“I-it started during the dinner party.” I lift the water glass to my dry lips. “Cambria was going to perform violin for the whole family before her violin exam. We were all sitting in the drawing room. Our seats had been arranged in a circle to face the hearth, and she was supposed to come in through the door from the dining room.”

Inspector Sen nods as he scribbles into a small leather-covered notebook, his soft wavy hair falling into his eyes.

“We waited for fifteen minutes or so before Lady Fredericka went to check—check on her.” My voice cracks as flashes of Cambria’s blue face fill my mind. “She screamed and told us to call for the doctor.” I take a deep breath. “C-Cambria was lying on the floor. She—she had a violin string around her neck—it must have been from her violin—it was broken on the floor next to her…”

Sen nods solemnly, then sets his notebook down on the tea table and reaches into the pocket of his coat. He draws out a white envelope decorated with swans. The remains of the lavender wax seal fall to the table as he pulls out a sheet of paper. “Is this the letter that was found beside the violin, my lady?”

I nod vigorously.

“It’s signed by someone of the name ‘Alegreya’...would you happen to know who—”

“It’s my cousin,” I burst out, leaning forward in my chair. “She used to write these letters that she showed me once—a hat box full of them, but I only ever saw a few—and she had false names for everyone just in case someone found the letters—Cambria’s name was ‘Violin’—but I don’t know how any of them got here because she died in an accident a few months ago—”

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“Just a moment, my lady. Please, slow down if you can.” Sen grabs his quill pen again. “Lady Alegreya…you say she recently passed away?”

“I-I apologize for my outburst.” I settle back into my chair, cheeks flushing. “My cousin Alegreya was one of Cambria’s younger sisters. We…we were quite close, and frequently spent time together.” My chest tightens. “Alegreya liked to drink. The night that she died was the night that her husband eloped with her maid.” I swallow hard against the memory of Alegreya lying face-down in the grass. “W-we found her the following day in the hidden part of the garden behind the house…it was right below the balcony of her room, and there was a broken wine glass under her.” I blink back the tears forming in my eyes. “The floor of her room was covered in empty bottles of port. She must have gotten drunk and fallen from her balcony.”

Sen’s quill pen pauses against the page, and his brow furrows, his eyes fixating on a line above.

“Er…Inspector?” I prompt cautiously.

His head snaps up. “My lady, can you tell me more about your cousin Lady Alegreya?” he asks urgently.

“Isn’t it Lady Cambria we should be talking about?” I quickly hedge. Surely he wouldn't think this is Alegreya’s fault? “I suppose what I mean is, Alegreya couldn’t have murdered Cambria.”

Sen shakes his head, and his face darkens. “This case is no longer simply about Cambria.”

I stiffen. Does he think Alegreya wanted Cambria to die? Yes, Alegreya had written a whole box of unsent letters to people she’d fallen out with. But I know she would never be able to kill someone.

“Lady Arial,” Sen says, and suddenly his eyes are gazing intensely into mine. My heart skips a beat. “I believe that Lady Alegreya was murdered.”