HUES OF A MURDER

Chapter 23: Not everything is black and white

Miss Blake lived at the end of the Edelweiss Street. Her house was isolated from the rest of the houses in the street. The neighbouring houses showed no signs of life with dark, empty windows.

Miss Blake came to Maplewood three years ago from Redfield when she got the job in the local library in Maplewood as the librarian. She was an active member of the society participating in Maplewood fairs and festivities.

Miss Blake's house was a two-storeyed one with white pristine curtains. There was a nice garden with meticulous flowerbeds and no weeds in sight. The little picket fence was painted white. So were the walls of the house. A bike leaned against the small portico, around which were hanging flowering plants and ferns. There was a bronze rose – shaped knocker on the door.

Rose and Scarlett stood outside the door with apprehension. Rose's hands were clammy and she wiped them on her jeans before knocking. The door vibrated at each knock. After a few minutes, Miss Blake appeared wearing white button – down shirt and black jeans. She didn't have the usual smile on her face. She invited them in.

They went through the living room to a small library with a fireplace. A two-seater sofa faced the fireplace, flanked by two arm chairs on either side. Together, they surrounded a small round table. R.L. Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was lying on the table. The walls around them had shelves, which were stuffed with books of various sizes, neatly arranged according to the genre and the name of the author.

Two long narrow windows on either side looked out into a small garden, with tall yew hedges separating it from the neighbour's prying eyes.

Rose looked at the books with an awe in her eyes. She touched the spines of the books with a reverence.

"Rose," Miss Blake called her and pointed to the sofa. She sat on the arm chair.

Rose felt a hesitance and looked at Scarlett silently asking her if they were doing the right thing. Scarlett grabbed her hand and pulled her to the sofa.

Silence reigned as either party wondered what to say. It seemed so easy on the phone. Miss Blake realized that she had to break the silence, "So, ugh! Why do you think Lloyd is a Greywich?"

Rose and Scarlett looked at each other. They weren't sure what to tell her. Now they were having second thoughts about confessing to her. The inspector didn't believe them. Their parents weren't interested in their discovery; they were more interested in grounding them as they believed it would protect their children. Why would Miss Blake, who was in a relation with Mr. Ansel, believe them?

"Well, we heard it from someone. And considering the fact that he came to Maplewood last year, well... we wondered, um, it could be him." Rose mumbled.

"That's absurd. Just because he is new to Maplewood, he isn't a murderer." Miss Blake's nose flared.

"Umm," Rose wondered what to say. Something told her not to tell her the whole truth. What if she is just gathering information about them to help her boyfriend?

"We heard it from Mr. Silas' fiancée... I mean, ex fiancée." Scarlett jumped in.

"Ex fiancée?" Miss Blake frowned. "What did she tell you?"

"She, well, was engaged to Mr. Silas when she got a letter from a woman who claimed to be his wife. In the letter, she said that she had two kids with Silas. So, Miss Carey, Silas' ex fiancée, enquired about it." Scarlett explained.

"That doesn't explain how Lloyd is Silas' son. Did you meet Silas' wife or daughter?"

"No, we didn't." Rose answered quickly. "We met Miss Carey yesterday. She told us about the letter she received. We... well, we went to see Mr. Silas. But he didn't agree to see us."