The trio exited the store with a heavy sigh. Lydia tried to remind herself that they were still at the beginning of their search. They shouldn’t feel discouraged that only two jewelers couldn’t identify the necklace. Perhaps Mr. Emerson would know more. She was eager to go to him immediately, to see what he had to say, but perhaps Edwin was right. After all, he had been doing this for far longer than she had. They had to do things in an orderly fashion and not rush it.
The third jeweler gave them the same sort of information. Useless and repetitive. They left his store feeling even more disappointed, despite their desire to remain optimistic and keep their chins up.
“There is another jeweler on a street opposite to this,” Edwin said, pointing in the direction where they were supposed to go. “We can visit him to see what he has to say then we can head to our Mr. Emerson.”
Lydia welcomed the idea wholeheartedly. At that moment, they could see a servant girl running towards them. Lydia immediately noticed that she was staring at Edwin, who was still with his back turned to her. The girl rushed to their side then stopped, breathing heavily.
“Your... Grace…” she said, her voice cutting out from the heavy breathing that was still gripping at her.
He seemed surprised to see her. “Julia?” he called out her name, making it instantly obvious that she was in his employment. “What is the matter?”
“I was sent to get you immediately,” Julia explained, her cheeks red from the strain and her chest heaving. “We found something… in Lady Rachel’s room.”
Edwin’s eyes widened in shock. Lydia’s heart skipped a beat. She could not believe what she was hearing. To some extent, she was somewhat envious that she and Edwin weren’t the ones who found the next clue. She wondered where it was and even more, what it was.
“What did you find?” Edwin urged her, standing in front of the girl, shadowing over her with his mighty stature.
“We turned the mattress around,” Julia explained. “There were several stiches on the bottom which we noticed before, but we assumed it was simply from a torn mattress, and it was stitched at a prior point in time. We were given permission by Her Grace to tear it open, and… we found something.”
“What did you find, Julia?” Edwin asked again, accentuating every single word. Lydia could hear impatience in his voice, but he was still calm and composed. She admired him for that.
“Letters, Your Grace.”
“More letters?” Lydia gasped, turning to Edwin.
“Have you read them?” Edwin demanded.
“No!” Julia shrieked. “We wouldn’t dare, Your Grace. We left them all on Lady Rachel’s bed, and I was sent to come and fetch you immediately.”
Edwin nodded. “You did well, Julia. You may return to the house. I assume Philip brought you?”
Julia nodded. “He is over there,” she pointed at the Duke’s second carriage which awaited her at the end of the street.
“All right,” Edwin nodded. “We shall meet you at home. I want you and whoever was with you to repeat this story to me again when we get home and anything else you may have omitted, is that clear?”
“Yes, Your Grace,” Julia nodded.
With one swift move of his hand, Edwin dismissed her, and the trio turned around to go find their own carriage which was parked on the other end of the same street. Lydia wondered if she should ask him something, anything, but one look at him assured her that he was in no mood to talk right now. He needed to process things, and he needed to do it alone. She understood that.
The ride back to the Duke’s home was silent. Susannah had dozed off, as always. Lydia was envious of her skill to always be able to fall asleep, no matter what was happening around her. When the carriage arrived, Susannah seemed to have taken a restful nap and seemed fresh as a daisy. Edwin and Lydia, on the other hand, seemed dreadfully in need of sleep. That was a trait they obviously shared.
He helped them out of the carriage, and together, they rushed back inside, eager to read the letters and see where the next clue would take them.
CHAPTER11
Edwin barged into his sister’s chamber without knocking. Two of the servants who had obviously taken part in the search were already lined up against the wall. Judging by the looks on their faces, one would think that they were being accused of a terrible crime, almost as if they felt guilty that they were the ones who found the letters.
Edwin’s eyes traveled from the servants to the letters on the bed. He took them into his trembling hands. They were just folded pieces of paper with writing on them, and yet, they held the secret to his sister’s disappearance. They would be the key to this mystery. He knew they would. He simply had to read them the right way.
“Tell me again how you found them,” Edwin demanded.
This time, another servant retold the story, using different words, but basically, it was the same story all over again. There was nothing new.
“You didn’t find anything anywhere else?” he asked although he was certain what the answer to this question would be.
“No, Your Grace,” the servant girl replied.
“Very well,” he nodded. “You are excused.”