Curiosity Killed Dolly Kendall (A Butterworth Mystery Book 2)

by Gillian Larkin

  Curiosity Killed Dolly Kendall

  Chapter 1

  Sable Butterworth opened the brightly-coloured door in front of her. A cacophony of noise blared out. She closed the door, looked over her shoulder and said, “No. Not for me.”

  Her sister-in-law, Connie Butterworth, replied, “We’re going in. You promised Megan you’d come with us today.

  Four-year-old Megan tugged on Sable’s hand. “Don’t be scared. I’ll look after you.”

  Sable gave her a fond smile, steeled herself and opened the door again. “I’m only doing this for you, little one.” She winced at the din. “I thought this was a play gym for young children. It sounds like a gang of chimpanzees are running riot in there. Brace yourselves; we’re going in.”

  Megan giggled and looked at Connie. “Auntie Sable’s so funny, isn’t she, Grandma?”

  “She certainly is.” Connie had hold of Megan’s other hand, and she let go to allow Sable and Megan to enter together. Connie stepped in behind them and waited for the next comment from Sable. She was sure it would arrive any second.

  Sure enough, it did.

  Sable’s eyes were wide with shock as she looked at Connie. “What in heaven almighty is that foul stench?”

  “Sweaty toddlers. And happy babies with full tummies and a lot of wind. You’ll get used to the smell. Come on; let’s sit in that corner over there. That’s where we usually sit. It’s the furthest one away from the baby changing room.”

  Sable wafted a hand in front of her nose. “Is this normal? How can little people emit such a terrible odour?”

  Megan wafted her hand in front of her nose too. “Poohey! Stinky babies!”

  Connie laughed. “Don’t you start. Megan, take Auntie Sable over to our table, and I’ll get us all a drink.”

  “And a nose peg,” Sable added. She glanced at the painted walls. “What monstrosities are those on the walls?”

  “Princesses and unicorns,” Megan told her. “Auntie Sable, do you want to go on the slide with me? You have to take your shoes off.”

  Connie smiled to herself as the pair walked away. She heard Sable giving Megan a lecture about unseen germs and how they can cause diseases. Megan was hanging on to her every word.

  Connie walked over to the counter and spoke to the woman behind it. “Morning, Pauline. How are you today?”

  “Not too bad. I survived the baby rush hour. There were thirty of them this morning. You should have heard the screaming and wailing. And the mothers looked like warmed-up zombies. When I get a minute, I’ll have to empty that bin in the changing room; it’s overflowing.”

  “I don’t envy you that job. I’ve got my sister-in-law here with us today. Have you met Sable before? She’s over there with Megan.”

  Pauline glanced over to the corner table. “I think I might have seen her around town. She’s quite striking; not a face you’d forget.” She looked back at Connie. “Is it true you two have set up a detective agency?”

  “Yes. We refer to ourselves as private investigators. I think it sounds more professional. We cracked our first case two weeks ago.” Connie reached into her pocket and took out a business card. She gave it to Pauline. “We’re slowly setting our business up. Sable’s sorting out all the legal stuff. She’s wonderful at things like that.”

  Pauline nodded. “I’ll put this on the notice board if you like?”

  “Thank you. That would be lovely.”

  Pauline moved a bit closer to Connie and said quietly, “I hear all sorts of gossip in here. It’s amazing what people talk about once the children are off playing. They talk about who’s having an affair, who’s cheating on their diets, who’s behind with their gas bill. Some people even have business meetings here and discuss personal matters.” She shook her head. “It’s amazing the things I hear. If you ever need my help with a case, just give me the wink.”

  “I might take you up on that.” Connie handed Pauline a five-pound-note. “Can I pay for Megan, please? And I’ll have a juice box for her, and two cups of tea for Sable and me. I think she needs one. She’s never been to a place like this before. She’s in shock.”

  Pauline smiled. “You should bring her during the baby rush hour. Then she’ll know what chaos is. I’ll bring your drinks over.” She handed Connie some change.

