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She continued, “I was not best pleased to be coerced, but I could not refuse our future King.” Lady Jenest sighed heavily. “Lord Spratt insisted that my butler and head footman assist the Prince to undress. It was then that Prince George recalled that he carried the queen’s necklace upon his person. Naturally, His Royal Highness could not simply stuff such a valuable piece of jewellery into a drawer overnight. Therefore, Lord Spratt handed it to me to lock away for safekeeping.”
Colleen continued the questions.
“And so, you did as the Prince and Lord Spratt instructed?”
“What are you insinuating, Miss Snowden?” Lady Jenest demanded.
“Nothing sinister, my Lady,” Colleen assured her. “I am simply attempting to imagine what occurred and discover if we missed something previously.”
“Why not place the necklace in the safe in Lord Jenest’s quarters?” Mr. Dostoff asked.
“There is no safe in the master’s bedchamber,” Lady Jenest explained. “This house is quite old. When it was built, the master and mistress were meant to share this sitting room. The only other safe in the house is located in the late Lord Jenest’s study.”
Colleen repeated the question.
“Then it was you who placed the necklace in the safe?”
“Yes.” Lady Jenest gestured toward the safe. “I came in here, released the latch to permit the painting to swing from the way, and opened the safe.”
Lord Harlow remarked. “You were the last one to hold the necklace in your hands.”
“Yes.”
Lady Jenest’s defiance had returned. The woman’s contempt for Lord Harlow ran deep.
Colleen ignored their exchange. Instead, she asked, “What did you do after you placed the necklace in the safe?”
“I must say, despite wishing for the honour of entertaining the Prince in my home, I was truly not prepared for the disruption his presence would engender. His demands were many, and I had servants dashing to and fro instead of tending to their duties of setting my house to order so that I might receive callers the next day. It was all so stressful.” Lady Jenest screwed up her features in a deep frown. “I wish I could have turned His Highness away. The trouble this has caused me…”
Colleen softly instructed, “Close your eyes, review what happened that evening, in your mind, and tell us what you see.”
“I brought the necklace in here and placed it in the open safe, just as I said.”
“And?” Mr. Dostoff encouraged.
Suddenly, her Ladyship’s eyes sprang open.
“I did not close the safe,” she declared.
“What do you mean you ‘did not close the safe’?” Lord Harlow asked.
This time the woman did not rebuke his question.
“Prince George let out a ‘yelp’, and there was a crash. Therefore, I rushed through the dressing room to discover that the prince had nearly fallen, and he had knocked over a large vase which my late husband had purchased for his parents, when he was on his grand tour. I fear the image of the shattered pieces upset me more than I expected. When the Prince made promises to replace the vase, I did my best not to rail at him and tell him that a ‘replacement’ was impossible for the vase also held sentimental value. I waited until Lord Spratt and my men had manoeuvred Prince George into the bed before I returned to the safe.”
“What did you discover?” Colleen whispered, fearing an interruption of the woman’s memories, which evidently played on in her mind.
“When I walked into the room, the safe was closed, and the painting in place. Naturally, I just assumed that I had done so out of habit, but I can emphatically say, I did not close the safe.”
“Then who did?” Mr. Dostoff asked.
Colleen gestured for the man to be patient.
“We know of Lord Spratt’s care of the Prince,” she encouraged, “but you have said nothing of Lord Ridgeworth. Did you not mention that it was Lord Ridgeworth’s idea for you to open your home to His Royal Highness?”
“To the best of my memory, Ridgeworth remained in the hall while Lord Spratt and my men undressed the Prince,” she explained.
Harlow asked, “Were there any others aware that Prince George stayed in your home that evening? Any remaining card players in the various rooms?”
