Page 6 of Murder in Disguise (Mary and Bright #5)

“No. I was alerted to the body by a couple of young men out on the riding path earlier this morning. They made such a commotion, the crowd began to form.” As he spoke, the shorter man led them toward the site.

“Probably would never have seen her if not on the path, and even still, it’s muddy and the path is almost flooded besides.

In another few hours with the rain, no one would have come down here. ”

“Damn.” The young woman had been arranged beneath some branches of a shrub.

Her hands were clasped together at her waist with an open book beneath them.

An ordinary day dress clothed her form with a matching spencer and bonnet.

With her eyes closed and her skin pale, she merely looked as if she were sleeping.

At first glance, Gabriel couldn’t discern wounds or blood. “What was the cause of death?”

“Couldn’t tell immediately, but if I were to guess, it would be poison.”

“Right. Do we know who she is?”

“Not yet, though someone in the crowd might know. A couple of the young ladies were quite upset, so there could be a connection there.”

“Did you think to ask?”

“No.”

“Are they still in the crowd?”

The constable scanned the area with his gaze. “I don’t see them.”

“Of course.” Gabriel nodded. This was why crimes went unsolved, because no one cared to do the due diligence to gather the details.

“If you see them again, send them my way.” With another glance at the crowd, he shook his head.

“And Constable Lance, if you could keep everyone well back from this area? I’ll start my investigation and once I’m finished, we can wait for the coroner.

And for the love of God, find an oiled tarp so we can keep the rain from her. ”

“Very well. You Bow Street men are obnoxious.” The constable encouraged the onlookers to retreat beyond the soggy path. He whistled, presumably to summon a lackey who worked with him.

If that meant willing to do the job, then sure. Gabriel heaved out a breath. He peered at Mary. “Ready?”

“Yes.” She maneuvered toward the body. “Help me tug her from beneath the shrubbery. We’ll need to work quickly before the rain drenches her. My umbrella will only do so much.”

“Agreed.”

A few steps took him to the bush, and while he took hold of the young woman’s shoulders, Mary temporarily laid down her umbrella to grab the corpse’s ankles.

Between the two of them, they moved her from beneath the shrub and laid her on the grass between the hedging and the path.

Mary retrieved her umbrella, holding it over the girl’s peaceful face.

“She was probably a lovely young woman,” Mary said. “It’s odd there are no immediate signs of how she died.”

“It is quite disturbing.” As he spoke, Gabriel moved the collar of the ivory spencer away from the young woman’s neck. “Interesting. Look here.” He tapped a gloved fingertip to the skin at the front of her throat. “Scratch marks, but a tad too slim to be from fingernails.”

“Possibly from a knife point?”

“Perhaps.” He frowned as he peered down at the red marks on the skin. “Or a prong setting or catch on jewelry of some sort?”

“The coroner might be able to guide us.” Mary frowned as she held the umbrella. “Is there bruising?”

He pulled the edges of the spencer further from the body.

“A bit, but nothing that might indicate she’d been strangled.

” Then he put his face close to the young woman’s lips and gave a sniff.

There was no odd odor or anything indicative of a specific poison.

“If she was made to ingest something, I have no evidence of the sort. No blue nails or lips,” he continued as he examined one of her hands.

“However, there is some faint bruising on her right wrist. Perhaps she tried to fight back?”

“It is difficult to tell, but we can’t examine her lower limbs to see if it was a sexual crime due to all the witnesses.”

“Agreed.” He nodded. “Once she’s been housed in the morgue, we can visit then.” Then he quickly looked over her clothing, but there was nothing stuck to the fabric, and nothing had lodged in her bonnet or hair. “There is nothing else here that will help me.”

“Perhaps.” Mary tapped the slim book from beneath the dead woman’s hands. “It’s a volume of poetry.”

“Damn. Leave it with the body.”

“If we go to the morgue, I can go through this to see if there is a clue as to who owned it or why this woman had it in death.”

“I would appreciate that. And yes, a trip there is in the offing. I can’t examine the body properly in the damned rain.

” Before he could say more, a middle-aged couple hurried down the path toward them, clearly distraught.

“Damn. I’ll wager these are the young woman’s parents,” he said in a whisper.

Mary nodded. “I’m going to poke about the crowd to see if any of the onlookers stands out or are acting suspicious.

