Crystal Gardens (35 page)

“You fled the chamber but you forgot the chatelaine,” Evangeline said. “In all the commotion it somehow got kicked into the pool and landed on one of the underwater steps.”

“I dressed, made my way out of the maze and left Crystal Gardens. I assumed that Chester would deal with Mrs. Buckley and in the morning he and I would discuss how to go about making another attempt to get the treasure out of the Vision Pool.”

“But in the morning, Mrs. Buckley summoned the doctor, who determined that Chester had collapsed from a heart attack and died at the breakfast table,” Lucas said.

Irene made a short, disgusted sound. “She murdered him. I’m sure of it. I don’t know how she made it look like a heart attack, but there is no doubt in my mind that she killed him in a jealous rage.”

“I agree with you,” Lucas said quietly. “She poisoned him with some potion that she created in her stillroom using lethal plants from the gardens.”

Evangeline fixed Irene with an intent expression. “If you believed that she murdered Chester Sebastian, you must have wondered if she would try to kill you, as well.”

“I was somewhat concerned for a short time,” Irene said. “But the very next day she left town on the morning train. At first I thought that things would be much simpler with both of them out of the way.”

“You went back into the gardens, didn’t you?” Lucas asked. “You had the code to the door. You could get through the energy gate and you could clear the waters. But you discovered that you could not go down the steps into the pool. It was all you could do just to dip your fingers into the bath.”

“I told you, I just needed more time to study the energy,” Irene hissed. “But the next thing I knew, we heard that you would soon be arriving to deal with your uncle’s estate. I assumed you would try to sell it. But instead you took up residence.” Irene’s voice rang with accusation. “Then Miss Ames and your relatives moved into the abbey. You hired some of the locals. There was talk in town that you intended to make Crystal Gardens your country house. People whispered that there was a giant of a man who stood guard over the grounds.”

“There was nothing you could do but bide your time,” Lucas said. “You hoped that eventually we would all leave.”

“Only an obsessed eccentric like your uncle would want to live there permanently,” Irene said. “The forces in the gardens are becoming more disturbing by the week. Chester knew that. He was convinced that the energy in the Vision Pool was the reason.”

“Did he tell you why he thought the forces of the spring had become so strong?” Lucas asked.

“No, and I did not care. All I wanted was the treasure. Then Mrs. Buckley showed up at my back door this morning. She had the nerve to try to blackmail me.”

“With what?” Lucas asked.

“She said that unless I paid her a large sum of cash, she would tell you that I was after the treasure and that I was responsible for your uncle’s death. She thought she had it all planned out, you see. She was certain you would believe her because you had known her for years. You had no reason not to trust her.”

“You waited until her back was turned and you cracked her skull with that bookend,” Evangeline said.

“I decided that the only thing I could do was leave town until the excitement was over,” Irene said.

“But we arrived before you could leave,” Lucas said.

“The pair of you have complicated my life in every conceivable manner. There is nothing for it but to get rid of you. Believe me, I will not enjoy the business but you have left me no option.”

Lucas found the focus that he needed and heightened his talent, sending the energy of terror into Irene’s aura.

The pistol in her hands started to tremble.

Irene’s eyes widened in horror. “What is happening? You are doing something to me. I can sense it. My heart.
I cannot breathe
.”

She tried to pull the trigger but it was too late. She collapsed, unconscious.

T
he police arrested Irene Witton for the murder of Mrs. Buckley.” Evangeline put down the morning edition of the
Little Dixby Herald
and picked up her teacup. “She is claiming to have paranormal powers and is telling everyone that she saw a nightmarish vision of demons and monsters guarding a silver pool that holds a hoard of ancient gold. When she recovered from the horrific visions she found the body. The general consensus of opinion in town is that the shock of killing Buckley has left Witton unhinged. Speculation is that she will end up in an asylum.”

“Which may well be her goal,” Lucas said. He forked up a bite of eggs. “Assuming she isn’t actually insane.”

Evangeline met his eyes and knew that he was considering the possibility that he might have pushed Irene over the edge of sanity by the force of his talent.

“She is not mad,” Evangeline said. “I saw her aura when I checked
her for a pulse. I did not see the taint of madness. But I can well believe that she has decided to fake a mental illness. She has no doubt concluded that it will be easier to escape from an asylum than it will be from prison.”

Beth buttered a slice of toast. “You and Lucas speak very casually of the possibility that she might escape.”

“From what little I know of her, I think it is safe to say that Irene Witton is not without resources.” Lucas drank some coffee. “But at least she is no longer a problem for us. She was obsessed with the gold. If she ever manages to return to Little Dixby it will be too late. By then the treasure will be safely stored in a museum.”

Tony appeared in the doorway. Evangeline stared at him, startled. His hair was standing up in spikes all over his head and his shirt and trousers were badly wrinkled. He had a long rolled-up map in his hand. His excitement was palpable.

“Are you well?” Evangeline asked. “You look as if you slept in your clothes.”

“Actually, I didn’t sleep much at all.” Tony looked at Beth. “You were right about those crystals.”

