Lois Meade 14 - Suspicion at Seven (19 page)

G
ran had duly fixed a new time to pick up jewellery for the party at Mrs. Prentise’s, and Joan collected Lois and her mother at eleven o’clock as arranged.

“Good news this morning, girls,” said Joan. “That Aurora Black has come back home. I heard it this morning on the local news. It’s so wonderful for that daughter of hers.”

“Lois knows all about that,” said Gran proudly. “She is a good friend of Aurora; aren’t you, ducky?”

“Do you mind if I stop in Tresham for a couple of minutes while I drop a poster off with a friend who has a coffee shop?” Joan said. “It could be good publicity.”

Lois and Gran said that was fine, but Lois thought their plan had been to restrict it to locals.

“True,” said Joan. “But we could spread ourselves a little more widely. Our first attempt was such a success, wasn’t it, Elsie? And we can always stop the whole thing whenever we want to. The Prentises have gone separately, as it would have been a bit of a squash all together!”

They drove around town, and Lois was intrigued to see the coffee shop was across the road from, of all things, the Purple Dog, and outside was the fat man, staring at them. She was sure he recognised her, and felt a pang of alarm. Then they were off again, and up to the jewellers shop. They were welcomed in, and had a great time choosing sparkly brooches and coloured bead necklaces, silver bracelets and faux diamond rings. They had agreed to plough back into the business enough money to enable them to vary their stock, some expensive pieces but mostly cheap and cheerful. The jewellers were quietly amused at the growing confidence of the women, and asked them to stay for a coffee after business had been done.

Around half past twelve, they emerged from the shop, and Lois took one look at the car and gasped. “Oh my God, Joan, look at your tyres!” Then they all looked at the vicious slashing, and Joan burst into tears. Gran rushed to comfort her, and Lois set off at a trot around the narrow streets until she reached the Purple Dog. The fat man had disappeared, and all the doors and windows were shut. She crossed the street and marched up to the purple door, where she knocked and rang the bell. With little hope of being answered, she was surprised to see the door opening and the fat man staring at her.

“What do you want?”

“I think you know! I’ve come to tell you that I am going at once to the police and shall hold you responsible for slashing an innocent person’s tyres. You may think you’re boss around here, but the law of the land applies equally to the backstreets of this dump.
Especially
to the backstreets of this dump.”

“Bog off,” was the answer. “And take my advice. Keep your nose out of other people’s business before you get seriously hurt. You and your family, Mrs. Nosey Parker Meade!” He was shouting now, and his face was suffused with an unpleasant puce colour.

She turned on her heel and marched off. When she arrived back at the shop, they were all sitting in the back room looking glum.

“I’m about to ring Inspector Cowgill,” she said. “He’ll deal with it.”

“And don’t forget your son-in-law, Lois,” Gran said. She turned to the others. “My granddaughter is married to a policeman, you know.”

“I don’t see how that gets us home with a load of valuable jewellery,” said Joan, sniffing back her tears. “Is it something to do with your stupid investigations, Lois?”

“Probably,” said Lois. She was thinking hard. Who knew they were making this trip today? Her own family, of course, and anybody else Joan had mentioned it to. Then she had an unpleasant thought. The Prentises. Mrs. Prentise and Gloria had come with them, but in a separate car. They would not be risking slashed tyres themselves. No, Gloria was too highly placed in the netherworld of Tresham. Could it have been a sudden decision of the fat man to muster his troops to do the deed? They would be very visible, but it was entirely possible that the rest of the street knew better than to cross members of the Purple Dog.

“What do you say, Lois?”

“Sorry? I was miles away. Sorry.”

“I said we could get Derek to organise our rescue. Joan says her usual garage will come and collect the car, or put new tyres on it, so she can drive home. But it might take a while.”

Lois immediately dialled Derek, who said he would be along to pick them up straightaway. “He said we were to keep our chins up, and he would give each of us a nice hug.”

Joan laughed. “Trust your Derek to cheer us up,” she said. “You don’t know how lucky you are, Lois.”

“I need to be lucky, Joan. And I am truly sorry if the slashing was directed at me. As a warning, maybe?”

