“Er,” said Derek.
“If I really struggled, I’ll bet I could even figure out why you showed the plans to me,” Emma continued, enjoying his discomfiture. “Let’s see, now. The older plans suggest that the hall was in pretty bad shape fifteen years ago. If the old duke had them made up in order to sell the place, the family’s finances must have been shaky, too. Your aside about the duchess’s emeralds seems a little ominous. Why would she hide them in the nursery unless she was afraid that her son might try to sell them? And if Grayson’s father was down to selling his own mother’s wedding jewels—” She stopped walking and turned to face Derek, who was staring at her in amazement. “How am I doing?”
“Um.” Derek blinked. “You work with computers, don’t you?”
Emma nodded. “Sometimes my firm installs them. In great big buildings. With reams of technical drawings.”
“Ah.” Derek scuffed at the ground with the toe of his workboot. “Didn’t mean to sound patronizing. Most women—”
“You’d be surprised at what most women know,” Emma said lightly. “At any rate, I do see what you’re getting at. Penford Hall underwent a major renovation five years ago. It must have cost a fortune.”
“Repairs on the roof alone would run upwards of a hundred thousand pounds,” Derek confirmed.
“A hundred thousand... ” Emma gulped. “Just for the roof? Where did Grayson get money like that?”
“Susannah asked me the same question,” said Derek. “Seemed to think I’d know.”
“You were friends,” Emma reminded him.
“Haven’t seen him for ten years,” Derek retorted. “And I never visited the hall. When I managed to make that clear to Susannah, she began asking me about Lex Rex. Went on about it until I was ready to chuck her over the nearest wall.” Derek frowned suddenly, as though a new thought had occurred to him. “She must’ve been looking for me yesterday morning, when she ...” His voice trailed off.
“Fell?” Emma suggested.
“That’s the problem, you see.” Coming to a halt, he turned to regard Emma worriedly. “A wealthy rock star drowns nearby, and Grayson’s suddenly wealthy enough to refurbish the hall. Susannah claims to see a connection ... and suddenly she’s not around to ask uncomfortable questions anymore.”
“No.” Emma shook her head. “Grayson couldn’t ... He wouldn’t...” She bit her lip, then tried again. “What I mean is, Grayson’s so ...”
“Charming? Gracious? I quite agree. But he’s also a bit of a madman, wouldn’t you say? And he knows how to sail, Emma. He’s grown up hearing tales of shipwrecks and piracy, and he told me he’d do anything to make sure the bloody lantern lit on schedule. And in order for that to happen, the duke of Penford must be in possession of Penford Hall.”
Emma opened her mouth to protest, then closed it again. After all, Mattie had told her outright that Susannah had been an unpopular figure at Penford Hall. Mild-mannered Bantry had come close to spitting on the duke’s cousin, Nanny Cole had complained of her snooping, and, however well Kate had tried to hide it, she’d been annoyed by Susannah’s needling. And Grayson ... What had he said about his cousin? She was raised by wolves, you know.
She gazed at Derek, shaken. “Do you know what you’re suggesting?”
Sighing, Derek ran a hand through his curls. “I know, and I hope it turns out to be a load of rubbish. But what if it’s not? What if Grayson was involved in Lex’s death? What if he got his hands on Lex’s money? What if Susannah’s found a way to prove it?”
Emma felt a sudden chill. When Kate had called this morning, she’d mentioned bringing Susannah back to Penford Hall as soon as she was well enough to travel. If Derek was right, if Susannah had discovered something connecting Grayson to Lex Rex’s death, the hall might not be the safest place for her to recuperate. “Tell me more about Lex Rex,” she said.
They walked slowly. Derek conscientiously moderated his long stride, and Emma was in no hurry. The path would eventually take them to the car park, and from there they would enter the village by the main—indeed the only—street. Until then, Emma had a lot of catching up to do. She listened closely while Derek told her what he knew of Charles Alexander King, more commonly known to his legion of fans as Lex Rex.
“They met in Oxford,” Derek began. “Grayson was attending lectures and Lex was holed up in a garage somewhere, working on that first, dreadful video.”
Emma searched her memory. “The black-and-white one with all the scratches?”