“Miss Bates, please try to remember as precisely as possible when William was behaving so badly,” asked Emma.
Miss Bates tapped her cheeks. “Let me see … not more than midway through the evening, I believe. His sisters were terribly embarrassed by his behavior.”
“I rarely cross paths with William Cox,” said Emma. “Is he in the habit of behaving so poorly?”
Mrs. Weston hesitated. “I never noticed so in the past.”
“Hmm,” muttered Miss Bates.
Emma raised an eyebrow at the spinster. “Ma’am?”
Her future stepmother looked apologetic. “Naturally, one doesn’t like to gossip about these things.”
NowMiss Bates was having qualms about gossiping?
“It’s for Prudence, though,” Emma said.
“Of course, Mrs. Knightley. You’re absolutely right,” the spinster replied. “I must not allow myself to become squeamish.”
Emma gave her an encouraging smile. “I think justice demands a stout response.”
Mrs. Weston sighed.
“Well,” said Miss Bates, leaning forward, “Mrs. Cox has expressed her concern for William. She’s afraid he’s fallen in with bad company and grown rather wild.”
Emma and Mrs. Weston exchanged a startled glance.
“In Highbury? What sort of bad company might that be?” Emma asked.
Miss Bates shook her head. “I don’t know that, but Idoknow that Mrs. Cox thought to discuss the matter with the curate. She hoped Mr. Barlowe could talk some sense into William.”
Emma found it hard to imagine the timid Mr. Barlowe making an impression on anyone, much less an obnoxious young man like William Cox. Still …
“I wonder if he did ever speak to William,” she murmured.
If so, the curate might be able to shed some light on the current state of William’s temperament, if nothing else.
“We could ask him,” Miss Bates innocently suggested.
Mrs. Weston looked startled. “I hardly think that would be appropriate.”
Emma flapped a hand. “I wouldn’t ask Mr. Barlowe directly. I would simply find a way to express my concern. After seeing the way William behaved at the party, that is.”
Mrs. Weston scoffed. “Yes, I can see that working very well. Emma—”
“Mrs. Knightley is correct,” interjected Miss Bates. “If William had anything to do with that poor girl’s death, we should do all in our power to find out.”
Emma stared at her, astonished. “Really? You agree with me?”
Mrs. Weston gripped her hands in her lap. “Emma, surely you cannot think that William Cox had anything to do with Miss Parr’s death. That would be …”
Murder.
The word seemed to hover in the air.
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Emma replied. “But I think it’s possible something happened between them.”
“Then we should find out,” said Miss Bates. “I saw Mr. Barlowe returning to the vicarage on my way here. We can go there right now, Mrs. Knightley.”
