Tessa’s expression clouded over, and Marc could see a flutter at her throat where the robe parted. Even in distress she was incredibly beautiful in an innocent, unfinished sort of way. “I’ll try to help you if I can,” she said bravely, though it was clear she had questions of her own she would like answered.
“First of all, I must inform you that both you and Rick were drugged last night. Someone put laudanum in your sherry decanter.”
Tessa seemed about to lose her carefully constructed composure, but whether it was the result of hearing the word laudanum or the name Rick couldn’t be determined.
“Who would do that?” she whispered. “An’ why?”
“I intend to get answers to both of those questions. And you can help by telling me what happened after you and Rick went to your room.”
Tessa blushed a deep peony red, Madge Frank cleared her throat threateningly, but something in Marc’s steady, unjudgemental gaze encouraged the girl to begin her story. As she recited it, she kept her eyes on the tea-mug in her lap most of the time, peeking up only once a minute or so to make sure this handsome, kind-eyed officer was still listening and approving. In her own accented vernacular, Tessa’s narrative jibed with Rick’s at every essential point.
“So you were both seated on the settee, and you asked Marc to stay for one more drink?”
“Yes, I did. I was feelin’ so mellow an’ cozy and I didn’t want things to end.”
“I forbid you to take this improper conversation any further!” Madge Frank had started towards the bed, her eyes black with indignation.
“Mrs. Frank, please stand outside the door and observe if you must, but if you say one more word, I’ll remove you and shut the door.”
Madge huffed indignantly, but did as she was bidden. Marc hoped that he would not need her as an ally anytime soon. “Please go on, Tessa. I know this is very hard, but every detail you can remember may help Rick.”
He could see she wanted to ask him about Rick but dared not-yet. “I started to feel real sleepy and I saw Rick yawn, so I went over to the bed an’ laid down on it, and I was so groggy I thought I was about to faint, but, still, I really wanted Rick to stay, so I … I started to lift up my shift-”
Madge Frank was heard clattering down the hall.
“And?”
“Nothin’.”
“Nothing?”
“I must’ve passed out.”
“But you woke up later?”
“Yes.” The memory of that wakening flooded back, whole and hurting. “But I was only half awake. There was a huge weight on top of me and a raspy breathin’ in my ear. An’ before I could say or see anythin’, I felt a sharp jab between my legs and I cried out with the pain of it.”
“Did you know who … was doing this thing to you?”
“No,” she said, barely audible.
“I fainted dead away again.”
“Part of that was due to the drug, Tessa.” Two perfect teardrops had slipped out of her pale blue eyes and now sat, one on each cheek, glistening. “Could it have been Rick on top of you?” Marc asked quietly.
Amazement, then fear, filled her face. “Oh, no, it couldn’t’ve been Rick. He would never do anythin’ to hurt me. You can’t think Rick did this?”
“No, I don’t. But I had to ask.”
“Rick saved me from bein’ murdered!” she cried with passion and a kind of defiant, childlike pride. “Mrs. Frank’s told me about … about Jason.”
“Did you see Rick … save you?”
Tessa shook her head and shuddered. “I don’t remember anythin’ except cryin’ out at the pain. Then I was driftin’ in the dark, and all kinds of nightmares were scuttlin’ through my head, and I saw Rick with a knife stuck in him an’ he was all bloody and I screamed so loud I woke myself up-here in Mrs. Frank’s bed.”
Marc sighed. “So you’re telling me that you were unconscious from the moment you first cried out in pain, and thus can tell me nothing of what happened in that room after that point?”
“I only know what Mrs. Frank told me: that Jason was stabbed by Rick because he did that awful thing to me.” At this, she began to sob softly, and Marc went to the door and called Madge, who appeared instantly from around a corner. “She needs you, ma’am.”
“What’s gonna happen to Rick?” Tessa cried out from the bed. “What’s gonna happen to the company?”
“I don’t know yet,” Marc said honestly as Madge bustled by him and took the girl in her arms, stroking her hair and murmuring in her ear.
As Marc left, he heard Tessa say like a lost child, “Get Annie. Oh, please, Madge, I gotta see Annie!”
As Marc emerged from the Franks’ quarters into the tavern, Ogden Frank was just unbarring the street-door across the room to let Cobb in.
“I hope nobody spotted you,” Frank said fretfully as he slammed the bar back into its slot.
Cobb ignored him, and brushed by towards Marc so abruptly he sent the roly-poly little man a-wobble. Cobb looked as if he had dressed in the dark with one hand: his coat buttons were misaligned, his shirt was inside out, and his helmet sat precariously on one side of his head. But he smiled gamely at Marc, who himself would not have passed muster at parade.
Before Marc could speak, Cobb said, “I’ve checked the alley: there’s no sign of footprints or a ladder bein’ underneath the windows.”
Marc nodded and said, “I’ve got news.”
“I’ve never known you not to,” Cobb said.
They sat down at a table, and Cobb removed his coat to reveal a portion of Dora’s breakfast preparation on his vest.
“Do you want to tell us something?” Marc called out to Frank, who had stopped wobbling and was now loitering near the door to his quarters.
Frank came close enough to say with a certain spiteful glee, “I heard him an’ the woman shoutin’ at each other yesterday morning.”
“Who and what woman?” Marc said.
“That Thea creature an’ Merriwether-jawin’ away at each other in the dining-room when they thought nobody was listenin’.”
“What were they arguing about?”
“I couldn’t tell fer sure, but I’d say it was a lovers’ quarrel.”
“And how did it end?”
“The woman screamed somethin’ like ‘I ain’t gonna take it no more!’ an’ she come streakin’ past me bawlin’ her eyes out.”
“Thank you, Ogden. I appreciate your assistance. Is everything all right with those upstairs?”
Frank looked pitiably grateful and flashed Marc a fawning smile. “They’ve had their breakfast, but it’s put Madge in a fearful rage. Do you think we’ll be able to go ahead with the show tonight?”
“I’ll let you know right after noon,” Marc promised.
“I gotta open the taproom at one o’clock,” he said. “Lucky fer us, nobody’s stayin’ in the hotel rooms above us except my two housemaids.”
“Let’s keep it that way, shall we?”
Frank nodded as if he were a co-conspirator, then waddled away to deal with his much-put-upon wife.
Marc proceeded to give Cobb a brief account of what he had found at the bottom of Merriwether’s trunk.
Cobb arched an eyebrow, whistled through his teeth, and said, “Couldn’t we ever get us a plain an’ simple murder? Now we got politics muddled up in it.”
Cobb was alluding to last year’s investigation, and Marc was reminded of a remark Beth had made then that in Upper Canada everything was politics. “But politics or not, Cobb, we’ve still got to find evidence to clear Rick of this crime.”
“Assumin’ he didn’t do it.”
“I’m assuming that,” Marc said, staring at the constable.
Cobb didn’t react, but merely said, “Ya had a chance to talk to the girl yet?”
Marc gave him a summary of his interview with Tessa.
When he had finished, Cobb said, “Well, Major, that don’t seem to be a lotta help to Hilliard.”
“It’s worse than that. She’s convinced he did it in defense of her honour-such as it is, or was. And he’s still besotted with her.”