Murder at Mansfield Park

refer.’
    ‘That may very well be the case, Dr Grant,’ replied his wife, ‘but Mrs Baddeley told me his own servants are now afraid to go near him, fearing that he is more than
half-crazed. You are to deal, Mary; shall I deal for you?’
    The time passed heavily, and Mary was impatient for sounds of her brother’s return; indeed, she could not comprehend why such a simple errand should have taken him so long, but when Henry
did, at last, present himself in the parlour, the explanation was not tardy in coming forth.
    ‘I hope I have not been the means of delaying your dinner,’ he said, as he handed his gloves to the servant, ‘but I have been unavoidably and unexpectedly detained. Sir Thomas
has returned to Mansfield.’
    ‘Sir Thomas returned!’ exclaimed Mrs Grant. ‘But I thought he was not expected for another two days at least?’
    ‘It seems that he made rather quicker progress on the road than he had originally hoped—or than his physician had advised. But I am afraid he had distressing news to hear on his
return. Having so far outstripped his expected course, the intelligence had not yet reached him of his daughter’s death. It must have been a cruel blow.’
    ‘And a heavy aggravation to what he will already have suffered upon hearing of Miss Price’s murder,’ said Dr Grant. ‘Not to mention her unseemly marriage. I imagine he
had words to say on that subject to you , sir.’
    Henry flushed. ‘Once I learned of his return, I went directly to offer Sir Thomas my respects. He was, indeed, so good as to receive me.’
    Mary could only imagine the particulars of that interview, and her brother’s conscious and awkward manner served to confirm her suspicions; Dr Grant might be overly condemnatory in his
reproofs, but impartiality would not have denied that Sir Thomas had good cause to be aggrieved, and Henry as good cause for self-reproach.
    ‘He was not pleased—how could he be?—but I can assure you, Dr Grant, that he remained both just and reasonable throughout, even in the face of such provocations as he has
suffered. Indeed, I do not think I have appreciated, till now, the true benevolence of his character. He has such a fine and dignified manner, that one scarcely distinguishes the man, from the head
of the house. He did not scruple to give me his opinion of my conduct, but he was prepared to listen to what I was able to say in my defence, and concluded by observing that the one consolation he
has derived since his return,’ this with a side glance at Mary, ‘is the discovery that I am no longer suspected of any involvement in the death of my wife.’
    ‘I imagine that will be but poor solace for the loss of her fortune,’ retorted Dr Grant, with a sniff.
    ‘And what about Mr Norris?’ interjected his wife. ‘Did you discover any more on that subject?’
    This time Henry did not meet Mary’s eye. ‘He is to be taken to Northampton in three days’ time. There are, it seems, some matters of procedure to be resolved with the
magistrate, and Mr Maddox is reluctant to hand over his charge until they are settled. I fancy Sir Thomas was not much pleased to find his room—and his claret—had been appropriated in
his absence, and by such a man as that. I do not think he had been at home more than an hour when he saw me, but it had sufficed to return his room to all its previous peace and
stateliness.’
    ‘So where is Mr Maddox now?’ asked Mrs Grant.
    ‘He has moved, as a temporary expedient, into lodgings with the steward, my old friend McGregor. Mr Norris remains, for the moment, at the White House, under guard.’
    ‘Let us hope he is dispatched bag and baggage long before the funerals,’ said Mrs Grant. ‘Imagine the scandal if it were otherwise! Even Northampton would be too
close.’
    ‘That, I am afraid, is not very likely, my dear sister,’ said Henry. ‘Indeed, sir,’ turning to Dr Grant, ‘Sir Thomas bade me inform you that, if it is convenient,
he wishes the burial services to take place the day after tomorrow.’

 
    CHAPTER XX
    Much as Mary might have hoped for an opportunity to see Edmund the following day, Henry was skilful enough to dissuade her from it, arguing that, even if she had no care for
propriety, she could not hope to see him alone in a house full of servants, and when he was under close surveillance by one of Maddox’s underlings. In her brother’s view, there was
nothing for it but to await the day of the funerals, when