by Nancy Warren
He glared at Ian as though he might get an argument. “And who announces themselves? This is Teddy?” He shook his head. “I did not send that text.”
Ian nodded but only said, “We’ll have to take that into evidence, sir.” It was pretty obvious to all of us that there wouldn’t be any forensics evidence left. If there’d been any fingerprints left on the phone, Teddy had wiped them away long ago with his restless fingers. He handed it over reluctantly. “Okay, but that’s my lifeline. I’ll need it back as soon as possible.”
“We’ll do everything we can, sir.” Then, somewhat surprisingly, Ian pulled up a chair and sat around the table with the rest of us. Ryan and Annabel, who’d been waiting to be led away, glanced at each other. To Teddy, he asked, “Did you leave your phone anywhere yesterday? Did you lend it to anyone?”
“No, I didn’t lend my phone to anyone. I told you, it’s my lifeline. It goes with me everywhere.”
“Did you ever let it out of your sight?”
Teddy was less sure about this one. Helen said, “We were all told we couldn’t have our personal belongings visible, and Molly stressed that we had to turn phones off.”
Teddy nodded. “That’s right. She read the riot act to me, too.”
Helen continued, “I remember seeing your phone in your jacket pocket.” It was true. Teddy had been wearing an oatmeal linen jacket when he’d arrived. He’d taken it off and tied the sweater around his neck as though putting on a costume.
The producer had made us put our coats and bags in the back room with the extra furniture. Molly explained all this to Ian, who asked, “So anyone who was in the shop yesterday could’ve gone into the back and used Teddy’s phone?”
Teddy shrugged. “I suppose so.”
Vinod stared at him. “Isn’t your phone password-protected?”
Douglas shook his head, looking disgusted. “How many times have I told you to make your password less obvious?”
Teddy immediately went as sulky as a toddler who’s been told off. “It’s not that easy to figure out. It’s easy for you because you already know it.”
Douglas looked around at us and opened his arms. “Any guesses?”
Teddy was a nice guy but pretty full of himself. And he’d want something easy to remember. I said, “TEDD?” My second guess would be TEDL.
Teddy looked horrified. “Lucy, was it you?”
“Of course it wasn’t me.” And now I wished I hadn’t been so quick to guess his password. I looked around at the table. “Who else guessed TEDD?”
Helen put up her hand. Vinod put up his hand.
Gunnar shook his head. “I did not guess.”
Annabel said, “My first guess was LACE, but if that wasn’t right, I’d have tried TEDD.”
Ryan said, “I figured it was TEDD.”
“Okay.” Teddy threw up his hands. “Okay. As soon as I get that phone back, I’m changing the password.” And then the pout slid back down over his face. “And Douglas, you’ll have to remember it for me.”
No doubt his next password would be something like DOUG.
Ian looked like a detective who had detected that his main suspects were a bunch of idiots. He stared down at the phone as though it might speak to him. The case was a Teddy Lamont design. How easy it would be to spot which smartphone was his. “Right. We know the killer sent a text from Teddy’s phone. That’s progress.” He looked around the table. “That means it could’ve been any one of you, and, Molly, I’ll need a list of every person on the crew who came in that day. Not just the ones working there. Did anyone come in to bring extra equipment, bottled water, anything?”
She nodded. “Becks and I will get right on it.”
He turned to me. “Apart from cast and crew, did anyone else come into your shop yesterday?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
Even the vampires had stayed away.
It was no fun thinking that I might be sitting at a table with a murderer. No doubt everyone else who wasn’t the killer was having the same thought.
“Wait,” Ryan said. “You took your phone when you went out to get coffee, right?” Immediately, I recalled how frustrated Teddy had been with Enid and how he’d snapped that he needed a coffee break.
“Yes,” Teddy said.
“Where did you go?” Ian asked. “And what time was this?”
“I told you when you interviewed me. I left the class about eleven. I was back about half an hour later.”
Ian looked around. “Is that correct?” Before Teddy could protest, he said soothingly, “It’s easy to mistake time.”
We all looked at one another. Molly said, “That sounds right. I can check with the techs to be certain.”
Ian nodded. “And when you left the class, you took your phone with you.”
“Obviously.”
“Right. Annabel and Ryan, we’ll interview you now. The rest of you are free to go.”
It was such a shock to be allowed to leave that we all sat there for a minute as though waiting for him to change his mind.
He didn’t, and so everyone left but me. I had to stay behind and lock up. I didn’t really mind, as I wasn’t thrilled at the idea of going back to the scene of the crime, which also happened to be my business and home.
Since I was all alone without even my knitting, I perused the books. The ones back here were mostly older titles. All the good stuff was out front. I could hear the rumble of conversation. Two male voices, so Ian must be talking to Ryan. Annabel would be upstairs.
I found a book about Roman Britain and settled to read while I waited.
The Romans were beginning to lay the Fosse Way, a road that crossed much of England in a straight line, when Ian and Ryan came into the back room. Told he could leave, Ryan said, “Tell Annabel I’ll see her back at the hotel.”
When he was gone, Ian seemed to hesitate, then said, “Lucy, the attack on Enid Selfe was brutal. You saw the corpse. And whoever killed her managed to get into your shop.”
