Page 74 of Rattle His Bones

The sun shone bright on Primrose Hill. The night’s hoar frost lingered in shady spots, but the air was warm. Ginger pigtails flying, Belinda raced ahead with Nana on the lead.

“They make me feel old,” said Daisy.

“How’s the bump?”

“Still there. And painful to the touch,” she warned as Alec unceremoniously pulled off her hat and ran his fingers gently through her curls. “No headache for the past three days, thank heaven.”

“I could kill the brute!” Alec said savagely, then he sighed. “No, I couldn’t. He certainly didn’t intend to kill you, or he’d have succeeded. Weedy as he looks, he’s actually quite muscular.”

“From heaving dinosaur bones about, I expect. That is, I take it you mean Steadman, not Grand Duke Rudolf?”

“Oh, yes, it was Steadman who hit you, and who killed Pettigrew. Your educated deductions were remarkably correct in all essentials.”

Daisy frowned up at him, indignant. “What do you mean, remarkably?”

“Pax, sweetheart!” Alec kissed her nose. “Just that you really were slightly concussed at the time you expounded your theory.”

“Oh, right-oh. But that was all about the jewels. Did he confess to murdering Pettigrew?”

“In the end. Once we focused on Steadman, and asked the right questions, we obtained other evidence with which to confront him.”

“Such as?”

“He told the assistants in the work room he was going to compare the bones he was working on with some in the reptile gallery, not leaving to go home, as he told us. We could have eliminated the Grand Duke early on, incidentally, and ffinch-Brown as well, if I’d taken note of the hammer shaft’s being found in the basement. Neither had access.”

“Gosh, I never thought of that, either,” Daisy admitted. Seeing Alec on the point of asking who had told her about the shaft, she hurried on: “Steadman met Pettigrew in the reptile gallery purely by chance?”

“Yes. Steadman’s claiming self-defense. With a good lawyer, he might get away with manslaughter, though the theft will count against him. He’ll be put away for a goodlong stretch for that, I’m sure. The odd thing is, all he seems worried about is that we shouldn’t think he stole the gems for personal reasons. He …”

“Don’t tell me! He wanted to set up his own expedition to hunt dinosaurs?”

“Daisy, how the deuce … ?”

“You know my methods, Watson.”

“He told you!”

“Yes, actually. Alec, what about Rudolf Maximilian?”

“We’re dropping charges. He’s dropping his claim to the ruby. There’s some talk of a royal pension for his family.”

“Oh, good!”

“Daddy! Aunt Daisy!” Belinda came tearing down the slope towards them, laughing as the puppy almost pulled her off her feet.

“Just one quick question, love, before they get here. I’ve been promised a fortnight’s leave. Will you marry me right away? I’m afraid there won’t be time to arrange an elaborate wedding.”

“Spiffing!” said Daisy.