Snippet #2642002

And yet, there was nothing.

Anna and Horatio searched Chesterfield's office and personal home, and despite the time and effort their put into their search, they found nothing of substance. Nothing related to what they were seeking, at least. From Chesterfield's personal letters and writings, they did find further evidence that he had, in fact, murdered both of his wives, but in comparison to rooting out the conspiracy that had taken place in Red Road, that fact mattered little. A few correspondences between Chesterfield and an anonymous individual were unearthed, that alluded to him turning a 'blind eye' to some matter in exchange for money, but these letters were frustratingly vague, and offered little new knowledge.

So, either Chesterfield had been more cunning in hiding his more overt complicity in the murders around Red Road, which was entirely plausible considering he had successfully hidden the fact he had murdered both of his wives, or someone had gone through his letters and belongings after his death, and after the Dogs had left to rescue the children. Either one seemed like a good possibility.

That avenue exhausted, Horatio went into the Church to keep an eye on Samuel, distracting him while Anna searched his lodgings near the edge of town. But again, nothing was found. Anna found nothing to implicate Samuel in the sinful deeds committed against the townspeople of Red Road, or anything that implied he was anyone but who he said he was.

To be fair to Anna, however...Samuel's lodgings were sparse. His home was very spartan in nature. He had a bed, a dresser, a nightstand that contained a worn copy of the Book of Life, and a few, innocuous letters for Samuel from friends in New Life and elsewhere. There honestly hadn't been much to find and look at when Anna was inside.

After all their searching, Horatio and Anna had nothing all that good to show for it. And certainly nothing that pointed to the idea Samuel had been involved in the wretched business at Fort Jefferson.

It was getting close to noon now, and Anna and Horatio had now reconvened just outside the Church. They would need to leave soon if they were to arrive at Jefferson City before it got too late, as the city itself was perhaps five or six hours away on horseback. Brother Samuel and the children were ready to leave, and now were just waiting on the Dogs to give the go ahead for them all to leave as a group.

"We haven't found much of anything, Anna." Horatio grumbled, leaning against the wall of the church.

He looked over at his apprentice, a grimace gracing his features. He still wasn't sold on Samuel being guilty...certainly, there was circumstantial evidence that might point to his guilt. But, considering the fact that neither of them had found anything, both in searching the residencies of Chesterfield and Samuel, Horatio was becoming increasingly doubtful of the whole idea.

He wasn't about to suggest dropping the idea entirely though. After all, if there was something to Anna's theory, then they needed to bring Samuel to justice. The trouble, of course, was the fact that they had next to nothing to implicate the Brother in any wrongdoing.

"I suppose we'll go with them now, to Jefferson City?" Horatio questioned, looking over at his junior partner. Anna had been the one to first suspect something was wrong with Samuel, after all. So Horatio wanted her to take point on this venture.