An Improper Death (Dr. Alexandra Gladstone Mysteries Book 2) by Paula Paul Page A

guard. “I suppose I didn’t mention it because I thought you had quite enough on your platter.”
    “I counted Mary among my dearest friends. I should have been told.” Her voice was uncharacteristically angry, and there were tears in her eyes. Alexandra wasn’t sure how to respond. Jane turned her face away, then and whispered, “I’m sorry. I’m afraid I’m not quite myself.”
    “Of course. Mary is in a great deal of pain, which is to be expected, but she is more concerned for you since the loss of your husband than for herself.”
    “So like Mary.” Jane dried her eyes with a delicate lace handkerchief that materialized from somewhere in her sleeve. “I want to see her as soon as possible.”
    “She will welcome your visit,” Alexandra said, thinking how Mary must need a reprieve from her daughter-in-law’s constant complaints.
    Jane looked away again. When she spoke, her expression was grave. “You have news regarding the autopsy.”
    “Only that it revealed nothing. Your husband was apparently in a normal state of health.”
    Jane frowned, puzzled. “Nothing?”
    “We come to the conclusion of drowning only by eliminating every other possible cause,” Alexandra said.
    “But how…?”
    “How did he drown? I can’t answer that, except to say that, given the circumstances, it appears he might have drowned at sea. Perhaps he was drunk, just as Constable Snow suspected.”
    Alexandra watched Jane’s face for some reaction, waiting for her to give her theory of what happened, but Jane didn’t speak. She stared straight ahead while tears glistened in her eyes.
    “I’m sorry.” Alexandra spoke in a hushed tone.
    Jane looked at her as if she had momentarily forgotten she was there. “I sometimes think I would like to move away. To London perhaps. Where there are no memories.”
    “I know it must be difficult for you,” Alexandra said.
    The brilliant blue of Jane’s eyes had darkened somewhat with her unshed tears, but there was an intensity in her gaze that startled Alexandra. “You are still suspicious that my husband’s death was the result of foul play?”
    “There are so many unusual circumstances.”
    “Yes.” The answer was quiet, almost disconnected.
    Alexandra was silent a moment, trying to frame the questions she had come to ask. “I must ask you some questions,” she said finally. There was another pause. “Was the…the garment the admiral was wearing when his body was discovered, was it—recognizable to you?”
    Jane stared at her blankly for a moment before she spoke. “I don’t know. I haven’t been allowed to see my husband’s body.”
    Alexandra tried to choke back her embarrassment. “What I’m really trying to ask is if the garment belonged to you?”
    The blank look returned to Jane’s face. “I…I’m not sure.” Her voice trembled, and she seemed to force herself to look at Alexandra.
    “Do you know of any reason why he might have been in the woods?”
    “The woods?”
    “Around trees perhaps. Or perhaps, if he was wearing your garment, you had been there. Under particular circumstances.” Alexandra knew she was handling the interview badly, but it was impossible for her to inquire about Jane having a romp in the woods, either with her husband or some other.
    “I don’t understand.” A perplexed frown creased Jane’s forehead.
    “Why would there be pitch or tree sap on the garment?” Alexandra forced herself to keep her voice steady, but she was perspiring, and something was pulling at her heart, making it leap and stutter.
    There was that disconnected look from Jane again, and the tension was so high the room around them seemed to be holding its breath.
    Jane tried to speak. “I…I don’t…” She was silent again for a moment, then she stood and went to the window, staring out at the sea. When she turned around, she had regained her composure somewhat. “What does this mean? What does it mean to have pitch on one’s clothes?”
    Alexandra