Jasper went to get his coat and hat. Leo followed on their heels as they left the department. “I was thinking…if the Nelsons felt they never got justice for the deaths of their children and wanted revenge, why would they target Gabriela? She had no say in her father’s business. Why wouldn’t they poison Mr. Henderson instead?”
“Could be an eye for an eye,” Lewis suggested. “Henderson’s child for theirs.”
To a rational person, it would be an untenable thought. But to two parents in anguish, Jasper supposed rational thoughts could be few and far between.
They passed the telegraph room on their way to the lobby. The door was open, and inside, several uniformed officers were receiving communications from other divisions in London. A public telephone had been installed a few years ago, however, it had almost immediately been removed when most calls coming in had been frivolous in nature, beleaguering the officers and preventing more serious crimes from being reported. One woman had even called to complain that her maid had burned off a lock of her hair while using curling tongs, and she wanted to put her in a jail cell overnight to punish her. The return to telegraph lines between police divisions around the city had been a relief for the operators.
A few strides past the room, an officer rushed into the corridor behind them. “Inspector Reid, there’s something here for you.”
He turned back and accepted the slip of paper. The typed words barreled into him with a slap to his senses.
“Christ,” he muttered, crumpling the paper. “A body has been found at Henderson & Son Manufacturing.”
Leo took in a small gasp of air. “Do you have a name for the victim?”
He shook his head. “Just a request that I get there as fast as I can.”
They hurried out the back of the building into the yard, where several hansoms were lined up, waiting for business. It was a popular spot for cabbies who were always ready to be hired by any police officer or visitor to the Yard.
“Might I come along?” Leo asked, still on Jasper’s heels. “I can speak to Miss Geary again.”
Lewis flagged a cab, and while the detective sergeant was busy, Jasper pulled her aside. “Please, Leo, go back to the morgue. If this is another murder, I can’t have you there.”
The lines of her jaw rippled as she clenched her teeth in defiance. But in the end, she didn’t argue. Her unexpected compliance might have been why he heard himself saying, “Thank you for bringing me the Nelsons’ address and for going toThe Times. You didn’t need to do that. In fact, you probably shouldn’t have.”
Her dark brow lifted. “Your cab is waiting,” she said sharply, then she turned on her heel and began to walk toward the stone arch leading out of the yard.
As soon as he joined Lewis in the single-bench cab, their driver, who sat perched high behind them, urged the horses forward. As they did, Leo could be seen approaching another cab. Comprehension smacked into Jasper like an anvil.
The insufferable woman.He called for the driver to stop.
“What are you doing?” Lewis asked as Jasper opened the half-door and called for Leo.
“She has the Nelsons’ address. She’ll just go there on her own while we are dealing with the body at Henderson’s factory,” he explained as Leo straightened her back and grinned at his summons. Dismissing the cab driver she’d been speaking to, she walked briskly toward their hansom, leaving a trail of triumph in her wake.
Lewis whistled softly. “Someone ought to put a leash on her.”
Jasper darted a sharp look of reprimand at him as Leo reached the open door, still smiling smugly.
“Get in,” Jasper barked, extending his hand. “You bloody pest.”
Chapter Fourteen
Sergeant Lewis shifted his weight on the cab’s seat, his brow creased. He and Jasper would have had plenty of room on the single, forward-facing bench, however with Leo squeezed between them, the fit was tight.
She was certain Sergeant Lewis didn’t approve of her accompanying them on official police business to Henderson & Son, and by the increasing chafe of Jasper’s sidelong glances, he didn’t either. He’d only invited her because he’d seen her approaching a hansom—something she would not have needed had she just been going to Spring Street.
However, he knew she had the Nelsons’ address, and to him, she must have appeared to be about to hire a driver to take her there. Of course, she’d merely been asking the driver for the time and then complimenting his horses while she waited for the detective inspector to see her and deduce her plan.
Leo would confess her ruse later. It would be naïve and reckless to visit the home of a possible murderer, and it irked her somewhat that Jasper had believed she would do it on her own. Alas, she was now where she’d wanted to be—on her way to view the body at the wallpaper factory.
No, she wasn’t a detective, and truly, she had no role at a crime scene. However, if the local police had sent for Inspector Reid, it was because this body had to do with his current case. Having been present at the time of Gabriela Carter’s death, having seen the woman in the hooded cloak rushing away from the scene of the crime, Leo felt tied to the investigation.
Besides, she could be of use. She’d gained Miss Geary’s trust. If there was anything the secretary knew about this new event, she would confide it in Leo.
The three of them didn’t speak for the entirety of the drive. Had Sergeant Lewis not been with them, Leo suspected Jasper would have had plenty to say, likely spending the half hour grumbling at her. Instead, they arrived at the Wapping factory and only then did Jasper take her aside while the detective sergeant paid the cab fare.
“Please, Leo, follow protocol while we are in there,” he said, sounding utterly harassed.
