Murder on Fifth Avenue

“She is.”

“Sarah, isn’t there someone who could help her?” her mother asked. “One of those charities you’re always getting involved with?”

“She would be welcome at Hope’s Daughters, but I can’t imagine she’d be willing to go there,” Sarah said, naming the mission where she volunteered.

“We could visit her and suggest it,” her mother said.

Sarah and Malloy both stared in admiration at the way she had so neatly contrived a way for her to visit the girl. “Mother, Father would murder me if I allowed you to call on Chilton Devries’s mistress.”

“Only if he found out,” her mother said slyly.

Malloy cleared his throat again, drawing their attention. “I do have a visit you can make. I need for you to call on Mrs. Devries again, Mrs. Decker.”

“Whatever for?”

“To distract her, because I really need Sarah to visit Garnet Devries. Mrs. Richmond doesn’t know what drove Garnet to consider divorcing Paul, but maybe Sarah can find out now that we’ve figured out Paul’s secret.”

“How can I distract her? Lucretia will never allow Sarah to be alone with Garnet.”

“She won’t know about it. I’ve been thinking about this, and I think it will work, but you’re the ones who know all the rules about rich women visiting each other, so tell me if you think so, too. Mrs. Decker, you call on Mrs. Devries alone. While the two of you are busy in the parlor, Sarah arrives and asks to see Garnet. I’m going to guess Garnet will be happy for a visitor, and Sarah can insist she doesn’t want to bother Mrs. Devries or something. Is that possible?”

Her mother frowned, but Sarah thought of a way she could get in. “What if I was bringing her something?”

“What could you be bringing her?” her mother asked.

“I don’t know. It doesn’t even have to be anything real. I could carry a basket filled with towels and covered with a napkin. I don’t have to say what I’ve brought her, just that it’s important for me to give it to her myself, and the maid won’t dare question me.”

“Could you ask to see Garnet privately?” Malloy asked.

“Of course I could. I could say it was personal. The only problem would be if Garnet refuses to see me.”

“And we won’t know that until you try,” her mother said. “We need to hurry, too. I saw Chilton’s obituary in the newspaper today. The funeral is set for Monday, and I’m sure Lucretia will leave the city immediately afterwards.”

“Where will she go?” Malloy asked.

“Probably to Europe. Someplace warm where she doesn’t have to observe the strict rules of full mourning the way she would here where people know her. Nothing is duller than New York when you’re in mourning.”

“Would she take Paul and Garnet with her?”

“I don’t know, but I will certainly ask her tomorrow,” her mother said with a smile.

“Before we go any further with this plan,” Sarah said, “we need to know if you’ve reported all this to my father.”

“Yes, I saw him just before I got here.”

“Oh, my,” her mother said. “I just remembered that he was going to decide whether you should continue your investigation or not.”

“Yes, he was.”

“Did you tell him your suspicions about Paul Devries?” Sarah asked.

“Yes.”

She winced. Her father detested scandal. She couldn’t imagine him allowing such a thing to become public knowledge, and if Malloy continued to investigate, it probably would.

“Mother, I believe we will need to keep our visit to the Devrieses a secret from Father.”

“Oh, no,” Malloy said in surprise. “The whole thing was his idea.”

SARAH SHOULD HAVE BEEN USED TO WAITING. SHE MADE her living waiting for babies to be born, and they were notorious for taking their time about it. Still, the fifteen minutes she and her mother had decided she should wait in her mother’s carriage before trying to get in to see Garnet Devries seemed to stretch interminably. They had determined her mother might need a little extra time in case Lucretia Devries kept her waiting. Finally, the watch pinned to her bodice showed she could safely begin her attempt to see Garnet.

The maid who answered the door seemed harried and dismayed to find a second visitor on the doorstep in so short a time. “We’re in mourning, miss,” she said, glancing meaningfully at the enormous black wreath hanging on the door.

“This isn’t a social call,” Sarah said. “Mrs. Paul Devries called on me at my office the other day, and I promised to bring her a remedy.” She nodded at the basked she carried over one arm. “If you would just tell her I’m here.”

“A remedy?” Plainly, she wanted to know what it was a remedy for, but her training forbade her from inquiring. “Couldn’t you just leave it for her?”

“Oh, no, I must give her instructions, and they are quite detailed. Really, I’m sure she’ll be happy to see me. And if not, I’ll be on my way.” Sarah smiled, trying to look nonthreatening.

The maid didn’t smile back. “Please wait here.”

Another eternity stretched as Sarah stood in the foyer studying the very ugly wallpaper and hoping no one would alert Mrs. Devries that someone else had arrived. To her relief, the maid seemed much happier when she returned.

“Mrs. Paul Devries will see you. She said you should go to her bedroom.”

“That will be fine.”

The girl led her up two flights of stairs to the third story of the house. Several doors opened off the hallway. The girl took her to one of them and knocked, then opened it for Sarah.

The room was a surprise. Furnished with intricately carved mahogany furniture, it was decorated in shades of dark red. Burgundy silk covered the walls and hung in heavy folds at the windows. The coverlet on the canopy bed was striped in cream and crimson. Not what Sarah would have considered restful colors, but the decor set off Garnet Devries’s dark beauty and complemented her name.

Garnet stood in the middle of the room, her hands clutched anxiously in front of her. “It really is you,” she said when the maid was gone.

“Of course. How are you feeling?”

She looked pale and drawn, and she still wore a dressing gown. “The girl said you brought me a remedy.” She glanced at the basket.

“I’m afraid that was a lie I used to convince her to let me see you.”

Her shoulders sagged with what might have been disappointment, although Sarah couldn’t imagine why she’d be disappointed. “Oh. I thought…Well, no matter. I’m still pleased to see you, although you didn’t have to lie. I would have welcomed a visit from anyone.”

“I wanted to talk to you privately, and I thought if I simply called on you, your mother-in-law would insist on intruding.”

“I’m sure she would have, but I believe she already has a visitor.”

“Yes, my mother.”

Garnet blinked and then smiled her appreciation. “How very clever of you, Mrs. Brandt. I find I like you more and more with each meeting. Please, sit down.”

Garnet’s spacious bedroom had a small sitting area near the fireplace. One overstuffed chair with an ottoman dominated the area, and several slipper chairs stood nearby. A hastily discarded blanket indicated Garnet had been curled up in the chair when Sarah’s visit had disturbed her. She took her seat again and propped her feet on the ottoman. Sarah took one of the slipper chairs and set her basket on another.

“What’s in there?” Garnet asked, indicating the basket.

“Just a folded towel. How are you feeling? You look a bit…tired.”