*   *   *

When they were all home and restored, Gran rustled up an instant lunch, and Joan raised her glass of water in a toast to their rescuer, Derek.

“We need to have a sensible talk, girls,” he said, “about all this jewellery business, and also Lois and the Brigham affair. Tell us honestly, Lois; do you think today’s little episode was aimed at you? A crude attempt to stop you ferretin’?”

“Yes,” Lois said baldly.

“Right. Then as from today, you will let Aurora Black sort out her own troubles without your help. No more conferences with Inspector Cowgill, and make this your last jewellery party.”

“It’s not my party. I only make the tea. And if Mum and Joan don’t want my help, then fair enough. I’m not offering.”

Gran and Joan chorused that of course they wanted Lois. They said they had noticed that she was very good at helping with sales when buyers were queuing up.

After that, Joan went off to ring her garage to see when she could pick up her car. Derek immediately offered to take her back into Tresham, and a slightly shaky equilibrium was restored.

G
loria heard the telephone ringing as she helped her mother out of the car, and she fumbled with her keys to open the elaborate security system in their house.

The phone had stopped ringing as she reached out a hand to answer it. “Damn!” she said, waiting for another attempt. When it came, it was blunt and to the point.

“Job done, Gloria,” a man’s voice said. “The lads enjoyed it! Be in touch.”

Gloria was silent.

“I think we did a good deed this afternoon,” the voice continued.

“You blithering idiot!” said Gloria. “I told you to back off. I need Lois Meade more than she needs me at the moment. So no more damage! Got it?”

*   *   *

Gran and Joan, after a lunchtime of good intentions and private determinations, decided to take the jewellery round to Joan’s and do a bit of pricing and sorting. They both loved this job, and a lot of time was spent trying on pieces that they fancied for themselves.

“Not that we ever intend to
have
them for ourselves,” Joan said now, extending her hand with spread-out fingers to see how a large imitation sapphire looked.

“Of course not,” said Gran. “Anyway, our hands are too knobbly and blue-veined to wear show-off rings. I think we’d better to stick to brooches pinned on a black cashmere jacket. Did you notice Mrs. Prentise? I reckon that duo have got plenty of dough between them. Do you like them, Joan? My Lois and Gloria seem to have a sort of friendship. How about Mrs. Prentise?”

Joan sniffed. “I wouldn’t trust her as far as I could throw her. All smiles and touchy-feely, too. Have you noticed how she puts her hand on your arm when she’s talking to you? And the next minute cold as ice. I can’t be doin’ with that!”

“Why do you suppose she’s offered her house for a party? Most unlikely that she needs a cut of the profits. In fact, Joan, we ain’t discussed that at all, have we? I suggest we offer her 10 percent.”

“Whatever you say, Elsie. She hasn’t mentioned it at all, so far, but I doubt if she’s doing it out of the goodness of her heart! Something to do with her daughter, do you think?”

“Could be,” said Gran. “More probably something to do with
my
daughter. I don’t suppose she’ll take any notice of Derek’s orders. Never has, in my experience.”

*   *   *

Lois had been in her office all afternoon, making telephone calls and sorting absentmindedly through New Brooms papers. It had been such a strange day. The trip to the Trinders’ jewellery emporium had been a pleasant interlude, with Gran and Joan so excited, and the Prentises being modest and not at all patronising, considering they could have probably bought up the entire shop’s stock without batting an eyelid.

Then the tyre slashing, and Derek rescuing them. But at lunchtime, she could see that he was really upset and worried underneath his masterful mask. Goodness, how patient he had been over the years since she had first taken to ferretin’ with Inspector Cowgill! Not only patient, but most of the time concealing his angry jealousy of the top cop, who made no secret of his admiration of Lois.

She sighed. Perhaps it was time to consider retirement? More thinking to be done there. Lois’s attention was taken suddenly by the squeal of brakes in the road outside Meade House. Then she saw the tall figure of her son Douglas marching up the drive. Glad of a break, Lois went immediately to the kitchen, where he had already kissed his grandmother, who had conveniently put a chocolate sponge cake on the table.

