Escaping Notice Read Online Free PDF Page A

retrospect, Hugh could not say he regretted Miss Peyton’s
decision, although he did wish she had informed him before he had decided to host that damnably inconvenient ball.
    Then his stomach churned with another burst of deep anger. He
dropped the half-eaten biscuit on his plate. “I went out on the Twilight . Two days ago.”
    “I thought she was in dry dock?”
    Hugh shook his head. “Was. And I inspected her myself last
Friday. She was a beauty.” He delayed mentioning his brother,
saying the words aloud.
    Lionel and the Twilight . Both lost to the sea. And he was
responsible.
    “Was?”
    “The accident,” Hugh replied gently.
    “Your accident was aboard the Twilight ? I’m dreadfully
sorry. I know how you loved that boat ….”
    “Aye,” Hugh breathed. “Aye, I loved her.”
    “But at least you survived, though you appear to have had a
rough time of it.”
    “Someone tampered with the rudder, Petre. I took the Twilight out Sunday afternoon. Most of our guests were busy
anyway, and I wanted to get out on the water again. A storm hit ….”
He choked and then coughed to clear the tightness in his throat.
“The helm would not respond. That bloody storm broke her back,
Petre. And —” The words splintered in his mouth.
    “I’m sorry — ” Petre started to reply, before leaning forward to
grip Hugh’s forearm silently in a gesture of sympathy.
    “Lionel is dead. Drowned.”
    “Lionel? But how?”
    “We drove to Newport together. He was going to visit the vicar
to talk about his plans for entering the church. The day was fine,
so when he learned I intended to take the Twilight out, he
insisted on coming with me, God help him. I believe he felt sorry
for me after Miss Peyton ran off.” Perhaps that accounted for the
strange, nervous gleam in Lionel’s eyes when he had insisted on
going with him. He obviously felt his brother would be better off
with company, than sailing alone with only his bitter thoughts.
Hugh rubbed his face, the palm of his hand rasping over his beard.
“Then the gale came. The boom broke free. It caught him on the
neck.” His fingers clutched the arms of his chair as they had
gripped Lionel’s collar. The desperate need to drag him to safety
filled Hugh again. He released his stiff fingers. It no longer
mattered – none of it did. “He fell overboard. The waves took him —
I could not keep my grip on him!”
    “Dear God!” Petre stood and hurried to a small cabinet tucked
under the shelves along the south wall. When he returned, he
carried two glasses and a crystal decanter of brandy. He
half-filled the glasses and handed one to Hugh. “I’m so sorry, Lord
Monnow. What terrible news.”
    “I could not keep hold of him —”
    “No one could.”
    “It was my fault ….”
    “No. No it was a dreadful accident —”
    “It was murder.”
    “Murder? Why would you say such a thing?”
    Hugh struggled for control over his grief-roughened voice.
“Someone sabotaged the rudder. And in the end, I could not save
him. I could only save myself.”
    “No one could blame you, Lord Monnow. It’s a miracle you
survived at all.” He patted Hugh’s wrist again. “Surely it was
simply a mishap, not sabotage. It’s only your grief that makes you
say such things. Understandable.”
    “There’s no other explanation for it — for the way the rudder
broke. I found a piece of it on the beach. It had been sawn nearly
in half.”
    “But … but there must be another answer! Who would want
to murder Lionel?”
    “It wasn’t meant to be Lionel. It should have been me. The boat
is mine. Everyone knew I would be taking her out, certainly some
time this week.”
    Petre downed the contents of his glass and poured another,
reaching forward to refill Hugh’s tumbler as well. His brown eyes
filled with dismay. When Hugh drained his glass, Petre refilled it
with a shaking hand.
    Liquor could not numb the pain.
    “Do you know who?” Petre’s voice was soft, almost hesitant as if
he