Death Comes to Dartmoor Read online

  The doctor’s florid, energetic face assumed an expression of suspicion. “Who wants to know?”

  “I’m closely involved with the Royal Zoological Society in London. I want to know if there’s any truth in the rumors that her injuries were caused by a sea monster. Did she have unusual marks on her neck?”

  The doctor eyed him. “I reported my findings to the police.”

  “Come, come,” Bixby said. “Lord Raven here is an influential man. Surely you can tell him something, Doctor?” He fixed the man with his eyes.

  The doctor shuffled his feet uncomfortably under the scrutiny and sighed. “What I saw on her neck, I’ve never seen before. Not on a live person or on a dead body. And I’ve seen quite a few dead bodies during my studies. I can’t explain what killed her.”

  Raven nodded thoughtfully. “Do you happen to know Mr. Oaks?”

  “Yes, by sight.”

  “Have you prescribed him some drops?”

  “No. Is he ill?”

  Raven made a dismissive hand gesture. “Drops to make him sleep better.”

  The doctor shook his head. “I never prescribed him anything. But my predecessor might have. The old village doctor died last year. Carriage accident, very nasty. Horse’s harness broke, the animal pulled away, tore him right off the box. Fall smashed his skull. He was very beloved around here. Could have worked here for many more years. Sad story. Now if you will excuse me, I have a patient to tend to at the house.” And with that, the doctor rushed off after the footmen carrying the unconscious woman.

  Bixby remained, shifting his weight uncomfortably. “Why did you ask that doctor about drops? Do you think Oaks is taking medicines that make him delusional?”

  Raven narrowed his eyes. “I said they were sleeping drops. Why would you think they’d make him delusional?”

  Bixby shrugged. “It would perhaps account for his behavior and his mood swings.” He glanced at the well again, his mouth tightening in distaste. “Who would do such a thing to me?”

  Raven brushed off his jacket, which had been under the unfortunate woman’s head. “Your poster in the village was also torn up. You must have enemies.”

  “That thing”—Bixby spat—“is not indigenous. The villagers didn’t find a dead animal in the woods and put it in my well to give me a scare. That is some … exotic thing. It must come from Oaks’s estate.”

  Merula’s mind raced back to the room with the specimens and the empty glass container she had seen there. What had the label said?

  “Tasmanian devil,” she pronounced slowly.

  “Excuse me?” Bixby asked.

  Raven looked at her with a surprised smile. “Yes, I wondered if it was that. How did you know? Have you ever seen one in a drawing?”

  “No. Lamb noticed an empty glass container in Oaks’s room with all the specimens kept in alcohol. The label read Tasmanian devil, along with a Latin name denoting that it is flesh eating. I wondered what it was, what it would look like.”

  “Well, you can see it down there.” Raven turned to Bixby. “Did you take the Tasmanian devil from Oaks’s estate?”

  “Take it? Why on earth would I take it? I just told you I have no idea who put that thing in my well.”

  “Your people helped you prepare for the feast tonight,” Merula said. “Who put the braziers everywhere?”

  “The footmen. And some local people helped out.”

  “Aha. Who exactly?”

  “My keeper will know that. I don’t interfere with these …”

  “Peasants?” Raven provided, smiling sweetly.

  Bixby turned red again. “I leave the work to those who are hired for it. That is what they are paid for.”

  “So someone local might have set this up,” Raven mused. “Put the torch inside the well to make sure there was light and then … I wonder how the beast stays afloat. Do you mind me climbing in there to have a closer look?”

  Bixby studied him as if he were insane. “If you want to risk your clothes and limbs.” He turned away. “I’m going back to my guests. We must not let this little incident spoil our evening.”

  As he walked away, Raven stared into the well. Merula came to stand beside him. “Do you think it’s a good idea to go down there? Can’t you better wait until the morning and have someone else do it for you?”

  Raven glared at her. “I’m an active man. I can climb down a well. Whoever put the beast there managed.”

  “He might have been shorter than you are and not as broad in the shoulders. What if you get stuck somehow?”

