What Happens In Cornwall...

by T A Williams

  ‘Night Encounter? I’m planning to go and see it one of these days.’

  Ann gave her a smile. ‘I rather like it. It’s all about a woman whose husband goes off with a younger woman. Somehow, I can relate to that.’ Sam was very pleased to see her still smiling.

  ‘I’ll give you the full critical review when I’ve seen it.’

  ‘I’ll look forward to that. I would value your opinion, Sam. Yes, Henry, I know.’ She pointed at the dog who was butting her with his nose. ‘He can’t wait to go down to the beach for a swim. Want to come along?’

  ‘I’d love to. I adore that little bay.’ Sam stood up and followed them down the path and onto the sand. The dog wasted no time in splashing enthusiastically into the sea. They both threw sticks for him and the black shape powered out to retrieve them. Ann and Sam perched on a rock, ready to dash out of the way of the wet dog when he returned with the piece of wood.

  Samantha looked over towards her. ‘Have you been along to see the dig yet? After all, it was your find that started it off.’

  Ann gave her a weak smile. ‘Not my find really. The credit has to go to my four-legged friend.’ Her four-legged friend chose that precise moment to emerge from the water and shake himself. Both of them shrank back, but Ann still collected most of it on legs. ‘Henry, for crying out loud!’ She picked up the stick and lobbed it as far as she could back into the water, before turning back to Samantha. ‘I thought I’d come along this morning and say hello to your colleagues. I can’t keep up this secrecy thing much longer. I’m dying to see what you’re doing and maybe lend a hand if you’ll have me. Tell me, how’s the dig going?’

  ‘Very well.’ Sam went on to tell her about the skeleton hand they had found the previous day. Ann was fascinated.

  ‘And do you think the hand’s from the same person as the thigh bone?’

  ‘We’re assuming that’s the case, but it’s going off for testing. Mind out; wet dog coming.’ They both shrank away as Henry reappeared and shook himself violently before depositing his stick at Ann’s feet.

  Ann retrieved the piece of driftwood and tossed it back into the sea. The Labrador plunged in after it, his energy levels apparently undiminished. She watched him swim out into the waves and returned to the subject of the paparazzi.

  ‘You know something, Samantha? For the first time ever, I found myself thinking of Henry as a guard dog. He’s always been a big friendly lump really, but the other day, when that man in the wetsuit appeared, it was quite remarkable. When the figure loomed up at the window, Henry suddenly went for him, barking his head off, teeth bared. I’ve never seen him so much as growl before.’

  Samantha grimaced. As the image of a masked man crossed her mind, she found herself thinking once again of Miles Vernon. Mask or no mask, she wouldn’t want to find him anywhere near her room. Then the thought of Karen and her quest for a journalistic scoop crossed her mind again. ‘Have the police made any progress in finding out who it might have been?’

  Ann shook her head. ‘Nothing as far as I know. In fairness, they’ve got virtually nothing to go on. I wasn’t much use as a witness. He was about my height, slim build, wearing a black wetsuit, black gloves, hood and sunglasses. You could barely see anything of him. Oh yes, and he was wearing an expensive watch; a flashy gold watch.’

  Ann’s attention was on the dog or she would have noticed the expression of shock on Sam’s face. A vivid image of Karen’s ostentatious gold wristwatch flashed into Sam’s brain. The stupid cow!

  While Ann kept up a regular supply of sticks for the ever-eager dog to retrieve, Samantha kept thinking of the gold watch. Could Karen really have been so desperate and so crazy as to try to break into the abbey in search of a story, or some photos? After a while, she looked at her watch and jumped to her feet.

  ‘I’d better go and start work. Come up when you’re ready. The others will be really excited to meet you.’ She paused. ‘And, Ann, it’s always nice talking to you.’

  The first person Samantha saw as she got up to the dig was Ryan. He was looking apocalyptic. She had a good idea why. She gave him a sympathetic smile and walked over to the tent.

  Her suspicions were confirmed when she spotted Becky a few moments later. The fact that Becky’s bed hadn’t been slept in the previous night had been a dead giveaway. Now she had a dreamy expression on her face. Sam walked over to her side and took her arm.

  ‘So you managed to get out of bed, did you? I’m impressed. But it wasn’t your bed, now was it?’ Becky blushed. Samantha squeezed her arm as she raised an eyebrow. ‘So, did you enjoy yourself with our Italian friend?’

