An Invisible Murder Read Online Free PDF Page B

exasperation than anything else. Elsie merely sneered. It was, Jenny was coming to realize, the kitchen maid’s near- permanent expression.
     
    A half-hour later, she and Elsie set about clearing and washing up, managing to finish the work in a matter of minutes. They divided their tasks equally and automatically , working in a comfortable silence. She had just wiped down the largest bowl, and was about to put it back in thecupboard, when Meecham coughed discreetly behind her. She looked back over her shoulder, and raised an eyebrow.
    ‘Lady Vee and Sir George would like to see you, Miss Starling. In the sunroom.’
    Jenny nodded, put down the bowl on the shelf, and heard a curious, not to mention ominous, dull thunk. Curious, she peered into the recess of the cupboard, saw something move, and reached inside.
    When her hands emerged, she was holding Henry.
    For a second the reptile blinked at her, and she blinked back at it. Then, without a word, she carefully put it on the floor, returned the bowl to its proper place, and turned to follow Meecham. She spared only a moment to wonder how the tortoise had got onto the cupboard shelf, which was a least three feet off the ground.
    But her thoughts were mainly centred on the upcoming meeting. Perhaps the family hadn’t been as happy with the food as Meecham had led her to believe? Had Elsie lied when she said they didn’t go in for lots of courses when they dined alone? So nervous was she, she barely glanced at her surroundings as Meecham led her down the maze-like corridors to a small room decorated in pale yellow. The butler bowed silently, and left.
    Her ladyship looked up from a surprisingly garish tabloid newspaper and beamed. ‘Ah, Miss Starling, there you are. I just wanted to say what a delightful meal that was. Haven’t had Lancashire hotpot for ages. Our old cook was from Devon, you know.’
    Jenny didn’t, but didn’t care. She hadn’t been told politely to sling her hook, and that was all that mattered.
    ‘Lovely puddin’,’ his lordship rumbled in agreement from the depths of an old armchair, without bothering to open his firmly shut eyes.
    ‘George always naps after dinner,’ said Lady Vee, anxious that the new cook should not take offence. Not after the meal they’d just had. ‘I just wanted to say how much we enjoyed it, and also to warn you that we’re expecting friends tomorrow for tea.’
    ‘Not dinner?’ Jenny asked quickly.
    ‘No, just tea. Well, not even that really. The colonel and his wife will be arriving about three, I expect, so if you could just have a little something ready. Just a scone or two, would be fine. The colonel’s got a bit of a thing about dining out. Can’t stand to do it. His poor wife hasn’t eaten in a restaurant for twenty years.’
    Jenny nodded. And she knew better than to be fooled by this ‘just a scone or two’ business. ‘Some Madeira cake, perhaps?’ she murmured. ‘And the odd savoury? Some small egg and bacon flans – cold, of course – and some sandwiches? Cucumber, egg and cress? I’ll bake some fresh bread after lunch.’
    Her ladyship beamed. ‘Splendid, splendid. Well, I won’t keep you. You must be exhausted. I can’t tell you how grateful we are, can I, George, that you were able to start work straight away.’ In answer, a loud snore came from the depths of his lordship’s chair.
    Jenny smiled, and withdrew. Once the door was shut behind her she found herself in a small anteroom. Wryly, she realized that she had been too worried to take notice of all the twists and turns in getting here and was now thoroughly lost. She glanced around her at the now expected plethora of paintings, and lingered over a charming picture of water lilies on a misty lake. But as she slowly walked off in what she hoped was the right direction, a gleam of jewel-like light caught her eye, and she turned back, glancing up in surprise. For there on the wall above her, was the most beautiful – andoutlandish –