Love & Murder: An Eliza Winter Mystery

Redemption

Eliza ended up having the cabbie drop her back at home. She was glad she realized Greensbury's joke before she went pounding on the door at 221b Baker Street. Then she really would have given a reason for people to call her crazy.

As soon as she got inside the foyer, she dashed off to their London home's abysmal library that sat at the back of the house. She kept their Scarsbourgh's home stocked with books, but she didn't think there would be any detective stories lingering in the bookshelves here- but she thought it was worth a look.

If she could get an idea of where and how to start tracking down a missing person, she'd be on her way. Greensbury might have been joking, but it was worth reading another detective's methods of solving a case.

Her long finger ran along the four shelves of books they had stored, but nothing turned up. She rifled through some papers on top of the massive wooden desk that sat adjacent to the shelving unit to see if any of Arthur Conan Doyle's work had been clipped and saved. It didn't seem like something her father would have read and saved but it was worth a shot.

Eliza releases a sigh when nothing turns up after her quick rummage through the small room. She thinks of the Tennyson's massive library and knows she'd probably find Sherlock saved somewhere in there. At the thought of the Tennysons, Eliza goes still. She tries to shove away the thought as soon as it entered her head, but it took root and grew quickly.

Instead of detective stories being stored away at the Tennyson's, Eliza could find a real detective looming somewhere inside those walls. Not that she ever wanted to see Lord Colin Bradshaw again in her life, but he was someone who owed her. She could forgive his slip if he helped point her in the direction of Penelope. Give her some pointers on how to track her down.

She knows the Tennysons own a telephone, so she quickly dashes off to her own in the entryway. As soon as she lifts the mouthpiece she freezes, she knows she should speak to him face to face. That way if she needed to take notes, she'd have both hands free. Or if he didn't feel like helping, she could scorn him in person. She drops the mouthpiece back into the cradle and spins around to call out to Lucy. Lucy appears at the bottom of the stairs moments later and Eliza looks to her, "I know I have just returned, but I am going out again."

"I'll get your hat my lady," Lucy says eagerly before helping Eliza prepare for another outing. Eliza decides to stay mum on the details of where she's headed because she knows Lucy's brown eyes would bulge out of her head if she knew Eliza was seeking out Bradshaw. Eliza had filled her in on the incident that happened at the Erikson's and Lucy was as appalled as Jane was at his slip.

"I won't be long. I'll be back in time for supper," Eliza tells Lucy before she slips out the door and finds herself in another cab.

When Eliza arrives at the Tennyson's, she waits impatiently as she sends her calling card inside. The cab is stifling and her high lacey neckline has her growing agitated with the heat. She goes to climb outside for some air when she sees someone walking out from the side of the house. She turns to face the brick enclosure when she locks eyes with Bradshaw. He freezes at the eye contact and Eliza decides to break protocol. She isn't going to wait for an answer from inside when the person she came to see is a few feet away.

"Andrew isn't in," Bradshaw says as he strides over to Eliza. She notices he's still charming when he's not in his formal wear and the thought aggravates her.

"I'm not here for him. I am here for you Lord Bradshaw," she says flatly and when he's close enough to her, she sees the sun bringing out the light blues in his eyes. Another thought that aggravates her.

"You can call me Colin here, I'm just Colin when I am in London," he tells her and while she wants to ask where he prefers to be called by his formal name, she breezes past it. She has more important things than formalities to discuss.

"Alright then, Colin" the sound of his Christian name sounded foreign, "I'm here for you."

"Oh? And to what do I owe the pleasure?" He asks with a grimace, not wanting to converse with her as much as her not wanting to converse with him.

"I thought of a way you can redeem yourself," Eliza says while folding her hands in front of her.

"I didn't know I needed redeeming," he says with a smirk that catches Eliza off guard. He was supposed to already be throwing himself into an apology. Not acting as if he did no wrong.

"From embarrassing yourself? I assure you, you do," Eliza snaps back and Colin shifts his weight. He too must be hot, dressed in a shirt, vest, jacket and tie. His matching brown homburg hat is tucked under his arm and she could tell he wished he had it on his head as his eyes are squinting from the direct sunlight.

"You are refreshingly direct Lady Eliza." He says with a smirk, "You know I tried apologizing to you once already about the library mishap, but you didn't seem too keen on hearing it."

"This isn't about the library rumor your fiancée started, it's about you calling me Crazy Eliza," Eliza says with her own smirk, but something she said has Colin shaking his head. "What?" Eliza snaps at Colin's confused expression.

"It's just, it's twice now you've referred to my fiancée or my beloved, yet I have no idea to whom you are referring?" Colin asks curiously.

"Miss Adelaide Greensbury of course," Eliza says, surprised that he doesn't know who he's courting.

"Adelaide? Why do you think I am courting Miss Greensbury?" He asks, genuinely confused. Eliza stands frozen for a moment. He's not attached to Adelaide? He seems appalled that she would even suggest that he was.

She shifts her weight while trying to regain control of the conversation and says, "Because Bridgette Walscott said you were." He smiles and then wipes a hand over his grin.

"It seems Miss Walscott is also the one that told you I had declined your advances in the library. I think we've discovered the culprit of these falsehoods," he says with a rock of his feet. Eliza stares at Colin, he visibly let some emotional wall down at the revelation as he suddenly looks much more comfortable with where the conversation is going. His scowl has been wiped clean. Eliza glances at her hands and shakes her head

"You know, I learned a long time ago not to trust a word she said. I don't know why I assumed she was being honest with that," Eliza confesses, giving Colin an embarrassed smile.

"Well, I now know not to believe anything Miss Walscott or Miss Greensbury says." Colin replies with a softer smile, "I'm usually quick to discover the vicious ones. Don't know how those two slipped by me." Eliza can tell their sparring session is over...for now.

"Your skill set is actually why I am here," Eliza finally admits and she watches Colin's blue eyes become curious. With a slight tilt of his head, he responds, "Oh?"

"Yes, I need some pointers on being a detective. I need some methods and strategies of tracking someone down," Eliza says with her chin a little in the air. However, her proud stance quickly deflates when Colin lets out a laugh.

"You're a detective now?" He asks incredulously and Eliza scowls at him, "Of course I'm not. I just need help finding my missing friend, but I'm at a loss as to how." He eyes her, curious as to her request and with a sigh he gives in.

"Come on in then. We can discuss this far away from this awful heat," he says and with a nod, he leads her inside.