“Hi, Doug,” Lois said. “How’s our son and heir? So nice to see you, love. Is this a social call, or do you have an ulterior motive?”

Douglas grinned. “Both,” he said. “Susie and I were thinking we need a weekend break, far away from the daily round of children and work.”

“And you’d like us to take charge. It would be lovely if the two tinies could come here. Jeems is good with children, and they really like her. We could do a good job of babysitting, Mum, couldn’t we?”

Suddenly the idea of having to concentrate on a couple of small children seemed a really good idea.

“You read my mind, Mum,” said Doug. “Would you really have them for us? We’d be away for two nights only. Susie fancies a weekend in Paris, and I’m rooting for Iceland. What do you think will win?”

“Paris,” chorused Gran and Lois. “You’ll love it.”

“Well, that’s really nice of you both. Susie will be so excited, and so will the children. But what about Dad? Is he around?”

“No, he’s back at work. But we’ll tell him at teatime. Can you stay? We can take Jeems for a walk in the woods.”

“I’d love to do that, Mum, but it’ll have to be a quick one. I have to check in at work at some point. You can understand that, I’m sure.”

“As nobody has asked me to join the walk,” said Gran, “I shall go to see Josie in the shop. We can have a nice chat before the school bus gets in. After that she’s busy for the rest of the afternoon. So off you go, now. Lovely to see you, Douglas.”

*   *   *

The sky was overcast when Douglas and Lois set off, but by the time they reached Farnden Hall, the clouds had cleared and the sun was warm on their backs. The souvenir shop was busy, and they walked on round the back of the house and into the woods.

“I’ve a new signpost for them,” said Douglas, as they let Jemima off the lead. She set off immediately into the thicket to find rabbits.

“What? Terriers Forbidden?”

“No. Giraffes: Bend or Bump. It is all rather ludicrous, isn’t it, Mum?”

Lois agreed. But said she supposed they were harmless.

She could not remember the last time she and Douglas had been able to talk without interruption, and they had a great time, chatting away about Susie’s intention of going back to work part-time and the brilliance of the children at their respective schools. Lois also gave him an edited account of the attack on Joan’s car, and her own experience of being closely buzzed by a young idiot. “Dangerous, it was, son. Makes you wonder what those tearaways do for innocent fun! Time to turn around, I think, Doug,” she added. “You said around fourish, didn’t you? We’ll put Jeems back on the lead, and then walk smartly back. And yes, I will take great care in future. Why else do you think I asked you to come for a walk in the woods?”

N
ext morning, Derek and Lois were having breakfast when the phone rang.

“It’s Aurora Black for you, Lois,” Derek said in a tight voice. “Shall I tell her you’re out?”

“No, of course not. Aurora is my friend, and I don’t ditch friends in a hurry. Besides which, she would have been busy all yesterday afternoon at the bakery.”

She took the call in her office with the door closed. “Hi, Aurora. How are you and Milly?”

“We’re fine,” Aurora said, and at once Lois could hear that she was much better. “I spent hours yesterday in the bakehouse. There’s nothing to beat a session of kneading the dough to clear the head! Can you come for a coffee this morning? It would be lovely to see you again.”

“Um, can I just check my diary? I’ll ring you back in a few minutes. So glad to hear you sounding back to normal.”

She returned to the kitchen to face concerted disapproval from Derek and Gran.

“You must be mad, Lois,” said Derek. “If you are seen visiting Aurora, you’ll be courting trouble. Surely you realise someone wants to stop you ferretin’ and intends to succeed, one way or another?”

“Hear, hear,” said Gran. “Please, Lois, think of the rest of your family. Don’t they mean more to you than your new friend?”

“She’s not new. Not very, anyway. And yes, of course I think of the rest of you all the time. But I don’t actually think my seeing Aurora for a cup of coffee is going to trigger a morning of armed conflict in Brigham. Added to that, the eminent Inspector Cowgill is coming at three o’clock this afternoon to have a conference. So if these idiots are following me around, they’ll surely be put off by the visible presence of a top cop protecting me.”

