Page 33 of A Dangerous Vision

“We were both angry.” Callister stood and scooped up his empty glass, striding to the drink cart. “I thought Percival was being reckless. He was infatuated with a lady, who was not free…for such an infatuation.”

“Do you know the name of that lady?”

Callister poured a bit, tipped the liquor back, and then filled his glass with more. “No, I do not. He refused to tell me her name.”

“Then, how did you know his infatuation was inappropriate?”

“He told me she was married. I do not deny there was some genuine feeling between them. I believe Percival met her at a time when she was vulnerable.”

Once Callister had settled into his chair again, he warmed his glass between his palms. “We also argued because I thought he was a fool to throw over a lovely young woman like Miss Beecham.”

“He broke that engagement because of the married lady, I take it.”

“And it was a mistake, and as a result he’d been fighting a lawsuit for months.”

The man’s account did not fully make sense in light of what Miss McGuire had overheard. According to the maid, Callister said he would not allow Pennington to win. That seemed to have far more to do with Callister than Pennington’s liaisons.

“So you were angry with his choices, not on your own behalf?”

A tight smile and Callister sat up a bit taller in his chair. “I did not kill my friend, Inspector. Would your time not be better spent speaking to someone else?”

“I will,” Gideon assured him. “As soon as we’re done here.” Gideon shifted in his chair too. “You were heard threatening Mr. Pennington, saying you would not allow him to win. I would like to understand why.”

Callister heaved a long sigh. “I criticized his choices. He criticized mine. I shouted a heated retort that I regret.” He pinned Gideon with his cool gaze. “Deeply regret now.”

“You critiqued his choices regarding Miss Beecham and the lady he was fond of. Was his critique toward you of a similar nature?”

“How adroit of you, Inspector. It was of a similar nature. The club I mentioned. Less of a club and more of a place where gentlemen can procure company for an evening or for a longer time.”

“A brothel?” Gideon couldn’t help but clarify.

Callister didn’t contradict him, but the look he gave him was arctic. “No, I wouldn’t characterize it that way. It was a place where gentlemen could meet ladies they might wish to…keep for a time. And there was a particular lady I’d grown fond of and provided with lodgings. Percival did not approve. He suggested I marry again. Someone appropriate.” He made a sound that was almost a breath of laughter. “I told him he was a hypocrite. After all, Percival had introduced me to the club, and he himself had broken off an engagement to a respectable young woman.”

“You were heard threatening to put him in the ground, Mr. Callister.”

“As I said, Inspector, it was a bit of hyperbole in the heat of a moment.” He took a long swig of his drink and grimaced. “A man who did have a grudge against Percival is Roderick Beecham. You would do well to question him.”

“I understand Pennington was negotiating with him to prevent the breach-of-promise case from going forward.”

Callister scoffed. “Beecham wanted more than the lawsuit. He wanted to menace Percival. Destroy him for hurting his daughter. The man even came to me to ask if I knew any facts that might compromise Percival’s reputation. He was all but prepared to blackmail Percival into marrying his daughter.”

Gideon added Callister’s claims to his notes.

“Is there anything else, Inspector?”

The man’s eagerness to be rid of him had been palpable almost from the moment Gideon had walked through the door, but he wasn’t finished yet.

“You mentioned your liaison with a lady from the Rosebud Club. Did Mr. Pennington favor a lady he’d met there too?”

Callister nodded. “He did. He favored several for a time. Then others. His tastes were changeable.”

“And the name of the lady he favored most recently?”

“At the club, they’re all named after flowers. She was known as Dahlia, but I knew her no further than that.”

Gideon had a name and a place to seek Pennington’s mistress, and that alone made the conversation worthwhile.

“And the name of the lady who you visited last evening?”