Read Murder Most Posh: A Mrs. Xavier Stayton Mystery for Free Online

clutched his hand, told them if they could pry him from my grip they could keep him.”
       Mrs. Beaumont, thank heavens, lost all interest in Lucy and me as she started pointing out to her beautician the many mistakes that had been made with her hair. She told the poor woman she’d return the following day to have it all redone. As it was, she was nearly late for a game of bridge.
       Lucy and I were both delighted with our own minor transformations and quickly abandoned the hair salon’s staff to a fate as fierce as a quickly approaching iceberg.

Chapter Three
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Lucy appeared ever so elegant, turned out in a lovely emerald green gown. Her dark hair held just the perfect amount of curl, and she had artfully applied a dash of makeup to her sweet face.
       “Oh, Lucy, you look like a countess!” I held up my finger and rushed back to my bedroom. A moment later, I returned to the parlor and opened my hands to show dear Lucy what I had for her. “Here, tonight, you should wear these.”
       Lucy protested as I placed my fine string of pearls around her neck. I ignored her and said, “They look better on you anyway.”
       I’ve never minded being a plain girl. Whenever I wore the exquisite jewelry my Xavier gave to me, I always felt I was being decorated with ornaments, much like a Christmas tree. Lucy, however, looked quite natural with the lovely necklace about her.
        Knowing that the first-class passengers of the parlor suites would all be seated at one exclusive table for dinner, I decided to wear no jewel other than my ruby ring. Anticipating that Mrs. Beaumont would undoubtedly broach the topic of jewelry, I wanted Lucy to be the center of attention.
       Dressed in a fashionable black gown and little white gloves, I patted at my recently styled auburn hair and said, “Let’s be on our way.”
      Our cabin, located on B Deck, was just forward of the first-class formal dining room. Lucy was momentarily confused as to why I led her farther toward the bow to the magnificent grand staircase and began to trot upward.
       She then realized this would make for a grand entrance as we traveled across the deck above to the second elegant stairway just before the entrance to the dining room, and then descended the steps with perfect grace.
       On our honeymoon, I had sent Xavier on to the restaurant, pretending as if I had forgotten something in our cabin, and done just this same silly trick. A tear comes to my eye even now when I recall how his face lit up as he saw me on the top step. With more poise than I had ever known, I glided down the steps and felt as if I were the most beautiful girl in the whole of God’s creation.
       Lucy squeezed my hand as we went down the steps, and a few heads turned. Several men smiled at us, and their wives did their best to ignore us, two silly girls playing sophisticated world travelers.
       We crossed the lobby, and the steward recognized me and said, “Ah, Mrs. Xavier, such a delight to see you this evening.”
       I had always been very impressed with the crew’s service; of course, when I later found out just what passage aboard the Olivia costs, I certainly understood why they were so gracious.
       We were escorted to a nearby table, located centrally in the room. This gave us the opportunity to see everyone in the sumptuously decorated chamber, as well as allowing them to observe us.
       (Now, here, I need some professional advice. Would a description of the dining room be appropriate or would it slow down the action? The domed ceiling really is something to be seen. The stained glass is lit from behind and oh so beautiful. The room is decked out in burgundy and white, quite ritzy, to be sure.)
       Mrs. Beaumont and her husband were seated at the table, just as I suspected. Mr. Beaumont mumbled some greeting in French and made as if to stand, but his wife tugged at his fancy black jacket and ordered him to sit