Page 30 of In Want of a Suspect

But Josette looked less than overjoyed. “Please, won’t you sit?”

Darcy and the Bennet sisters arranged themselves on the furniture, and Darcy couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Leticia. He hadn’t expected to find Josette with a companion, and in mourning; and now he felt his carefully rehearsed speech slip away so quickly, he couldn’t cling to a single word of it.

“It was our grandmother, if you were wondering,” Leticia said, taking a seat next to her cousin.

“I beg your pardon?” Darcy asked.

“Our grandmother passed five months ago,” Josette clarified. “The reason we are in mourning.”

“I’m sorry,” Darcy said, and felt how inadequate those words really were. “I’m... oh, I’m just so sorry. I hadn’t heard.”

Lizzie and Jane both murmured their condolences as well, but Darcy barely heard their words. He was trying to figure out how he’d missed the death of Mrs. Cavendish. While it was true that their families were not particularly close, she had been a client. He would have sent his condolences and called out of respect for Josette and their shared history.

“Thank you,” Josette said stiffly. She seemed surprised at Darcy’s admission and confused. “Now, I am afraid Dupont was unclear as to whether or not this was a business or social call.”

Instinct in Darcy made him want to put her at ease. “Social,” he said.

“Business, I’m afraid,” Lizzie said at the same time.

“Oh my,” Leticia said, leaning forward. “This is shaping up to be the most interesting call we’ve had all week.”

Josette didn’t seem to share in her cousin’s amusement. “Leticia,” she murmured disapprovingly.

Lizzie nudged Darcy expectantly. He had asked that he allow her to lead, but he knew she was impatient. “Miss Elizabeth and I are solicitors, and I’m afraid your name came up in a recent case.”

“My name?” Josette asked, genuinely surprised. She raised one elegant brow. “Whatever for?”

This was the delicate part. “No one has accused you of anything—but a storehouse near the docks on Burr Street caught fire, and over the course of the investigation, your name was mentioned.”

“My name was mentioned?” Josette repeated. “In what context? I can assure you, Mr. Darcy, I do not visit any storehouses near the docks!”

As Darcy struggled to find a response to Josette’s indignation, he couldn’t help but notice Leticia. Her pleasant expression didn’t shift as Darcy spoke, but she tilted her head slightly as she took in the news. It felt too calculated, too rehearsed. Suspicion unfurled in Darcy’s chest.

“You have no business connected to that area? You don’t know anyone who might have any business being there?”

Josette seemed to actually consider it. To his surprise, she turned to her cousin and said, “But surely that’s not where Richard’s storehouses were located? He would have said if there had been a fire!”

Leticia’s face did not betray her thoughts. “I cannot say, cousin.”

“If I may,” Lizzie cut in. “Who is Richard?”

“My fiancé,” Josette said, casting a nervous glance toward Darcy as she spoke the words. “Mr. Richard Hughes.”

If she expected Darcy to be shocked, she was destined to be disappointed, but Darcy was a little surprised that she seemed so skittish about revealing a fiancé. He smiled and said, “Congratulations, Miss Beaufort. I had not heard the happy news.”

His well wishes seemed to mollify her slightly, and she smiled her thanks. Leticia, however, said, “There seems to be a great deal Mr. Darcy is unaware of!”

Next to him, Lizzie nudged his foot. Whether it was to be a show of solidarity or a reminder to keep his cool, he wasn’t certain. “It seems you are correct, Miss Cavendish,” he said. “I am woefully ignorant, and you must forgive my questions.”

“I still don’t understand how my name came up in connection to a storehouse fire,” Josette said. “I have nothing to do with my fiancé’s business.”

“And what is his business, if I may be so impolite as to inquire?” Lizzie asked.

Josette pursed her lips, clearly uncertain as to whether or not Lizzie’s rudeness was warranted.

“He owns mines, doesn’t he?” Leticia responded, looking to her cousin for confirmation.

“Yes, but I’m sure I don’t know the details. You’d have to ask him.” Josette’s tone hinted at an unwillingness to discuss the matter, and Darcy had to wonder if it was because she didn’t know the details of what her fiancé did, or if she didn’t care for Darcy to know them.