Trying to give William time to assess the situation, Amy said, “How very interesting. I always wished my papa would allow me to shoot.”
William motioned with his hands for her to drop to the floor. Despite the tense situation, it appeared he wanted her to pretend to faint, and his movements almost made her laugh. He held up five fingers and lowered his thumb, then the next finger. He obviously wanted her to drop when all his fingers were down.
Three. Two. One.
She swooned, and William rushed forward and wrapped his right arm around Mrs. Miles from behind. He swung his left arm downward, slamming the edge of his hand against her wrist. The gun hit the floor, landing with a thud.
Mrs. Miles screamed and attempted to wrestle herself from his grip. For an older lady, she certainly had plenty of strength. Amy grabbed the gun, and William shouted, “Bloody hell, Amy, put that down before you end up killing yourself anyway.”
Holding it with her index finger and thumb, she carried it to the desk, where she gently placed it on the polished wood. She really should get her own gun and take shooting lessons. Even Mrs. Miles could shoot.
William continued to hold on to a very agitated Mrs. Miles. She cursed and stomped on his foot, but he held on, murmuring to her in an attempt to calm her. Then suddenly she stopped and collapsed in his arms. He walked her to a chair and she sat, her hands covering her face, sobbing.
Amy almost felt sorry for her.
Almost.
Amy turned her attention to William. “How did you get into the house?” Although happy and very relieved to see him, she really must do something about how freely people came and went through her doors.
“Your girl, Lacey, was racing down the stairs just as my carriage pulled up. She was frantic and said she passed the open library door and saw a woman holding a gun at you. She was off to the police department. I sent her there in my carriage.”
Amy nodded as her knees turned to water now that the threat had ended. She backed up into the settee and sat. “Oh, my. I feel a bit faint.”
“Put your head down between your knees. Get some blood back up to your head. You’ve taken a fright.”
Mrs. Miles had stopped crying but was sitting quietly in the chair, looking at the floor, her hands in her lap. A pitiful sight.
William sauntered to the desk and picked up the gun, disengaged it, and placed it in the middle drawer of Papa’s desk. He walked back to Mrs. Miles and stood in front of her. “Why did you kill Mr. St. Vincent?”
She remained silent and just shook her head.
Amy attempted to get her to talk. “Honestly, we thought Lady Carlisle was the culprit.”
That got Mrs. Miles’s attention. Her head snapped up and she glared at Amy. “That woman should have been the one with the knife in her chest.”
William looked over at Amy and shrugged. “Why do you say that?” he asked.
Mrs. Miles fisted her hands in her lap and glared at Amy. “She and your fiancé—”
“Ex-fiancé.”
“—were ruining my son’s life. St. Vincent dragged Richard into the drug trade with promises of great wealth. That didn’t happen, and my poor Richard got further and further into the nastiness while St. Vincent spent most of the money they made on Lady Carlisle.”
“Lady Carlisle?” William and Amy said at the same time.
“Yes. She was his mistress, led him around by his nose. When he tired of her and put her aside, she began to demand opium from my son. By that time she had become hopelessly addicted. She sold her jewelry to pay for the drugs, and when the money ran out and she started to show signs of withdrawal, she threatened to go to the police if Richard didn’t give her what she wanted.”
“But why kill Mr. St. Vincent?” Amy asked.
“Because he was the leader. He started the entire mess, dragging Richard into it. If there were no more drugs for Richard to sell, our life could return to normal. It would do Lady Carlisle no good to go to the police because it would have ended with no proof that Richard had been involved.”
“But what about Mr. Harris?”
Mrs. Miles shook her head. “I knew St. Vincent’s shipping company was in trouble with all the money he’d spent on that woman. I had hoped the business would close. I never counted on Mr. Harris being stupid enough to take up the trade.”
William touched her on the shoulder. “There will always be someone to deal in illegal drugs. I’m afraid the problem will never end.”
Lacey raced into the room, her face flushed, her eyes wild, with Detectives Carson and Marsh right behind her. Amy had to admit it was the first time she’d been glad to see the two men who had plagued her for weeks. Lacey looked around the room and let out a huge breath. “You’re safe.”