Читать книгу Exham-on-Sea Murder Mysteries 4-6 - Frances Evesham - Страница 22

Despite a sky full of dark clouds, heavy with rain, Max and Libby refused to cancel their plans for a walk on the beach the next morning. Libby, still shaken by Mandy’s sudden hostility, wanted to talk things over with Max. She hoped fresh air might clear her head. She’d hardly slept, disturbed by dreams of Mandy’s angry face juxtaposed with images of Samantha’s burning house.

Bear, free of restrictions, bounded along the sand to choose one stick after another from the driftwood left by the tide. Max gripped Libby’s arm. ‘Why didn’t you call me? You could have been killed. Imagine how I felt when I heard about the gargoyle attack from Joe.’

‘I’m sorry. I was tired. I thought I’d go home and rest before ringing you. Then, Mandy and I quarrelled.’ Tears sprang to Libby’s eyes. ‘Oh, Max. I’m so scared. Mandy’s behaviour – it’s not like her.’ She gulped, afraid of voicing her fears even to Max. ‘I’m terrified she might know something about the fire.’

She pulled her scarf tighter against the wind. ‘I’ve been praying Samantha’s death was an accident, but…’ Her voice faded. Max had stopped walking. One glance at his face told the truth. Libby stammered, ‘What did Joe say about the fire? It was deliberate, wasn’t it?’

‘I’m afraid so. The police found petrol residue round the front door where the fire started.’

‘So, the killer poured petrol through the letter box and set fire to it.’ She shivered. ‘He'd only need a match, or a lighter.’

‘Or one of those kitchen blow torches. Like the one you use for crème brûlée.’

Libby’s breath caught in her throat. Mandy had access to the torch. She closed her eyes, thinking. Had she seen the blow torch recently? She kept it safe on a high shelf in the kitchen. If only she could remember… ‘Mandy’s leaving the cottage,’ she blurted out, ‘after the row. She says I don’t trust her – that I think she killed Samantha, because they quarrelled the other day.’

A sob rose in her throat. ‘It’s not always easy being a sleuth, is it?’

Max gathered her close, his arms strong and comforting. Libby clung tight, breathing Max’s familiar scent. ‘I have to solve both murders, now. I need to discover who killed Giles Temple and Samantha, but even if I prove Mandy’s innocence, she may never want to speak to me again.’

Max swung Libby round to look into her face as she dragged a hand across damp eyes. ‘You’re not responsible for Mandy. She’s your apprentice and your lodger, but she’s an independent woman, not a child. If she set the fire, she must take the consequences. You can’t protect her, and you shouldn’t try.’

Libby swallowed. ‘You’re right, I suppose. In any case, it’s not my call. The police came about my – er – accident. Actually, Detective Sergeant Filbert-Smythe arrived, just as I was falling asleep. He cross questioned me for ages, and he wants to talk to Mandy when she comes home.’

‘Leave it to the police, then. Tell me what happened yesterday, in the cathedral. You don’t suspect Mandy of that, do you?’

Libby managed a shaky smile. ‘No, of course not. At least, I don’t know what to think any more. My head’s like cotton wool. Still, this cold wind is helping clear it.’

Her arm ached, and the quarrel with Mandy had left her devastated, but Max’s embrace was comforting. Tension seeped away from the muscles in Libby’s back and the hard knot in her chest eased. She yawned. ‘I’m assuming the gargoyle attack was designed to scare me away. There’s a corridor in the cathedral that runs high up behind the carvings. Whoever broke off the gargoyle must have been up there, but they made a quick exit. To be honest, I could almost believe it was an accident. The carvings have been up there since the twelfth century, so I suppose they couldn’t last for ever.’

‘An accident? When you’ve been investigating two murders? I don't think so.’

‘No.’ Libby took a moment to think. ‘I must be asking the right questions, but unfortunately, they haven’t taken me very far.’

‘The killer thinks you know something.’

‘The trouble is, I really don’t. I’ve hardly discovered anything, except that Giles Temple was one for the ladies. He could probably take his pick, from the women who do the flowers, through the Knitters' Guild, to the members of the amateur choirs.’

‘Well, you must watch your step and keep your eyes open.’

Libby giggled. ‘And keep my wits about me, and tread with care…’

Max squeezed her shoulder. ‘Well, you know what I mean. Good to know your sense of humour’s survived. And you’ve got some colour in your cheeks, now.’

‘The truth is, I’m finding it hard to sort out gossip and rumour from facts,’ Libby confessed.