  Connie waved a hand at her. “Put it in your charity jar.”

  “You say that every time. But I won’t turn you down.” She dropped the change into a glass jar.

  Connie walked over to the corner table to find Sable sitting on her own.

  Sable pointed to the padded climbing frame in front of her. “Your granddaughter is an adrenalin junkie. As soon as I took her shoes off, she raced up those rope steps, bounded along that ladder, and threw herself into that ball pool. She’s fearless.”

  “She’s a child.” Connie took a seat next to Sable. “I’ve ordered us a cup of tea. Thanks again for coming with us this morning. Megan loves having you around. We all do.”

  Sable smiled. “I love being around you and the rest of your bunch. And I love going home at the end of the day when I’ve had enough of you.”

  “I know you don’t mean that. Look, Megan’s waving at you. And so is her little friend, Tallulah.”

  Sable raised her hand at the grinning girls. “Tallulah? It’s not often you hear that name.”

  “She’s a lovely girl. She comes here with her grandma, Dolly.” Connie indicated her head towards a table on the right side of the room. “Right, Sable, I’ve got a challenge for you. I’d like you to study Dolly and tell me what her favourite animal is. This isn’t a hard challenge. Go on; have a walk past and look at her.”

  “I refuse. And stop giving me these ridiculous challenges.”

  “I’m trying to sharpen your deductive powers.”

  “None of my powers need sharpening, thank you very much.”

  Connie folded her arms. “I see you’re not up to this challenge. That’s okay. Not everyone is as astute as me.”

  Sable mumbled something under her breath and got to her feet. She casually sauntered past Dolly, checked the time on her watch, and then ambled back to Connie.

  “Well?” Connie asked.

  Sable shrugged. “I’ve no idea what her favourite animal is. That was a ridiculous challenge. Give me another one.”

  Connie frowned. “Dolly loves cats. She wears clothes with cats on them. She carries bags with cats on them. And she always wears jewellery in the shape of cats. Didn’t you see any of that? When did you last have an eye test?”

  “There’s nothing wrong with my eyes. She didn’t have any cat-related items on or about her person. Look for yourself.”

  “I will. In fact, I’ll go and have a little chat with her.” Connie stood up and walked over to Dolly.

  Sable had been right about her. There wasn’t a feline image anywhere around Dolly. Her plain grey clothes were almost as grey as her face.

  Connie said, “Hello there. Your Tallulah is just shooting up, isn’t she? I could have sworn she was the same size as Megan last week, but now she’s definitely taller.”

  Dolly gave her a tired smile. “I know. She’s growing too fast. They all do. And then they leave.”

  Connie felt her brow wrinkling and immediately straightened it. “Dolly, is something wrong? You don’t seem yourself today.”

  “I don’t want to be myself today. Sorry, Connie, I don’t mean to sound rude, but I’m not good company.”

  “I understand. We all have off days. I was going to introduce you to my sister-in-law.” Connie looked over at the corner table. It was emp
ty. “She was there a minute ago.”

  Dolly said, “Is that her over there?” She pointed to something behind Connie.

  Connie looked over her shoulder.

  Dolly continued, “Is she supposed to be in the ball pool? I thought it was for children only.”

  Chapter 2

  Sable washed her hands for the fifth time in the kitchen sink at Connie’s house. “I’ll never get those germs off my hands! Goodness knows how many strains of bacteria were in that ball pool.”

  Connie handed her a towel. “I think your hands are clean enough now. You’ll take the skin off if you’re not careful. Anyway, it’s your own fault for jumping in the ball pool.”

  Sable took the towel and narrowed her eyes in Megan’s direction. “It’s all your granddaughter’s fault. Look at her sitting there, every inch an innocent angel.”

  Megan was sitting at the kitchen table, her legs swinging happily as she drew on the notepad in front of her. She smiled over at Sable.

  Sable’s mouth twitched. She walked over to Megan and crouched at her side. “And don’t think you can get round me by smiling at me like that. I thought you were in trouble in that ball pool. I thought you were crying.”

