Page 78 of Murder in Highbury

He held her gaze, silently asking her to trust him. And what else could she do in front of their dratted vicar? She would never contradict George publicly.

Privately . . .

“I’m sure you know best,” she finally replied.

Mr. Elton stood. “Then I shall take my leave. Again, my apologies for disturbing you.”

George also rose. “If you will allow me to hold on to the note, I will show it to Dr. Hughes tomorrow.”

Mr. Elton nodded. “No doubt Dr. Hughes will wish to be part of the discussion with Miss Bates.”

Emma almost choked. The pompous coroner would frighten Miss Bates half to death.

When Mr. Elton grasped Emma’s hand to bow over it, she was hard pressed not to give him a good box on the ear.

“I’ll be right back,” George said, then cast a significant look at Emma before following Mr. Elton out of the room.

She stood and began to pace. When he returned, she marched up to him.

“How could you agree to show that benighted note to Dr. Hughes? Surely you cannot believe that making it public will clear Miss Bates of suspicion. It will do exactly the opposite!”

He gathered her hands and held them against his chest.

“His logic in that regard is erroneous. What is not in error, unfortunately, is the fact that Miss Bates has been engaging in some very odd behavior. No matter my personal feelings, as magistrate, I cannot ignore that.”

She blew out an exasperated sigh. “All right, but it’s ridiculous to suspect Miss Bates. She wouldn’t kill Mrs. Elton over a debt when any number of us could have repaid it for her.”

George looked thoughtful. “Very true. Nevertheless, I cannot help but wonder if Elton is planning to pursue some sort of repayment from Miss Bates—if not now, then later.”

That gave her pause. Again, she recalled the strange discussion about finances between Mr. Elton and Mr. Suckling after the funeral. “He could have written directly to Jane or Frank, if such is the case.”

“Also true. I cannot account for his behavior in that respect.”

“And why must Dr. Hughes go with you tomorrow? You’ll not get a coherent word out of poor Miss Bates if he’s there.”

“I don’t believe I made any such promise regarding Dr. Hughes.”

She stared at him. “But you said—”

His smile was wry. “My dear, please give me more credit than that. I will speak to Miss Bates alone and then share with Dr. Hughes both the note and the information she provides. That will allow me at least some measure of control over this situation.”

Her anxiety receded a notch. “Mr. Elton won’t like that, I suspect.”

“Which is why I didn’t tell him. Emma, I will do my best to protect Miss Bates and her mother. But the truth must come out, whatever it is.”

“Miss Bates isnota murderer.”

“Agreed. But I believe there is something in this situation that might provide clues as to why Mrs. Elton was murdered.”

The light dawned. “So, you agree with me that the killer probably knew Mrs. Elton.”

He shrugged. “I don’t know, but there are too many unanswered questions, and that disturbs me.”

Emma had been feeling the same almost from the moment she’d discovered the body.

“For now, however,” he added, “we should keep our suspicions to ourselves.”

“Of course. Thank goodness Frank and Jane will be arriving in a few days. I’m sure they will be a great comfort to Miss Bates and will afford a measure of protection against all this nonsense.”