Murder Beneath the Mistletoe

by Ruby Loren

  “Fine. It can have a two week trial. We shall see how it behaves,” she said, already accepting she’d just gained a pet dog.

  Becky smiled for the first time since the pair had met. “I named him Watson,” the secretary said.

  Holly’s lips twitched up. Perhaps Becky did have a sense of humour after all.

  The rest of the day passed without incident, if you didn’t count the number of accidents Watson had and the laptop charger he completely destroyed. At least it made an otherwise uneventful day more interesting. It was only in the afternoon that things looked up when George walked into the office.

  “Hi Holly, are you busy? I was wondering if…” He stopped as Watson tore across the room and jumped up and down in front of him, before running off to hide behind the desk where Holly was. “I didn’t know you had a dog?!” He bent down and tried to persuade Watson to return to him, but the puppy was now being shy.

  Holly looked down at the big brown eyes that looked back at her with such joy. She knew she didn’t stand a chance now.

  “I didn’t either until this morning.” She shot a pointed look at Becky. “But he’s grown on me already,” she admitted.

  George was smiling at her and she could immediately see he was a dog person. Holly had always been more into cats, but with Watson being abandoned just after Christmas, it would be heartless to get rid of him. Who knew? Perhaps he’d be a great detective dog, like Scooby Doo.

  “Well in that case, you’ll need to take him on walks. I know he’s a bit young to walk very far on the lead, but maybe I could show you this great walk I know? It’s cold outside, but a lovely day.” George hesitated. “Unless you’re busy. I’ve given my whole office time off until after New Year’s Day. No one commissions graphic design work over the Christmas period.”

  Holly looked down at Watson, who had collapsed on the floor in one of his brief puppy sleep moments. “I think I can spare some time. Things have been pretty quiet here, too.”

  Becky had been playing some awful game on her phone all day and Holly had been reading a book after the morning’s mystery (a missing cat) had been resolved before she’d managed to leave the office. A walk with George didn’t seem too much like skiving.

  Becky nodded that she’d keep an eye on Watson, and off they went. Holly only wished she’d had a chance to freshen up and had put on better makeup that morning. What if this trip was all planned and George was going to ask her to be his girlfriend?

  “It’s a short drive away, but it’s one of the best walks around here. It’s on the heathland… quite near to Lizzie’s house, actually.” He pulled a face, remembering the dinner party.

  Holly looked sideways at him, sensing an opportunity. “I hope you don’t mind my asking, but is there any history between you and Lizzie?”

  George winced. “No, but she hasn’t stopped trying to get together with me since she joined the company a year ago. I’ve told her no, but she hasn’t got the message.” He quietly grumbled to himself for a couple of moments. “I don’t like being pushed into things, and I’d definitely never date someone like Lizzie.” Holly felt a little warm glow of hope start in her chest and wondered if she was the sort of girl George would be inclined to date. She still had a chance!

  “Isn’t she with Christian?” she asked, knowing she was being nosy.

  George’s lips twitched up, forgiving her curiosity. “In theory, but I think they’ve just paired off because it’s convenient. Did it look like love to you?” He threw her a knowing glance.

  Holly felt her cheeks turn pink as she remembered Christian’s not so subtle contact with her. They definitely weren’t much of a couple.

  Frost was still sparkling on the tall, wiry grasses when George parked up on the edge of the heathland. It was a testament to just how cold it was outside, and how cold it was going to get again that night. Holly thought about lying in her bed all alone with a hot water bottle, before remembering she wouldn’t be alone anymore. She’d have a very un-housetrained and generally naughty puppy staying with her.

  “Come on,” George said, walking ahead.

  Holly had worn her gloves, scarf, and hat to the office that morning. She was already feeling the benefit of their warmth when she took her first steps across the heathland. She only wished that George would have taken her hand, or given her any sign of his interest. The more she thought about it, the more he’d been giving off ‘just friends’ vibes recently.

  “It’s a beautiful day,” she remarked as they walked along, talking about nothing of any consequence. George asked how the Santa Claus case had ended, and then she asked him what his plans were for New Year’s Eve. Holly got the impression he was attending a party but wasn’t about to extend an invitation. She couldn’t say she blamed him for that. The past two events they’d attended together had both ended in murder.

  Their thoughts must have both turned to the most recent death.

  “I forgot to say, the police confirmed it was cyanide. I turned over the blackmail file to them. Got a bit of an ear bashing for looking at the emails, but they were okay in the end. Now they’re investigating the whole office. They’ve asked anyone who was blackmailed to come forward, but - surprise surprise - no one has. Chittenden is furious. That’s why you haven’t been dragged in for questioning. They’re all but certain it’s to do with the blackmail.” He turned to face Holly. “Do you think you could work on the case?”

  Holly looked up at the blue sky with its scattering of white clouds - perfect, but so cold.

  “I don’t think I should. I’m sure the police will find the answer using some techno magic, if that’s how he was doing it. But, if Timothy was using good old-fashioned methods, I don’t know. Hopefully they’ll work it out. It must be whoever handed him the drink before he drank it, right? Maybe someone saw.”

