Page 46 of All of Us Murderers

At the coroner’s inquest into the tragic events at Lackaday House, Wynn Wyckham and his staff testified that Elise Wyckham’s death was the act of her husband, Bram; that, in the course of a confrontation the following day, Bram Wyckham was fatally shot by Elise’s former lover, his cousin Hawley; and that Hawley Wyckham jumped off the roof rather than face justice.

Zebedee Wyckham attempted to interrupt the proceedings several times and was eventually removed from the hearing by order of the coroner, who had his bizarre and implausible accusations struck from the record. No blame was attached to Wynn as the unfortunate host of the disastrous party.

After the tragedy, Wynn Wyckham became more reclusive than before. However, local acquaintances noted that a Miss Jessamine Evans appeared to have taken up residence at Lackaday House.

A few months later, on the evening before Wynn’s fiftieth birthday, the acetylene gas plant exploded and Lackaday House burned to the ground.

Wynn’s charred remains were recovered from the ruins, with the coroner noting it was unclear what had prevented him fleeing the house.

A disused well in a cellar was also discovered to hold a badly decayed human body, identified by clothing as Colonel Wyckham Dash.

Jessamine Evans’s body was not found, but due to the fierce blaze, she was presumed dead.

An expensively dressed woman of her description carrying nearly fifteen thousand pounds in cash and jewels travelled on a cross-Atlantic steamer not long afterwards and disappeared in the United States, but no connection was ever established.

Zeb Wyckham inherited the remaining Wyckham fortune by default. He immediately had the full sum put into a trust to be repatriated to the islands where Walter Wyckham had owned plantations, administered by his live-in personal secretary and business manager, Gideon Grey.