Trap Lane

by Stella Cameron

  ‘It is – or it was – Wells Giglio, poor bastard,’ Dan said.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  The envelope had languished in a pile of unopened post all day. Alex had not found it until she got back from the Crown and Trumpet several hours ago and then she had been busy and stuffed it in her pocket.

  Hugh usually made sure she saw anything addressed only to her when it arrived but, again, he was distracted. Each time they interacted she grew more anxious. He was distant and silent. Accepting that there was nothing she could do to change whatever inner battles he was fighting did nothing to soothe her jumpiness.

  Finally the pub was empty, the clean-up done and the staff had gone home. Hugh barely said goodnight before disappearing upstairs.

  She took a cup of tea and sat where Mary and Harriet had sat that evening. Bogie was still in front of the dwindling fire with Katie, both asleep, their backs pressed together. Tony was dealing with a difficult delivery of a foal on a nearby farm.

  The tea, Typhoo with just the right amount of milk, tasted perfect. If it kept her awake, so much the better. This didn’t promise to be an early night.

  With one thumb, she opened the envelope, leaving the ragged edges Tony rarely failed to mention as he tried to get her to use a paper knife.

  Several printed sheets slid out, the top one a letter, the others covered with a bullet-pointed series of numbers and what she hoped were explanations.

  With a hand at her throat, she read the letter … and dropped the whole sheaf onto her lap.

  There was no apparent reason why she couldn’t become pregnant again. Fiddle the explanations – that was all she needed to know. Laugh or cry? Both, she thought and laughed while she sniffled and dug out tissues.

  The tears subsided to an ache in her throat. Alex was happy! Until this moment, she had swung between wanting this news and fearing how she would feel if it came – or didn’t.

  There was no wondering about how Tony would feel. She blotted her eyes, drank some tea and tucked letter and envelope back into a pocket.

  Tony wanted to get married – even though there wasn’t a pregnancy yet and might never be. Taking a deep, calming breath, Alex whispered a mantra: You will know what to do and when it should be done. With eyes closed, she nodded firmly.

  Once again she was smiling and a shaky, happy sensation bubbled inside her.

  The sounds came of someone opening the front door of the inn. She waited to see if footsteps crossed the restaurant and went upstairs.

  They didn’t.

  With Jillian Miller and another detective, Bill Lamb walked through into the bar and gave her a brief nod before taking a seat at the table by the fire. ‘Glad to find you still up,’ he said. ‘Where’s Hugh?’

  ‘Upstairs.’ She stopped herself from asking why he wanted to know.

  ‘This is Detective Constable Liberty,’ Bill said, motioning the tall man into one of the chairs. ‘You already know Sergeant Miller. Did Annie show up yet?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Which room is she in?’

  ‘It doesn’t have a number – it’s usually mine. Straight ahead at the top of the stairs.’ Alex controlled the urge to ask why he wanted to know.

  ‘And Hugh’s number?’

  ‘It’s at the far end of the corridor. All it says on the door is “Private”.’

  At Bill’s signal, Sergeant Miller left on her tapping, high-heeled pumps. A second inclination of the inspector’s head and Detective Constable Liberty followed her.

  ‘Tony?’ Bill asked. ‘Where is he?’ His light and piercing blue eyes had taken on the expressionless quality she remembered so well. In this mood, he disturbed her.

  She hadn’t answered the last query and he leaned closer over the table, waiting.

  ‘He’s at the Drake farm. Emergency delivery out there.’

  ‘How long does something like that take?’

  ‘As long as it takes,’ she told him tersely. ‘Mares mostly do very well but a birth can be difficult. Why?’ she ended with a question this time.

  ‘To find out if I’m likely to be able to talk to you on your own. We can always go to the parish hall – or into Gloucester, if you prefer.’

  ‘Have I done something else wrong since we talked earlier?’ This veiled aggression wasn’t lost on her. ‘You’re obviously ticked off with me.’

  He leaned back in his chair and stared into space, then got up and took off his jacket. His loosened tie already hung from his unbuttoned shirt collar. ‘I’m not ticked off with anyone, Alex. Just doing my job, which isn’t always easy around here. We need to talk about when Wells Giglio came in here. Are you up for that?’

