Cream Caramel and Murder Page 5

  We’d met during my first week working at the castle. I’d literally bumped into her and narrowly avoided throwing a large chocolate cake on her head. At first, I hadn’t recognized her. She’d been dressed in dungarees and a baseball cap and had been sneaking in through the kitchen to avoid being spotted.

  She’d sworn me to secrecy after I figured out who she was and confessed she’d been hiding in an empty staff apartment because she didn’t want to go away on an etiquette weekend retreat. Alice had pretended she’d gone and didn’t want anyone to know the truth.

  I saw no harm in keeping her secret. Since then, she’d considered me a friend.

  “Can you draw?” she asked. “Maybe you can do my flowers for me. I had a friend in school who always did my artwork. She was an absolute ace. She could draw anything. I’m more stick figure than Salvador Dali.”

  “I was never that good at art either,” I said.

  “Your cakes are works of art. I consider that a purposeful art. At least you can eat what you make.”

  “That’s true,” I said.

  “I’ve been meaning to catch up with you. I found a new member of our family.” Alice was obsessed with charting her family’s ancient history.

  “Who is it this time? Pirate, infamous soldier, or a wealthy baron?”

  “A wool trader.” She clamped a hand over her mouth and giggled. “Can you believe it? We’re descended from trade. Apparently, he grew wealthy exporting wool to other countries. He was the one who bought the land the castle now stands on. There was an old monastery on the site which he tore down and began the foundations of Audley Castle. Although back then, it was a manor house. Nothing on this scale. Still, we are no better than you. Oh! That’s a terrible thing to say. I mean, you’re lovely. I’d love to be as good as you in the kitchen. But, well, you understand. Don’t hate me.”

  I suppressed a smile. “I could never hate you. Everyone has to start somewhere.”

  “Exactly! I’ve got plenty more relatives to research before I’m finished, though. And I discovered some awful chap who had his head cut off. He was embezzling from the King. He got found out, thrown in the tower with his wife, and they lost their heads. Imagine that.”

  “That sounds terrifying. I’m glad you can’t do that anymore.”

  “We jolly well can. Well, the Queen can. Someone commits treason against her, then it’s off with their head.”

  Alice was naively sweet and as ditzy as they came. But as I’d gotten to know her over the last few months, I realized there was a brain inside that pretty head. She just liked to hide it.

  “And I was thinking,” she continued, “we could do a family tree for you.”

  “My family’s small,” I said. “My dad’s no longer alive, and I know nothing about his family, other than that they came from Ireland.”

  “You’ve never mentioned your mom before,” she said. “Where’s she from?”

  I sighed. That was a sensitive subject I rarely dug into. “My stepmom’s lovely. She’s vivacious and kind and really beautiful. She’s always been there to help me.”

  “Your dad remarried after your birth mom left?”

  “That’s right. Mom just disappeared one day. Dad eventually got a divorce and settled down with Valerie. Even though dad’s gone, I still stay in touch with her.”

  “And nobody else? You must have a larger family than that. Grandparents? Siblings? It can’t just be you.”

  I shrugged. “I have a stepsister. Bianca can be a bit ... prickly. I don’t think she ever warmed to the idea of her mom marrying my dad. I haven’t heard from her in years. I also have a granny who’s still alive. Granny Molly.”

  “What’s she like?” Alice settled on the stool by her easel.

  I rubbed the back of my neck. We didn’t talk about Granny Molly. “She’s ... unique.” And serving five years in prison for fraud.

  “That’s a start. You know your parents’ names and your granny’s name. We can begin with that and work our way back. You may have a huge family dying to meet you. Wouldn’t you like to know where you came from?”

  I bit my lip. Given the criminal tendencies of some members of my family, and my mom’s mysterious disappearance, I wasn’t certain I did want to know. But my curiosity was piqued. I loved history and had even studied it at university. Although it hadn’t led to a career in the subject, I’d always kept it as a hobby. I particularly loved the British Tudor period, with all the intrigue and scandal from the different members of the ruling elite.

