"Such insolence!"
The stern-faced Annie Dupont rose to her feet at once:
"If this is how you wish to speak to a colonel's wife, then this conversation may end here. I have nothing to say. If you wish to arrest me, produce the evidence."
With that, she walked out of the room. The young maid who had left earlier appeared at the door, waiting to see the two of them out.
Flora looked at Shade, who rose without the slightest regret:
"What a pity. Well then, let's go."
The witch did not quite understand, but she still followed Shade out. Only after the gate had closed behind them and the maid had returned to the house did she ask in confusion:
"What did you notice? I keep feeling that what you two were talking about was different from what I heard."
Shade nodded:
"This investigation will probably produce results very soon. Did you notice? The colonel's wife doesn't look like someone who has been neglected by her husband for years."
He gestured for Flora to leave the street with him. At the mention of that subject, the Artist Miss immediately perked up. She practically beamed as she said:
"Of course I noticed. She doesn't dress like a woman in her forties. The earrings she wore are this year's newest style, and I smelled lavender perfume. It's hard for me to imagine that a woman neglected by her husband and shut up at home all day would dress like that.
Charlotte's investigation said that she was always at home alone and rarely attended social events, but I'd wager she's still being nourished by the sweetness of love. A woman whose heart has gone cold wouldn't be like this. She's having an affair! And I'd still bet that, either before or after