A Regimental Murder by Ashley Gardner Page A

wondered what she wanted in response.
Praise that she was so clever? Admonishment for a disgusting
practice? I was beyond my depth.
    I assumed, from process of elimination, that
this young woman must be Lady Richard Eggleston. I found it
difficult to believe that the oily Eggleston had been paired with
this flower-like creature, but marriages in the ton produced some
odd bedfellows. She could not have been more than seventeen years
old.
    "Can you direct me to the billiards room?" I
asked.
    She did not even blink. She pointed with a
small, bony finger. "The north wing. Last door along. She will be
there. I hate billiards."
    I was not certain whom to feel sorrier for,
Eggleston or his bride. I supposed I should give Richard
Eggleston's young wife my compassion. She had no doubt been thrust
into marriage to fulfill her family's ambitions.
    My own father had wished me to marry the
daughter of a nabob--those businessmen who made their fortunes on
the plantations of Jamaica and Antigua and returned to England to
live in high style. I suppose the woman in question had been no
better or worse than any other, but I had defied my father and
married a pretty girl of poor gentility with whom I'd thought
myself madly in love.
    I turned from Lady Richard after a polite
leave-taking, at least on my part, and sought the north wing.
     
     
    * * * * *

Chapter Nine
     
    The windows in the billiards room at the end
of the wing faced west. Sunlight dazzled me when I entered, and the
character of the room became clear only after I'd blinked a few
moments. Every flat surface of the pale green walls and white
ceiling was filled with plaster motifs of rams' heads. Two
billiards tables stood in the center of the room, and gilded
armless chairs rested against the walls where players could lounge
while they awaited their turns.
    A woman bent over the far table, cue poised
in competent fingers. She had a mass of dark brown hair pulled
under a lace cap, and wore a dark blue, high-waisted, long-sleeved
gown. She was thankfully older than Lady Richard Eggleston; I put
her age to be close to thirty.
    She had a long, sharp nose that did not mar
her face but drew attention to deep-set dark eyes, which showed
hard intelligence. Lady Richard Eggleston had called her "fat," but
this was a misnomer. Lady Breckenridge was plump of arm and leg,
but her rounded physique was much more pleasing than Lady Richard's
starved appearance.
    A thin string of smoke rose from the lit
black cigarillo that rested on the varnished edge of the table.
Lady Breckenridge glanced at me once, then her cue moved expertly
forward, connecting with the ball with a sharp crack .
    She lifted the cigarillo and inhaled from it
for a long time, all the while watching me. "Well, come on then,"
she said, smoke mixing with her words.
    I hesitated. A game with Lady Breckenridge
could provide me the perfect opportunity to quiz her about her
husband,
    but no one played without wagering on the
outcome, and I could not afford to lose.
    I resigned myself. I chose a slender cue from
the rack at the end of the room then returned to the table. Lady
Breckenridge watched while I gathered the balls and positioned them
for a new game.
    She handed me the cigarillo. "Be useful."
    I took it. A wisp of smoke curled into my
eyes, stinging them.
    She leaned over the table again and quickly
shot. Her balls rolled into precise position. "Is the commotion
over?" she asked. "I mean Serena shrieking at that damned
maid."
    I took Serena to be Lady Richard. "It seems
to be finished."
    Lady Breckenridge lined up another shot.
"They were rowing over my husband, if you want to know. Lord knows
why. The little bitch can have him."
    I wondered if she meant Lady Richard or the
maid. I leaned against the table as Lady Breckenridge went on with
the game. The cigarillo burned steadily and a bit of ash floated to
the floor.
    Balls clacked. "She's already put an heir in
the nursery," Lady Breckenridge went on, "and Eggleston does