Love & Murder: An Eliza Winter Mystery

Goose Chase

Eliza woke the next morning eager to get started at the train stations. She realized she had to figure out which stations to bother with as some of them didn't even head in the direction of Gretna Green.

With Penelope's picture in her pocketbook, she enlisted Lucy to accompany her on her adventure and they both started off toward the largest and closest train station, King's Cross. After paying the cab driver, they eagerly headed inside the station but quickly stopped after pushing their way inside. People were dashing off in all directions. Some were chit-chatting around the station while others were grabbing their daily paper, but most looked to be serious about their travels and bee lined it toward their trains. Lucy looks to Eliza and asks, "What now my lady?" Eliza looks to her, unsure of how to proceed. She flicks her head around the busy station and spots an attendant blowing his whistle, signaling an incoming train.

"Let's start with the station attendants and the ticket takers. They might remember something," Eliza suggests and Lucy nods along to her plan. Eliza plucks out Penelope's picture and after a deep sigh looks to Lucy and says, "Here goes nothing." Eliza strides up to the whistleblower and as he waves his hands around to direct passengers, Eliza ducks under his flailing arm to get his attention.

"Excuse me sir, I was hoping you could help me a moment?" Eliza asks and the attendant looks to her with his metal whistle dangling off his lower lip. While keeping it there he replies, "Train for Bath leaves next Miss."

Eliza quickly shakes her head, "Oh I'm not here about a train. I was wondering if you remembered my friend coming through here?" Eliza pulls up Penelope's picture and the man glances at it for a half-second and says, "Sorry Miss, but you have any idea how many people come through here a day? I wouldn't know her from Adam."

He flits his eyes away from Eliza and blows his whistle again, causing Eliza to cover her ears. She sighs and both her and Lucy look to each other, knowing this is going to be harder than she thought. Lucy nods over to the ticket station and Eliza tries her luck there. After a very similar response as the whistleblower, Eliza deflates.

"Now we didn't think we'd strike gold the first go 'round did we?" Lucy says after Eliza asks all the attendants and a few travelers about Penelope's picture.

"I had hoped someone would think she looked familiar," Eliza truthfully replies and as they exit the station, Lucy asks which one they'll try next. They hop back into their cab and after a recommendation from a station attendant, they head off toward Tower Bridge.

After similar responses there, Eliza starts to feel defeated as they head toward a third station. She wonders if this is what Colin does every day for his job? Wander aimlessly about, hoping to stumble upon a clue.

At the fourth station, Eliza quickly got attention from an attendant but was just as quickly annoyed when she realized he was giving her attention for the wrong reasons. He told her that if anyone came showing her picture around, he'd definitely remember and then gave her a wink. Thoroughly disgusted, Eliza grabs Lucy's hand and they find themselves seated back in a cab headed towards home.

"What a waste of a bloody day. Rubbish advice from Lord Bradshaw if you ask me," Eliza spats as they stumble through London. Swaying with the rocking cab over the cobbled streets.

"Maybe it's a good thing no one remembered her Lady Eliza. That means she wasn't making a scene before she boarded a train. If she was happily in love, strolling the station who would notice?" Lucy states and Eliza knows she's right. They sit quietly as they make their way through the city and while brooding, Eliza notices a driver guiding another hansom cab next to them and then looks to Lucy.

"You know Lucy, it's usually the same cabbies that idle about our street. I wonder if it's the same way by the Vanderwahl's house? A cabbie might remember taking Penelope to a train station. Especially if he's taken her before," Eliza suggests and Lucy nods along. Eliza forces the cabbie to come to a stop right before they circle around Piccadilly. She sticks her head outside of the cab and he looks to her as she sits near the horse's slashing tails.

"Excuse me sir, but do you remember taking me anywhere before today? Have I used this cab before?" Eliza asks and the cabbie looks to her like she's gone mad.

"Course. I took you up to that posh place only last week I think it was," he answers and Eliza grins. She remembers it now; he did take her to the Erickson's ball.

"So, you normally park about the same places then? If I go over near Holborn would other cabbies be idling in the same spots?" Eliza asks and the cabbie shrugs.

"Maybe. If they notice people leave those residences loads of times, they might be keen to become regulars," he answers and Eliza looks to Lucy.

"Penelope left her home nearly every day. A cabbie over there may have been the one to drive her about," Eliza says and Lucy nods. Eliza tells the cabbie to head back to Holborn and she crosses her fingers as they make their way toward the Vanderwahls.

When they pull up to the familiar curb, Eliza notices two cabbies idling nearby. One has a newspaper sprawled across his lap with a cigarette bit between his teeth and the other is scanning the streets for potential riders. Eliza pulls the picture out again and heads toward the eager one. He looks delighted to have business when Eliza approaches, but she quickly stops him from helping her into the cab.

"Excuse me sir, I was wondering if this is your normal street. Do you pick up here often?"

"Aye. What's it to ya?" He asks her suspiciously and Eliza holds up Penelope's picture.

"Is she someone you've picked up? Lady Penelope Vanderwahl?" Eliza asks and the man squints at the picture. He looks back to Eliza and answers, "Nah, that one's Bob's." He then points a finger to the man smoking his cigarette and Eliza grins to him. She drops money into his palm for his time and he grins back to her.

Eliza looks excitedly to Lucy and they dash across the street to the other cabbie. He isn't as excited to have customers and Eliza has to flash him a few coins to get him from scanning his paper.

"Where to then Miss?" The cabbie grunts while stuffing his paper away and Eliza quickly produces Penelope's picture.

"I believe you have driven this woman on occasion?" Eliza asks and the driver flits his eyes to the picture for only a moment and Eliza can read the recognition there.

"Perhaps," he grumbles back and Eliza can see he's not going to be too quick on the responses.

"Perhaps you can tell me if you remember driving her to the train station last week? Perhaps you can remember if she was meeting someone?" Eliza icily asks.

"Perhaps," the cabbie responds again and Eliza bites her lip to keep from kicking the man in the shin. Eliza pulls out her pocketbook and finds a few coins. She holds them up to him and he quickly snatches them from her fingers.

"Which train station did you drop Lady Penelope at?" Eliza asks, but this time the driver shakes his head, "I never drove her to no station."

Confused, Eliza follows up with, "No? Where was the last place you dropped her then?" The cabbie shifts his dark eyes back to her pocketbook and Eliza sighs loudly. She rips more coins from the bottom of her bag and after he takes them from her fingers he replies, "Some posh estate near St. James."

"St. James?" Eliza repeats, with her brow furrowed. "Where about St. James?" The cabbie smirks and Eliza catches on to his little game. She pulls another coin out and he answers, "Right across from the park. Black iron gate out front." Eliza looks to Lucy, both women now very confused. Eliza grabs a coin and asks, "When was this? When did you drop her at Winter House?" The cabbie takes the coin and answers, "Monday. I always take her to have tea with some lady on Mondays."

Knowing she only has one coin left, Eliza pulls it out and asks, "Normally she's dropped at the tea house. Why did she have you take her to St. James?" The cabbie drops his loot into his vest pocket and answers, "Says her friend was going to take them out in her fancy motorcar. Says that's how she's been getting around more and couldn't wait to have one of her own. Must have gotten one too because I haven't drove her round since." The cabbie puts his cigarette back between his teeth and hauls himself back on top of the cab. Eliza turns away and as they head back to their own cab, Lucy says, "So the last place Lady Penelope was dropped was Winter House." Eliza slowly nods. Why would Penelope have been dropped at Eliza's, if she knew Eliza would have been at the tea shop?