  Becky nodded vigorously. ‘Oh, yes. Yes, indeed.’

  Around twelve o’clock, Samantha came out of the tent for a breath of air. Down in the pit, the atmosphere was damp and musty, in spite of the bright summer sunshine outside. They were proceeding as fast as possible, but to true archaeologists, fast still meant millimetre by millimetre. As she stretched her shoulders and breathed deeply, Sam thought to herself that, at the ripe old age of thirty, she wasn’t as flexible as she used to be. Her exercises and her musings were interrupted by the arrival of a boisterous black dog.

  ‘Hi, there, Henry. You’re looking full of beans.’ She bent down and did her best to wrestle the stick out of the Labrador’s mouth. The dog was having none of it. He tugged so hard that Sam was pulled onto all fours. Sensing victory, the dog dug in his front paws and heaved. She didn’t stand a chance.

  ‘He’s a strong boy, isn’t he?’ It was Ann.

  Samantha looked up and then stood up. ‘Hi, Ann. What do you feed him on? He’s as strong as an ox. We could do with him down in the pit. I bet he could shift a fair bit of soil.’

  The dog, tiring of the stick, spat it out and trotted over to greet Sam properly. She had always loved dogs and cats, but her mother had been allergic to any kind of animal hair so they never had one at home. She made a fuss of him and then she followed Ann over to a couple of folding chairs. Henry positioned himself between the two of them, sat down and slowly scratched his ear with his hind leg. Sam reflected that this was the sort of flexibility she could do with.

  ‘So, how’s it going?’ Ann stretched her own legs, relishing the warm midday sun. Maybe the seabirds were enjoying a siesta. The noise from the colony was, for once, quite muted. ‘Found any treasure yet?’ She had come along to introduce herself to the others earlier that morning and the students had been in a state of high excitement ever since. Even Becky, once she had got over her initial disappointment not to be in the presence of George Clooney, had joined in. And Sam was pleased to see Ann looking less stressed than earlier that morning.

  ‘No, and any discovery probably won’t be any time soon. Nothing happens in a hurry on an archaeological dig.’

  ‘And the hand you found?’

  ‘We won’t know for a few days. Most of the university lab staff are still on holiday.’

  ‘Any theories?’

  ‘Only about a thousand. They run from some sort of diabolical symbolism to an amputation following a wound. Personally, I think it came off the same chap as your thigh bone, and we’ll find the rest of the body down there. Graves often get disturbed; rabbits, moles, dogs.’ She indicated Henry. ‘You’ve seen what he can do. And, of course there have always been grave robbers.’

  ‘Sounds exciting. Would you say your job was exciting?’

  Samantha hesitated, searching for a better adjective. ‘A dig like this – on a fabulous little island, the sun shining, not knowing what to expect, – is pretty good, just about as good as it gets. But ninety percent of the rest of the time we just do monotonous stuff and find nothing worth shouting about. Compared to the glamorous life of a film star, no, I wouldn’t call archaeology exciting!’

  She saw that same expression of sadness on Ann’s face she had seen a few times before and she found herself thinking of James as she listened to Ann’s reply. ‘It’s not all glamour, you know. My last film took four months to shoot a
nd I had to get up at five o’clock virtually every morning all the way through.’

  Sam tried to cheer her up. ‘Yes, but you get to snog all those gorgeous men.’

  Ann made an attempt at a smile. ‘Next time you’re feeling romantic, try stripping to a tiny g-string in a draughty studio full of people you don’t know and having some big muscle-bound hunk with bad breath jump on top of you.’ She was smiling more broadly now. ‘Not a lot of romance there.’

  ‘Yes, but you get to visit all sorts of lovely places.’ Sam wasn’t giving up.

  Ann inclined her head. ‘Yes, sure, I’ll give you that. I do get to go to some fabulous places, but it’s a strange rootless life, moving from hotel to hotel, ducking and diving to avoid the paparazzi. And remember we had three of them on the island the other week.’

  Sam nodded. ‘I meant to ask about that. Did you catch the other two?’

  ‘They gave themselves up, but they were pretty harmless. In fact, one of them looked as though he was going to have a heart attack. The guy who appeared at my window looked a lot more serious. It’s such a pity he managed to escape.’