  They carried on walking in thoughtful silence for a bit, both wondering what kind of secrets people at the office were keeping that made them targets for blackmail. Holly had a feeling that before the case was finished, they’d know the answer.

  “Hey… what’s that?” George’s voice changed and he pointed in the distance. Holly squinted and saw someone running flat-out. And they were coming closer.

  The runner changed direction, probably when they saw Holly and George, and ran through the heather instead. Now the runner was closer, Holly could see his brown hair flying in the wind. He was dressed in rags and his tanned feet were bare, bloodied, and covered in freezing mud.

  She drew a quick breath. “He must be in trouble!” She looked at George helplessly. What could they do to help a man who was already running away from them?

  “Maybe we should call the police?” George said. They both considered it as they carried on walking up the hill. They were still deciding when they nearly collided with Lizzie, who was power-walking in the opposite direction.

  “Oh! Hello,” George said, forcing a smile to his face.

  “Sorry, no time to chat! Got a PB time to beat,” she announced, showing them both an equally forced smile, before striding onwards.

  Holly pulled a face at George. “That’s different. I thought she’d be all over you.”

  George nodded vacantly, looking after the receding figure of Lizzie. “I wonder if she has any secrets,” he said, and then shook his head. “I’m wondering that about everyone on my staff at the moment. Even Christian has been acting a little off.” He sighed. “I think he was being blackmailed, but I don’t know what it was over. What if he did it? I could lose my business partner and the company’s reputation…” He bit his tongue, realising the callousness of his final remark.

  “Maybe I could look into that. Just that little part of the case,” Holly offered.

  George gave her a real smile. “We’d better get back before it gets dark and we turn into icicles,” he said, and they turned around and walked back to the car.

  Holly took a sip of her coffee (she was being good today) and raised an eyebrow at the email she’d just rec
eived. After George had asked her to look into Christian’s affairs, she’d headed straight for the internet and had discovered that there were people you could pay to sleuth online for you. She’d paid the very reasonable fee and had waited, wondering if Timothy Marsden had used the same strategy, or if there’d been another way he’d gathered his secrets.

  She wasn’t disappointed with the results. The email she received back was a list of online casinos that Christian’s IP address had visited. They even showed that some websites were blocking him. It looked like Christian had a gambling problem… and Timothy had probably known about it.

  She was disturbed from her inner thoughts by someone biting her hand. She looked down at Watson - who was a bundle of energy this morning. “Look, I know you aren’t really meant to be out too much, but you have so much energy, and learning to wear a harness would be a step in the right direction. How about we go out for a walk?” Watson yapped happily in response and didn’t mind a bit when she put on his new harness - a purchase she’d made the previous evening along with a whole bunch of doggy goodies. Watson had also been dragged off to the vets for some shots. That was another good reason not to take him out, as he wasn’t fully inoculated yet, but Holly’s garden wasn’t big enough for any kind of proper walk, and she knew the puppy needed exercise. She’d just have to make sure that they didn’t meet any other dogs.

  “Oh, Watson, why is it now you decide to sleep?” she moaned as she carried the comatose dog down the High Street, drawing many curious looks.

  For a puppy, he was big. She worried that other people might think there was something wrong, rather than it being a case of sleepy-puppy-itis. She glanced at the board outside the newsagents when she walked by, just as Watson started to wriggle and decided he could walk after all.

  She nearly dropped him when she read the headline.

  * * *

  Unknown man found dead in Wimble River

  * * *

  Holly’s breath caught as she reread the headline and felt her brain stitching the possibilities together.

  The man they’d seen running across the heathland yesterday… he’d looked like he was heading in the direction of Wimble River - the small, but fast-flowing body of water that passed just outside Little Wemley. Had the man they’d seen ended up in the river? She thought back and remembered Lizzie had been walking that way, too. A murderer is on the loose, she thought and started to wonder if…

  “Morning Holly!” Sergeant Pinkington called to her.

  She smiled and returned the greeting. After her recent time spent with the local police department, Sergeant Pinkington had been the only one who had always been polite and helpful.

  “Did you hear? They’ve arrested someone over that Timothy Marsden business!” the police officer said in a hushed voice. Holly inwardly smiled. The other reason she had become so fond of Sergeant Pinkington was because she was a dreadful gossip.

  “Who did they arrest?” she asked, wondering if the other woman could be persuaded to part with more information.

  “Lana Gently,” Pinkington carried on, not needing any encouragement.

  Watson sniffed at the police officer’s shoes. Holly prayed he wasn’t thinking about relieving himself.

  “But why would she do it?” she asked, wondering if she’d been blackmailed.

  The other woman shook her head. “An anonymous witness came forward and said they’d seen her passing him the poisoned drink, and it turned out that she had been sending him some rather suggestive text messages.”

  “But she’s seeing one of the other men at the office - Liam!” Holly protested, and then shut her mouth. People would always surprise her.

  “Tell me about it. Anyway, we confronted her with the witness’ statement, and she broke down and confessed to giving him the drink. She still won’t admit that she poisoned him. I think it’s obvious it was a spurned lover’s revenge.” Pinkington ran a hand through her thick, chestnut hair. “We asked her who had given her the drink, if she wasn’t the poisoner, but she wouldn’t say. She seemed almost scared. It was probably because Chittenden was in the room,” she finished, rolling her eyes.

