Death Takes A Trip (Julia Blake Cozy Mystery Book 5)

by Larkin, Gillian

  “I enjoyed it. Although it was difficult to look unimpressed as she showed me around. Have you seen the size of those bedrooms?”

  Julia laughed. They picked up lunch at a local shop and then made their way to their next client.

  Julia had just finished cleaning her client’s bathroom when her phone rang.

  “Hey, Julia! Hope I’m not disturbing you. It’s Helena Blossom.”

  “Hi, how are you? Don’t tell me you’ve got some information for me already? Have you found out who that man is that’s been following Douglas?”

  “I certainly have. I’m looking at him right now. He’s standing outside the local hospital. It’s the one that your friend, Nina Sapphire, is in.”

  Julia gasped. “What’s he doing? Is he looking menacing? Shall I drive over there?”

  “You are a woman of many questions! No, you don’t have to come here. I’ve got everything under control. I’ve taken several photos and I’ll know who he is within the hour.”

  “That’s great. Thank you. Will you …”

  “Keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t sneak into the hospital and do away with Nina?”

  “Something like that,” Julia said.

  “I’ll keep an eye on him. If he moves, then I move too. Catch up with you later!”

  “Oh, Helena, just a minute. Can I ask you something?”

  “Shoot.”

  Julia explained about Stan, and that he wouldn’t speak to her. She also told her about Erin Matthews and how concerned she was about her granddad’s death.

  Helena said, “I have ways of making people talk, and not by using force. Listen, I have a contact in Scotland. I’ll give her a ring, she’ll be happy to visit Stan on your behalf. She’ll get the info that you need.”

  “Really? That’s so kind of you.”

  Helena laughed. “You might regret asking for my help. When all this is over I’ve got a favour to ask you. Bye for now!”

  Julia told Cain what Helena had said. Cain said, “What do you think the favour is? Do you think she wants you to assassinate someone? Or act as a spy? That would be awesome! Ask her if I can help too.”

  “I hope it’s nothing like that. Are we finished here? One more job and then we’re done for the day. I’ll pop in on Nina after I’ve dropped you off.”

  When Julia called in on Nina she was glad to see that she looked brighter. She was surrounded by friends but still had time to make Julia feel welcome. Julia didn’t say anything about the latest developments, she didn’t want Nina to lose her smile.

  Julia yawned as she walked through her kitchen door an hour later. Her yawn turned into a scream as she tripped over something. Strong hands caught her before she landed on the floor.

  Dad grinned at her and said, “Do you do all your own stunts?”

  Julia looked down at what had caused her to fall. “What are all these shopping bags doing here?”

  “I noticed you were getting a bit low on groceries. Your mum had me doing our weekly shop so I thought I’d get some things for you too. I was about to put them away. And don’t worry about that cat you dropped off, she’s fine with us for the moment.” He stopped. “Now come on, there’s no need to cry. Sit down, let’s get the kettle on.”

  Julia wiped her eyes. “Sorry, Dad. You’re so kind and thoughtful. I’m just tired. A lot has happened today.” She sat down.

  Dad reached into the nearest carrier bag and pulled out a boxed chocolate cake. In mock surprise he said, “How did that get there? We can’t let your mum see this. We’d better destroy the evidence.”

  A few minutes later they were both tucking into generous slices of cake, cups of tea at their sides. In between mouthfuls of cake Julia brought her dad up to speed.

  She waved a fork at him and said, “Mildred pushed Nina down the stairs at the shop, she hates Nina and she’s got a bad temper. I can imagine her doing that. But I’m not sure that she killed Douglas. There’s something going on with Kirk Adams. He’s involved in Douglas’ death somehow.” She yawned again.

  Dad patted her hand. “Finish your cake. You need a good night’s sleep.”

  “I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep, my mind is too busy.”

  Dad stood up and reached into another carrier bag. And, like a magician, he pulled something out. “What’s this doing in here? White wine? Me and your mum only drink red wine. You’d better have this.”

  “But I’ve got work tomorrow,” Julia protested.