  ‘Aren’t you worried he’ll be back?’ As she said it, Sam could have kicked herself. The last thing she wanted to do was to increase Ann’s stress levels.

  Ann’s reply was reassuring. ‘Two years ago a photographer was found hiding in one of the lockers of a yacht I’d rented. The captain threw him in the Bay of Naples along with his camera.’ She looked up at Sam. ‘It happens. When all’s said and done, they’re only photographers. It’s not as if they’re trying to kill us.’

  Sam was impressed at her attitude. ‘I think you’re very brave. Mind you, you’ve got Freddie to keep an eye on you. His presence must be reassuring.’

  An expression of tenderness flicked across Ann’s face for a moment. ‘He’s a sweetie and he does so remind me of my dad. Yes, I’m ever so glad I’ve got him.’

  Sam felt really pleased for Ann. ‘That’s great. I could do with a Freddie myself. I’ve still got this professor guy stalking me at the moment and I’m very uncomfortable with it. I spend most of my time looking over my shoulder.’

  ‘I tell you what. Why don’t you come for dinner tonight? That’ll give me company and keep you out of the way of your stalker.’

  Sam smiled. Certainly, the idea of putting a few hundred yards of water between her and Miles Vernon sounded good. And another dinner like last time would be amazing! She smiled across at Ann. ‘I’d really like that. Thanks a lot.’

  ‘You’ve got the phone number. Just call when you want Ronnie to come and pick you up.’

  The dog decided that he had had enough of conversation for a while. He stood up, stretched and nudged his mistress with his nose.

  ‘All right, Henry, I know you want your walk.’ The magic word was enough to start Henry leaping about. Ann stood up and gave Sam a cheery smile. ‘We’re off to do a few circuits of the island. See you later, and happy hunting.’ As she and Henry headed back towards the abbey, Sam was startled by a voice from behind her.

  ‘Happy hunting indeed.’

  It was Ryan, still looking about as cheerful as a condemned man after finding that his last meal was cold. He glanced down at Sam and indicated the spare chair with his thumb. ‘Free?’ She nodded and he sat down with a heavy sigh. She couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. She reached across and laid her hand on his arm.

  ‘Not doing so well, Ryan?’

  He shook his head. ‘Not really. I’m afraid our trip to the seaside isn’t quite working out as I’d hoped. And just to make matters worse, my new bloody Turkish imitation Rolex watch has just stopped.’ He banged it against the wooden arm of the chair. ‘Afraid it’s not my day today.’

  She gave his arm a supportive squeeze. ‘Things have a way of working themselves out.’ As she removed her hand, she glanced down at his watch and realised with a start that she had seen another one of these before, and not just the one on Karen’s slim wrist. ‘Oh bloody hell, Miles Vernon.’

  ‘What was that about Miles Vernon?’ Ryan was looking at her curiously.

  ‘Sorry, just talking to myself.’ Why on earth did Miles Vernon have to have a similar watch? Surely he couldn’t be involved in this affair. Then she remembered that the intruder was described as being small and slim. Miles was neither of those things. She shook herself mentally. ‘Sorry, Ryan, just going a bit loopy. Forget I spoke.’

  ‘You do know Miles Vernon was down at the pub last night, asking after you.’

  ‘He was what?’ He had her undivided attention now.

  ‘He came in about eight-ish. I was there with the others. We all thought it was a funny coincidence him turning up at the same pub as us. Anyway, it didn’t seem strange to him. He bought us all a round of drinks and asked where he could find you. I told him you and Becky had gone to Polwenton with that bloody Italian and he went off after you.’ He caught her eye. ‘Did he meet up with you?’

  She shook her head. Of course it was no coincidence that Miles Vernon had turned up here in Cornwall. So this was what being stalked felt like.

  Chapter 31

  ‘Hello, Karen, it’s me, Sam.’ She held the handset very close to her mouth and glanced round to be sure she wasn’t being overheard. The car park was almost empty and the only people she could see were a few surfers bobbing about in the waves. There wasn’t anybody within earshot.

  ‘Hi, Sam, how are you?’ Karen sounded quite normal and quite pleased to hear her voice.

  ‘I’m fine. It’s you I’m worried about.’

  ‘Me? What does that mean?’

