Moreton Bay by F.W. Mole — Read

In the meantime in England, Inspector Joe Barnes, the great Bow Street detective, was not idle. He had gone down to Devonshire in many disguises to endeavour to secure locally, some shred of evidence that, followed up, might lead to the discovery of the murder of the Earl of Belriven. All the witnesses who were called to give evidence at the Coroner's Inquest had been placed under surveillance, but nothing tangible could be obtained from them, and the murder still remained a mystery. The chief witness at the inquest was the beautiful and imperious Julia Darnley, the late Earl's mistress, but her absence from the manor on that fatal Sunday afternoon was satisfactorily explained. It was proved that she was at the residence of her father when the murder had been committed, and her alibi was considered to be beyond doubt. It was known that she was a woman with an ungovernable temper, and that she was of a very jealous and passionate nature. She had admitted, in evidence, that she was very fond of the late Earl and though she bitterly resented his amours with others, she would not think of doing him an injury, at any rate, to the extent of taking his life.

With a life rich in the romance and colour of human lives, and with an imagination instinctive in the unravelling of criminal mysteries, Inspector Barnes could not dismiss from his active brain that in some way the beautiful Julia Darnley was responsible for the murder of the amorous lord. In closely investigating the dead Earl's career, he learnt that he was an implacable breaker of hearts, and where women were concerned he knew neither discretion nor ruth; but in Julia Darnley, he found a devil that appealed to his baser passions. While she was an adorable and willing mistress, she was at the same time an admirable manager of his household. When their tempers clashed, as they often did, she stood up to him to such purpose, that at times he was afraid of her, more especially when her jealousy was aroused. In her imperious way she was infatuated with her masterful mate, and it was very galling to her pride, and a grave reflection on her personal charms, to learn that he was becoming intrigued with some other beauty.