‘No. We agreed not to tell anyone. Besides, it’s none of her business.’
‘So, Sir Philip, we come to the matter of Ezra’s death. You went to Clapham with Verity on the night in question, didn’t you?’
Riley held his breath. This was a vital moment in the investigation and he and Salter both knew it. Riley had made it sound as though he knew the truth by implying that Verity had admitted Sir Philip’s involvement, despite the fact that if Sir Philip chose to deny it they would be unable to prove it.
‘Yes,’ he said softly after what seemed like an indeterminable pause. ‘To my lasting regret.’
‘Why?’ Riley asked, releasing a long breath.
‘Because Verity refused to let up. She became incensed every time she came to the house and saw Ezra and Ida behaving affectionately towards one another in front of the rest of us. Oh, I don’t mean to imply that they touched one another, or anything quite that blatant. It was just the informal way she spoke to him when he served at table, and how she always wanted him in the room. Verity should perhaps have called less often if she was offended by what I saw as a harmless infatuation. I had seen Ida similarly fixated before, you see. Anyway, I pointed out to Verity that she could stay away until the whole business ran its course if it offended her so much, but she continued to call—if anything even more frequently.’
‘Go on,’ Riley encouraged.
‘She came to me a while ago, angrier than I had ever seen her, which is saying something. Ida, it seemed, had agreed to advance Ezra a very large sum of money to invest in a men’s sporting club in Clapham. I’m sorry I didn’t admit to knowing about it when you asked me. That was wrong of me. I didn’t have time to think about my response and I suppose I thought if I told the truth it would make me look guilty. Anyway, it infuriated Verity because Ida was seldom persuaded to part with money when she herself requested it to support Gideon, claiming he needed it to enhance his standing in Whitehall. Ida knew it was tosh, of course, which is why she always said no to her.’
‘You hadn’t known about the loan prior to Verity enlightening you?’
‘No. I will admit that Ida failed to mention it to me and I was hurt by that. It’s her money, of course, but she has never parted with a large sum without discussing it with me first and seeking my opinion. It made me think that perhaps Verity was right and Ezra meant more to her than the others had. Perhaps they intended to run away together.’ Sir Philip looked away. ‘I’m not sure I could have borne that.’
‘So you went to Clapham with Verity to kill him,’ Salter said starkly.
‘No, Sergeant, there was never any intention of killing anyone.’
‘In which case, why did you not speak with him in your own home?’ Riley asked.
‘Because Ida would have been there. She seldom went out without taking Ezra along in his capacity as a servant. If he was in the house, it stood to reason that Ida would be as well and she would have wanted to know why I needed to speak with him. The money was supposedly an investment upon which she would see a rich return, but I was far from convinced on that score. Ezra could satisfy my wife in ways that I am no longer able to, and I was willing to accept that, but I couldn’t stand by and see her swindled out of a large proportion of her fortune.’
‘I understand,’ Riley said.
‘We went out that evening just as I told you we did, and when we got home Ida went straight to her room. I knew she was hoping that Ezra would be back from his visit to his mother which he had unexpectedly undertaken that afternoon.’ A brief flash of pain shot through Sir Philip’s expression. ‘There was a message waiting from Verity. She needed to see me on a matter of extreme urgency that couldn’t wait. I knew she wouldn’t have sent the note unless…well, I thought there might be something wrong with Gideon. Actually, I’m not sure what I thought, but something made me go straight out again. I hailed a cab and when I reached Verity’s home she was like a whirlwind, insisting that we go to Clapham and have things out with Ezra once and for all. We would never have a better chance to catch him alone and have things out with him before he swindled Ida out of her money. I went along with her because frankly, I wanted answers too. I had told my valet that I wouldn’t need him that evening. Gregg would retire to his room with a bottle of my best brandy as soon as he locked the front door behind us, so I knew my absence wouldn’t be noticed.’
‘How did you get out?’
‘Through the back way, past the mews. We reached Clapham and I had the cab wait for us a street away from the tavern where Verity seemed to know that Ezra would be found. Well, she comes from Clapham originally, so I bowed to her superior knowledge. How she knew he would be in that tavern and not on his way back to town was less obvious, and I confess I didn’t ask.’ He lifted one shoulder. ‘Perhaps she had someone watch him whenever he went to Clapham and knew his habits.’
‘And then?’
‘She said we couldn’t talk to him in a crowded taproom and that he would know something was up if I went in to get him. I didn’t like the idea of her going into that