“Really?” Beth crumpled her napkin and tossed it on the table. “You found them?”

“I think so, yes.” Tony rushed to the table, pushed aside the dishes and silverware that Molly had set out for him and unrolled the map.

Lucas got to his feet. “What did you find?”

Tony looked up from the map. “The crystals.”

“What crystals?” Lucas asked patiently.

Beth was on her feet. “I remembered that you said you thought the energy in the gardens started to intensify about two years ago. I went back to Uncle Chester’s journals for that period and I found notes about an experiment he planned to carry out.”

Evangeline rose and came around the table to examine the map. “What kind of crystals?”

“Uncle Chester wasn’t sure,” Beth said. “He found them in a crate in an antiquities shop in London. There were three of them. According to his notes they were a dull, murky gray, not very interesting at first glance, but he could sense the power in them. The proprietor of the shop had concluded that the stones were not worth much. Chester got them at a very cheap price.”

“He brought them back here and conducted some experiments on them,” Tony said. “He was convinced that they could be made to resonate with the frequency of the spring waters.”

“He tried various techniques but nothing worked,” Beth continued. “Then it occurred to him that the crystals might need to be sunk into the ground in order to resonate with the natural forces in the area. He buried them in various locations.”

“All three of which border the Night Garden,” Tony said.

“Those marks I noticed on one of the maps,” Lucas said.

“Exactly.” Triumph gleamed in Tony’s eyes. He stabbed a finger at the three marks he had circled on the map. “He noted the locations so that he could find them again if the experiment didn’t work.”

“Why didn’t he dig them up when he sensed that something was wrong in the gardens?” Evangeline asked.

“Because it never occurred to him that the crystals were the problem,” Beth said. “He was convinced the source of the trouble was the Vision Pool. He fixed his attention on that possibility and did not look for other answers.”

“A classic mistake in any sort of investigation,” Lucas said, “whether it is a case of murder or a scientific inquiry. We must locate those crystals and get them out of the ground as soon as possible. Then we will see if there is any change in the energy level.”

T
he knock on the library door sent a chill of foreboding through Lucas. A woman’s knock, he thought. Not Molly. Not Evangeline. Not Beth. Resigned, he got to his feet.

“Come in, Judith,” he said.

She opened the door and walked slowly into the room. “You knew it was me. You always seem to know things like that.”

“In this case it was a simple process of elimination. No psychical talent involved. What was it you wanted?”

She closed the door, walked halfway across the room and stopped. One gloved hand was clenched at her side.

“Miss Ames has advised me to confront you with my fears,” she said.

“I should have known that Evangeline was somehow behind this.” Grimly he indicated a chair. “You had better sit down because I suspect that I will soon find it necessary to do so. Something tells me this is going to be another difficult conversation.”

Judith remained on her feet. “Our conversations have always been difficult.”

He winced. “Oddly enough, I recall making a similar observation to Miss Ames. Are you going to sit down?”

“I would rather stand.”

“As you wish.” He had no choice but to remain on his feet so he faced her from across the desk. “I assume this is about Beth and Tony.”

“Of course it is.” Anger mixed with fear darkened Judith’s eyes. “In a way it has been about them from the beginning, has it not?”

He rubbed his temples. “Judith, I think it would be best if you did not say anything else on the subject.”

“What does it matter if we have the truth plain between us at last,” Judith asked, very fierce now. “I know what you thought all those years ago when I married your father with such unseemly haste. I know what you thought when the twins were born almost two months early. You believed that I had ruined myself with another man, that I was pregnant when I married George and that is why my parents forced me into such a dreadful marriage. You never said a word but I could see the accusation in your eyes.”

He lowered his hand. “It doesn’t matter, Judith. Not then and not now.”

She took a step closer, her shoulders rigid. “It does matter because you were right. I was pregnant by a married man twice my age. It was not even a matter of seduction. It was rape, but of course no one could say the word aloud.”

“Enough, Judith.”

“His name was Bancroft. Five years ago the bastard was found dead in an alley outside a brothel. The press ignored the location of the death, of course. There was a great outcry about the dreadful increase in street crime.”

It had become clear that Judith was not going to sit down. Lucas went to stand at the window looking out into the dark gardens.

“What was the world coming to, everyone asked when a gentleman of Bancroft’s rank in society could not walk the streets in safety,” Judith continued, her voice unnaturally even. “But when I saw the accounts of his death in the papers I wanted to celebrate. The bastard was dead. A heart attack, according to the press. It was not the kind of justice I had thirsted for all those years, not true vengeance, but at least he was dead. For a time, I slept better at night.”

“Are you finished?” Lucas asked. He did not take his eyes off the gardens.

“No.” Judith’s voice tightened in her throat. “I slept better until your grandfather died and left everything to you. It was bad enough that George had made no provision for the twins, but when I realized that your grandfather hadn’t either, that you controlled the fortune, I began to know a kind of panic you will never understand.”

Lucas turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. “Do you really believe that I would cut off Beth and Tony to punish you?”

“They are not related to you by blood,” Judith said bitterly. “You know that.”

“It doesn’t matter.”