Mystery Part XX

 The Lady disagrees

Here is the next post of Act II of Jayne Barnard's "The Evil Eye of Africa."

The first post is here.
A list of all the characters is here.

You can get all the posts by clicking on the mystery tag.

Remember that if you think you have solved the mystery email your deduction to:  madamesaffron at gmail.com.
Madame will be drawing from all the correct solutions for some prizes from Tyche Books!

Keep your sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ

"The Evil Eye of Africa"
By Jayne Barnard

A Guess-the-Murderer Mystery in Two Acts 

Act II: Hercule Hornblower Investigates

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From the Case Journal of Hercule Hornblower: 

August 28, 1898



 Colonel Mustard has fallen from formerly valiant warrior to vile seducer and worse. In my collection of images from the parlour spider-eyes is recorded a scene between himself and Lady Peacock that concluded with overt violence, from which the lady defended herself adeptly.

There are, however, a number of good views of the lady’s jewels, and it comes to me where I have seen them before: in a report in Cairo, from the jeweler who left the gems with Baron von Boddy “on approval” and never saw their return.

Can it be that the lovely and delicate Lady Peacock, who married Sir Ambrose within three days of meeting him, is the same woman as the mysterious widow the baron dallied with in Cairo?

What does she know of the baron’s quest? Has she too come seeking the treasure? Were she or Sir Ambrose, singly or together, at Boddy Manor when the baron’s ship came to rest here for that brief interval from his telegram to his death?

Click here for the next installment.