  “One glass won’t hurt. Oh dear, I’ve opened it now. You’d better have a glass before it goes off.” He took a glass from the cupboard and filled it halfway. “Take it into the front room and I’ll put this shopping away.”

  Julia stood up and took the proffered glass. “Thank you, I love you.”

  “Most people do.” He turned her towards the living room and gave her a push.

  Julia sat down, took a sip of her wine and placed it on the table at her side. Her eyes were stinging. She closed them for a moment.

  A short while later she was shaken awake. Dad smiled down at her, “I hate to wake you but you can’t sleep in that chair. I’d carry you upstairs but I don’t want to put my back out.” He put his hands out and helped her to her feet.

  Julia said thank you again and saw Dad to the door.

  She slept better than she thought she would. She certainly did not appreciate the banging on her door early the next morning.

  Chapter 29

  “Good morning, Julia Blake!”

  Julia peered through half-open eyes at her visitor. She croaked, “Do you know what time it is, Helena?”

  “I do. I thought you’d be up early. Can I come in?”

  Julia opened the door and indicated for Helena to enter. Julia said, “Five-thirty is not early, it’s still night-time. Sit down, I’ll put the kettle on.”

  Helena grinned at her. “You’re not a morning person, are you?”

  “It’s not morning yet, I just told you, it’s still night-time. Tea? Coffee?”

  Helena waved a hand. “None for me thanks, I can’t stay. I’m due to follow a cheating husband in twenty minutes. Listen to this, my contact spoke to that Stan fella.”

  “She got him to talk?” Julia reached for the kettle. She definitely needed a caffeinated drink.

  “Of course, she’s a professional. You’re right about Stan being threatened. His windows were broken on purpose. He faced up to Kirk Adams but then the nasty scumbag threatened to hurt his grandchildren.”

  “No!” Julia slammed the kettle down. “What a … it’s too early for me to put words together.”

  “I have many words for men like Kirk Adams. Stan felt he had no choice but to sell up. He moved in with his daughter, then he convinced them all to leave Yorkshire. He said they’re not totally happy living in Edinburgh but Stan is too scared to move back.”

  Julia filled the kettle and switched it on. “Wow, that Kirk really got to him.” She looked closer at Helena. “Why are you grinning like that? Have I got something stuck in my teeth?”

  “Nope, you haven’t heard the best part yet. Well two best parts, if that makes sense. Before Stan moved away he made a formal complaint about Kirk Adams.”

  “Who to?”

  “His dad, Alexander Adams.”

  Julia reached for a teabag. “And what did he say?”

  Helena’s grin threatened to split her face in two. “He said he knew! He knew all about Kirk and his ways. He said he endorsed them.”

  “No way! Really?”

  “Yes. Stan confronted Alexander Adams in his office when there weren’t any witnesses about, silly sod. You should always have witnesses. Alexander told Stan that he’d taught Kirk to act that way. He boasted that was the reason Adams Construction was so successful. It was his idea for Kirk to threaten Stan’s grandchildren.”

  Julia sank onto the nearest chair. “I can’t believe it. I spoke to Alexander Adams, he doesn’t seem the type. Everyone has only good things to say about him.�
��

  “Evil can put on a friendly face, never forget that. I haven’t got to the next best bit, or the last best bit. Listen to this, Stan told my contact that before he agreed to sell his house he got the feeling that he was being followed. He caught sight of a man behind him several times. He gave a description to my contact. It matched the description of the man that was following Douglas.”

  Julia shook her head. “This is getting weirder.”

  Helena made a shushing motion at her. “Listen! I found out who the man is. He’s called Bobby Saxton and he works for … Alexander Adams!” She moved closer to Julia and closed her open mouth. “I know, shocking, isn’t it? I confronted Bobby Saxton yesterday. He told me he’d been hired by Alexander Adams to follow certain people. Not to attack them or anything, just follow them and make sure that the victim knew they were being followed. Can you imagine that? You’d soon turn into a nervous wreck if you had someone staring at you wherever you went. That was all part of Alexander’s plan. What do you think of that?”

