Page 150

Baines struggled to restrain his impatience. “Did Judith mention the passages?”

“No, Major, but she hurried towards the west staircase, perhaps with the intention of reading it. Now my sister wishes to depart with haste. I must go before she discovers me.”

“One moment, Miss Hammond,” Renforth said. “Did your sister give any indication of why she wished to leave so suddenly?”

“She said she had received a letter requiring her immediate return to London. She was in a dreadful temper when she came back from walking the dogs, and she demanded that her travelling cases be brought downstairs at once.”

“And when was that?” Baines asked.

“Perhaps half an hour ago. I cannot be certain.”

Renforth exchanged a glance with Baines. “Thank you, Miss Hammond. You have been most helpful. I suggest you remain with Sir Lionel until we have resolved this matter.”

The woman appeared relieved to be dismissed and hurried away.

“The west staircase,” Baines repeated.

Manners was already moving. “Come, Baines.”

They hurried down the corridor, Renforth following. On reaching the staircase, Baines examined the narrow cabinet standing within its recess. He opened the upper drawer, finding nothing but a few old candles and a length of ribbon. The lower drawer contained an assortment of household odds and ends.

“Miss Hammond mentioned this cabinet?” Manners asked.

“She said her sister sometimes used it to exchange correspondence.”

Baines ran his fingers along the bottom of the upper drawer. A faint ridge interrupted the otherwise smooth surface. He pressed against it, and a thin wooden panel shifted beneath his hand.

“A false bottom,” he said, lifting it free.

The compartment beneath was empty, although a pale rectangle in the dust suggested that something had recently rested there.

“She was here.”

“Or someone else has removed whatever was concealed,” Renforth observed.

Baines examined the edge of the compartment. “If Judith discovered this, she would have wished to know where the correspondence originated.”

Renforth studied the passage. “Where does this lead?”

“To the older western rooms,” Baines replied. “Sir Lionel mentioned once that this part of the house had been closed for years.”

“Then we shall begin there,” Renforth said.

They proceeded through the narrow doorway beyond the staircase. The sounds of the household diminished behind them, replaced by the occasional creak of old floorboards beneath their boots. A faint draught stirred the dust along the passage, and Baines noticed several doors standing ajar.

He stopped at the first and looked inside.

The room appeared to have served as a bedchamber, although its furniture had long since been removed. A narrow fireplace occupied one wall, and heavy shutters concealed the windows. Baines crossed the floor and examined the chimney breast, searching for any irregularity in the panelling.

“Nothing,” he said.

Manners had already entered the adjoining room. “Nor here, unless Miss Finch has taken refuge beneath a quantity of Holland covers.”

Baines joined him, but the room offered no indication of recent occupation. They continued along the passage, opening doors and examining cupboards, while Renforth inspected the walls for evidence of concealed entrances.

At the third room, Baines stopped abruptly. A faint sound had reached him, scarcely distinguishable from the settling of the old timbers.

“Did you hear that?”