Page 77 of In the Midnight Hour

“Mr. White says he lured you away,” Northwood said with a smile.

Mrs. Nyburn laughed softly. “Yes. He was most eager for me to work for him. His housekeeper had left to marry.”

“I understand Mr. White persuaded you to leave Sir Radnor’s with an offer of a wage increase,” Hypatia said, drawing a breath, which she held. “Was that the only reason you left?”

Mrs. Nyburn’s green eyes shuttered. Hypatia had the immediate sense that the woman was uneasy.

“It was simply time for a change,” the housekeeper replied.

Her use of the word simply didn’t convince Hypatia, especially not given the brevity of Mrs. Nyburn’s tenure in Sir Radnor’s household. Three years was hardly anything.

Hypatia was torn between trying to kindly coax the housekeeper to divulge more than she was saying and outright saying why they needed her to reveal the truth. She settled for something between the two. “Mrs. Jennings said she knew you when she was friendly with Sir Radnor. Do you recall her?”

“I do.” Wariness flashed across Mrs. Nyburn’s features. There was no mistaking her discomfort now.

Hypatia glanced at Northwood, and he gave her a small but encouraging nod. She summoned a half smile for Mrs. Nyburn, hoping to put the woman at ease. “Mrs. Jennings indicated you left Sir Radnor’s employ at the same time as two of his maids. Why did they leave?”

Mrs. Nyburn did not immediately answer. The hand that rested on the other in her lap was now clutching the lower hand. “What does any of this have to do with his death?”

Hypatia was certain the woman was agitated. Why? What did she know? “Please allow me to be frank, Mrs. Nyburn,” she said gently. “There isn’t a delicate way to say this, but I shall do my best. It’s come to our attention that Sir Radnor preyed on women like me. Including me.” She said the last in a near whisper. “And Mrs. Jennings. I didn’t kill Sir Radnor, nor did Mrs. Jennings. However, if there are other women he assaulted, perhaps someone in his household, one of them may have killed him.”

Putting her hand to her mouth briefly, Mrs. Nyburn regarded Hypatia with wide, sympathetic eyes. “I’m so sorry to hear that,” she said as she lowered her hand.

The housekeeper turned her attention to the window for a long moment before continuing. “There were other women he took a romantic interest in. Three of them in the years I worked in his household, including Mrs. Jennings.”

“Do you recall the others’ names?” Hypatia tried to keep the eagerness from her voice.

“I do, but I can’t see any of them coming back to Pemberton Square after all this time to kill him.” Mrs. Nyburn bowed her head. “Give me a moment, please.”

Hypatia looked toward Northwood. He regarded Mrs. Nyburn with grave concern, his brows drawn together and his eyes dark.

When the housekeeper finally looked up, her eyes were bright. She blinked a few times before speaking. “He has two housemaids working there now?”

“Yes, and two scullery maids,” Hypatia replied.

“I never knew him to pay attention to the girls in the kitchen,” Mrs. Nyburn said. “And I don’t mean speak to them or acknowledge them in any way. I’m referring to a specific kind of attention—the unwanted kind.” Her gaze locked with Hypatia’s. “You know what I mean.”

Ice settled over Hypatia’s flesh. “I do. You’re saying he did prey upon the housemaids?”

Mrs. Nyburn barely nodded. She’d gone pale, and she now clasped her hands tightly in her lap. “I suspected it after the second failed courtship. He’d become smitten with a woman—Lady Philpott—and shared with Usher that he was going to propose marriage. But a betrothal never followed. Instead, the lady broke things off with Sir Radnor entirely. A few weeks later, one of the housemaids left to go live with her sister. But that wasn’t the first time,” the housekeeper whispered.

“What do you mean?” Hypatia also kept her voice low.

“After the first woman he wanted to court also refused him, the upstairs maids left. One didn’t even give notice—she left in the middle of the night. That sparked my concern. I’d also noticed that Sir Radnor’s temper was shorter.” Mrs. Nyburn looked at Hypatia. “I never liked working for him. He was moody and could be quite horrid to the female servants, myself included. It was shocking to me because he’d been so incredibly kind and warm before I accepted the position and for some time after, just as he is with people who don’t work for him.”

Hypatia tried to ignore the outrage that flashed through her. “Did any of the maids tell you why they were leaving?”

“No, but after Lady Philpott refused him and the one maid went to her sister’s, I heard the remaining maid crying. I tried to persuade her to tell me why she was upset, but she would only say that I couldn’t help her and that she wished she could work somewhere else.” Mrs. Nyburn paused to take a deep breath, closing her eyes whilst she did so. When she opened her eyes, she loosened her hands in her lap and pressed them flat, palms down. “I told her I understood—or that I thought I did. I said she could tell me what happened or not, that I wouldn’t judge her. I found her a position in a different household as soon as possible. She thanked me profusely and said I should keep a close eye on whoever took her place.”

“That must have been difficult.” Hypatia didn’t look at Northwood but knew he was still there. She was glad he was sitting quietly for now and just listening.

“I admit I took to ensuring Sir Radnor had plenty of port. I thought if he was too inebriated, he’d leave everyone alone. But that didn’t happen. He and Mrs. Jennings became friends, and it once again looked as though he may be entering a courtship. However, Mrs. Jennings ended their friendship and Sir Radnor was equal parts angry and melancholy. I watched over the housemaids closely. It is my deepest regret and greatest shame that I didn’t remove them both from Sir Radnor’s reach as soon as I suspected he might be troubling them.”

“What did you do?” Hypatia asked.

“That was about the time Mr. White had offered me the position here. I didn’t answer him immediately. He asked again and offered to increase my wages. I accepted, but I asked for that increase in advance. I said it would be difficult work in the same square as my former employer—and that wasn’t a lie. I despised Sir Radnor and loathed any time I caught sight of him.” Her voice had risen. She exhaled and took a moment to collect herself. “I gave that money to the maids so they could leave Sir Radnor’s immediately, and I helped them find new employment.”

“You’ve nothing to be ashamed of, Mrs. Nyburn,” Northwood said. “You helped those young women.”