  Sam was straining for clues. Could that be a guilty note in her voice? ‘You know you were asking me about Rock Island the last time I saw you? Well, tell me honestly, that’s honestly, Karen, what you know about what’s going on there.’

  ‘Nothing, Sam.’

  It seemed to Sam the denial was just a little too hasty. She tried again. ‘Did you go out to the island?’

  ‘Did I what? No, of course not. Whatever makes you say that?’ There was what could have been uncertainty in her voice now.

  ‘You nearly got yourself caught, you idiot. You could get into terrible trouble you know.’

  ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ Sam was sure Karen was blustering now. ‘Are you having a laugh?’

  Sam found herself almost shouting. ‘Karen, for crying out loud, what do I have to do to make you realise I’m not joking. You have no idea what serious trouble you’ve got yourself into.’

  ‘Trouble?’ Karen sounded more sober now, worried even. ‘What am I supposed to have done?’

  Sam glanced around again, but there was still nobody in sight. She had chosen the far end of the promenade at Tregossick by the little roundabout as the safest place from which to make the call and she was alone, but for a few arrogant seagulls. Sam tried once more to get her to admit it. ‘You know full well. You’ve been out to the island.’

  There was silence at the other end of the line.

  ‘You have, haven’t you?’ Sam had to wait a few moments for the reply.

  ‘Listen, Sam, you’re pissing me off now. I don’t know what’s got into you, but I’ve never been to Rock Island in my life. That’s the honest truth. Now, have you got that?’ Sam began to realise that this was sounding like the truth.

  ‘So you’re telling me you didn’t try to break in? Well, why were you so interested in the place, then? You even came all the way down to Exeter just to quiz me about it.’

  ‘I did what? Listen, Sam, I came down to Exeter from Salisbury for my own personal reasons. In fact, if you must know, things are getting serious between me and my new man. As he lives in Exeter, I’m travelling up and back quite often.’ There was a pause. Sam was just beginning to think Karen wouldn’t say any more when she heard her voice. ‘Listen, Sam. Somebody told me your department had an interest in the island, all right? There’s been a big mystery for months over who might be the new owner. All the newspape
rs are dying to find out and they would pay well, really well. But, more important than that, whichever reporter finds out the truth about Rock Island will be on the fast track to a really good job on a national newspaper. That’s why I asked you about it.’

  ‘I see. And who was it who told you that?’

  ‘You know I’m not going to answer that. Listen, Sam, I have never set foot on the island. I swear that’s the truth. Now, be a good girl and let me get on with my life.’ Karen paused for breath. ‘All right? Now, you go off and take a few tranquillisers and you’ll be fine. Bye now.’

  ‘Bye, Karen. And, Karen, I was just trying to help. I’m sorry.’

  ‘And so you should be. Stay off the magic mushrooms in future.’ Karen blew her a kiss and rang off.

  Sam tucked the phone back in her pocket and started to walk towards the handful of houses along the waterfront leading to the pub. She was in no doubt now the Karen had been telling the truth. She knew her well enough for that. So, she wondered to herself as she walked along, if Karen wasn’t the would-be intruder, the only other person with a flashy watch was Miles Vernon.

  ‘Don’t be so stupid.’ She actually spoke out loud. She looked round guiltily, but there was still nobody about. She continued her musings silently. Of course it couldn’t be Miles Vernon. First of all he didn’t match the description, but, anyway, he was a senior staff member of the university after all. All he would have to do would be to ask Virginia and he could find out anything he wanted. OK so he had a gold watch like the robber, but so did loads of people, especially when you included the cheap imitations like Ryan had bought himself in Turkey. And anyway, why might Miles Vernon possibly be interested in what happened on the island? Her concentration was suddenly rudely interrupted. She stopped dead and stared up the road.

  ‘Oh, bugger!’

  There was no doubt about it. Only a hundred metres or so ahead of her, a sleek silver Porsche was parked right opposite the pub. It was a fine evening and the tables in the beer garden were full of people enjoying the end of a sunny summer day. She had no doubt that somewhere among the crowds was Miles Vernon. She hastily crossed the road away from the waterfront so that she was shielded from the pub by a massive palm tree. She sat down on a bench and pulled out her phone. She checked the time. It was only six o’clock. Hopefully Becky was still in their room. She was.