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He seemed not to be listening. He stood and rounded the desk to pull the chair out for me. “Do you need water? You look flushed.” He picked up a newspaper and flapped it in front of my face.
I removed my gloves—it was too hot to wear them anyway—and touched my cheek with the back of my hand. “It’s humid outside.” I took the newspaper from him and fanned myself. “Did you hear what I said?”
“You know who wrote the note to Hardwick. Go on then, who is it?”
“Major Leavey.” I waited for that to sink in then added, “His daughter took her own life after Rigg-Lyon ruined her.”
He sat on the edge of the desk. “Bloody hell. Are you sure?”
“Almost positive.”
He tilted his head to the side. “Gossip?”
I nodded. “I think the major realized Hardwick knew what his best friend had done. He thinks he’s somewhat to blame because he didn’t stop Rigg-Lyon.”
“It fits with the style of the threat. I can see the major challenging a scoundrel to a duel. It also fits with the timing. When we brought up the doping issue the other day at the club, the major was there. He would have heard us suggest that Hardwick knew everything Rigg-Lyon did. He must have decided then and there that Hardwick also knew Rigg-Lyon seduced his daughter.”
“Then he sent the note to Hardwick yesterday,” I added. “Do you think Hardwick knew who sent it?”
“There’s only one way to find out. Let’s ask him.”
Unfortunately,Mr. Hardwick wasn’t at home and his landlady didn’t know when he’d return. Instead of waiting, we decided to call on the other man in the equation. Knowing Major Leavey’s work ethic, we suspected we’d find him at the Elms Polo Club, even though it was Sunday.
Harry hailed a cab and we traveled there in silence. Although the tension between us wasn’t as fraught as it had been, it was still there, as ominous as the gray clouds overhead. Relief would only come when it burst, but I dreaded being caught in the downpour.
As we crossed the lawn, we heard a shout coming from the clubhouse, followed by another in response. The angry voices were familiar, and not unexpected.
“You knew!” I heard the major shout. “You knew and did nothing to stop him!”
“I wasn’t his keeper!” Mr. Hardwick shouted back.
“Sir,” added a third voice, that of Watkins, the major’s assistant. “Please leave!”
We both started to run, but Harry’s long strides meant he easily outpaced me. He took the steps three at a time and rushed inside. By the time I entered the clubhouse foyer, he’d stepped between the two men, arms outstretched to keep them apart. Watkins stood to one side, looking relieved that the role of mediator had been filled by someone else.
Major Leavey may have been the older of the two, but he looked formidable with veins bulging on his neck and his fists raised to fight. If he decided to charge at Hardwick, I wasn’t sure Harry could hold him back. The situation needed defusing, and quickly.
“Mr. Hardwick, why are you here?” I asked.
He pointed a finger at the major. “He invited me. I think he’s going to shoot me.”
“He’s unarmed,” Harry growled.
I turned to the major. “Why did you invite him? To have it out with him?”
The major lowered his fists but kept them balled. “He knew what Rigg-Lyon did, and that makes him just as evil.”
Mr. Hardwick made a scoffing sound.
“He needs to be held accountable for my…my…” All of a sudden, the major’s face crumpled. He turned away, a hand pressed to his mouth, eyes screwed shut.
I touched his arm, but he shook me off.
Mr. Hardwick sniffed. “What happened to your daughter was not my fault. But clearly you believe Vernon was responsible. Did you challenge him to a duel, too? Or did you ambush him in the stables like a coward?”
The major spun around and swung his fist. Harry caught his arm and they tussled, until Harry wrestled him back, out of reach of Hardwick. Watkins was no help. He took another step farther away.
The major’s chest heaved and the veins in his neck throbbed. His glare drilled into Hardwick, but Hardwick merely tugged on his cuffs as if he didn’t have a care.
