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him.
    “What is going on?” she demanded in a low voice. “Everyone is saying that Fullerton fell from the roof and broke his neck.”
    “That seems to be the case,” Tobias said.
    Beaumont whipped out a handkerchief and wiped his brow. He surveyed the flock of guests. “Terrible accident. Quite dreadful, actually. But I assure you that matters are in hand. The doctor is on his way. You may all return to your bedchambers.”
    Aspasia’s fine brows puckered in a small frown. Her lips parted on a question. Lavinia saw Tobias shake his head once in a small, silencing motion.
    Aspasia obediently closed her mouth.
    “You must excuse us,” Tobias said. “We are in a hurry. Lord Beaumont is taking us to Fullerton’s bedchamber.”
    Aspasia appeared startled, and then Lavinia saw a flicker of comprehension in her dark eyes.
    “Tobias?” Aspasia whispered in husky tones. “Do you think—”
    “I will speak with you later,” he said gently.
    “Yes, of course.” Aspasia moved gracefully out of the way. Her gaze rested thoughtfully on Lavinia.
    The moment of communication that had passed between Aspasia and Tobias was brief, Lavinia reflected as she accompanied the two men down the hall, but there was no mistaking the intimacy of it. Aspasia clearly felt that she had a claim of some sort on Tobias, and he, in turn, accepted some obligation toward her.
    If there was one thing that she had learned about Tobias during the past few months, Lavinia thought, it was that he took his perceived responsibilities very seriously.
    She glanced back just in time to see Aspasia disappear through a bedchamber door. It was a very
familiar
bedchamber door.
    Well, that was certainly one mystery solved tonight, she thought. She now knew why she had been summarily shifted upstairs to that unpleasant little room at the end of the hall. The housekeeper and butler had conspired to give her comfortable chamber on this floor to Aspasia Gray.
    Beaumont came to a halt in front of a door.
    “This was Fullerton’s bedchamber,” he announced.
    Tobias entered first. He lit a candle and surveyed the space. Then he crossed to the window and drew aside the curtains.
    Moonlight flooded into the chamber, adding to the weak illumination of the candle.
    Lavinia stepped in and looked around. The bedchamber was as large as the one Tobias had been given. The wide, heavily draped bed had been turned down in preparation for sleep. It was obvious that no one had used it. The sheets and pillows were still neatly arranged. The handle of a warming pan projected from beneath the edge of the quilt.
    “He asked her why they could not use his bed,” she murmured to Tobias. “He told her that it had been nicely warmed.”
    Tobias was busy opening and closing the drawers of the dressing table in a brisk, methodical fashion. He did not look up from his task. “What else did he say?”
    “He asked the maid why it was necessary to go all the way up to the roof.”
    Beaumont scowled from the doorway. “What’s this about a maid?”
    “When I saw Lord Fullerton earlier this evening,” Lavinia said, “he was in the company of a tall, blond maid. I gained the clear impression that they were on the way to the roof for some dalliance.”
    “Nonsense.” Beaumont’s whiskers bristled in genuine indignation. “Everyone in this household is aware that inappropriate intimacies between staff and guests are strictly forbidden. Lady Beaumont does not countenance that sort of thing.”
    Lavinia stopped in front of the night table and studied the assortment of small items arrayed on the polished wooden surface. “This maid seemed to be quite eager to oblige Fullerton. She was the one who suggested that they go upstairs to the roof rather than use his bedchamber.”
    “Rest assured, I shall have my butler look into the matter.” Beaumont broke off with a quizzical expression. “A tall, blond woman, you say? I don’t recall anyone on my staff who fits that description.