  “I think I need a strong cup of tea. I can’t believe you found all that out so quick. Douglas said someone was following him. Kirk, or his dad, must have been the one that pushed Douglas down the stairs. They must have returned to the house after Mildred left.” Julia looked straight at Helena. “Nina! They’re going to go after Nina next! I have to speak to DI Clarke.”

  Helena held up a hand. “No need. I’ve already done that. I’ve crossed paths with the lovely inspector before. I called on him before I came here.”

  “You did? I bet he was annoyed at you for waking him up. I bet he glared at you with those piercing eyes of his.”

  Helena shook her head. “No, he was already up. He’d just returned from his morning jog.”

  Julia narrowed her eyes. “That’s not normal. What did he say?”

  “He thanked me for coming to see him.”

  “Humph! He never thanks me for anything.”

  Helena continued, “I gave him supporting documentation and photographs. He said he would be contacting Alexander and Kirk Adams first thing this morning. He’s going to question them again about Douglas’ death, and how they run their business.”

  “Will he let me know what happens?”

  Helena smiled and said, “He said, and these are his words, ‘I shall inform Ms Blake in due course what the outcome of our enquiries are. No doubt she will be pestering me before I eat my lunch today.’”

  Julia gave Helena a small smile. “He’s right about that. Thanks again for your help.” She swallowed. “About the favour you mentioned?”

  Helena said, “Can I speak to you later about that? I really have to go. Don’t worry, I won’t be asking you to kill anyone! You can go back to bed now.”

  Julia stood up. “I won’t be able to sleep with all this new information in my head.”

  Helena opened the kitchen door, threw her a wink and said, “You can go for a jog. Catch you later!”

  Julia threw her a disgusted look. “Don’t be ridiculous. Thanks again.”

  Julia closed the door and finished making her tea. Did Kirk or Alexander Adams kill Douglas? If so, why did she have this niggling feeling in her stomach that something wasn’t right? There was something she was missing.

  She couldn’t shake the feeling all day.

  Later on, at a client’s house, Cain said, “I thought you’d be pleased. You always said that Kirk Adams had something to do with Douglas’ death.”

  “I know! That’s what’s bothering me. I should feel happy, glad that justice has been done. But I don’t.” She shook her head. “Perhaps I’m being silly.”

  “Why don’t you tell DI Clarke how you’re feeling?”

  “Ha! I’m sure he’d love to hear about my feelings. You know what he said when he phoned earlier, he’d arrested Kirk and Alexander over their business dealings, and they were looking into Douglas’ death again.”

  “Did he say if they’d let Mildred go?”

  “No, they’re keeping her for a bit longer. I’m sorry, Cain, I’m not much company today.”

  “That’s alright. I know what will cheer you up. There’s an old black and white film on tonight, it’s one of Nina’s earliest films. I’m going to watch it.”

  Julia made a note of the film. Nina would be out of hospital soon, it would be great to mention that she’d seen her in a film.

  At the end of the day Julia settled down in front of the TV with a glass of wine. She said, “Cheers, Dad,” and took a sip. Why did the first sip always taste so lovely?

  The film began. Julia smiled when she saw Nina’s name come up.

  As she watched the film tears began to pour down her face. She put her glass down. She reached for her laptop and logged onto the Internet. More tears fell. Her phone rang.

  “Julia, it’s me, Cain. Are you watching the film?”

  Julia nodded and managed to get out the word yes.

  Cain said, “Are you crying? I am.”

  Julia nodded again. She cleared her throat and said, “Cain, I never expected this.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “The right thing.”

  Chapter 30

  DI Clarke met Julia outside the hospital doors the next morning. He studied her face and said, “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  Julia tried to smile. “Not really, but I have to.”

  “Don’t you have clients to visit?”

  “I’ve left Cain to do that. He offered to do that, he didn’t want to be here.”

  DI Clarke nodded. “I can understand that. I don’t want to be here either.” He took a deep breath. “Come on, Julia, let’s go.”

