The Stanforth Secrets by Jo Beverley Page B

clump of boulders.
    “It’s the groom, Frank,” he said soberly. “I’m very much afraid he’s dead, Chloe.”
    “Dead.” Chloe was stunned. “But how? It’s scarce an hour . . .”
    “Yes. It looks as if he fell off the cliff. There are any number of injuries, but I’m fairly certain it’s a broken neck that’s finished him.”
    Chloe looked at the reins in her hands with impatience. “Come and hold the horses so I may look, Randal.”
    He came forward but said, “Nonsense. He’s dead. There’s nothing to do here. I’ll stay. You ride back to the Hall for help. Who’s the local Justice? He should probably be informed.”
    “Sir Cedric Troughton,” said Chloe automatically, offended by this high-handedness. “I don’t see what right you have to give me orders, Randal.”
    Randal looked up at her. “You’ve become damned uppity, my girl. I can hardly ride off and leave you to guard the corpse, and there’s no point in your viewing the remains. So do as you’re told.”
    Chloe pulled Mercury’s head around and rode angrily off. Fury at Randal’s manner pushed aside even the thought of Frank’s death. Among Stephen’s many faults was the virtue, as far as she was concerned, that he had never tried to rule her. Since fleeing from her home at seventeen she had been her own mistress. Randal had just made her aware of how readily that could change. Remarriage would have many disadvantages.
    As soon as she arrived in the stableyard she told Garford what had occurred. He was much shocked and hurried off to summon the assistance of the two gardeners. Soon a small party with a pony cart set off to fetch the body.
    Meanwhile, Chloe went directly to Justin in the office and found him going through a stack of files.
    “Hello, Chloe.” He rose at the sight of her agitation. “What is it?”
    “Frank—he’s your undergroom. He’s fallen off the cliff and killed himself.”
    Justin came forward and put an arm around her. It felt wonderful.
    “Bear up, my dear. Did you find the body? Where’s Randal?”
    That revived her recent grievance, and she pulled herself away. “Will you not treat me like a vaporish female. I didn’t even see the body. Randal found him and he’s stayed there. He sent me to get help. He said you should go, so I suppose you must. What right he has to come all dukely over us I’m sure I don’t know. Now I suppose I should follow orders and go and get Sir Cedric, as he is the Justice.”
    Chloe finally ran out of breath and Justin took her back into his arms. “Randal only did as he ought, you know. Does he suspect foul play?”
    Chloe was so involved in trying to handle being in Justin’s arms, no matter how impersonally, that his words took a moment to register.
    “Foul play? Whoever would want to hurt Frank?”
    “It does seem unlikely,” said Justin, rubbing Chloe’s back till she felt like purring. “It was just Randal sending for the Justice . . .”
    Justin seemed to pull his thoughts together, stopped his stroking, and put Chloe away from him a little. “If you don’t mind, Chloe, would you go for Sir Cedric? Are you up to it? If, as I gather, the head groom has gone off to get the body, there’s no one else.”
    “Of course I don’t mind,” said Chloe, moving completely away from him. “But it’s nonsense to think of anyone having a hand in Frank’s death. Nothing of that kind ever happens here. The nearest thing to murder we’ve had in years was when Jenny Moorcock hit Sam Sharp over the head with a tankard and he didn’t get his wits back for days. They were both drunk, though, and it’s an old quarrel.”
    “Perhaps, if there has been foul play, it is something similar. A quarrel and no real harm intended. Would he have had any reason to be on the headland, though?”
    “None that I can think of,” Chloe said with a frown. “I must go.”
    She had been thinking over Randal’s words, and though they still stung, she had to admit that in the