Aunt Bessie Questions (An Isle of Man Cozy Mystery Book 17)

by Diana Xarissa

  Bessie patted his arm. “It’s very kind of you to have agreed to do it for him. You’re a good friend.”

  “I will be, if I can find the nerve.”

  “If you need help, I’m available. I’d welcome a chance to remember Oliver, actually.”

  “That would be great, I mean, in a sad way, but still.”

  Bessie nodded. “I just have to ring the police right now, though. It may have to wait a short while.”

  Andy was pacing around the kitchen as Bessie and Dave walked in. “I was starting to worry,” he told her. “I was just about to ring 999.”

  “No need. I’m fine. I just need to ring John and then we can have dinner,” she replied. “Oh, and this is Dave. He saved me from a very angry Brandon Mason.”

  She picked up the phone and dialled a number she knew well.

  “Laxey neighbourhood…”

  “Doona? It’s Bessie,” Bessie interrupted. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I need to speak to John rather urgently.”

  “He just walked out on his way down to talk to Brandon and Dawn again,” Doona told her. “Do you want me to try to catch him?”

  “Yes, please,” Bessie replied.

  She winced when her friend apparently dropped the phone. While she waited, she could hear conversations in the background, but she couldn’t make out exactly what was being said. After a few minutes, Doona was back.

  “I missed him, but I rang him. He pulled over to take the call, and since he’s only a short distance from your cottage, he’s going to stop there before he goes to talk to the others.”

  “That’s wonderful. Thank you,” Bessie said. She put the phone down and then gave Andy a rueful smile. “I’m sorry, but dinner is going to have to wait a few minutes. John is on his way here.”

  Andy laughed. “I’ll just keep the pie warm in the oven, then,” he said. “Is John joining us for dinner?”

  “I doubt it. I suspect once he hears what I have to say, he’ll be even more eager to talk to Brandon.”

  “What about Dave?” Andy asked.

  Bessie looked over at the other man and shrugged. “You’re more than welcome,” she told him. “We’re having chicken and leek pie, and knowing Andy, there’s enough there to feed an army.”

  “I was Navy,” the man laughed. “We eat more than they do.”

  John knocked on the door only a few minutes later. Bessie quickly told him everything that had happened on the beach.

  “You know you should never confront suspects in a murder investigation,” he told her as he rang into the station for backup.

  “I didn’t mean to confront him,” Bessie replied. “I was talking with Dawn. I didn’t even know he was behind her.”

  “And now he knows that you know he was behind the break-in here,” John said. “I’d be very surprised if he hasn’t already run.”

  “Just because he broke in here doesn’t mean he’s the murderer,” Bessie said, “but I’ve been saying all along that I thought he did it.”

  “Yes, you have, and you may well be right. You’ve given me some things to discuss with him, anyway,” John said.

  A police car with flashing lights rolled past Bessie’s cottage. When a second one went past a minute later, John got to his feet. “There’s my backup. I probably won’t be able to tell you anything until tomorrow at the earliest.”

  Bessie nodded. “Good luck.”

  John gave her a hug and then headed out, walking across the beach towards the holiday cottages. Bessie stood in the doorway and watched him go. She would have loved to have been there when he confronted Brandon, but instead she pushed the door shut and had dinner with Andy and Dave.

  They were working their way through the various breads when someone began banging on the cottage door. Bessie got to her feet, but was waved back into her chair by Dave.

  “I’ll get that,” he said.

  Andy walked behind him to the door. When Dave swung the door open, Brandon was standing there, his face bright red with anger.

  “This is all your fault,” he shouted at Bessie. “You’re nothing but a meddling old lady.”

  Bessie stared at him, not sure how to respond.

  “I believe the police are looking for you,” Dave said casually.

  “They aren’t going to find me,” Brandon replied. “You can hide me in your cottage to make up for what you’ve done,” he told Bessie.

  “I’m not letting you in here,” Bessie exclaimed.

  “I’m coming in,” the man shouted, glancing back down the beach.

  As he took a step forward, Dave took a step back. A moment later Dave’s fist crashed into Brandon’s jaw. The man looked stunned for a moment and then slowly sank to his knees and then slid to the floor.

  “Maybe you should ring your inspector friend,” Dave suggested.

  Bessie was too stunned to react for a moment, but eventually she managed to find John’s mobile number and ring him. He was there in less than a minute, with several uniformed constables.

  “What happened?” he asked as he looked down at the unconscious man.

  “He tried to push his way inside, and ran into my fist,” Dave said.

  John looked at the man and then nodded. “Thank you for looking after Bessie,” he told him.

  “I was happy to do it,” he replied.

  Dave helped John get the slowly recovering Brandon into the back of a police car before he rejoined Bessie and Andy in the kitchen.

  “Oliver said you were really special,” he remarked as he sat back down at his place, “but he never mentioned this much excitement.”

  “This last year has been rather different,” Bessie told him. “Things are usually much quieter.”

  Chapter 15

  John rang later that evening, after Bessie had helped Dave scatter Oliver’s remains on the beach Oliver had loved.