  ‘Yes. I came to you of my own accord about that already.’

  ‘Thank you. I’m glad you did. Now there are more questions. Do you remember who was here when Giglio arrived?’

  She shifted in her chair and glanced at her cold tea. ‘Would you like tea or coffee?’ Civility mattered.

  He blinked as if his eyes were gritty. ‘I think I’ll have a Doom Bar,’ he said. ‘Have something yourself. You’re not driving tonight, right?’

  ‘No. And I think it’s morning now. Are you going to pinch me for serving after hours?’ She smiled.

  ‘Not this time.’

  Carrying the cup with her, she went to pull a pint of Doom Bar. She should have asked him if he was driving. Giggling wouldn’t help her image. A clear head sounded like a better idea than alcohol.

  ‘Thanks,’ Bill said when she brought the beer. ‘Are Hugh’s relatives still here?’

  ‘I think so. They haven’t been mentioned since Hugh brought them up. That was hours ago.’

  ‘Why did he mention it?’

  She wasn’t cut out for analyzing every word before she spoke. ‘I think they’re going to leave the Black Dog. I’ve seen very little of them – the man hardly at all. I’m not sure if they’re going home to Scotland or just moving on somewhere.’

  ‘But they’ve said they’re going?’

  A flush threatened and she wished she could hide her face. ‘Hugh asked them to go,’ she said, then had an inspiration. ‘We’ve got prior bookings and we need that room.’

  Bill’s shrewd look unsettled her – even more. ‘You’re naturally honest, aren’t you?’ he said.

  ‘Yes. OK, Hugh doesn’t like his cousin and his wife and he would prefer them to stay elsewhere. We haven’t discussed it but his feelings are obvious. He told my mum to arrange for them to leave.’

  ‘Good enough.’ The notebook appeared again, and the pen. ‘Think back to when Giglio came in here. Who do you remember being here?’

  ‘Some of the regulars, of course,’ Alex said. ‘Harriet and Mary Burke were here which was unusual for the middle of the day, though. Hugh remarked on that – although I’m thinking they’ve come around that time a bit more frequently of late. Annie was here, but I said that to you before.’

  The pen was running out of ink and Bill shook it several times before giving up and finding another. He wrote rapidly. ‘Go over it all again for me, please. Sometimes you remember something you’d forgotten before.’

  ‘There were drop-ins that didn’t make an impression. I’m sure there were some regulars, too. Mainly it was Harvey and Carrie Peale and his friend, Saul. He’s one of the Gentlemen’s Biker Club members who hangs out with Harvey a good deal – he’s interested in Harvey’s writing. Hugh was working the bar with me.’

  ‘Tell me what happened.’

  ‘I already did.’

  ‘Help me out here, Alex. Go over it again.’

  ‘I don’t understand what you think I didn’t say.’ She didn’t, but she was so afraid of being trapped into saying something she’d regret.

  Bill took a swallow of his bitter. ‘You will in time. It’s not you who has me on edge, but others do. We’re in dangerous territory. People have died and I don’t want to believe I could have stopped others from the same fate, do you?’

  She shook her head, no. �
��Annie and Carrie were at a table with Carrie’s husband, Harvey. Saul was with them. Wells just came walking in and sounding angry. What he said made it seem as if he was accusing Annie of knowing more than she’s saying – about Sonia being missing, or wherever she is.’

  ‘OK.’ Bill sank into thought.

  ‘Did you find Sonia?’

  He raised his eyes, appeared to consider, then said, ‘No. I wish we had. You told me Wells threw accusations of a sort at Annie. Was there more?’

  ‘Not really,’ Alex said. ‘He got hustled outside and that was it.’

  ‘Did Hugh take him out?’

  She thought about that. ‘No. Saul took him by the arm – Wells isn’t the kind to struggle – and Saul hurried him quietly outside. That was it. I got Annie to go back upstairs to her room and relax. She was really upset – shaken. Annie’s been through much too much in the last couple of years.’

  ‘She has,’ Bill agreed. ‘But today you didn’t actually speak with her?’

  ‘No. Hugh did. I think Annie relies on him. She sees him as a kind of father figure.’