Derek sighed deeply. He looked at Gran, and said, “I give up. We shall just have to trust you to be sensible. Okay, Gran?”

He could see that Lois had a mutinous expression developing, and so said he must be off to work, leaving her to a sparring match with her mother.

*   *   *

The drive over to Brigham gave Lois time to think, and now that Aurora was clearly functioning much more normally, she considered a few questions that she would want to ask her. Not an inquisition, of course, but slipped into the conversation. Milly was apparently still at home, and helping out with the baking, also giving her mother time to recover properly.

Milly. She was a lovely girl, and clearly devoted to Aurora. But when she was growing up at home, she must have witnessed how her parents got on together. If Gloria’s story of the Sylvia association was true, wouldn’t it have been difficult to conceal at least some acrimonious conversations between Donald and Aurora? But it was possible, only just possible, that Aurora did not know what was going on under her nose. No, not possible.

She must have known, and decided to ignore it.

And Gloria. How much could she believe what Gloria had told her? She seemed to wish to extricate herself from any relationship with Donald. No one would necessarily know the truth, except Sylvia, Donald and Gloria. And Gloria had tried to convince her that the Purple Dog was an innocent drop-in centre, or knocking shop, as Derek used to call it, and her cousin Sylvia, who worked there, had had a special relationship with Donald Black. Gloria was determined to discover who killed her cousin, and if it was Donald, the wicked sod, then who killed him?

It was a completely different Aurora who met Lois at the bakery door. Pink cheeks, a big smile and hands covered in flour.

“Come on in,” she said. “I am so glad to see you. I realise I have worried not only my daughter, but a lot of friends in the last few days, and I think I have apologies to make. But coffee first. Milly has gone to the village shop to see a friend, so we can have a nice twosome break!”

After coffee and buns had done their work, Lois leaned back in her chair and said, “Right, explanation time. Take it gently, Aurora.”

“Well, Milly has heard it all now, of course. And I gave as accurate an account as I could to Inspector Cowgill. Up to where I stumbled into the bakehouse. That’s when you saw me, you and Milly. The rest you know, Lois.”

“And goodness, what a sad tale it is! But never mind, Aurora dear, you have been seriously sick, and must let us help you, if we can. And the doctor said not to worry, thank heaven. Now, let’s talk about how you survived in an airless warm box room without any of us finding you.”

Aurora managed a smile, and said she had discovered this dark chamber above the bread oven when they first moved into the bakery. Not only was it hidden by a movable flour bin, so that the sleepers would not be disturbed—that was in the old days, of course—but once you were up there you could push a heavy old wooden flap across so it was just about invisible.

“Why did you never tell us about this hideaway?”

Aurora hesitated. “I liked to keep it a secret. There is a way of getting out of it into the yard, but it is all overgrown with thick holly bushes. I did manage to push my way through once or twice, but it was dark and I got torn to pieces by the thorns. Look! I managed to get what I wanted when Milly was in bed. Bread and water. I slept a lot of the time, and was a bit dopey when I finally emerged. I was totally at a loss when I saw Milly collapse.

“The thing is, I’ve always managed to pretend to Milly, and to others, that my marriage was a happy one. It wasn’t, of course. Donald was a serial Don Juan, only rather smaller than the original. He had a girl in every town he visited, and where there wasn’t a local tart to be had, he would send for Sylvia Fountain.”

“Oh, Aurora, how dreadful for you! Did he tell you about them?”

“Oh yes. In detail. That was adding spice to infidelity. Then there was perhaps the hardest thing to bear. When he was at home for a few days, he would have an arrangement with Sylvia whereby she arrived at the Mill House Hotel with her brother, who left in due course, usually in darkness, and Sylvia would signal to Donald that it was safe to come over. Donald would be in a spare room overlooking the hotel, pretending to sleep on his own because of a bad headache. Of course, I knew exactly what was going on, and he knew that I knew. And worst of all, I knew that he had willed all his estate, including the shop and business, to Sylvia Fountain. He boasted about that, too. Used it as a weapon against me if I complained. Oh God, Lois, how I hated him!”