  Raven now seemed to want to try even more. “If you don’t want to watch, then go back to the house as well.” He was already in his shirtsleeves, so all he did was rub his hands a few times and then sit on the edge of the well to swing his legs across.

  Merula looked at Lamb, who had watched everything with wide eyes. “Maybe we had better leave.”

  “You have no confidence in me at all,” Raven declared bitterly. “Ah, the stench is terrible. I wonder if it’s the beast or decaying leaves in the well itself.”

  Lamb grimaced at Merula. “Can we go? Please?”

  Merula nodded. She wanted to talk to Lamb a moment, ask her about the man who had been kissing her.

  Ben Webber, Raven had suggested, but surely that could not be true? Webber was said to have wanted to marry another only a short while ago.

  They walked away together, Merula leaning over to Lamb confidentially. “So this man who asked you to come out with him, you must have known him somehow. You would not just go with a stranger into the dark. Where did you meet him?”

  “You were there. He smiled at me then, and what a lovely smile it is. Wait until my mother hears about this. She always warns me that I should not look up, be satisfied with a man of my own station. But I want a better life. Imagine what it would be like working in a shop. You can see all the things that come in and try them first. Chocolates and beautiful things and lotions to make your face better.”

  Merula halted and looked at her. “So it was Benjamin Webber, the greengrocer’s son.”

  “Isn’t it wonderful?” Lamb enthused. “The moment I saw him, I took a liking to him. But I thought he would never notice me. And then I was in the hall waiting for you and he knocked on the window beside the front door and gestured for me to come out. I only meant to talk to him a minute, honestly.”

  Merula shook her head as they resumed walking. “You shouldn’t go with a man you don’t know. He could have hurt you.”

  “A nice man like him doesn’t hurt women.”

  Merula bit her lip. They had been told that Benjamin Webber wanted to marry Fern, so what could his interest in Lamb really amount to? A convenient distraction, like Raven had supposed?

  How hurt would Lamb be once she found out …?

  “I’m not too sure about him,” Merula said carefully. “He could be smiling at any girl around. I would be sorry if your first kiss turns out to come from …”

  Lamb giggled. “That wasn’t my first kiss, Miss. I got my first kiss when I was just thirteen, behind Polly’s boarding house. He was a young shipmate, only in London for a few days. He told me I was really pretty and gave me a ribbon to wear in my hair. The prettiest blue I had ever seen, with a silvery sparkle to it. I never told him I was just thirteen. He thought I was seventeen at the least. He promised me he’d come back, but he never did.”

  She sighed wistfully. “I was sad then. Looked out for him for months. But sailors can’t be trusted. Polly says they have a woman waiting for them in every port. Benjamin, on the other hand … Isn’t it odd I can just call him Benjamin? He also asked what my name was. I wish it had been something grand like … Theodosia. I don’t like the sound of it, but it’s a much better name than just Anne.”

  “Anne is a fine name. You don’t have to make yourself different for him.”

  Lamb made a scoffing sound, as if Merula didn’t understand any of such things.

  And perhaps she didn’t. She just kn
ew that she’d like a man to appreciate her for what she was and not try to change her.

  “And what else did he say?” Merula studied Lamb’s profile.

  “There wasn’t much time to say anything. He took me into the rose garden, and then we kissed. I guess it was meant to be from the moment we first saw each other. I’ll tell it to our children and grandchildren. The scent of the roses as he leaned over to me.” She reached up and touched the rose on her costume. “I’ll dry this and save it, forever. Imagine him telling me it can’t compare to my beauty.”

  She smiled at Merula. “I would be sorry, Miss, to leave London and leave you. But it will be wonderful here. Mother can live over the shop.”

  Merula’s mind raced to keep up with Lamb’s unfolding plans. “Are you sure Webber’s mother will like that? You do know she runs the shop and he’s just her errand boy?”

  Lamb looked hurt at the use of the word errand boy. “I don’t know a thing about that. I do know he has a store and he told me that he’s going to be important in town soon enough.”