  ‘Why is that?’

  Traps on every side. ‘Just because he’s an old friend of both hers and Elyan’s. I’m sure he tells her about his visits with Elyan.’

  ‘Why would he be close to Elyan?’ Bill moved his glass backward and forward on the table, leaving a damp trail.

  Alex hadn’t expected the question. ‘I’m not sure. He knew Sonia before, I’m aware of that. That would be how the Quillams came to rent Green Friday. Hugh only rents to friends or people recommended by friends.’

  ‘Not family?’ Bill commented. ‘His cousin and his wife weren’t offered Green Friday?’

  ‘I have no idea.’ These seemingly innocent questions could lead to avenues best left unexplored.

  Bill turned a page in his notebook. ‘So you think Hugh feels he should visit Elyan because of what? Being cozy with Sonia at one time?’

  He looked tired but Alex didn’t feel as sympathetic as she might have. ‘Ask Hugh these things, Bill. I didn’t meet Hugh until long after he was whatever he was to Sonia and I don’t know why he considers visiting Elyan something he should do.’

  If Bill was chagrined, it didn’t show. ‘Routine questions, Alex. You’re always free to say you can’t answer. Back to Wells Giglio. He didn’t return to the Black Dog after he was shown the door?’

  ‘He did not.’

  ‘Annie went upstairs. Did the Peales stay?’

  Knowing where all this was leading might help. ‘They did but I don’t recall for how long. I spoke with Carrie again but only briefly. She went back to their table.’

  ‘What did you talk about?’

  ‘Mugs,’ she said, deliberately brief and expressionless, and this time she didn’t blush at the slight fabrication.

  ‘Mugs?’

  ‘Carrie is a potter. She’s going to make Black Dog mugs for us to sell here.’ She avoided more comments on Harvey. ‘I like to use locally sourced goods of all kinds. Carrie is very good.’

  ‘You’re sure you didn’t see Wells again after he left the bar?’

  ‘Absolutely sure. And I don’t know where he went. Probably drove off in a temper. I won’t be surprised to see him back, unfortunately.’

  Bill gave her one of his long, silent, unblinking stares.

  Miller walked rapidly to join her boss. ‘Hugh Rhys isn’t here, either, guv. We’ve looked all over. Longlegs is checking outside one more time, but the only parked cars are ours and Ms Duggins’.’

  TWENTY-FIVE

  He would have to suggest Annie not call him for a while. If the police questioned him again, which they would, they could decide to ask for his phone and computer. They were welcome to the computer. He would get a new mobile with a new number rather than have Annie’s recent messages raise questions.

  Hugh drove the dark and winding lanes toward Naunton. Why Naunton? He was damned if he knew why Annie would choose to go and hang out in a car park there – in the middle of the night. At least it was no distance from Folly. And the drive gave him the opportunity to be sure he was alone to think without interruption for a few minutes.

  He had seen Neve early in the evening as she tried to slip through the front door of the Black Dog without encountering anyone. Before she could escape, he followed her out and asked when she and Perry would be moving on.

  ‘When we feel like it unless you want to throw us out and make a scene in front of all your sycophants. Give me what I want and I’ll go.’

  And she’d walked to a dark green Mercedes parked at the curb. She got in, floored the petrol, and drove away too fast.

  They must have somewhere else to stay while they kept the room at the inn for whatever purpose they had dreamed up. Hugh had checked on the rental property where he’d gone to meet them that morning in Burford but they were no longer there.

  When he reached Naunton, the village was largely in darkness with lights showing at a few windows where night owls burned the late oil. Finding the car park was easy enough but despite Annie’s request that he keep his headlights on low, he had to turn them on high to locate the Mini in a far corner and beneath trees.

  Once he got close enough, he cut the lights and pulled alongside. He rolled down his window, letting in the night scents. Annie’s outline was clear but she didn’t move from behind the wheel.

  He got out and climbed in beside her. From the swollen and tear-stained eyes and face he guessed there was a lot on the girl’s mind.

  ‘Did you lock your car?’ she said.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I’m locking this one.’ Clicks sounded. ‘You know I wouldn’t call you like this if I knew what to do next. I don’t.’