  Holly smirked. “I hope you get to the bottom of it,” she said, careful to heavily imply that she herself wasn’t getting involved. But that wasn’t true, was it? She’d already snooped enough to know that Christian had gambling debts, and if Lana was scared of something, Holly was willing to bet she had secrets of her own - perhaps a secret worth killing for. It was one way to ensure the matter was silenced.

  She pulled out her phone and tried to call George but got no answer. Instead, she wrote out a lengthy text including the info about the man who’d died and Lana’s arrest. She listened for her phone on the walk home, but no new message appeared - despite George telling her he wasn’t working again until the New Year.

  She’d just begun to worry when her phone buzzed a couple of hours later. A message from George popped up on the screen.

  * * *

  Sorry. Busy.

  * * *

  That was all the reply George had to her new information. Holly had no idea what she’d done wrong.

  The Wrong Horse

  Holly popped into work but then decided to give herself the day off. Becky wasn’t in, but the lack of calls meant it really wasn’t worth hanging around. The answer machine could deal with any new enquiries. She wouldn’t admit to it, but she was in a mood. She’d just sent George all of that juicy information and he was too busy to react? It was so rude!

  She ruffled Watson’s head and let him out of the backdoor, so he would hopefully go to the loo in the right place. Why did she never seem to get it right when it came to men? The opposite gender was one mystery she wasn't sure she’d ever solve.

  Her phone buzzed on the table. She looked at the screen and discovered Rob Frost was calling her. Holly sighed and pressed the button to cut him off. Whatever he wanted to say to her, now really wasn’t the time for a heart-to-heart. She knew she’d only snap at him right now and potentially ruin their friendship. It was better to leave the call unanswered.

  The doorbell rang. Holly felt her mood leap, as she suspected George had come to his senses and was popping in to discuss the case. She pulled open the front door and found a completely different man was standing on her doorstep.

  “Christian!” she said and then took a step back. “How do you know where I live?” she asked, hoping she sounded curious - not accusatory.

  Christian smiled a bright, white smile back at her. “I did a little snooping.” His eyes slipped downwards - something which Holly did not fail to notice.

  “Can I help you with anything?” She didn’t have a good feeling about this social call. All she could think about was Christian’s gambling debts and the way Sergeant Pinkington had described Lana as ‘scared’. Christian was definitely big enough to be scary. What if he knew Lana’s secret and was using it against her, just as Timothy had with his colleagues? Holly knew something was wrong with all of this, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

  “I’m actually looking for George. We’re not meant to be working, but we’re all workaholics. I wanted to run a concept by him, but I can’t get hold of him. He’s not answering his phone and isn’t at his house either. I just assumed…”

  Holly blushed and then tried to recover herself. “He isn’t here, I’m afraid. I haven’t been able to contact him either,” she said, deciding to leave out the rude text message.

  Christian ran a hand through his rose-gold hair. “I wonder what he’s up to! Anyway, are you busy? Seeing as I’m here, we could go for a drink,” he said, far too casually to have just come up with the idea. Holly hesitated as she tried to think of a way to politely turn the offer down. She had far too much to worry about if George really was missing. The man on her doorstep might even be the one responsible!

  “You could even wear that necklace,” Christian continued when Holly didn’t speak.

  She felt her stomach drop. So, it
was Christian who had given her the mystery gift! She’d suspected that the sender wouldn’t stay anonymous forever.

  She had to come up with something fast. Sometimes the truth, or at least some of it, was the best option. “I’d love to go for a drink with you sometime, but I’m really worried about George. I haven’t known him for as long as you have, but it seems unusual for him to be out of contact. With the recent murder and everything, I’d really like to know if he’s okay,” she explained. Christian nodded understandingly, and Holly was glad he couldn’t hear her heartbeat racing. If Christian was the killer, now was the time he’d probably act, thinking she’d figured him out.

  “Oh man, I knew I shouldn’t have come on so fast. I just thought you looked amazing at the Christmas party and didn’t want to let the opportunity pass me by,” he said.

  Holly really looked at him for the first time, with relief flooding through her veins. Christian was almost as good-looking as George. He possessed more of a careless appearance to him that Holly quite liked and that smile really was to die for, but Holly already knew his little secret, and she also knew just how hard a habit it was to kick. She was almost tempted to return the necklace, knowing that the man in front of her surely couldn’t afford it, but it would only embarrass him.

  “I really mean it, Christian. We will go out for a drink. I’m just concerned at the moment,” she said, giving him what she hoped would pass for a decent smile. He smiled back and waved goodbye before walking back down the garden path. Something about the last thing he’d said bothered her, but her thoughts were all at sea.

  A sudden idea occurred to her. With the recent success of her internet sleuthing, what if the same people she’d employed could trace phone numbers to locations? She eagerly typed out an email and a few minutes later her request was answered. The company had managed to trace George’s location via his GPS (she didn’t ask just how illegal it was to do). She put in the co-ordinates and held her breath. Her forehead furrowed into a frown when she figured out exactly where he was.