  “It could be fun to learn more,” I said.

  “Give me the details of your family and I’ll set to work on it,” Alice said.

  “Shouldn’t you concentrate on your drawing?”

  She glared at the easel and poked her tongue out. “It’s boring. I know I should be accomplished in every area, but why bother? Just because I know how to draw, it isn’t going to bag me a fabulous man.”

  Alice had a sad past when it came to relationships. With two failed engagements behind her, she was considered something of a black sheep in the family. Her parents had written her off in terms of finding a suitable match. These days, they allowed her to do what she wanted, so long as she kept out of the limelight and didn’t cause a scandal, especially not after breaking off her engagement to Lord Davenport.

  Alice said that his flatulence had made her nauseous, and she couldn’t imagine being with a man who made her so unwell. Unfortunately, that confession was made to a local reporter who’d delighted in printing it as a front-page story, getting the family plenty of national media attention.

  “Woof woof.” Meatball bounced around her feet.

  “Quite right, beautiful boy. We need to take a walk together.” Alice stood and tucked a hand through my elbow. “I hope my brother and his awful friends haven’t been bothering you.”

  “Not really.” I decided not to mention Kendal.

  “They’re just ghastly. So full of themselves. They think they’re God’s gift to women. Especially Kendal. He’s such a disgusting letch. Watch out for him.”

  I couldn’t disagree, especially considering how inappropriate he’d been around me. “Perhaps it’s just high spirits.”

  “Bad manners more like. And they were out for hours clay pigeon shooting. It was so noisy! I was trying to take a nap and all I could hear was them popping those pointless bits of clay out of the sky.”

  I slowed and looked around the grounds. “They’ve finished shooting now?” Lady Philippa’s premonition about a death prodded at me.

  She giggled. “Of course they have, silly. Don’t worry, no one’s going to shoot us. I’ve no doubt they’re stuffing their faces by now. They’re so greedy. Besides, they weren’t shooting around here. They were in the next field. We’re perfectly safe.”

  We headed toward the trees in the grounds. Meatball always loved to explore in there. There were plenty of interesting smells and squirrels to chase.

  He raced ahead and returned a few moments later, barking excitedly.

  “What has he found?” Alice released her hold on my elbow.

  “Probably a squirrel carcass.”

  Her nose crinkled. “Don’t be gross. Wait right there, you cheeky boy.”

  “You shouldn’t chase him.” I shook my head as she hitched her dress up and disappeared from view, laughing loudly as she did so.

  I strode after them. It was safe in the grounds, but it was dusk, and Alice had a habit of disappearing when she shouldn’t.

  I lost sight of them for several minutes before slowing as the sound of whining reached me. That was Meatball!

  I increased my pace and hopped over a fallen log. “Meatball! Where are you?”

  The whining increased, and he barked several times. Whatever he’d discovered, he didn’t like it.

  My heart pounded as I broke into a jog, looking around to try to spot either him or Alice.

  He barked once again. Then several times one after the other. That was never a good sign. Multip
le barks meant trouble was close by.

  “Meatball!” I raced ahead, tripping over several roots and scraping my knee against a tree stump in my haste to find him.

  “Oh! There you are.” I ran into a small clearing.

  Meatball stood with his front paws on Alice’s back. She was flat out on the ground, not moving.

  I raced over. “What happened?”

  Meatball whined and backed up.

  I turned Alice over. She was out cold, but I couldn’t see that she’d hit her head or fallen. Had she fainted?

  “Princess Alice.” I checked her pulse, which was fine. What was going on here?

  Meatball nudged me with his nose and barked several times.

  “She’s okay. We’ll get her back to the castle as soon as she wakes. There’s nothing to worry about.” Even so, my heart was pounding too hard.

  He nudged me again and scrabbled at the ground with his paws.

  “What have you got there?” I leaned over Alice to the spot where Meatball was digging.