  “I’m going to have to come back and visit Oliver once in a while,” Dave told Bessie when they were done.

  “I hope you’ll visit me as well,” Bessie replied.

  “I’ll look forward to it,” the man had said.

  “I just wanted to let you know that Brandon has confessed to breaking into your cottage,” John told her. “Just in case you want to send Andy home.”

  Bessie looked at the slice of toast she’d just made from Andy’s sourdough loaf. She wasn’t really in any hurry to send Andy home. “Thank you for letting me know. Has he confessed to the murder as well?”

  “Not yet, but I suspect he will. Constance is doing her best to get him put away for a long time. She’s insisting that she told him they were here and that she told him all about her plans for the evening that Walter was killed. I suspect he may end up trying to implicate her in some way, but it’s early days yet.”

  Andy went home the following morning, after one more round of pancakes with bacon. Bessie was sorry to see him go, but she was also looking forward to having her cottage to herself again.

  “Feel free to drop in and cook for me anytime,” she told the man after he’d loaded up all of his things into his car, “and thank you for looking after me. I really appreciated it, even if I did grumble about it.”

  Andy laughed. “You wouldn’t be the Aunt Bessie we all love if you didn’t grumble when we try to fuss over you,” he told her. “Anyway, I’m planning to visit regularly for the next month while I’m here. I have lots more recipes I want you to try.”

  Bessie grinned. “I’m always happy to try anything you make,” she assured him.

  The cottage felt strangely empty for a few hours, but by late afternoon she was feeling at home again. She took a short walk on the beach before dinner.

  “I’m sorry,” a voice said from behind Bessie as she walked.

  She spun around and met Dawn’s eyes. “Pardon?”

  “I’m sorry,” Dawn repeated. “I’m sorry that my brother killed my husband. I’m sorry that he broke into your home and destroyed your things. And I’m sorry that he chased you down the beach and
then later tried to barge into your cottage. I, well, I wondered about him and Walter, I truly did, but I didn’t want to believe it was possible.”

  “I’m sure this is very difficult for you,” Bessie said softly.

  “It is, yes. My father isn’t taking the news very well. He worked hard to raise us right and, well, he feels as if he failed.”

  “You and Brandon are adults now. You’re making your own choices and your own mistakes.”

  “Yes, I know. Marrying Walter, that was my big mistake. I can’t help but blame myself for all of this, really.”

  “You didn’t tell Brandon to kill the man,” Bessie said sharply. “Even if you had, it was up to him to actually do it. You can’t possibly take any of the blame.”

  “I never should have befriended Constance, either,” Dawn continued as if she hadn’t heard what Bessie had said. “She was the one who told Brandon to kill Walter, although she’ll never admit to it and he’ll never tell.”

  “Why would she do that?” Bessie asked.

  “I suspect she was bored with life here and wanted to get away. Just leaving Walter would have been too easy, though. She thrives on drama.”

  “Murder seems a step too far.”

  “Maybe she didn’t tell Brandon to kill him. Maybe she just suggested that he get rid of him or something. Who knows what she had in mind? All Brandon would have had to do was tell the bishop who Walter really was and everything would have blown up in Walter’s face. Why Brandon didn’t think of that, I’ll never know.”

  “I’m sorry,” Bessie told her.

  “Now I’ve lost my husband, who was lost to me anyway, and my brother. I’m not sure my father is going to get through this either. He doesn’t look like it, but he’s had a lot of health issues in the past year. All of this might just kill him.”

  Bessie didn’t want to keep repeating how sorry she was, but she couldn’t think of anything else to say.

  Dawn sighed. “Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I’m sorry about what Brandon did. The murder was awful and horrible, but breaking into your cottage was just him being childish. He used to do stuff like that when he was younger, breaking into homes and making a mess, but we all thought he’d outgrown it. Apparently, once he got really drunk, he decided it was a good idea. He was mad at you because you were talking to me about Walter, you see.”

  Bessie didn’t see, but she didn’t argue. “When are you leaving, then?” she asked.

  “We’re allowed to go whenever,” Dawn shrugged, “but Dad doesn’t want to leave Brandon here, and I don’t want to leave Dad. Horace and Mike have both gone home, so at least we don’t have to deal with them anymore. Dad and I are moving down to the last cottage in the row later today. Apparently, they can’t find anyone to stay there because someone died in the cottage, but Dad and I don’t care. All of the other cottages are fully booked, of course. We were lucky they managed to move a few people around to let us stay this long.”

  “I suppose I’ll see you around, then,” Bessie said.

  “I hope you’ll understand if I seem to be avoiding you,” Dawn told her. “Dad’s visiting Brandon right now, but if he’s here, I don’t want him to see us talking. He seems to blame you for Brandon’s arrest.”

  Bessie opened her mouth to object, but Dawn held up a hand.

  “I know you were part of it,” she said. “Brandon told me that he messed up and let slip that he’d broken in here and that you ran home and rang the police. I’m actually grateful to you for doing so. He killed Walter. I want him in prison for a very long time.”