  “Why would that be?”

  Lamb shrugged and stuck out her chin defiantly. “I’m not going to tell any more if you think he’s just an errand boy.” She was silent for a few moments and then burst out, “It’s easy for you to look down on him, as you were raised in a fine home and you even associate with lords and all. I’m just a girl from Rotherhithe who has to build herself a better life.”

  “Of course, Anne, and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. I honestly hope Mr. Webber likes you and will take an interest in you.”

  Saying it aloud, Merula realized it was a blatant lie. She didn’t believe for one moment that Webber was sincere and she didn’t even want him to be. She liked Lamb, and she wanted to keep her with her. Not lose her to some greengrocer in Dartmoor.

  Footfalls came up from behind, and Raven overtook them. A weird chemical smell accompanied him. “I couldn’t pull out the beast,” he declared, “so the police will have to do that tomorrow.”

  “Police?” Merula echoed.

  “Yes, if it’s Oaks’s Tasmanian devil, the creature was stolen from him. Oaks has to report the theft and ask them to find the culprit. That person has been inside his house. Perhaps we can also argue that that person is somehow responsible for the death of Oaks’s maid Tillie. We have to do anything we can to divert suspicion from Oaks.”

  Merula nodded thoughtfully. “I see. And did you establish how the beast was able to float on the water?”

  “Yes, someone had cleverly built a sort of raft for it to rest on. Had propped it up and all. I daresay it was well thought out.”

  “So not an impromptu action of throwing a dead animal in a well to give a well-bred lady a scare.”

  “No, cleverly done, I’d say. You must be wondering, as I am, who would do such a thing. It seems now that not only was Oaks targeted, but Bixby as well. Is there anything to unite them?”

  “They are outsiders. They both came to live here but were not born in Dartmoor. Perhaps the local people want to drive them away? Bixby spoke in such mocking terms about the villagers associating the meteors with a saint’s tears. He tramples what is sacred to them. That won’t go down well. They must be ready to strike out at him, like they did by destroying his poster with a pitchfork.”

  “Yes, that would seem likely, but how does Tillie’s murder fit in? Surely they would not kill one of their own girls to achieve their aim, would they?”

  Merula had to agree with that. “Besides, if they dislike Bixby so much, why did they listen to him when he told them not to burn down Oaks’s house? I had a feeling then that they were in awe of him, perhaps even afraid of him somehow. As soon as he appeared on the scene, their behavior changed.”

  “True. But the fact that they cower in his presence doesn’t mean they wouldn’t do something when he’s not around. To spite him behind his back?”

  “Possibly.” Merula inhaled the scents of the garden as she tried to make sense of the latest addition to the series of strange events. “Bixby said locals helped to get the grounds ready for this party. Perhaps they only pretended they wanted to help and put the Tasmanian devil in the well to disturb the party and prevent another one from taking place here? But who could have brought them the Tasmanian devil? Who removed it from Oaks’s house? The stable boy did mention he knew where Oaks kept his money chest. So he has been inside the house.”

  “Ben Webber as well. It also surprises me he was invited as a guest here.”

  “Isn’t he grand enough to be invited?” Lamb asked in a querulous tone. She pouted. “I wager Mr. Bixby sees his talents.”

  “I wager Mr. Bixby thinks he can use the power struggle between the old elite and the new businessmen like Webber to his own advantage,” Raven said. “I wonder who those men were you overheard on the landing. Most of his guests aren’t locals. If those men weren’t either, then they are outsiders who want Bixby to do something for them here.”

  “Who says it would be here?” Merula objected. “It could relate to transactions in London. Or Bixby’s financial situation. Fern said she believed he had spent a lot of money on the house and might be in debt. She might have overheard rumors to that point at the inn.”

  “Rumors are not facts.” Raven had slipped into his jacket again and tidied his appearance. Sniffing at his hands, he grimaced. “To see how it was floating, I had to touch it. I had better have refrained from that. I should go inside and see where I can wash up a bit.”