  If Julia hadn’t been feeling so sad she would have mentioned that he’d never called her by her first name before. She followed him into the hospital and down the corridor. Two uniformed policemen were waiting outside the door that led to Nina’s ward. DI Clarke said to them, “Wait here until I call you in.”

  Julia’s footsteps felt heavy as she walked after the inspector. He said quietly, “The beds at either side of Ms Sapphire are empty. I asked the nurses to do that. She doesn’t need an audience.”

  “I think she does need an audience,” Julia said.

  Nina looked up from her bed as they got closer. Her face lit up. Julia noticed how well Nina looked, there was no sign on her face of all the grief she’d been through recently.

  Julia couldn’t return Nina’s smile.

  Nina’s smile dropped. She placed her hands on her lap and waited for them to sit down at her side. She looked from one to the other and said, “Ah, you’ve worked it out, haven’t you?”

  Julia felt her eyes prickle.

  Nina nodded. “I thought you would. I knew you wouldn’t leave this matter alone. Although I thought I’d got away with it when Mildred was arrested.”

  Julia blinked quickly and forced any tears away. “Why, Nina? Why did you kill Douglas? I thought you loved him.”

  Nina chuckled. “I was fond of him. Tell me, how did you work it out? I thought you were convinced that Kirk Adams had something to do with Douglas’ death.”

  “I watched one of your films last night. And then I looked on the Internet for facts about you.”

  “Which film was it? No, let me guess. It’s the one where I fall down the stairs, isn’t it? That’s my favourite one. You saw that I survived in the film and how I acted afterwards. You must have realised that I acted the same way after I fell down the stairs at Douglas’ house, and how I acted after my tumble at the charity shop.”

  Julia nodded. “My dad said something to me recently about doing my own stunts. When I looked online I saw that you did your own stunts. Your special talent was falling down stairs without getting hurt.”

  Nina smiled. “I was the best in the business. A peculiar talent to have, but useful all the same. I knew how to fall and how to land. I still have that talent, that’s why I never broke any bones in my recent falls. Did you notice anything else in the film?”<
br />
  “Yes, there were scenes of you in hospital, surrounded by friends. You said the same things to them that you said to Doris and the others. Like how you didn’t want to be a nuisance. You made people feel sorry for you. The more I watched, the more I realised how much you’d been recreating scenes from that film.”

  “My acting has come in useful. I hope Doris isn’t too upset with me. Inspector, shall we get down to business? You’re awfully quiet. Did I fool you too?”

  DI Clarke didn’t blink. “I’m not in the habit of being fooled, Ms Sapphire, but I must admit I was taken in by your act. I felt sorry for you.”

  Nina nodded. “That was the point! When people feel sorry for you they give you lots of attention. Take Julia here, every night she’d called in to visit me, despite having done a full day’s work. And Doris has been run off her feet trying to make sure I was happy.”

  Julia’s sadness was replaced by anger. Nina had made fools of them all! “But why? Why did you kill Douglas?”

  Nina said, “You’re a clever girl, I’m sure you’ve worked it out by now. Look at me, an ageing film star. I wasn’t much of a star in my younger days but I had my followers. They loved showering me with attention, and I loved being on the receiving end. It made me feel alive! As soon as I met Douglas I knew he was lonely enough to devote all his time to me. And those women in the charity shop, they felt good being around me and hearing about my time in films. They basked in my fame and attention.”

  Julia shook her head and looked away.

  Nina carried on, “I was fond of Douglas. I could have married him and settled down to a normal life. But where was the excitement in that? On the night that he died I was still at his house. Inspector, you should have checked up on my alibi. You only had my word for it that I’d left Douglas’ house that night. As it was, I was in the bedroom. The door was closed but I heard the conversations that he had with Kirk Adams and Mildred Hepplethwaite. A plan began to form in my mind based on some of the murder mystery films I’ve been in. As the grieving girlfriend, no, fiancee, I’d get a lot of attention from my new friends.”

  Julia’s head snapped back to Nina. “You didn’t have to kill him!”