02 Murder at the Mansion Read Free Page A

an hour. Thank you very much.”
    “You’re welcome, Reverend. I’m sure Sir John will greatly appreciate your visit.”
    “I look forward to speaking with him. Well, it was very nice to meet you. See you shortly!”
    The girl nodded and closed the door as Annabelle jogged down the steps and settled into her Mini. As she urged the car around the fountain and back along the satisfyingly crunchy gravel toward Arden Road, she thought about what the girl had said. Sir John Cartwright? Philippa had not mentioned anything regarding a knighthood. Could this elusive stranger really be a knight of the realm?
    The sheer size and stature of the property would certainly fit but knights tended to have reputations that preceded them. This “Sir” had arrived with little fanfare or foreknowledge. It was, thought Annabelle, possible that the title had been self-adopted. It would not have been the first time a person of wealth had done so in order to gain social standing and acceptance into the circles of aristocracy. Members of such classes were above checking credentials, making it surprisingly easy to pass oneself off as a person of nobility. But if he really were a knight, how had he achieved such a title? And what of the women that had allegedly been invited to Woodlands Manor? The girl who had greeted her was rather young. She had seemed perfectly nice and respectable, yet Annabelle felt she had detected a note of reticence. She had not even offered her name….
    “Oh, stop it, Annabelle,” the Vicar chided herself when she got home. She parked the car and entered the wonderfully gothic church she called her own. “You’re getting as bad as Philippa. You’ll be grabbing a pitchfork yourself, soon.”
    She busied herself with church duties for a while, before the phone rang.
    “Vicar?”
    “Yes, Philippa?”
    “I’ve completed the reports.”
    “Wonderful! Thank you ever so much, Philippa.”
    “Of course, Vicar.”
    “Was there anything else?”
    There was a pregnant pause before Philippa spoke again.
    “Well, I’m dreadfully ashamed to bring it up…”
    “What’s the problem?”
    “It’s just that I like to know my portion sizes. Waste is a terrible sin, after all.”
    “I’m not sure I follow you, Philippa.”
    “Well…”
    Annabelle waited for a few moments before urging the church secretary again. “Do tell me, Philippa. You’ll have me awfully worried if not.”
    “Well, it’s the cupcakes.”
    “The cupcakes?”
    “Yes.”
    “What about them?”
    “The walnut cupcakes. The ones I laid out this morning.”
    “Yes, I know.”
    “How many did you eat? Oh, I’m so ashamed to ask.”
    Annabelle struggled with her memory for a moment, then said: “I believe I had two. Yes. That’s it. I certainly had two.”
    “No more than that?”
    “No. Definitely just two. Why?”
    “You’re sure you didn’t have three, Vicar? I feel so embarrassed to ask. Do forgive me.”
    “I recall our chat perfectly, Philippa. I had two cupcakes – one with each cup of tea.”
    “I see,” Philippa said, trailing off into a note of disappointment.
    Annabelle sighed, and quickly checked her watch. “Was there anything else Philippa? I really must be off.”
    “No, no. That’s all, Vicar,” Philippa said, her dismay apparent.
    “Very well. I’ll speak to you later today then. Thank you very much for the reports.”
    “Of course, Vicar. Thank you very much.”
    Annabelle pondered the call for a few moments before remembering her appointment at Woodlands Manor. She rushed out of the church and back into her car. It was turning out to be a rather eventful day, and it had barely begun.
    Once again, Annabelle headed out to the discreet lane that led through the trees and into the luscious grounds of Woodlands Manor. Just over an hour had passed since her last visit, and her curiosity had only grown in that time. She found herself chomping at the bit to see this mysterious newcomer for herself; this meditating