laptop, then glanced up to find him poised as if ready to leap from the glass. ‘How did you die?’
His slow smile caught at her innards. In other circumstances she might have thought the arrogant tilt of his head rather sexy and appealing, but knowing he was merely trying to deceive her made her shut down her reaction.
‘As I stated in our previous conversations, I am not dead.’
That was not the answer she was after. ‘But according to the histories, you died. So how were you reputed to have died?’
‘I do not know for a certainty what tale Edward put about the countryside to conceal his vengeance.’
Hmmm . Kelly wasn’t sure what to make of it. On the one hand, if he could conceivably be the man he proclaimed, it stood to reason that he wouldn’t know much ofanything that happened beyond this house after his imprisonment. On the other hand, his ‘not knowing’ might just as easily be a ploy to make her believe the act.
‘Then tell me this – what happened to your fiancée?’
An agonised expression crossed his features for a split second before he stilled, his face becoming cold and emotionless. ‘It is with much sorrow that I can say I do know this. Poor, dear Anne. Edward married her in my stead and she bore his son. But he treated her despicably.’
A massive understatement if Barnsley’s account is correct , she thought.
‘But if you didn’t know how you supposedly died … how can you know about Anne?’
‘While Edward lived he could see me and speak to me, though no other person could. He took great delight in displaying Anne before me like a trophy. I could do nothing to help her escape her misery.’
Kelly could tell from both his sad tone and his closed stance there was a lot more to that story than he said. She wouldn’t press the issue now … there would be time for details once she had irrefutable information from the Public Records Office at the National Archives. Plus she didn’t want her search diverted in the wrong direction. Knowable facts first .
‘And your inheritance?’
‘That is indeed clear, is it not? If the title is still held by a Ditchley, then it is apparent that my cousin Edward inherited my title and estates. He was, after all, my legal heir.’
She typed his responses into the laptop, placing asterisks against details she needed to be certain of and rows of question marks for the many doubts his answers raised. When she looked up she found him gazing at her in expectation.
‘Did you leave a will?’
‘I do not believe so – I had not yet had my man draw up any papers. Edward forced me to sign several documents on the day after he learned of Elizabeth’s death, however I did not care to study any of them.’ A sense of futility seemed to settle upon John like a shroud. She steeled herself and refused to be taken in by it.
‘Why not?’
He looked away. ‘I … I assumed he was intent on killing me. Indeed, I would have welcomed it. After what I had done … Elizabeth …’
‘Why did you kill her?’
His head moved slowly around until his gaze again rested upon her face. His remorse almost became a tangible, living thing. ‘Does it matter?’ he whispered.
‘Of course it matters.’ She rose from her spot on the bed and came to stand before the mirror. ‘Nobody commits murder without a reason.’
‘Madmen do. A madman would do anything without a moment’s pause.’
‘Are you telling me you were insane when you killed her?’
‘No, I cannot claim that excuse … the madness came after.’ He closed his eyes and tilted his head back like a blind man seeking light. ‘The madness is now.’
‘You didn’t answer my question.’
John’s eyes snapped open and his gaze darted to hers. ‘Nor shall I. I murdered my dearest friend – is that not enough? No excuse will change it or pardon it. No excuse will suffice.’
‘But—’
‘Cease plaguing me, Madam. It is a past I cannot change and my actions stand for all eternity. I merely
His slow smile caught at her innards. In other circumstances she might have thought the arrogant tilt of his head rather sexy and appealing, but knowing he was merely trying to deceive her made her shut down her reaction.
‘As I stated in our previous conversations, I am not dead.’
That was not the answer she was after. ‘But according to the histories, you died. So how were you reputed to have died?’
‘I do not know for a certainty what tale Edward put about the countryside to conceal his vengeance.’
Hmmm . Kelly wasn’t sure what to make of it. On the one hand, if he could conceivably be the man he proclaimed, it stood to reason that he wouldn’t know much ofanything that happened beyond this house after his imprisonment. On the other hand, his ‘not knowing’ might just as easily be a ploy to make her believe the act.
‘Then tell me this – what happened to your fiancée?’
An agonised expression crossed his features for a split second before he stilled, his face becoming cold and emotionless. ‘It is with much sorrow that I can say I do know this. Poor, dear Anne. Edward married her in my stead and she bore his son. But he treated her despicably.’
A massive understatement if Barnsley’s account is correct , she thought.
‘But if you didn’t know how you supposedly died … how can you know about Anne?’
‘While Edward lived he could see me and speak to me, though no other person could. He took great delight in displaying Anne before me like a trophy. I could do nothing to help her escape her misery.’
Kelly could tell from both his sad tone and his closed stance there was a lot more to that story than he said. She wouldn’t press the issue now … there would be time for details once she had irrefutable information from the Public Records Office at the National Archives. Plus she didn’t want her search diverted in the wrong direction. Knowable facts first .
‘And your inheritance?’
‘That is indeed clear, is it not? If the title is still held by a Ditchley, then it is apparent that my cousin Edward inherited my title and estates. He was, after all, my legal heir.’
She typed his responses into the laptop, placing asterisks against details she needed to be certain of and rows of question marks for the many doubts his answers raised. When she looked up she found him gazing at her in expectation.
‘Did you leave a will?’
‘I do not believe so – I had not yet had my man draw up any papers. Edward forced me to sign several documents on the day after he learned of Elizabeth’s death, however I did not care to study any of them.’ A sense of futility seemed to settle upon John like a shroud. She steeled herself and refused to be taken in by it.
‘Why not?’
He looked away. ‘I … I assumed he was intent on killing me. Indeed, I would have welcomed it. After what I had done … Elizabeth …’
‘Why did you kill her?’
His head moved slowly around until his gaze again rested upon her face. His remorse almost became a tangible, living thing. ‘Does it matter?’ he whispered.
‘Of course it matters.’ She rose from her spot on the bed and came to stand before the mirror. ‘Nobody commits murder without a reason.’
‘Madmen do. A madman would do anything without a moment’s pause.’
‘Are you telling me you were insane when you killed her?’
‘No, I cannot claim that excuse … the madness came after.’ He closed his eyes and tilted his head back like a blind man seeking light. ‘The madness is now.’
‘You didn’t answer my question.’
John’s eyes snapped open and his gaze darted to hers. ‘Nor shall I. I murdered my dearest friend – is that not enough? No excuse will change it or pardon it. No excuse will suffice.’
‘But—’
‘Cease plaguing me, Madam. It is a past I cannot change and my actions stand for all eternity. I merely
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