  On that note, Dawn turned and went back into her cottage, and Bessie continued on her way back down the beach.

  Glossary of Terms

  House Names – Manx to English

  Thie yn Traie - Beach House

  Treoghe Bwaane - Widow’s Cottage

  English to American Terms

  advocate - Manx title for a lawyer (solicitor)

  aye - yes

  bin - garbage can

  biscuits - cookies

  bonnet (car) - hood

  book - make a reservation

  boot (car) - trunk

  car park - parking lot

  chemist - pharmacist

  chips - French fries

  cooker - oven

  cot (for a baby) - crib

  crisps - potato chips

  cuppa - cup of tea (informally)

  dear - expensive

  fairy cakes - cupcakes

  fizzy drink - soda (pop)

  hire car - rental car

  holiday - vacation

  icing sugar - powdered sugar

  jumper - sweater

  lie in - sleep late

  midday - noon

  notes - paper money

  primary school - elementary school

  pudding - dessert

  starters - appetizers

  supply teacher - substitute teacher

  telly - television

  torch - flashlight

  trolley - shopping cart

  uni - university (informal)

  windscreen - windshield

  Other Notes

  CID is the Criminal Investigation Department of the Isle of Man Constabulary (Police Force).

  When talking about time, the English say, for example, “half seven” to mean “seven-thirty.”

  With regard to Bessie’s age: UK (and IOM) residents get a free bus pass at the age of 60. Bessie is somewhere between that age and the age at which she will get a birthday card from the Queen. British citizens used to receive telegrams from the ruling monarch on the occasion of their one-hundredth birthday. Cards replaced the telegrams in 1982, but the special greeting is still widely referred to as a telegram.

  When island residents talk about someone being from “across,” they mean that the person is from somewhere in the United Kingdom (across the water).

  “Touch wood” is used where in the US we might say “knock on wood.”

  The term “pull” is similar to “pick up” when it comes to dating.

  The emergency number in the UK is 999, not 911.

  One stone of weight is equal to fourteen pounds.

  Acknowledgments

  Thanks to my hard-working editor, Denise, who spends far too much of her time correcting my mistakes!

  I’m grateful to my beta readers who give up their valuable time to offer their thoughts on these books.

  Thanks to Kevin for the wonderful photos that I use for my covers.

  And thanks to all of you for continuing to spend time with Bessie and her friends.

  Aunt Bessie Remembers

  Release Date: July 19, 2018

  Aunt Bessie remembers nothing about the party that Elizabeth Quayle insists she invited Bessie to attend.

  Elizabeth Cubbon, known as Bessie to nearly everyone, is confident that she would have remembered being invited to take part in a murder mystery evening. After everything she’s been through over the past eighteen months, it doesn’t sound the least bit enjoyable to her.

  Aunt Bessie remembers thinking the whole thing was a bad idea.

  And when someone at the party ends up dead, it looks as if she was right.

  Aunt Bessie remembers as much as she can as she tries to help Inspector John Rockwell work out exactly what happened at Thie yn Traie. But can she remember enough to put a murderer behind bars before he or she kills again?

  Also by Diana Xarissa

  The Isle of Man Cozy Mystery Series

  Aunt Bessie Assumes

  Aunt Bessie Believes

  Aunt Bessie Considers

  Aunt Bessie Decides

  Aunt Bessie Enjoys

  Aunt Bessie Finds

  Aunt Bessie Goes

  Aunt Bessie’s Holiday

  Aunt Bessie Invites

  Aunt Bessie Joins

  Aunt Bessie Knows

  Aunt Bessie Likes

  Aunt Bessie Meets

  Aunt Bessie Needs

  Aunt Bes
sie Observes

  Aunt Bessie Provides

  Aunt Bessie Questions

  Aunt Bessie Remembers

  The Isle of Man Ghostly Cozy Mysteries

  Arrivals and Arrests

  Boats and Bad Guys

  Cars and Cold Cases

  Dogs and Danger

  Encounters and Enemies

  Friends and Frauds

  Guests and Guilt

  The Markham Sisters Cozy Mystery Novellas

  The Appleton Case

  The Bennett Case

  The Chalmers Case

  The Donaldson Case

  The Ellsworth Case

  The Fenton Case

  The Green Case

  The Hampton Case

  The Irwin Case

  The Jackson Case

  The Kingston Case

  The Lawley Case

  The Moody Case

  The Isle of Man Romance Series

  Island Escape

  Island Inheritance

  Island Heritage

  Island Christmas

  About the Author

  Diana grew up in Northwestern Pennsylvania and moved to Washington, DC after college. There she met a wonderful Englishman who was visiting the city. After a whirlwind romance, they got married and Diana moved to the Chesterfield area of Derbyshire to begin a new life with her husband. A short while later, they relocated to the Isle of Man.

  After over ten years on the island, it was time for a change. With their two children in tow, Diana and her husband moved to suburbs of Buffalo, New York. Diana now spends her days writing about the island she loves.

  She also writes mystery/thrillers set in the not-too-distant future as Diana X. Dunn and middle grade and YA books as D.X. Dunn.