He wasn’t telling me anything I didn’t know, but still, I shivered.
“I don’t think it’s wise for you to stay there alone. Not until we have whoever did this in custody.”
Of course, he didn’t know that the vampires would be vigilant if they thought I was in trouble. I knew them. They’d keep watch over me and make sure I was safe. “Do you really think I’m in danger?”
“Until we know who did this and why, it’s impossible to say. The attack took place in your shop. Knitting needles were used. It could be directed at you.”
Again, nothing I hadn’t already thought about, but I didn’t want to dwell on it.
“I can send a patrol around, but we don’t have the resources to station an officer in your home.”
And that was the last thing I’d want. Not with my undead neighbors walking around all night. “No. It’s fine. I’ll be fine.”
“Is there someone you can stay with for a few days?”
“Yes.” I could stay with Violet, though I hated being driven from my home.
“Good.”
Annabel and Inspector Lee arrived then, and I ushered everyone out before making sure Charlie’s home and shop were locked up safely.
I’d gathered up the coffee things and packed them back into the crate. As I walked out into the afternoon sunshine, I thought I’d take a drive in my new car, go shopping, anything to stay away from my own home.
The crime scene.
Chapter 11
When I got to Elderflower Tea Shop, I could tell that the Miss Watts had been watching for me. Both of them met me at the door. It was fairly busy with afternoon tea customers, but the owners gave me all their attention. “Come and sit down, Lucy,” Florence said, taking the crate from my hands and putting it down in a corner. A busboy spotted it and immediately came to whisk the crate away. Cool. They had hired efficient staff this summer.
“Come and have a cup of tea and tell us all about it.”
They took me to
a quiet table far from the popular window tables so we wouldn’t be overheard. “We were so worried that something might have happened to you. Agnes would never forgive us. Ever since she passed, we’ve felt responsible for you, dear.”
I shook my head, feeling warm inside that they cared. “I’m fine, but someone died in Cardinal Woolsey’s.”
Mary put a hand to her chest. “Oh, no. Some of your customers are quite old.”
“But there was so much police activity,” Florence continued.
These two might be old, but they were sharp. “I’m sorry to say someone was murdered in my shop last night.”
“Oh, no. And when you’ve got that filming going on,” Florence said.
I turned down the offer of cakes and sandwiches, but I accepted the offer of tea. We sat over a big pot, the three of us, while I told them what little I knew. I trusted these women, and so I shared the grisly discovery I’d found this morning.
“You must come and stay with us,” Florence said firmly.
“I appreciate the offer so much, but I’ve already asked my cousin Violet.” I hadn’t yet, but I thought I’d be more comfortable staying with someone who knew about my secret gift.
“The nice girl with the odd hair who helps in your shop?”
“That’s her.”
“All right, dear, but you know you’re always welcome. We’ve got the guest room all ready for you.”
I thanked them again. I even accepted more tea, as I was in no hurry to get back to the shop. “Did you happen to see whether, um…”
“The body was taken away more than an hour ago,” Florence said, correctly guessing my unspoken question.
“Oh, good.”
“I believe there are still forensics people there, but most of the activity is finished,” Mary continued. I imagined they’d been busy peeking out their windows all day in between serving customers.
As I got up to leave, Mary said, “Oh, Rafe was here earlier. He said he’d meet you at your place. Give him a ring.”
“Thanks.” I was relieved not to go home alone. I expect he’d known I would be.
I texted to let him know I was on my way, and when I walked around back to the lane where the entrance to the flat was located, I saw a familiar black Tesla. I was too glad to see him to accuse him of hovering.
He waited until we were upstairs to ask, “How are you holding up?”
His eyes scanned my face as though it would tell him more than my words would. “I’m fine. I’m guessing that between Sylvia, Gran and your contacts in the police, you know more than I do.”
“Probably. I wasn’t there, though. It must have been unpleasant.”
A spurt of laughter was surprised out of me. “Unpleasant? Oh, yeah.”
We sat in the living room. It was warm but not too hot, as I’d left the windows open. “Initial results are in from the coroner.”
“Already?” That seemed really quick to me. “They couldn’t have done an autopsy so quickly.”
“No. But there’s something I think you’ll find very interesting.”
I knew him. When he said interesting, he usually meant jaw-dropping. So I prepared myself. “What is it?”
“Your knitting friend, Enid Selfe—”
“She was no friend of mine.”
He smiled slightly. “Enid Selfe, your murder victim—”
“Much better.”
“Sylvia and I speculated, as I’m sure you did, that whoever killed her needed brute strength and a knowledge of human anatomy to get through the ribs and pierce the heart.”
I shuddered, but he was right. I had thought those things. He said, “They were the right questions to ask. But it turns out she was already dead, or as good as dead, when those needles were plunged into her chest.”
My eyes opened wide as I tried to take in this latest revelation. “She was already dead?” I could picture her in my mind as I’d found her that morning. “You mean somebody murdered her and then shoved knitting needles into her chest?”
“Yes.”
“That was seriously ragey.”
“Do you have any theories?”
“Me?”
