One knight had this to report when he entered: “The location where he fell had no building underneath, only the slope of the hill. He most likely tumbled quite far down. Worst-case scenario, he fell into the ocean.”
We were informed that Mr. Mace could have caught onto something while careening down, but it was too dark outside to confirm. And since it was too dangerous to investigate in the middle of the night on a slope, they were going to stop searching for the night and continue the next day.
Princess Mira had been listening, her body trembling. She leaned on her maid as she stumbled back to her room. I wondered if she would be all right, since she looked like she might collapse, but all I could do was watch her go. It would be terrible of me to try and comfort her with empty words.
High tide had come in a while back, so this entire island would be completely enclosed by water by now. Since it was also spring tide, the ocean would be deeper than usual, and the current was fast around this area. If Mr. Mace had landed in the sea, chances of us saving him were slim, and that was assuming he’d survived the fall at all. The princess knew this, so she had been overtaken by despair. But as bad as I felt for her, we couldn’t deny the reality of this situation.
I was sent back to my room as well. The hotel staff were too busy at the moment, so I had Lord Simeon help me undo the buttons and laces on the back of my clothes.
“Do you really think Mr. Mace is the culprit, Lord Simeon?” I’d kept quiet and dealt with being ignored during the whole investigation, but once it was just the two of us, I threw my questions at him. They were smoldering by that point—I couldn’t keep them inside anymore.
“All I can say is that he’s the most suspicious person in this scenario.”
“For today’s incident, yes, but during the first carriage accident, Princess Mira was riding with me. Wouldn’t it be strange for him to have been the culprit? He can’t have been involved in that one at least.” My corset came loose, releasing the pressure from my abdomen. I turned around, causing my dress to fall, so I swiftly grabbed the fabric and held it up against my chest. “Haven’t you noticed anything? Anything at all? Please tell me.” I looked up at my husband, who made a bit of a sly face and tugged on my dress. I stepped back to get him to stop. “Lord Simeon.”
“Go to sleep,” he commanded. “You’ve been staying up late all these nights, so you aren’t well rested.”
“Please don’t evade the subject. Tell me what’s going on.”
He shook his head. “There’s no proof of anything, so I can’t say anything for sure. Sir Kessel remains a suspect, but we can’t pin him as the culprit.”
“Yet you said he was earlier.”
“In that place, I had to. I have to exercise caution now that a hand grenade is involved. You too—please try not to invite any trouble.”
I puffed out my cheeks, huffing. My husband chuckled and pulled me close.
“We’re going to strengthen our security so that no other suspicious figures will slip through. It will all be fine, so please relax and get some rest. I won’t let anyone lay a finger on you.”
“Hm...” I leaned into him. “Can’t you at least tell me your theories? I just don’t know how to feel right now.”
Though I was getting thoroughly distracted by his approaching lips, I resisted, not wanting to be swept away. I had to hear what he was thinking or else I could get in his way during future events. Even if he couldn’t prove anything, I at least wanted to hear a bit of what he had figured out.
He only told me one thing before letting me go: “Don’t try to go anywhere by yourself. Be sure to stay by His Highness’s or Sir Nigel’s side. That’s all you need to do.”
“That’s not enough at all!”
“It’s better if you don’t know anything. Though, this is you we’re talking about, so I’m sure you’ll realize it on your own eventually. But when you do, don’t say it out loud unwittingly. Keep in mind that danger could be lurking anywhere you go. Never let your guard down, and don’t stray away from the knights.”
I didn’t respond and just kept pouting. Lord Simeon gave me another light peck, then turned away, so I gave up on arguing and watched him leave.
So you doubt that the culprit is Mr. Mace too!
If Mr. Mace truly had the motives Mr. Meyer had laid out, then he wouldn’t have dared put Princess Mira in harm’s way, even by mistake. The first carriage accident couldn’t have been Mr. Mace’s doing. Though, I suppose the same can’t be said for the other incidents. I pondered why he’d run away from the carriage house. If he wasn’t the culprit, what reason would he have had to run?
I sighed, took off my clothing, then went to wash my face. Once my makeup was off and I was neatly changed into my sleeping garments, I wasted no time crawling into bed. Though it was summer, the northern coast wasn’t all that hot—it even felt cold at night. I pulled the covers up to my shoulders.
There was so much to contemplate that I thought I’d have a hard time getting to sleep, but my consciousness dissipated as soon as I closed my eyes. The entourage’s schedule had been so strict over the past few days that I was more exhausted than I’d realized. I could vaguely hear the ongoing commotion outside of my door as I was pulled into slumber.
No trouble interrupted me that night. I was able to sleep well and was refreshed upon waking the next day. In contrast to my recovered condition, the sky was overcast. And though the winds had died down, the weather was toeing the line between rain and no rain.
Even though the knights and soldiers continued their search, they never found Mr. Mace.