‘Use that brain of yours. Think. Why would someone want to kill both Giles Temple and Samantha Watson? What connects them? If we can find a link, we’ll have the answer. You’ve been out and about, talking to the local gossips. What are people saying?’

Libby described her visits. ‘I picked up plenty of scandal from Ruby, one of the knitters. She knows everyone at the cathedral and gave me a rundown on who's doing what with whom. Most of it was just gossip. Ruby likes to chat.’

Libby threw a stick for Bear. Concentrating on the facts helped. She felt better, back in control. ‘I thought I’d never escape her clutches. She mentioned the Dean’s wife, Amelia Weir. Vera, another knitter, had spotted Amelia out and about with the victim, so I made an excuse to visit the Dean’s wife. She wasn’t pleased to see me, but she has a plausible explanation for the evening she spent with Giles Temple.’

Max asked, ‘What about Angela? Was she one of Mr Temple’s conquests?’

‘That’s why Chief Inspector Arnold suspected her at first. Mind you, half the middle-aged ladies in Wells could have been involved with Giles Temple, by all accounts.’

Max was quiet for a moment, whistling. ‘Let's consider opportunity. We know where and when Giles died. Who else might stay late in the library?’

‘There’s the librarian. I’d suspect him, except he’s so small and thin, he’d never have beaten Giles Temple in a struggle.’ She thought about the cathedral. ‘The place is full of vergers and volunteers, not to mention worshippers and visitors. Dozens of people have legitimate business there. It would be easy to hide until the building emptied, and if you were already inside you wouldn’t set off the alarms.’

‘Let’s look at the detail. Giles Temple was strangled with a chain while reading a book. What do we know about the book and chain?’

‘The book was old and full of maps. The police have it, but I’m planning to revisit the librarian. Dr Phillips and I got off to rather a bad start, but I think he may have more information. No one knows the library better.’

‘Good idea. While you do that, I’ll talk to Joe again.’

A watery sun peeped out between the clouds. Libby loosened her scarf and raised her face to the warmth. In a few weeks, spring would arrive, and then Robert’s wedding. He and Sarah had returned to London, but he texted Libby almost every day, wanting to know more about her investigation. She would make sure he didn’t hear about the episode in the cathedral.

Thinking of Robert reminded her of Max’s relationship with his son. ‘I'm pleased to see you and Joe getting along so well.’

‘That's your influence. Joe admires you. You’ve made his work easier, and you tolerate me, so I can’t be all bad. He’s thinking about going for promotion, by the way.

‘Good for Joe. He deserves it.’

‘Your son seems happy. He and Sarah make a fine couple.’

Libby made a face. ‘I wish Ali would come home.’

‘Where you can keep her under your wing?’

She laughed. ‘You're right. I'm a mother hen, but she’ so far away, and there’s no sign she’ll be home any time soon. Not even for her brother’s wedding. You’d think Robert would be upset, but he just says, “typical Ali.”’

‘And as if your own children weren't enough, now you worry about Mandy.’

‘It started before the fire.’ Libby told him about Mandy’s break-up with Steve.

Max stopped walking. ‘Something just occurred to me. You say Mandy disappeared for the day?’

‘On the day of the fire, and overnight. She said she went to see her mother. An emergency.’

Max rubbed his chin. ‘I should have realised. That day, I visited Reg in Bristol. He works from an office there and he asked me to review a set of financial documents. At Temple Meads Station, someone climbed out of a taxi and into another car. I thought it was Mandy, but I assumed I was mistaken.’

‘Really?’ A slow smile spread over Libby’s face. Mandy was telling the truth, after all. ‘So, she really was visiting her mother in Bristol, though why she left the taxi at the station, I have no idea. Perhaps her mother was picking her up there.’

Max nodded. ‘Why didn’t she take the train to Bristol? Do you offer such generous expenses for taxis?’

‘Not likely. The problem is, Mandy’s got a thing about trains. A sort of claustrophobia.’

‘Is she getting therapy?’

Libby shrugged. ‘I don’t know. I suggested it, but I think the idea fell on deaf ears. Still, if you saw her in Bristol, you can provide her alibi for the day of the fire.’ Libby took a deep breath, letting it out with a sigh. ‘What a relief.’

‘Hold on a minute. There’s no proof. I can't put my hand on my heart and swear I saw Mandy. The best I can say is that the person I saw looked similar. She wore black clothes, like Mandy’s, but she had a scarf wrapped round her head so I couldn’t see her face. She moved like Mandy, though, and she had big, heavy boots.’

‘Well, your description sounds right. Maybe I don’t have to suspect her any more, so you've put my mind at rest.’

‘In that case, can we please leave this freezing beach and go home?’