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Her amusement vanished. “You’re correct, of course. And I don’t mean to make light of a very serious situation. John and I are worried about Samantha. He believes she’s become obsessed with avenging Roger’s death, and that this obsession will lead her into a dangerous place.”
“Like a deserted alley in Old Town, on a dark night?” he grimly replied.
“Exactly. And now there’s the added complication of the disappearing children. Clearly, she and Donny are looking for them as well.” She held up a hand. “By the way, what story did they concoct to explain his injury?”
“He tripped on the way back from the necessary,” he dryly replied.
“How nonsensical.”
“Bathsheba, how long have they been engaged in this quest for justice?”
“The searching? John thinks for at least a year, after Samantha was unable to convince anyone that Roger’s death was not a random happening.”
“Does she have any idea why someone would want to murder Penwith?”
“Only in a very general sense. Samantha told John that her husband was concerned about something in the last few weeks before his death. Apparently, Roger was vague whenever she asked him about it. She thinks he didn’t wish to upset her.”
“Because she was pregnant.”
Bathsheba nodded. “Yes. However, Samantha has now come to believe that the issue was somehow related to the foundation. But John can find nothing wrong, and he has looked through all the accounts and the foundation’s paperwork. If it’s there, he’s not seeing it.”
“But there is a problem. Boys are disappearing.”
She grimaced. “Well, yes. But that doesn’t seem to be connected to Roger’s murder. How could it?”
Braden had no idea, and he wouldn’t until he did some digging.
Bathsheba waved a hand in front of his face. “Are you still with me?”
“Sorry, I was just thinking.”
“About what?”
“A number of things, including the fact that Lady Samantha and Donny have been exposing themselves to danger. Obviously, something went seriously wrong last night, and it cannot be allowed to continue.”
“Yes, it’s incredibly . . .”
“Reckless,” he finished.
“Agreed. By the way, how did you figure out that Samantha was your mysterious lady? I certainly didn’t give you any indication.”
“Felicity came into the drawing room.” Braden flashed a brief smile. “Her cat had injured his paw, and she wished me to fix it.”
“Ah. And how did Samantha respond?”
“She was not best pleased.”
“I imagine not,” Bathsheba wryly replied. “What did you do?”
“I pretended that I was too stupid to make the obvious connections and went about my business treating the cat.”
“And Samantha believed you?” Bathsheba skeptically asked.
“I think so. It was very dark in the alley that night, when she and Donny rescued me. She probably thought I didn’t notice them signing.”
“I almost wish you’d confronted her on the spot. It’s all become much too dangerous.”
“She would have surely denied it. And making those sorts of accusations would certainly not prompt her to trust me.”
