The Opera Singer's Daughter (A Sherlock Holmes Spin-Off Novel)

Chapter Eleven

This time, Mr. Holmes let out a laugh. "Miss Violet Hunter," he said. "It's delightful to hear she is still using her wits."

"Miss Violet Hunter is your headmistress?" Dr. Watson asked in surprise. At my nod, his face brightened with a fond smile. "I'd heard she had done well for herself. What was the message you were to send her?"

"She didn't actually give me one. On the train, when the men pressed me for the information, I held off and then made something up," I said with a shrug. "It satisfied them but I am certain the words I gave them would not have reassured Miss Hunter."

Mr. Holmes' eyes glinted with amusement. "And how did you finally escape your would-be kidnappers?"

"I pretended to feel ill and then jumped off the train when they weren't looking."

"You jumped off a train?" Dr. Watson asked, his tone disbelieving.

"We had just left a station so we weren't going fast," I said quickly. "At least, not fast enough to cause any real damage. By the time they noticed I hadn't returned—" I shrugged again. "Who knows how far down the tracks they had gone? It allowed me time to return home. The things they agreed to, the things I made up about myself that they assured me my father had told them, made me certain I needed to get away from them as soon as I could."

The doctor shook his head and returned to his notes. "And you didn't find your parents at your home," Mr. Holmes said.

"No. Leigh, our butler, said Papa had gone to London for work and never came back. A note, which I couldn't find, had arrived for Mum and she left the house on foot. Neither of them has been seen since then. Leigh said a message had arrived for my mother, who then left for a walk. She did not return.

"Oh, and Mum's personal maid was also missing," I added, reminded of that fact. "Mrs. Leigh doesn't know when Marie left or why."

Mr. Holmes leaned forward. "This maid. Was she with your mother long?"

"A couple of years." I waited a moment but Mr. Holmes said nothing more. "I spent the day trying to find something among my father's papers, but there was nothing to indicate anyone was at odds with him."

"Not one of the two men who came to the school for you?" Dr. Watson asked.

"No. I did not recognize his voice. Leigh, the butler, put the man off, but I wasn't sure the man believed what Leigh said. That's when I decided to come to London. Miss Hunter had said I could rely on you, Mr. Holmes, to provide assistance. There seemed no other course of action, save to wait for those men to come after me. So I disguised myself as best I could and came here."

"And I was not in town," Mr. Holmes said with a nod. "Is that why you decided to masquerade as a maid?"

Shaking my head, I said, "Not immediately. Once I determined it may be some time before you returned, I found a boarding house to stay in. I thought I would be more anonymous than taking a room at a hotel. Then, I compiled a list of my father's associates and anyone who might know my mother. I sent messages to them all, asking if they had any information."

"Did you get any responses?" Dr. Watson asked.

Why was it he asked me the most questions? Was I being specific enough for Mr. Holmes? "I did, and they all denied knowing where my parents are. One associate of my father said he'd been told my father was going to be away for some time. I have the messages in my room if you need to see them."

With a shake of his head, Mr. Holmes declined my offer. "What made you decide to become Mrs. Hudson's maid?"

Sighing, I leaned back in the chair. "Because Braxton found me when I went to the bank to get more money. I managed to create enough of a scene that I escaped him. After that, I bought these spectacles and dressed for a lower station. It made enough of a difference that Mrs. Hudson asked if I had come about the position. It seemed...the best choice at the time."