47
The satisfied sounds from Burke, who was next to him at the kitchen table, made Stone reflect that as unpleasant as Alice Keating’s kidnapping was, it did have its up-side. His cup was filled with a coffee that was good enough to delight his partner, and the plate before him held a fried breakfast which pleased his nose as much as it did his stomach.
He was halfway through his breakfast when the post arrived. Out the corner of his eye, he watched Mr Chambers as he sorted it, separating it into piles for the various family members; he turned all his attention on the house-manager as Chambers set before him an envelope with Owen Keating’s name and address written on it in the same hand as that used on the envelope of the ransom demand received yesterday.
“Have you told Mr Keating it’s
