Read Finished Off (A Bellehaven House Mystery Book 2) for Free Online

her start down the stairs. At that moment she really didn't care if she never saw another member of the WSPU. What she did care about was her friendship with Olivia. They were best friends. In fact, Olivia was the only real friend Grace had ever had.
    She knew full well that if she didn't do what Olivia wanted, it would put a chink in their relationship. Knowing her friend, Olivia would take it as a personal affront. The gap would gradually widen to a chasm that could never be repaired.
    But
burning a church
? That was sacrilege. It went against everything she believed in. On the other hand, the suffragettes were fighting for a good cause. Surely some honor could be found in the fight for women's rights?
    Olivia had now turned the corner and was out of sight. Grace teetered on the edge of morality for several more seconds, then abandoning her principles, she raced for the stairs. "Wait, Olivia! I'll do it! I'll do it!" Praying that God would forgive her, she raced down the steps after her friend.
    Meredith's favorite part of the day was late after noon, when her classes were over and she could relax for half an hour alone in the pleasant teacher's lounge.
    Weak sunlight poured through the large window overlooking lawns that swept down to a tangle of wildwood. The shades of pink and rose in the room, picked out in the curtains and carpet, always seemed to soothe and relax her. It was a quiet time of day, and she looked forward to it.
    Felicity's French class, Essie's lectures on etiquette, and Sylvia's instruction on flower arrangements all ended later than her own final class of the afternoon, leaving her time to peruse the latest edition of the
Witcheston Post
.
    The village of Crickling Green was far too small to have its own newspaper, but often Witcheston's local news included that rare occasion when the village had something worth writing about.
    The circumstances surrounding Kathleen's death had been deemed sensational enough to warrant a cover story in the
Post
, much to the dismay of everyone involved.
    Stuart Hamilton had gone so far as to protest to the editors, but by then, of course, it was too late. Bellehaven had suffered a notoriety that would take some time to live down.
    Luckily, situated in the sleepy little village in the heart of the Cotswolds, the school was fairly insulated from the kind of exposure it might have had in national newspapers had it resided in a town the size of Witcheston. Which was good for teachers and students alike.
    Settling herself down on her favorite brocade chair, Meredith opened up the
Post
. Relieved to see no mention of Bellehaven on the front page, she flipped it open to glance through the other three pages.
    She'd read somewhere that news ages fast, and that had to be the case, since there was no mention of Kathleen, or Bellehaven, anywhere on the pages. Sighing in relief, Meredith leaned back and began reading.
    It was on the third page that she spotted it. Just a short paragraph or two about an orphanage near Witcheston, which had recently benefited from a wealthy landowner's will.
    Intrigued by the generous gesture, Meredith scanned the lines. The orphanage was owned by the county, and the councilors would use the money to buy new beds and refurbish the kitchen.
    There was a rather scratchy picture of the institution, and Meredith felt a pang of sorrow for the little ones incarcerated in that gloomy building. How sad. What a dismal start to a young life.
    She gazed at the picture for a few moments, imagining mournful and hopeless children wandering the halls. It must be so miserable to work there.
    How lucky she was, to work in this bright and beautiful mansion, with its gray walls reflecting the sunlight and its charming flower gardens that Kathleen had tended so diligently.
    In spite of the tension she felt when meeting with Stuart Hamilton, she would be forever grateful that he had the vision to buy the home from its impoverished owner and turn it into the select