Page 24 of In the Midnight Hour

“I was not. Just as I wasn’t aware that he’d named me in his will.” Though the coroner hadn’t asked about the will, Hypatia was certain he would. Furthermore, she was eager to put her side of the issue out there, lest people think she was conniving. “I was quite shocked to hear what he’d left me. I still can’t believe it.”

“Just so I understand, you had no notion whatsoever that Sir Radnor wished to marry you, nor that he’d changed his will to name you as his primary heir?”

Hypatia felt the curious and judgmental stares of everyone in the room. “That’s correct.”

“Please tell us about your visit with Sir Radnor this past Friday evening,” Mr. Sheffield said.

This was the answer she’d put the most thought into. Hypatia didn’t wish to lie, but she also wasn’t going to offer any information about what Sir Radnor had said or done. The truth was she hadn’t known his ultimate goal was marriage.

She explained her arrival, their dinner, and their discussion in the library about whether Shakespeare was better read or performed.

“What an excellent discussion.” Mrs. Lambton made the comment quietly, but Hypatia heard her.

“And what time did you leave?” Mr. Sheffield asked.

“I didn’t look at the time, but when I arrived home, it was just after midnight.”

Mr. Sheffield glanced down at the notes in front of him on the table. “How did you leave Sir Radnor’s house?”

The back of Hypatia’s neck prickled. The specificity of this question seemed to indicate Mr. Sheffield already knew the answer. “I went out through the morning room into the back garden.”

Mr. Sheffield had watched intently whilst she’d responded. “Then through the gate into your own garden?”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Drummond noted in his report that the front door was bolted in the morning, according to Mr. Maberly. If you’d gone out the front, the door would have remained unbolted since Amos was asleep and didn’t show you out.”

Hypatia felt bad for Amos. He was a good lad. Though, if he’d been awake that night, he would have witnessed Hypatia’s flight and perhaps Sir Radnor’s inappropriate behavior. Hypatia couldn’t decide if that would have been a good thing or bad.

“Why didn’t you leave through the front door?” Mr. Sheffield asked.

She wasn’t going to reveal her desperate urgency to flee Sir Radnor. No one needed to know about that—both because she didn’t want to discuss it and her reputation was already suffering. “I didn’t wish to disturb Amos, and it’s just as easy to use the gate.”

Against her better judgment, she chanced a look toward the assembly. Her gaze instantly landed on Northwood, who was regarding her with keen interest—and perhaps sharp prejudice.

“Can anyone confirm your arrival at home?” Mr. Sheffield asked.

Hypatia nearly smiled with relief that he’d asked. “Yes, my maid. She helped me prepare for bed.”

Mr. Sheffield inclined his head toward her. “Thank you, Lady Cartwright.”

That could have gone much worse, Hypatia reasoned. Still, she wondered if she might have to find a new place to live. Would her neighbors look at her the same way again?

The coroner called Jacob Claverton to testify next. Hypatia knew he was the same age as her—nine and twenty years—however he looked a bit older. He was thin with wispy blond hair and a rather pale complexion. On his way to the table, he cast a scornful glance toward Hypatia, his blue eyes narrowing.

Mr. Sheffield questioned Mr. Claverton about his relationship with his great-uncle. Mr. Claverton testified that they got on quite well, and he was shocked to hear the will had been changed.

“You believed you would be inheriting his house in Pemberton Square along with most of his fortune?” Mr. Sheffield asked.

Mr. Claverton glanced toward his sister, who shared the same thin blond hair and pallid skin. “We did, yes.”

“How did you feel about learning your great-uncle had left you just a few items instead of his fortune? Besides shocked.”

“We were quite upset. Anyone would be.”

Mr. Sheffield dismissed Mr. Claverton and next asked Miss Claverton to come to the table. She clutched a handkerchief and dabbed at her brown eyes after taking her oath.

As soon as Mr. Sheffield began to ask her a question, she shuddered. “Please forgive me, Mr. Sheffield,” she said in a small voice. “I’m most distraught. It’s difficult to speak of all this in such a public fashion.” She glanced toward the assembly and twitched before bowing her head.