The Arnifour Affair Read Online Free Page A

then?”
    â€œI shall have Mr. Heffernan take you. It will give you an opportunity to speak with him.”
    â€œOutstanding.” Colin leaned forward and grabbed two more petit fours, palming them into a napkin and sliding them into his pocket. “I should also like to speak with your daughter—Kaylin, isn’t it?”
    â€œYes. But I’m afraid she’s not here just now. All of this business has put her quite on edge, so I’ve sent her to stay with a friend in town. If you’d like, I’ll arrange to have her meet you at your flat one afternoon?”
    â€œThat would be ideal. The sooner the better.”
    We followed Lady Arnifour through the rear door Mrs. O’-Keefe had used and found ourselves in a sparse hallway that opened onto a large, immaculate kitchen. It was the most pristine space I had ever seen. Not a speck, not a smudge anywhere save for the harsh, black-clad personage of Mrs. O’Keefe peeling carrots into a rubbish can at a well-worn table.
    â€œHave you seen Mr. Heffernan?” Lady Arnifour asked.
    â€œOut back, ma’am. Trimming roses last I saw.”
    â€œVery well.”
    We filed through the kitchen and out back, and I was aware of being under the watchful gaze of Mrs. O’Keefe the entire time.
    A compact vegetable garden ran along the back of the house just off the kitchen, displaying an assortment of lettuce, tomatoes, cabbage, carrots, broccoli, cucumber, spinach, and a few other bits of greenery I did not recognize. Just beyond was a hedge of boxwoods clipped to precision, but it wasn’t until I looked out among the array of rosebushes beyond that I noticed the thick man attending them. He had a plaid cap slipped down on one side of his head and the plain gray-green jumper of a groundsman. I knew at once it had to be Victor Heffernan.
    â€œHere you are,” Lady Arnifour fairly purred.
    â€œMa’am.” He stood up and I saw that he was barely taller than our hostess.
    â€œYou must be Mr. Heffernan.” Colin stuck out his hand.
    â€œIf you aren’t here to arrest me, you can call me Victor. Everyone does.”
    â€œI assure you, Victor,” Colin smiled amiably, “I have no interest in arresting anyone.”
    Victor Heffernan stared at Colin, a dark curling mustache an accent mark above his lips, and appeared to be trying to determine whether we meant trouble. Colin kept smiling, revealing nothing, his dimpled grin as natural as the rose petals Victor had been fussing among. He appeared to be about twice as old as Colin’s thirty-eight years, but even so, I could tell he had no idea what to make of us.
    â€œThis is Colin Pendragon.” Lady Arnifour came forward in a peculiarly maternal way. “I’ve hired him to prove you and Nathaniel innocent of this tragedy.” She let her voice drift off as though she was overcome by the very thought.
    â€œNow, now . . .” Victor reached out and patted his mistress’s hand with marked intimacy. “Don’t get yourself worked up again.”
    Lady Arnifour gave a tight smile and took a slight step back, effectively moving out of his reach. Victor seemed to realize his indiscretion and suddenly stumbled backwards, carelessly slicing off the top of an errant rose. I was beginning to believe that Colin’s initial assessment of the alibi Lady Arnifour could provide this man might be true.
    â€œWould you take them down to see what’s left of the barn?” she said. “I simply cannot bear to go.”
    â€œOf course. I’ll go hitch up the buckboard.”
    â€œThank you.” Lady Arnifour gave him a gentle nod as he headed off. “I’ll wait for you in the study.”
    â€œWhen we come back I’d like to check on your niece.” Colin tipped his chin toward me. “Mr. Pruitt knows something of wounds and healing and such.”
    â€œBut I’m not a doctor,” I pointed out.
    He clapped my