Fare Thee Well Miss Alice

Chapter 3: Ashes to ashes

"Oh how dreadful!" Lady Edith declared, covering her mouth with a handkerchief.

"What do you think she was killed with?" Davie asked Kathleen quietly, not wanting anyone to hear.

Kathleen looked at him with the strangest expression he had ever seen on her face. It was sort of a half confused expression, half 'are you kidding?', and half, 'that's a stupid question'...Which makes three half's, but Davie was never very good at math.

"You do know, don't you?"

The Countess opened her mouth to protest, then shut it and shrugged her shoulders.

"Yes, yes I do," she told him.

"Then what is it?"

"An arrow."

"Isn't that a bit primitive?" The General inquired, having been listening to their whole conversation.

"Yes, but it's also deadly and silent. Everyone in this house would've heard a gun shot," Davie explained.

Kathleen looked at him with a new admiration. For so young he certainly knew his stuff.

"Kudos to you. You certainly catch on fast," she complimented.

"Thank you Countess-"

"Kathleen!"

"Kathleen, but I actually know quite a bit about archery."

"Aye, you mentioned that earlier...Tis' a dreadful way to do someone in, isn't it?"

"Very...ALRIGHT EVERYONE, INTO THE DRAWING ROOM!" The General ordered.

"Why?" Lady Edith asked, still holding the handkerchief to her face.

"Because we need to find out who killed her, and it's easier if there are less people in the room...William, could you make sure that none of them leave the drawing room?"

"Yes Uncle."   

As everyone left the room, William shutting the door behind him, the Countess stood up and stared at Alice.

"How long did you know her?" Davie asked, seeing the sadness in Kathleen's eyes.

Even though she didn't show her emotions on the outside, one look in her eyes and anyone could tell what was going through her head. At least at that moment.

"Going on 5 years...She use to be my personal maid, but then she was hired to do the clean up here while the other servants had the week off."

"Do you know why anyone would want to kill her?"

The Countess slowly shook her head.

"Everyone who knew her loved her. She was always a regular ray of sunshine."

Kathleen kept looking at the body, scanning over every inch with keen eyes. After a few minutes she was almost ready to give up, but after a double-take she spotted something on Alice's index finger. She tilted her head to one side and knelt down by the body.

"What is it?" The General asked.

"There's something on her finger...I think it's ash."

"Well she's right next to the fire place. It's possible that her hand just fell in the soot."

"And then back out again?" The Countess replied.

"No, that's not it. Maybe she didn't die immediately...Maybe she's trying to tell us something."

"Maybe. But what is she trying to tell us?" Davie asked, voicing the obvious.

"I don't know."

There was a long silence as they all tried to unravel the puzzle that was rapidly building. First, why would someone want to kill Alice? Second, who was it? Third, was it someone from inside the house, or an outsider?

"Do you have a guard at the gate here?" Kathleen asked the General.

"Of course!"

The Countess nodded to herself and stood, walking out the door. Davie and the General both shared a confused expression before following her out the door.

"What do you want the guard for?" Davie asked as they walked down the hall.

"A guards job is to guard, correct?"

"Yes?"

"Then he would know if anyone came in or not between last night and this morning."

Davie made an O shape with his mouth as he got the jest, suddenly wondering how Kathleen knew so much about the situation and how to deal with it. She was definitely a strange character.

        "So no one came in?" The Countess asked the guard.

"No miss - My lady - no one has been through these gates since the party ended last night."

"And I saw Alice after that. Thank you Henry, your cooperation has been noted!"

The guard bowed politely and the trio walked back to the house.

"So that means it has to be someone in the house...Who is still in the house," Davie said, feeling more then slightly on edge.

"Yup. Sort of unsettling, isn't it?" Kathleen replied, her brow furrowed in thought.

"It would have to be someone who can shoot a bow," the General said.

"Well I shoot a bow," Davie told them.

"Yes but you were with me when the murder happened. We both have an alibi. However that does narrow it down considerably. Now we just have to figure out who can shoot a bow."

    Alas, they were greatly mistaken. When they had everyone try to shoot a bow, even Lady Edith could hit the bulls eye. 

"So literally anyone here could've done it," Davie said, sounding more then slightly forlorn.

"We'll just have to find some other weak point...General, did you have the officials remove the body?" Kathleen asked, turning to the General.

"Hmm?...Yes, yes I did. Why?"

"Oh nothing. I just thought that maybe there was something we might have missed."

"Maybe we're looking in the wrong places," Davie suggested.

"Perhaps there's something in the study that can give us a clue."

"Good idea. Let's go."

     "What do you suppose they wanted us to shoot the bow for?" Lady Edith asked as they walked off.

"They can't possibly think that any of us killed her, can they?"

"They can think whatever they please," Colonel Thatcher told them.

"They're the only ones who have an alibi."

"How do you know that?" George asked him.

"When I went to go fetch some brandy I overheard them."

"They can't convict any of us without any proof," William explained.

"I'm sure my Uncle will sort everything out."

Lady Edith continued to fan herself,  wondering if they guessed the wrong person. Any one of them could be hung! Of course, Colonel Thatcher knew that that wouldn't happen. Not with the Countess around at least. Everyone had believed her so far.

- Hey everyone! Sorry it took a while to get this chapter up. I've been a bit busy lately. Hope you liked it, and if you did, don't forget to vote and comment! Thanks :D - Anna