The Murders of Richard III - Elizabeth Peters [16]
“Why not call in an expert?” she asked.
“But we have.” Weldon smiled engagingly at her.
“Have we, though?” Lady Isobel giggled maliciously. “As an expert, Mrs. Kirby, you surely are familiar with Sir Richard’s reputation. He is one of the foremost authorities in the world on fifteenth-century manuscripts.”
“Yes, I surely must be familiar with that, mustn’t I,” said Jacqueline. She glanced at Thomas in a way that boded no good.
“Well,” said that gentleman hastily, “I think I’ll just run upstairs and change. All that bus travel—”
“I’m being a bad host again,” Weldon said sadly. “Dr. Kirby, you must be tired too. I’ll ring…”
Before he could do so, the door opened.
“They have arrived, Sir Richard,” said the butler.
“They?” Thomas repeated. “Who is missing?”
“Why, Thomas,” said Liz, in an affected drawl. “Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed that my fiancé is not here? Frank is so conspicuous.”
“Frank is a nice young fellow,” Thomas said. “I like him. It’s just that the rest of us are rather obtrusive.”
Liz smiled mockingly. Mildly embarrassed, Thomas went on, “Who else is coming?”
“A most distinguished guest,” said Mrs. Ponsonby-Jones. “The new president of the American branch of our society is flying over in order to be present at this great moment. His name is O’Hagan.”
“Frank is the only one of us coming by automobile,” Weldon explained. “That is why I asked him to meet Mr. O’Hagan at Heathrow. O’Hagan has never been out of the States before, and I gather from his letters that he is somewhat apprehensive about traveling alone. This is a difficult place to find….”
Two men appeared in the doorway. After his faux pas Thomas made a point of greeting Frank Acton with particular warmth.
All the same, he had to admit that Frank did not stand out in a crowd. He was of medium height and build, with one of those pleasantly nondescript faces that blur in one’s memory. His dark hair was long but neatly barbered and his clothes were conservative. Thomas remembered that the young man was a budding solicitor, a very lowly member of the firm that handled Sir Richard’s affairs. It was through this connection that he had met Liz. Thomas had wondered, when their engagement was announced, what the girl saw in him.
The American Ricardian was a tall, stooped man of about Thomas’s age. His square-jawed, hawk-nosed face might have been attractive if it had not been set in an expression of timid terror. Projecting front teeth increased his resemblance to a nervous rabbit, and a bushy white moustache vibrated like whiskers when he was agitated. There was no doubt as to his identity; fastened to his left lapel with a large safety pin was a name tag. Thomas had an insane vision of the American society affixing the label as they pushed their president onto his plane like a bundle. Or had O’Hagan labeled himself? It was an equally insane idea. Weldon had said the American sounded apprehensive. That was an understatement. What was wrong with the man? Maybe he couldn’t talk.
He could. The voice was a high-pitched whine and the moustache vibrated like a hummingbird’s wings.
“Frightful, frightful,” he exclaimed. “Those people at the gate—like a howling mob, ladies and gentlemen! I felt quite hunted, I assure you!”
“Not very bright of you, Frank, old boy,” Philip said. “You ought to have driven in the stable gate instead of coming to the front of the grounds.”
“No one bothered to warn me.” Frank’s voice was low and well modulated, with impeccable vowels, but he sounded irritated. He glanced betrayingly at Liz, who raised a languid hand in greeting, before he went on. “I hadn’t realized you were turning this meeting into a circus. It’s been a rotten day. I had difficulty finding Mr. O’Hagan; he wasn’t where he was supposed to be—”
“It is such a confusing place,” said Mr. O’Hagan pathetically. “All those large buildings—and people running around, bumping into you and pushing you—”
“The worst is over, Mr. O’Hagan,” Weldon said soothingly. “You are perfectly safe with us. Do you…do you feel up to meeting the others?”
Mr. O’Hagan was able to