“Good idea.”

“That is our child lying there in the rain! Let us through!” The man bellowed then broke free from the constable’s hold as Mary passed them on the path.

He resembled any number of men within the ton , dressed in a dark greatcoat with a top hat on his head, while his wife was more docile and meeker, clearly of breeding and manners, dressed in a navy dress with an ivory shawl and a bonnet decorated with silk flowers and ribbons.

Gabriel braced himself for what was surely going to be a highly emotional scene. “You are this woman’s parents?”

“Yes, of course,” the man said as he glanced at the girl on the ground. “I am Lord Delson, and this is my wife.” He slipped an arm about the slender woman’s waist.

“I’m sorry that we must meet in this manner. I am Inspector Bright, consulting with Bow Street on some of their more difficult cases.” He frowned as the two parents kept glancing at the body of their daughter. It never became easier. “What was your daughter’s name?”

“Clarissa,” Lady Delson said in a choked whisper.

“She was in her Come Out year, and so excited to attend social engagements with her friends, perhaps even meet a gentleman.” The sound of tears in her voice tightened Gabriel’s chest. “She’ll never be married now, never know the joy of being married, never bear a child… ” A sob stole the rest of her words.

He cleared his throat. “How did you know to come here?”

Lord Delson harrumphed. “Not from Bow Street, that’s certain.” The other man shook his head. “One of my daughter’s friends was unfortunate enough to see her body during a ride. She came straight to our house with the news.”

Well, damn.

Then, thankfully, he caught a glimpse of the coroner with two other men bearing a cloth stretcher between them. “If you’ll come with me? Let us put some distance between ourselves and the curiosity seekers.”

When the two people joined him a bit away from the site, he sighed.

“I am sorry for the loss of your daughter. It is incredibly difficult to know she was taken away by violence.” There was never an easy way to talk about death with a victim’s loved ones.

“As you can imagine, since she was just found, we have no information on her cause of death or why she was killed.”

“Who did it?” Lord Delson demanded with red-rimmed eyes and anger through his expression.

“That will take some time to puzzle out, but rest assured that I will do my level best to give you that satisfaction.” Gabriel paused, for this was a difficult time, especially in the rain.

“Did your daughter have any enemies you can think of? Was there anyone in her life recently that caused her to feel uncomfortable or fearful?”

“Of course not.” Lord Delson shook his head. Rain dripped from the brim of his top hat. “My daughter was the sweetest and kindest girl you’d ever meet.”

Lady Delson nodded. “She was always bubbly and happy. A true light.” Tears welled in her eyes. “And she was the center of her social set.”

“Then she had loads of friends?”

“No.” The lady shook her head. “A small knot, I’d say. They were all lovely young women. As far as I know, no one wished her harm.”

“Did she have a recent suitor in her life?”

Lord Delson shook his head. “She did not.”

Gabriel nodded. “Could you please supply the names of the girls your daughter recently befriended?” As he asked that, he withdrew a small, leatherbound notebook from a pocket along with a pencil nub.

In quiet tones, Lady Delson gave him the information.

“Thank you. As I said, in this moment, we just don’t know much, but that will change as the investigation deepens.” He then took a calling card from a pocket of his greatcoat. “If you should have need of me, please send for me, and I will keep you updated on the course of the case.”

The lady briefly touched his arm. “Where are they taking my little girl?”

“To the morgue at Whitehall. Once we finish the portion of our investigation having to do with your daughter’s body, we will then release her into your custody so you can make your arrangements.” It sounded cold and harsh, but there wasn’t another way to say it.

“Thank you.” The peer snatched the card from Gabriel’s hand. “Do your job, Inspector. There are three other girls missing, if the papers are to be believed. None of them should suffer the same fate as my daughter.”

“I quite agree, Lord Delson. You have my word I’ll puzzle it out.”

By the time he returned to his closed carriage with Mary, Gabriel was at sixes and sevens on where to start.

“I have a feeling this is going to be a long, complex, gut-wrenching case, sweeting, and I’m so glad you’re here with me.”

She patted his hand since she shared the same bench with him. “When are your cases ever easy? Murder isn’t a pleasant subject no matter what side you’re on, but whatever you need throughout the course of this, I’ll provide it.”

“I know.” He pressed his lips to the top of her head. “We need to interview the next set of parents. It’s a start.”