Crystal Gardens

  “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.

  Thirty-six

  The 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.”

  Thirty-seven

  The 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 s
aid.

  “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.”

  “Because the law recognizes them as George’s offspring? I am well aware of that. But you know the truth. You can cut them off without a qualm when they marry and tell yourself that you owe them nothing.”

  “That will not happen.”

  “You have waited all these years to have your revenge on me for the lies I have had to live all these years. Your father was away in Egypt when the twins were born. He never showed in any way that he was suspicious that the children were not his.”

  “Father had very little interest in any of his children,” Lucas said.

  “True enough. But your grandfather always suspected the truth. I could tell. I’m certain that is why he made certain that everything was left to you.”

  Lucas turned completely around to face her. “None of this matters. You can stop torturing yourself with your fears. Within a week after I inherited my grandfather’s estate, I drew up papers to ensure that in the event anything happened to me, you and Tony and Beth would receive the bulk of the family fortune.”

  Judith looked at him in disbelief. “Why would you be so generous when you know they are not related to you by blood?”

  “Because it doesn’t matter,” he said. “How many times must I repeat myself? Beth is my sister and Tony is my brother. They will always be my sister and brother. I assure you they have been provided for in my will. You have been taken care of as well. Trust me when I tell you that none of you will end up on the streets.”

  Judith looked disconcerted. After a few seconds a faint hope lit her face. “I want to believe you.”

  “I know you do not think highly of me, but have you ever known me to lie to you or to Tony or to Beth?”

  Judith bit her lip. “No.”

  “Then, for the sake of your sanity and your nerves, I hope you will believe me now.”

  “I do not know how to thank you,” Judith whispered.

  “There is no need. You and Beth and Tony are family. That is all that matters.”

  “Miss Ames said that you would feel this way.”

  A brisk knock sounded on the door. Grateful for the interruption, Lucas went back behind his desk.

  “Come in, Evangeline,” he said. “I think Judith and I are finished.” He looked at Judith. “Or was there something else?”

  “No,” Judith said. She rallied. “There is nothing else.”

  The door opened. Evangeline smiled. “Are you sure I’m not interrupting anything important?”

  “Not at all.” Judith gave her a tremulous smile. “I’m on my way upstairs to pack. I have decided to return to London with Florence in the morning. Our maids will accompany us, of course.”

  “Leaving so soon?” Evangeline said.

  “Beth and Tony find the place fascinating, but neither Florence nor I have ever been comfortable here at Crystal Gardens.” Judith went toward the door. “Beth’s presence is quite sufficient to satisfy the proprieties. If you will both excuse me?”

  “Certainly,” Evangeline said.

  Lucas hesitated and then made his decision. “Judith, there is one thing you might want to know.”

  Judith tensed, wary and fearful again. “What is it?”

  “I investigated Bancroft’s death. It may give you some satisfaction to know that the news accounts got it wrong. But, then, that is often the case.”

  “I don’t understand,” Judith said.

  “Bancroft did not die of natural causes. Someone killed him.”

  “Are you certain?” she asked.

  “There was never any doubt.”

  Judith drew a deep breath. “So I owe a common street criminal for delivering the justice that society would never have given me.”

  “That is certainly one way of looking at it,” Lucas said.

  Judith raised her chin. “I hope he died in pain.”

  “He did. I promise you, he knew fear before he knew death.”

  Judith nodded once. A great calm settled on her. She looked both weary and relieved. “Thank you, Lucas. You have given me a fine gift today, one I will always be grateful for, but Beth and Tony must never know about Bancroft.”

  “They will not hear of him from me,” he said. “I give you my word. But I have known Beth and Tony all of their lives. I am convinced that they are quite capable of dealing with the truth. In my opinion, they have a right to it. And knowing those two, sooner or later they will discover it, in any event. It would be best if they heard it from you first.

  Evangeline looked at Judith. “I agree. Beth and Tony are very impressive, very admirable young people. They are strong enough to handle the facts of their birth. As Lucas said, they have a right to those facts. They will understand why you did what you did.”

  Judith sighed. “You know the truth, as well, don’t you? You are aware that Beth a
nd Tony are not my husband’s offspring.”

  “Lucas said nothing on the subject but my intuition told me that might be the case,” Evangeline said. “It explained so much, you see.”

  Judith was quiet for a long moment. Then she took a deep breath. “Perhaps you are both correct.” She looked at Lucas. “You are right when you say that Beth and Tony are strong. What is more, they owe much of their inner strength and character to you. I can see that now.”

  “Do not discount your own courage and your determination to protect your children, Judith,” Lucas said. “Beth and Tony received a great deal of their strong will and character from you.”

  Judith gave Evangeline a tremulous smile. “Thank you for encouraging me to speak to Lucas today. I feel as if a crushing weight has been lifted from my heart.”

  She went out into the hall and closed the door very quietly behind her.

  Evangeline looked at Lucas. “Obviously you were able to reassure her.”

  “I did my best. But she has spent nearly twenty years working her nerves into this state. It may take time for her to accept that I have no interest in avenging myself on her and certainly not by depriving Beth and Tony of what is theirs by right.”

  “For her part, as a young woman she must have felt hopelessly trapped with no way out.”

  “When did you deduce the truth?” Lucas asked.

  “Almost immediately. As I told Judith, it explained much about the past.”

  “Your intuition is better than mine, at least in this matter. I had always been certain that she was pregnant when she married my father but I assumed that she had a lover who, for some reason, could not marry her. It took me much longer to realize that she had been raped.” Lucas picked up the sterling silver letter opener and balanced it on two fingers. “Her attacker was an older, married man who moved in society.”

  “I’m astonished that she confided such a secret to you.”

  “She told me the truth today but I actually stumbled across it five years ago. I picked up some old rumors in the course of a case I was investigating. A young prostitute had been badly abused and nearly killed by a gentleman client. She was not the first. The brothel madam asked my acquaintance at Scotland Yard to investigate. He’d had his suspicions of Bancroft for years but there was nothing he could do because of Bancroft’s status in society.”