Part 12 (1/2)
I wanted desperately to be with Darcy, but I couldn't think of a good reason to intrude, as a mere guest at the castle. But I lingered as long as I dared until most of the company had pa.s.sed through the big double doors and then slowly followed Anton toward the anteroom. As I neared the entrance of the anteroom I heard Lady Middles.e.x's strident voice saying, ”Heart attack, my foot. It is quite clear that the man was poisoned.”
Chapter 17.
Bran Castle plus dead body Still November 17
I needed no further reason to enter that room. After all, I had experienced more of my share of murder than most young women of my station in life. I was just about to follow Anton inside when Darcy came out, almost colliding with me.
”h.e.l.lo,” he said. ”I was just coming to find you.”
”Why didn't you tell me you were coming here?” I demanded.
”At the time of our last conversation I had no idea that you were planning to attend the wedding,” he said. ”And your terrifying sister-in-law made it quite clear I was never to communicate with you again.”
”So when did you ever do what anyone told you?” I asked.
He smiled and I felt some of the tension of the past days melting away. Now that he was here I felt that I could tackle vampires, werewolves or brigands. I was brought back to frightening reality when Darcy pushed past me and grabbed the nearest footman who was starting to clear the table.
”No,” he said. ”Leave it. Leave everything.” The servants looked up at him, confused and suspicious. Darcy poked his head back into the anteroom and beckoned to Dragomir. ”I need your help right away,” he said. ”I don't speak Romanian or whatever they speak in these parts. Please tell the servants not to touch anything and to leave the table exactly as it is.”
Dragomir stared at him suspiciously. Darcy repeated the command in remarkably good French.
”May I ask what authority you have here? You are from the police, monsieur?” Dragomir asked.
”Let's just say I have some experience in these matters and my one wish is that we handle this in a way that does not embarra.s.s the royal houses of Romania or Bulgaria,” Darcy said. ”The servants should not be told the truth at this point. This is a most delicate matter and is not to be spoken about, is that clear?”
Dragomir looked long and hard at him, then nodded and barked a command at the servants. The men hastily put down the plates they were collecting and stepped back from the table.
”Tell them that n.o.body else is to come into the dining room, and tell them I would like to speak to them shortly so they should not go anywhere.”
That command was also repeated, although in surly and unwilling fas.h.i.+on, and I saw inquiring glances directed at Darcy, who didn't appear to notice.
”We should go back in there.” Darcy turned to me. ”Nicholas will find himself in a pretty pickle, I'm afraid, if we don't do something quickly.”
”Is it true, do you think?” I whispered to Darcy. ”Was Field Marshal Pirin poisoned?”
”Absolutely,” Darcy said in a low voice. ”All the signs point to cyanide. Flushed face, staring eyes.”
”He always had a flushed face,” I said.
”And the unmistakable smell of bitter almonds,” Darcy finished. ”That's why it's important that nothing is touched on that table.”
With that he stepped back into the anteroom with me at his heels. Field Marshal Pirin's body lay on the couch exactly as Darcy had described him, his face bright red and his eyes open and bulging horribly. He was a big man and the couch was delicate gilt and brocade so that his feet hung over the end and one arm was dangling to the floor. I shuddered and forced myself not to turn away. The other occupants of the room appeared to be frozen in a tableau around the body: Nicholas staring down at Pirin, Anton standing behind Nicholas while Lady Middles.e.x and Miss Deer-Harte hovered near Pirin's highly polished boots. Miss Deer-Harte looked as if she wanted to do nothing more than escape.
”You must telephone for the police at once,” Lady Middles.e.x said. ”There is a murderer in our midst.”
”Impossible, madam,” Dragomir said, reappearing behind us. ”The telephone line has come down with all this snow. We are cut off from the outside world.”
”And there is not a police station within reach to which you could send a man?”
”A man could probably go on skis over the pa.s.s,” Dragomir said, ”but I advise that we should not summon the police, even if we could, before Their Majesties have been told.”
”But there has been a murder,” Lady Middles.e.x said. ”We need someone who can find the culprit before he gets away.”
”As to that, madam,” Dragomir said, ”anyone who tried to leave the castle would not get far in snow like this. Besides, there is only one way out of the castle and a guard is at the gate at all times.”
”Then for heaven's sake make sure the guard knows that n.o.body is to leave,” Lady Middles.e.x said angrily. ”Really, you foreigners. Too slipshod in everything.”
”Lady Middles.e.x, I'm sure Prince Nicholas would appreciate it if you didn't broadcast the facts all over the castle at the moment,” Darcy said. ”I a.s.sure you that we will do everything in our power to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible. And n.o.body is going to be slipshod.”
”And you are . . . ?” she asked, turning to focus on him. If she'd had a lorgnette she would have stared at him through it. One almost expected her to utter the words ”a handbag?”
”He is my groomsman and good friend Darcy O'Mara, Lord Kilhenny's son,” Nicholas said shortly. ”A good man to have around if you're in trouble. He was at school with me-the backbone of our rugby team.”
”Oh, well, in that case.” Lady Middles.e.x was quite happy now. Anyone who was the backbone of an English public school rugby team had to be all right. ”So what do you want us to do?”
”I've told the servants not to touch the table,” Darcy said. ”One of the first things is to have the cause of death confirmed by a competent physician. I don't suppose there is one of those within reach, is there?” He repeated the question in French.
Dragomir shook his head.
”Then we must find out how the poison was administered. I don't suppose we have any scientific testing at our disposal?”
”I believe you need iron sulfate; that turns cyanide Prussian blue,” Anton said, then again he gave that boyish smirk. ”So you see, big brother, I did learn a thing or two at university. I'm not sure what iron sulfate is used for-something to do with woodworking or steelworking I believe. So possibly there may be some stored in the castle outbuildings or the forge or something. We could ask Siegfried and Maria.”
”No,” Nicholas said shortly. ”I'd much rather they didn't know yet. Not until I've thought things through.”
”Too bad they no longer have a royal food taster at your disposal,” Darcy said, then he saw Miss Deer-Harte's shocked face and laughed. ”It was an attempt at humor,” he said.
”There may be some animals on which we could test various foods,” Dragomir said. ”I can send a servant to see if any stable cats have had a litter of kittens recently.”
”Oh, no,” I interrupted hastily, ”you're not going to poison kittens. That's too horrible.”
”You English with your sentimental attachment to animals,” Dragomir said, then he appeared to be aware of me for the first time. ”Lady Georgiana. It is not seemly that you should be here. Please return to the other ladies in the drawing room.”
”I asked her to be here,” Darcy said. ”Believe it or not she has also had some experience with this kind of thing. And she's a good head on her shoulders.”
Of course I blushed stupidly as they looked at me.
”First things first,” Nicholas said. ”You must understand that this is a very delicate situation for us and one that could have serious ramifications if the news leaked out. Pirin was a powerful man in my country. It was only his influence at court that kept a whole province from breaking away. If word gets out that he's been murdered-why, we could have a civil war on our hands by the end of the week, or, worse still, Yugoslavia could decide this would be an opportune moment to annex our Macedonian province. So I would prefer it that the true circ.u.mstances not be made known outside of this room.”
”In that case we should let it be generally thought that he died of a heart attack,” Darcy said. ”We can't bring him back to life but I presume it was well known that he liked his food and drink, so his death will come as no great surprise.”