“Not at all. He’s been sick in bed for a week, foot infection, and had a nurse attending him the entire time. He’d just gotten back to work today.”
Casting a quick glance around at the many houses and buildings that lined the surrounding streets, Sebastian nodded. “The Viper, whoever he is, must be familiar with this park then. Perhaps he lives or works nearby. And the lock might help us. It looks expensive.” The Viper could be watching them right now from any of the dozens of windows that looked over the park.
“I’ll have someone look into the lock,” Blackstone said tightly. “In the meantime, I don’t know how I’m going to tell Lady Aston.”
“May I do it, sir?” Sebastian asked. He couldn’t stand the thought of not being there when she heard the terrible news. “I’ve been working with her for the past two days, and I promised I’d let her know the minute we found out anything.”
“If you’re sure you want to,” Blackstone agreed, looking relieved. “Go and let her know and then meet me at Scotland Yard when you’re done. I’ll have the coroner work on Lady Evelyn’s body right away, even if it takes him all night. We need to find out everything we can.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Sebastian assured him, then walked quickly back through the crowd in the direction of Jocelyn’s house, wondering why he’d taken this upon himself. He could easily have let Blackstone handle it. Their families were old friends, and she probably would have taken the news better from him anyway.
But they’d formed a bond, shared some poignant, intimate moments, and he’d been so committed to helping her find her sister. He felt it was his duty to tell her and also to be there to comfort her when she heard the news.
Night had fallen while he’d been investigating the shed. A bitterly cold breeze blew down the street, and he remembered what Jocelyn had said about ghosts haunting this place. Another gust hit him, and he fancifully imagined it was the ghost of Evelyn Lindsay, tearing at his hair and clothes with her icy need for vengeance.
I will find out who did this to you. I swear I will.