  It took me a few seconds to process as my brain froze and my eyes refused to accept what I’d just seen.

  There was no doubt about it though, no matter how many times I blinked. There was a hand poking out of the ground, and Meatball was digging it up.

  Chapter 7

  I jumped to my feet and staggered away from the rapidly deepening hole Meatball was digging around the hand.

  No wonder Alice had fainted. I also felt lightheaded as I continued to stare at the gray, blotchy fingers.

  My stomach clenched. What if it was somebody I knew?

  I tried to remember the last time I’d seen Rupert. He hadn’t stopped by the kitchen this morning, which was unusual. He’d often drop by for a tea and a chat.

  I gulped. What if that was him in the ground?

  Forcing my fear back to a manageable sense of chaos, I inched closer to the hand.

  I blew out a breath. There was a silver pinkie ring on one finger and the nails were too neat to be Rupert’s. He was a terrible nail biter and was always getting scolded by his sister for nibbling on his fingers.

  Still, there was someone dead in the ground, and from the lack of a strong smell, they hadn’t been there long.

  I gently tugged Meatball away. “That’s enough exploring. This must be a crime scene. If there’s any evidence here, we need to make sure it isn’t destroyed.”

  Meatball reluctantly relinquished his prize and came to stand beside me as I checked on Alice again.

  “Wake up!” I shook her by the shoulder. I didn’t want to deal with a body on my own.

  She groaned and her eyes fluttered open. “What happened?”

  “I think you fainted,” I said.

  She gasped. “Oh! The hand! I thought I saw a hand sticking out of the ground.”

  “You did. It’s right over there.” I pointed a few feet to our right.

  She struggled to her knees and grabbed my arm as she looked around. “Is it ... real?”

  “I haven’t touched it, but it looks real to me. And Meatball’s very interested. He’s got a keen sense of smell. This is just the sort of disgusting thing he’d find appealing. He once dug up a partially decaying toad from a swamp. He was so proud of himself.”

  “Woof woof.” Meatball wagged his tail as if he knew exactly what I was talking about.

  Princess Alice stared at the hand for several seconds before promptly keeling over and passing out again.

  “No! I need your help.” I looked back at the hand and shuddered. I didn’t know what to do.

  I left Alice on the ground and hurried a few steps away before turning and racing back. I had to get somebody else here. Call the police! I’d let them know what we’d discovered.

  I’d just pulled my phone out of my back pocket when I froze. A branch had just snapped, the dry crunch sounding close.

  My pulse raced and blood rushed to my head as adrenaline flooded through me. What if the killer was still here? We might have disturbed them as they covered the body. If they knew their victim had been discovered they might be back, thinking we’d seen them. They wouldn’t risk anyone identifying them. We could be their next victims.

  Stuffing my phone back in my pocket, I grabbed Alice under the armpits and dragged her behind a bush to a place of safety.

  Meatball followed along closely, whining softly as if he sensed something was horribly wrong.

  I pressed a finger to my lips to silence him. Maybe if we kept still and quiet, the killer wouldn’t notice us.

  There were more footsteps crunching through dried leaves. They were getting closer. It was too much of a risk hiding here. We were vulnerable.

  I looked around and grabbed a large broken branch from the ground. That would do as a weapon.

  Making sure Alice was carefully concealed, I sucked in a deep breath and stood, pressing my back against a tree trunk. I peeked out one side. There was nobody there.

  I looked around the other side. I was certain I’d heard somebody. Maybe in my panicked state, I’d imagined it. After all, it wasn’t every day you found a body buried in the woods. My mind was playing tricks on me, making me sensitive to potential danger.

  Meatball nudged my leg with his nose and looked up at me.

  I shook my head. I didn’t want him getting involved. He might be a feisty dog, but he was only small, and he’d always rush to defend me if ever he thought I was in danger. There was no way I wanted him getting hurt.

  I checked no one was around before ducking and racing to the next tree. The trunk was much broader, so it was easier for me to hide behind without being seen.

