Page 91 of Death at a Highland Wedding

Yep, my poker face sucks. I lean into it as I shrug. “Just the case. A lot on my mind.”

“Where is my brother?”

So much for my perfectly reasonable excuse. I pretend not to notice her tone, which suggests Gray is clearly responsible for my mood. “He was at the stable speaking to Simon. My stomach started growling so I came back. We didn’t get a chance to grab breakfast. But I got sidetracked by the kittens, so Duncan may already be back.”

“He is not. I saw Fiona on the way down and she said Mrs. Hall saw you both heading to the stable.”

“Ah, well, while we should wait for him so Mrs. Hall doesn’t need to serve us separately, I really need to speak to you in private. It’s about the case. Something Duncan couldn’t answer. Any chance of retiring to your room for breakfast?”

She doesn’t answer, and I feel her heavy gaze on me. I’m not fooling anyone. In the end, she decides—wisely—not to pursue it.

Breakfast is obviously ready and keeping warm, because we’re still settling in when a maid arrives and sets it out for us. What I have to say to Isla must be said in as much privacy as possible, which means we sadly can’t dine on the balcony again, where someone passing below could overhear us.

Once the maid is gone, I say, “It’s about Violet and Ezra.”

“Ah. You have information.” Isla leans forward. While there’s been zero indication that Violet realizes Isla might be partly responsible for McCreadie breaking off their engagement, it will ease Isla’s conscience to know Violet had moved on.

For the second time this morning, I tell the tale of what I discovered last night.

“There was a romantic entanglement,” Isla says. “I am certain of it.”

“So am I.”

“Poor Violet.” Her shoulders sag, and she mentally retreats for a moment, contemplating the implications of that. First Violet lost McCreadie. Now she loses Sinclair.

“Was that the question Duncan could not answer?” she says. “Whether you are correct in interpreting a relationship between them?”

“No, he agrees that it seems that way. My question is about the secrecy. Clearly no one knew they were courting. I suppose it’s possible they weren’t actually courting, in the strictest sense. They could have been having an affair, with no intention of marrying. But does that make sense?”

“With the scandal around Violet’s broken engagement, I cannot imagine she would risk an affair.”

“But does it make sense tonotbe aiming at marriage. Ezra was a bachelor, right?”

“Yes, at dinner the first night, James teased Ezra about being the last of their trio to wed, and it was clear he was not even courting.”

I take a bite of cheese before I speak again. Now that I’ve relaxed, my stomach really is rumbling. “So there’s no impediment to him marrying, and a marriage would rescue Violet’s reputation, wouldn’t it?”

Isla nods. “It is the best path open to her. I have thought of that, with some dismay. As terrible as my marriage was, I am now free. I may chooseto marry or choose to remain unattached, and my reputation would be little affected either way. The best thing that could have happened to Violet would have been marrying a year or so after her broken engagement.”

“While Hugh let her go, someone else snatched her up, because she’s a prize.”

Her nose wrinkles. “I hate to hear women referred to as prizes, but yes, others would see it that way. While one buyer passed on the horse, it did not remain on the market long.”

“Ideally, then, she’d have married long ago. Is that the problem? Has she been single so long that Ezra’s reputation would suffer if he married her?”

“Hardly. Whenever he married her, his reputation would have risen with the match. She is beautiful, accomplished, and comes with a significant dowry. The problem lies not with Violet but with Ezra.”

“Because he’s an orphan?”

“He effectively has no family, which is a concern. But even if his parents lived, they would not provide the correct social status. He only attended the same school as Duncan, Hugh, and Archie because he was sponsored.”

“And now? He seems well-off enough. Or doesn’t that matter?”

“It should not matter.”

“But it does. He’s an unsuitable suitor.”

“Perhaps,” she says slowly, “but it is not as if she were courting the valet. One would think—given Violet’s age and lack of marital prospects—her parents would leap on Ezra as a son-in-law. They are fond of him, from what I hear. He has a good position—something in business. He would make an excellent husband. At the very least, there should have been no objection to him courting her to see where it led. But I will admit that I cannot answer that with certainty. The Cranstons are in an elevated social class, with the blood of nobility if not the titles.”