  Megan’s eyes widened. “Did you?”

  Sable ruffled Megan’s hair and straightened up. She looked at Connie and said, “Children are peculiar. I thought she was screaming with pain. It seems she was screaming with joy. That’s why I leapt into the ball pool. I didn’t mean to get you into trouble. Did you sort everything out with the woman who runs the play gym? Pauline, isn’t it?”

  Connie gave her a sombre look. “She’s banned us. And she’s going to let all the other play gyms in the area know about us, and the danger we caused. There will be posters everywhere with our faces on them, warning people of how dangerous we are. Life will never be the same again.”

  Sable gave her a gentle push. “This isn’t the time to make jokes. Have you actually been banned?”

  “No, of course not. You’re not the first adult to go in that ball pool. I’ve seen adults go all the way around the play gym, supposedly looking for their child. It’s just an excuse. I think they like the idea of acting like a child again. It’s a shame they don’t make play gyms for adults. If our business doesn’t work out, we could look into that. Do you want a cup of tea?”

  “I’d love one.” Sable sat next to Megan and looked at the picture she was drawing. “What are those blobs?”

  Megan proudly said, “That’s you. And that’s me. And that’s the ball pool. And that’s Tallulah. She’s my best friend. And you’re my best friend too.”

  “Thank you. You’re my best friend,” Sable told her. She looked over at Connie who was busy making tea and asked her, “What was going on with Tallulah’s grandma and that business about cats? You never told me what she said.”

  Connie frowned. “It was strange. She didn’t seem like herself at all. She’s normally a chatty woman. And, like I said, she normally wears clothes with cat motifs on them. I was going to have another word with her after I pulled you out of the ball pool, but she’d taken Tallulah and left. I’ll talk to her another time.”

  The kitchen door opened and Connie’s daughter, Debra, entered.

  “Hi, Mum.” She walked over to Connie and placed her hand on her arm. “How are you? And how was the visit to the play gym?”

  “Eventful.” Connie pointed at Sable. “You’d better speak to the law-breaker over there about it.”

  “Law-breaker, eh?” Debra smiled and walked over to Sable. She put her arms around Sable’s shoulders and squeezed her gently. “What have you been up to then?” She removed her arms and took the seat next to Sable.

  “It was a simple misunderstanding. I was attempting to rescue a child who didn’t actually need rescuing.”

  Megan put her head down and scribbled furiously on her paper. Her cheeks turned pink.

  Sable said, “Oh, Megan! I’m only joking.” She looked at Debra. “What’s wrong with her? She looks upset. Tell her I was joking.”

  Debra studied her daughter for a minute. In a gentle voice, she said, “Megan, have you got something to tell me?”

  Megan didn’t look up, but her colouring became more frantic. Her cheeks were now bright red.

  “Megan,” Debra tried again. “Look at me. Now.”

  Megan peeped at her Mum but didn’t stop colouring.

  Debra put her hand out and said, “Megan. Put the crayon down. I want to know what you’ve collected today.”

  Megan sighed dramatically and placed her crayon on the paper. “Mummy, she said I could have it. And I gave her a biscuit for it.”

  Connie walked over to the table. “Debra, what’s going on?”

  “My daughter has turned into a collector. That’s the kind term for it. Another term would be a mischievous con-artist.” She turned her attention back to Megan and moved her hand closer. “Megan?”

  Megan sighed again and reached into her pocket. She withdrew a gold necklace and put it in Debra’s hand. “Tallulah said I could have it. And I gave her my biscuit. It was a chocolate biscuit. Tallulah loves chocolate biscuits.”

  Debra held up the necklace. A tiny gold fairy dangled from the chain. “This is worth more than a chocolate biscuit. We’ve talked about this, Megan. You can’t keep asking people to swap things with you.”

  “But I like that necklace. And Tallulah likes chocolate biscuits.” Megan’s face screwed up in indignation.

  Debra said, “I’ll have to give this back to Tallulah. Is there anything else you’ve collected today?”