“Well, she was killed in your store with your antique knitting needles. Doesn’t the killing seem like it’s directed your way?”
No. I did not want to think that. “First of all, they weren’t my knitting needles. They were Gran’s.”
“Most of the world believes your grandmother is dead, which suggests they were directed your way.”
“You’re saying somebody wasn’t happy with the customer service at Cardinal Woolsey’s? So instead of writing a negative online review like anyone else in the world, they felt they had to go the extra distance?” My voice went shrill. I was not liking this theory.
“There are disturbed people in this world, Lucy. Have you had any angry customers? Somebody who seemed off?”
“Apart from Hester, you mean? She’s the angriest person I know. She was definitely not happy that she couldn’t be part of the television show.” But Hester as a knitting-needle-stabbing killer? I thought Hester would kill the normal vampire way. Unless she was trying to send suspicion elsewhere. “Did you increase her allowance like she wanted you to?”
“No,” Rafe said. “You think she’s getting back at me through you?” We both thought about that for a minute. “It’s cool and calculated. I wouldn’t have thought Hester was intelligent enough.”
I’d been joking. “You don’t really think Hester did this, do you?”
“Someone or something did this. Until we have more information, we need to be open to all possibilities.”
“So how exactly was Enid Selfe killed?” I hoped it was less horrific than what had been done postmortem.
“She’d sustained a blow to the back of her skull. That’s what killed her. She probably never knew what hit her.”
That was good to hear. “Any idea on the murder weapon?”
“No. That’s where we’ll have to wait for the full report. Could be a rock, a candlestick, steel rod, something that would do a lot of damage, and yet, that somebody could carry without arousing suspicion.”
“Carrying a rock or a fire poker down Harrington Street would look strange.”
“Point taken. However, we have to remember that this happened late at night. It’s quiet here then.” He paused. “For mortals.”
I’d forgotten to tell him about Teddy’s text message, so I did.
“So the killer lured Enid Selfe here to the shop at midnight. Presumably she was killed right away.”
“But Rafe, midnight isn’t very late. I’m sometimes still up then.” Nyx came in the window then, jumped down and walked straight over to jump on Rafe’s lap ignoring me completely. Never mind that I was the one who fed her, kept her in water and cat treats, and oh, yeah, she was my familiar. “I did hear noises downstairs. I just thought it was one of the vampires who’d come up to collect knitting supplies.” It happened often enough that I’d learned to tune out any peculiar noises coming from my shop in the middle of the night.
“What time, exactly, did you hear those noises?”
I looked at the clock. “I honestly don’t know. Maybe twelve-thirty?”
“I suspect you heard the murder.”
I closed my eyes against the knowledge that maybe I could have saved Enid if I’d climbed out of bed and investigated those noises.
Rafe knew me so well. “Lucy, if you’d gone down there, there might be two victims instead of one.”
He was right, of course, but it still didn’t make me feel any better to know a woman had been killed in my store, close enough that I could hear it, and I’d done nothing to prevent her murder.
“The fact that the killer chose midnight suggests that person didn’t know you very well and didn’t realize you live above the shop. That helps narrow down the suspects.”
I couldn’t do anything to help Enid, but I would do my best to solve her murder. From the look on Rafe’s face, he
was just as determined to help me. Rafe could be high-handed and controlling, but he was also someone who had my back. If anyone did anything that hurt me, he wouldn’t rest until justice was done. I also knew that he was modern enough and perhaps civilized enough that his way of administering justice wouldn’t involve a lifeless body sucked of all its blood. At least, I hoped not. For while he was tame and civilized, there was always a hint of the animal. I wished it didn’t attract me so much, but it did.
I thought of that woman lying there in my shop, dead. “Rafe, you’ve been around a long time. Why do people kill each other?”
He took my question seriously, which was one of the nicest things about Rafe. He always took my questions seriously. “I have been around a long time. I don’t suppose there’s much I haven’t seen. Men kill in wartime, obviously. When I was a young man, it was fashionable to fight for honor, though that seems to have gone out of fashion.”
I was obviously not getting what I wanted, so he paused to think. Then he began to enumerate on the long, white fingers of one hand. “A person kills to protect those he loves. To guard a secret. For revenge. To right a wrong. To stop the victim from doing something or telling something.” He looked uncomfortable and wouldn’t meet my eye. “Some people kill for sport or to assuage boredom. And others kill for the pleasure of it.”
I swallowed hard. “Pleasure?”
“It’s a twisted sickness, taking pleasure in having the ultimate power over another, that of life and death.”
“Do you think that’s why Enid Selfe was killed?” Why would I grab onto that motive of all others? Maybe because it sounded random, like a crazed maniac had got hold of her, so her death was completely unrelated to Cardinal Woolsey’s or the televised knitting lessons. But I’d barely got the question out, hopefully, when Rafe shook his head.
“I suspect this latest murder victim was killed for one of the classic reasons.”
“Is being really annoying one of the classics? I admit to being tempted to violence myself.”
“Tempted and acting are worlds apart, Lucy. Whoever took that woman’s life was more than irked. The violence of the act suggests pent-up anger left to fester, perhaps for years.”