  Meatball followed me, keeping his belly to the ground as if he sensed he needed to be discreet.

  My mouth was dry and my hands clammy as more sounds filtered toward me. There was definitely at least one person out there. Maybe they were watching, waiting to see what my next move would be. Whatever they were planning, I wasn’t going down without a fight.

  The footsteps grew nearer. Any second now, they were going to come around the tree and see me. This might be the only chance I got to surprise them.

  I tightened my grip on the branch, pulled back my arms as if I was holding a baseball bat ready to take a swing, stepped out from behind the tree, and let fly.

  I was met with a startled grunt of surprise before a solid muscular arm slammed into my chest and knocked me flat on my back. The branch flew from my hand as the air was knocked from my lungs. My head bounced off the ground, which was fortunately cushioned by a carpet of dried leaves.

  Even so, stars swam in my vision as I tried to get to my feet and confront my attacker. I flailed my arms wildly, wanting to make it as hard as possible to be grabbed.

  Two firm hands pressed against my shoulders. Campbell Milligan’s stern face came into view. “Holly Holmes! What are you doing out here?”

  I gaped up at him. “It’s you! You’re the one sneaking about in the trees.”

  “You’re the one sneaking.” He glanced up, and I followed his gaze to the second security team member standing and watching silently. There was no expression on his grim face. I recognized Saracen, Campbell’s right-hand man.

  Campbell glared at me for another second before releasing his grip and holding out his hand.

  I took it, and he almost yanked me off my feet as he lifted me.

  I licked my lips and glanced from Campbell to Saracen. “I’m glad you’re here. Although what are you doing here?”

  “Princess Alice was seen entering the woods,” Campbell said. “The Duchess doesn’t like her walking alone. We were sent to find her. Where is she?”

  “Oh, well, there’s a bit of a story behind that.” I cleared my throat and tried to gather my scattered thoughts. “She’s okay, but she fainted.”

  Campbell removed the sunglasses he often wore and tucked them into a top pocket. His ice-blue eyes bored into me. “What did you do to make her faint?”

  “Nothing! Her fainting has nothing to do wi
th me.”

  He arched a brow and waited for me to continue.

  There was no way I could sugar coat this. “Princess Alice fainted because she found a... a hand poking out of the ground.”

  A muscle twitched in Campbell’s jaw. “Show me.”

  I hurried back to the clearing where the hand was still very visible. A wave of sickness ran through me, and I caught hold of a tree.

  Campbell didn’t appear to notice my distress. “Where’s the princess?”

  I gestured to the bush. “Behind there.”

  “Saracen, secure the princess. I’ll check the area and make sure the scene hasn’t been compromised too badly.” He didn’t even spare me a glance as he strode around the clearing.

  Saracen headed to Princess Alice and kneeled over her, his fingers going to the pulse point in her neck.

  “She’s not hurt,” I said as I hurried over. “She must have been surprised by what she discovered. Alice ran ahead of me when she was chasing Meatball and—”

  Saracen glanced at me. “Meatball?”

  “My dog.” I gestured to him. He was standing by my side looking alert. “Anyway, Meatball ran ahead. He must have smelled the body. Princess Alice chased after him and I lost them for a few minutes. When I found them, she was passed out and Meatball was digging up the body.”

  Saracen grunted.

  “How’s she doing?” I asked.

  “Still unconscious,” he said.

  “She did wake up, but fainted again as soon as she remembered what she’d seen.”

  Saracen simply grunted again as he stood guard over Princess Alice.

  Campbell emerged through the trees. “There’s no sign of anyone else nearby. We need to make sure nobody else interferes with the crime scene and check for evidence. How’s the princess?”

  “No injuries,” Saracen said.

  “She’s just in shock,” I said.

  Campbell glanced at me before striding over. “Try to wake her up.”

  Saracen nodded and knelt over Princess Alice again.

  “Maybe I can help,” I said. “She might be startled by your sudden arrival.”