  ‘Slow down. First, please don’t call the number you have again. I’m replacing it and I’ll let you know the new number.’

  ‘Why?’ Her voice rose and she turned sideways in her seat to look at him. ‘What’s wrong. Nobody knows anything, do they?’

  ‘What is there to know, Annie? I’m just being cautious. We both know there have been difficult events and so far I’ve heard nothing to suggest any resolutions. What are you doing out here? You said you were staying with a friend.’

  She took his hand and he was aware again of what a thin person she was.

  ‘I didn’t tell you everything yet,’ she said and he could see the slick of more falling tears. ‘Something’s wrong with Elyan, it has to be. He’s changed … toward me.’

  Before getting into this, he wanted to know the reason for her being here rather than in her bed at the Black Dog. As yet, he had not had any luck trying to move her elsewhere.

  ‘He hasn’t changed toward you,’ he said shortly. ‘Again, why are you here? Could you tell me what’s happened with you today and where exactly you’ve been?’ He couldn’t tell her about the fire or his suspicions about where she’d been early that afternoon. She’d take it as an accusation and be devastated. Not that he thought she’d had anything to do with what happened at Radhika’s.

  ‘I went shopping in Bourton-on-the-Water,’ she said quietly. ‘I was there a long time. I met a friend. Then I had trouble finding my car in the car park.’

  That had been Alex’s suggested reason for Annie’s long absence.

  ‘Did the two of you have dinner?’

  She cleared her throat and said in an even softer voice, ‘Yes.’

  ‘So that’s why you came to Naunton?’ Giving her the third degree was embarrassing but necessary.

  ‘I ate in Bourton-on-the-Water. At the Kingsbridge by the Windrush. The river makes me feel calm.’

  ‘You ate there. What about your friend?’

  ‘He didn’t stay for dinner – I made that bit up. I wasn’t ready to come back.’

  ‘OK. Fair enough but you could just have said so.’

  Annie swiped at her eyes. ‘Everything’s a muddle. I thought if I came here where I could talk to you it would all be clearer. It’s not you, it’s me going to se
e Sonia that started everything falling apart. I knew I was wrong to do that, I was warned.’

  He took a breath. And another. ‘When was that? When you saw Sonia?’

  ‘Only about a week ago. It was a couple of nights, or maybe just one, before there was news of Percy Quillam’s death in that horrible water. I went to ask Sonia to go and see Elyan. That was the other reason I came.’

  She would tell him what she felt the need to say. He waited.

  ‘I didn’t think she would go even though she said she’d try. Then I heard stories about someone missing from Green Friday.’

  ‘But you didn’t go to the police, Annie?’

  ‘No. I hope Sonia’s all right but going to the police wouldn’t help Elyan. I don’t trust them.’ She rested her head against the seat. ‘They’ve only done him harm. I don’t mean that what he did wasn’t wrong, but he needed to be helped and not the way he’s being treated in that place now.’

  Hugh didn’t think Annie had seen him at Green Friday when Sonia was there or she would have told him. ‘When you first came to me at the Black Dog you were very upset. You weren’t making a lot of sense. What made you say you believed Elyan didn’t want you anymore? What makes you still believe it?’

  ‘I was given a letter from him.’ She cried openly again. ‘I can’t bear to think about it.’

  ‘Elyan loves you even more than he ever has,’ Hugh told her, holding back from physically comforting her. ‘How did you get the letter? By mail, you mean?’

  She shook her head, no. ‘He sent it with someone. I promised I’d never say who and if I do, it could be bad for Elyan.’

  Now he was vigilant, searching for answers. ‘You’re saying you were blackmailed not to reveal this?’

  For a moment she remained quiet, then she sat up and made an effort to calm herself. ‘No, not at all. It wasn’t like that. They were trying to be kind and help us both. Please, Hugh, help me decide what I should do. Do I go back and try to see him again? I don’t think I can … I can’t just give up on him.’

  As much as he wished Annie could start over, he understood her feelings. ‘Follow me back to the Black Dog,’ he said. ‘A good night’s sleep will help and we’ll try to work out what to do over the next couple of days.’