  “Please do.” Merula kept her distance from him. “We still have some stargazing to do.” As she said it, she looked up and saw a silver flash across the dark skies. “I think that was one.”

  “Why are they called Per-somethings?” Lamb asked.

  “They are called Perseids because they come from the constellation Perseus.” Raven held his hands away from him as if he couldn’t bear the smell. “An astronomer discovered that, someone who studies the night skies and draws up plans of the constellations. Many places have planetariums these days where they have recreated the solar system on a smaller scale.” He nodded to Merula. “We should go to one someday.”

  “What’s a constellation?” Lamb asked.

  “A group of stars.” Raven halted and pointed up at the skies. “As you can see, the stars form patterns. These patterns all have names.”

  “Of course. But they aren’t called Perseus or something weird,” Lamb cut in confidently. “They’re called the plow or the swan.”

  “They all have Latin names as well,” Raven explained. “They were discovered ages ago, and then people called them by Latin names or by figures from Greek mythology. Perseus was a Greek hero.”

  Lamb smiled as she watched another shooting star. “Benjamin is my hero,” she whispered. “We will be so happy here.”

  Raven shot Merula a startled look, but she shook her head quickly to indicate he should not speak. Lamb seemed offended at everything brought up against Ben Webber, and Merula didn’t want to alienate her further.

  It was painful enough already that Lamb had turned against her because of a few poetic words spoken over a rose Webber hadn’t even bought for Lamb but had taken from another’s garden. He reminded her of Galileo’s chameleon, a creature with a wondrous ability to change his color to blend in with his surroundings.

  The wind that blew upon her felt chill, and she was suddenly shivering again.

  When Lamb had been missing, she had believed her to be in danger, and when they had found her again, she had believed her to be safe. But perhaps the danger wasn’t gone. Perhaps, after tonight, it would be greater than it had been before.

  CHAPTER 10

  When they came home, there was a carriage standing in front of the house. The lanterns on both sides of the vehicle threw moving shadows on the gravel.

  It wasn’t like any normal carriage but had a door in the back with bars in it.

  Merula grabbed Raven’s arm. “The police! They must be here to arrest Oaks.”r />
  “How could they do that? He isn’t well. They can’t simply …”

  As Raven spoke, the front door opened, and two constables came out dragging a man between them. He was shouting wildly.

  A man in a suit followed, speaking with Bowsprit, who seemed to be protesting the course of events: “… might be worsening his condition,” Merula could hear Bowsprit say.

  Raven walked up quickly. “I am Lord Raven Royston from London. What on earth is happening here?”

  “I don’t care whether you are the queen’s own envoy,” the man in the suit barked. “I’m arresting this man for murder and other unexplained happenings along the coast. He should be behind bars where he can do no further harm.”

  “He was found this morning,” Raven spat back in the same brusque, commanding tone, “unconscious, and we have tended him ever since. He has a case of brain fever or other illness and can’t be moved. You can certainly not lock him up in some damp cell. He might catch pneumonia and die.”

  “He will die anyway.” The man gestured at the constables, who had hesitated at Raven’s approach. “Put him inside.” To Raven, he added, “If he does die, it saves us the cost of a trial.”

  “And the effort of even building a case against Oaks?” Raven’s expression was grim. “This is outrageous. What evidence do you have that this man is involved in the death of that local girl Tillie?”

  The man in the suit didn’t flinch. “She was his maid. He had been harassing her, and when she didn’t want to give in to him and fled, he pursued her and killed her. You’d be surprised to learn how often things like that happen. Gentlemen and their maids …” His tone was mocking as he studied Raven’s fine evening attire.

  Raven ignored the sneer. “I thought the people claim there are strange markings on the victim’s neck. Traces of some sea monster. She was also found beside the river, I heard, her back turned to the water as if she was fleeing something that came at her from the water. If a monster arose from the river and killed her, surely Mr. Oaks is not to blame for the death?”

  The man laughed softly. “I don’t believe in what these superstitious people say.”