's his brother, it seems. He leads a somewhat dissolute life, which is how he got into Gabriel's diary. Christopher and Henry Redmayne may be related,' she said, 'but they are different in every way. Like me and Brilliana.'
'Nobody would take you for sisters.'
'There are times when Brilliana denies the connection.'
Lucy gave a little laugh. 'I'm glad I did not invite
'She would have made quite an impact on this house, believe me.'
'Brilliana likes to be in charge.'
'Yes, Lucy. Given that urge, I believe that she married the right man.'
'And what about you?'
'Me?'
'When will you find the right man?'
'Oh,' said Susan, tossing her head. 'I doubt if I shall ever marry. Father has pushed many suitors in my direction but none of them has been remotely appealing.'
'Perhaps you should look further afield.'
'Young ladies are not supposed to look, Lucy. We take what is offered.'
'Or remain single.'
'Quite,' replied Susan. 'It is an attractive option in many ways.' She sat back and regarded Lucy with curiosity. 'You still have not told me how you met Gabriel. All that you would say was that it was a chance encounter.'
'It was, Susan. In a churchyard.'
'A churchyard? Why there?'
Lucy became nostalgic. 'I happened to be taking a short cut through it when I saw this handsome young man bending down in front of one of the gravestones. At first, I thought he was paying respects to a family member, then I realised what he was doing.'
'And what was that?'
'Copying the inscription,' said Lucy. 'Reading the words that had been carved into the stone. I was so surprised that I stopped to watch him. We began to talk. Gabriel was searching for interesting epitaphs,' she went on, the memory bringing some light into her eyes. 'That was his first commission as a poet, you see. To write epitaphs.' She gave another little laugh. 'Imagine that, Susan. You know the kind of wicked life he was leading yet they paid him to write epitaphs. Gabriel told me that he had not been near a church for months until he got the commission. We talked for ages.'
'What happened?'
'I made sure that I took that short cut whenever I could.' Tears threatened and she bit her lip. 'I met him in one churchyard and bade him farewell in another.' Susan moved over to put an arm round her. 'He always wanted to write his own epitaph, you know.'
'In a sense, he did,' said Susan. 'With that diary of his.'
Lucy turned to her. 'Do they know who killed him, Susan?'
'No, but they are getting closer to him all the time.'
'What did Mr Redmayne say?'
'That he is making steady progress. However,' Susan continued, 'he is still collecting evidence. What he really needs to know is where Gabriel was likely to have been on the night he was killed. Do you have any idea, Lucy?'
'He should have been here.'
'He was somewhere else. Mr Redmayne is certain of it. Where was it?' Lucy shook her head. 'You must do all you can to help. Where did Gabriel go?'
'How would I know?' said Lucy, breaking away to get up. 'He might have gone out for a walk. He worked all day but he was not chained to the house.'
'If you do remember-'
'How can I?'
'If you do,' repeated Susan, 'please tell Mr Redmayne. It could be important.'
Lucy gazed ahead of her. 'Nothing is important any more,' she murmured. 'Not since Gabriel died.' She seemed on the point of drifting off again but she checked herself and turned to Susan. 'What will happen if this case is solved?'
'Gabriel can rest easy in his grave at last.'
'I was thinking about you.'
'All that matters to me is to catch Gabriel's killer.'
'Will you go back to Northamptonshire?'
'Probably.'
'That would make it very difficult for you.'
'Difficult?'
'When I wanted to see Gabriel, I had my short cut through the churchyard.' She put a hand on Susan's shoulder. 'You can hardly find an excuse to visit Fetter Lane if you go back to live with your father. How will you manage?'
Susan was perplexed. It was a question she had already been asking herself.
Henry Redmayne was grateful that his brother had sought him out. The cards were again falling so favourably for Arthur Lunn that it might be hours before he could be prised away from the table. The promise to give Henry a lift back to Bedford Street in his coach was forgotten. Christopher came to his brother's rescue, offering to act as his bodyguard and take him home.
'There is one condition, Henry,' he warned.
'What is that?'
'We first call on Peter Wickens.'
'This late?' said Henry peevishly. 'Why not leave it until the morning?'
'He may have made the wrong decision by then. I want to speak to Mr Wickens before he gives in to the blackmail demand. Come on,' said Christopher. 'I know that he lives quite close to you. It is not much out of our way.'
'Peter may not even let us into the house.'
'He will if he has any sense. Meanwhile, tell me more about Arthur Lunn.'
'Arthur?'
'I want to hear just how close he was to Gabriel Cheever.'
The walk through the dark streets gave Henry plenty of time to reminisce. He talked at length about Lunn, insisting that it would be quite out of character for him to be involved in a murder and in the subsequent blackmail demands.
'If he was threatening to kill me, why take me out in his coach this evening?'