  Megan shook her head, picked up her crayon and carried on with her art work.

  Sable said, “I didn’t know we had a criminal in the family. I’d better keep an eye on my valuables.” She smiled at the little girl. “You’re a very cute criminal.”

  Debra said, “Don’t encourage her. You should see how many things she’s collected lately from her friends. I have to check her pockets every evening, and then return the items the next day. It’s embarrassing. I’ll have to take this back to Tallulah’s mum. I’m not looking forward to that. She already thinks Tallulah is better than any other child on the planet. This will lower the already low opinion she has of Megan.”

  “I’ll take it for you,” Connie offered. “I’ll give it to her grandma, Dolly. I don’t suppose you know where she lives?”

  “I do. I’ve dropped Tallulah off there a few times when she’s been round at our house.” Debra gave her the address. “Watch out for the cats when you’re there. Dolly must have ten or more of them.”

  Connie said, “Talking of cats, we saw Dolly today, and she was wearing a plain top. There wasn’t one single image of a cat anywhere, not on her person or anywhere else.”

  “Really?” Debra said. “Not even on her shopping bag?”

  “No.”

  “Or on her jewellery?”

  “No.”

  “What about her coat? She’s got loads of cat badges on her coat.”

  “Ah. Now then, I didn’t see her coat,” Connie admitted. “But there was something different about her today. She seemed very despondent. That’s not like Dolly at all.”

  “That is strange.” Debra handed the necklace over to Connie. “Perhaps you can have a word with her when you return this.” She shot a look at Megan who was humming to herself. “After you’ve apologised on my behalf. Thanks, Mum.”

  “No problem. I can call round this afternoon. Sable, do you want to come with me?”

  “We can’t go this afternoon. We’ve got some offices to look at.”

  Connie’s face lit up. “I’d forgotten about that. Debra, did I tell you we were going to rent an office for our new business?”

  Debra gave her a wry smile. “Only five times. You must let me know if you need a hand with anything. I’m so proud of you two. I’ve been telling all my friends about you. And I’ve been giving your business cards out.”

  Sable looked sideways at Megan. “If
we ever get stuck on a case, and we need a perspective from a hardened criminal’s point of view, we know where to look.”

  Chapter 3

  The following day, Sable drove herself and Connie over to Dolly’s house. It was a mid-terraced house with a small, neat front yard.

  Sable switched the engine off and said, “That was a complete waste of time yesterday. I told that estate agent what we were looking for, and he didn’t show us anything suitable. The idiot. We’d be better off looking online ourselves. Shall we do that after we finish here?”

  “Good idea. This shouldn’t take long. I’ll give Dolly the necklace and have a quick word with her.”

  They got out of the car and headed towards Dolly’s front door.

  Connie looked towards the side window. “I can’t see any cats. If she’s got as many as our Debra says, you’d think there would be one or two sitting in the window.”

  “Perhaps they’re all out wandering the streets.”

  Connie knocked on the door.

  They waited.

  Connie knocked again.

  They continued to wait.

  Sable said, “Why don’t you post the necklace through the letter box? I’ve got some paper in my bag. You could write her a note.”

  “But what if there’s a cat on the other side of this door? What if they try to eat the necklace? Let’s have a look around the back. She might be in the garden.”

  They went round to the back of the house. They passed Dolly’s neighbour who was frantically scrubbing her steps clean.

  In a low voice, Sable said, “It’s not often you see someone scrubbing their steps. I just give mine a quick brush.”

  The woman glanced over her shoulder, looked them up and down, and returned to her cleaning.

  Connie whispered, “I know her. She went to school with our Debra. I think she’s called Lana. She was always cleaning things at school, and she constantly complained that items weren’t in their right places. She kept rearranging the classroom and even the teacher’s desk.”

  “Sounds like a form of OCD.”

  “I think you’re right. People can receive treatment for that nowadays, but back then the other children thought she was weird. They called her all sorts of names, as you can imagine.”