A Second Chance for Murder Read Online Free PDF Page B

powder.”
    Thora’s chest tightened, her heavy heart ached, and tears threatened to spill but Thora forced them back. Coiling her fingers around the comb nestled in her palm, she made a tight fist, causing the comb’s teeth to press into her skin, yet she didn’t feel its bite.
    Straightening her shoulders, she inwardly vowed, I’ll find him, Ivey. If it’s the last thing I do I’ll find him and see that he’s punished!
    Further down the hall, Nyle was in his room wearing the thick oriental carpet under his feet to a thread with his constant pacing. He was having difficulty absorbing what Garren had told him earlier in the library. After taking the guest list from Garren, he saw that the names of four men had been circled, Viscount Radley Simon-North, Marquis Calder Brightington, Lord Avery Flemington, and Mr. Sandler Leedworthy. Then with alarming bluntness, he was told that one of these men, guests under his roof, men he considered friends and with whom he would soon sit down to supper was a cold, merciless killer. Making matters worse was the fact that Garren was convinced that poor Ivey was not his first victim nor would she be his last.
    Garren went on to inform him that shortly after their meeting in London, he had used his connections with the Royal Guardians to search the files of unsolved murders in surrounding areas and had discovered that during the past three years a number of murders had taken place. All were women, all raped and strangled. A pretty parlor maid, a constable’s daughter, a young governess, next was a village school teacher, and lastly Ivey Sharling. Each one had been young, pretty, and, according to the county coroner’s report, all had been virgins. But what was more frightening was the fact that all four men had been nearby at the time each murder was committed.
    Nyle’s immediate thought was of Thora. He should have put his foot down and forbidden her to invite guests, but then what would she have done? He shuddered at the thought. Regardless of how much she protested, he should send her away out of harm’s way, but what would he tell her? She was too bright, too determined, and too damn stubborn to accept his command to leave without sufficient reason. Besides, as Garren pointed out, such an action may alert the killer, but Garren was thinking like an investigator not a brother. Nyle let go a sigh of sheer frustration. He had never felt so helpless in his life. As a businessman he was a smart investor, in sports a fierce competitor and could hold his own in a brawl, but this situation was beyond his scope of understanding.
    “Excuse me, my lord,” Mercer, his manservant, repeated for a second time, but his words went unheeded. He noisily cleared his throat and uttered louder than before, “Pardon me, Your Grace.”
    When his manservant’s words finally reached his ear, Nyle turned with a start, unaware that the man had entered the room. Recovering quickly, he asked, “Mercer, have you seen Lord Huntscliff to his room?”
    “Yes, milord, and since Lord Huntscliff left his valet in London to oversee some work he was having done on his townhouse and won’t be here until tomorrow, I’ve assigned one of the house staff to tend him.”
    “Thank you, Mercer. As always, you’ve anticipated my wishes. Now help me get dressed for dinner.”
    Mercer immediately obliged and went to the wardrobe for one of his master’s dinner jackets. He wondered what was bothering the young master. Could it be he was worried about having guests in the house again? The elderly servant involuntarily shivered, recalling what had happened at the last house party and the awful sight when he’d discovered that poor girl. There was something he hadn’t told his master or the constables about that night, something that puzzled him, something that kept him awake at night wondering if it had any significance, and something seemingly minor that may yet prove important.
    Perhaps he’d speak to the master