“They’re here already, Jack,” came Lady Repton’s voice from the walkie-talkie. “As you cops say — we’ve got him bang to rights I do believe.”
18. A Little R & R
Sarah sipped at her champagne as she sat back in the hot tub, the bubbles flowing around her neck.
“I suppose back in the day when you were with the NYPD, you ended every case like this,” she said.
“Sure,” said Jack, who was sitting opposite her. “We had a hot tub in the precinct house. Some days we never left it. Fridge stocked with champagne as well!”
She laughed, and then looked across through the glass wall into the leisure centre.
Daniel and Chloe were enjoying having the whole pool to themselves, throwing a giant inflatable back and forth.
“Funny,” she said. “The only time they’ll still play is when they’re in the sea or in a pool. Rest of the time they wouldn’t be seen dead together.”
“Growing up fast,” said Jack, sipping his own champagne, before carefully placing the flute at the side of the hot tub.
“You should get your daughter over here, Jack,” said Sarah. “Hey, tell her you belong to the country club now. Along with Lady Repton, the club members are the nearest thing to aristocracy we have in Cherringham.”
“It’s a year’s free membership — and one year only, remember? The Reptons are grateful, but they’re not going to break the bank to say thank you.”
“You just keep reminding Simon about his week in prison, and he won’t forget,” said Sarah.
“He’s lucky we were here to help, I gotta admit. And lucky that he has such a great grandmother.”
“Do you think Lee and Marie would have got away with it?” said Sarah.
“I don’t see any of that lot sacrificing their success voluntarily to keep Simon out of jail — do you?”
“Too much to lose,” said Sarah. “Though I’d like to believe June would have come clean.”
“Maybe.”
“You think Marie was going to leave Lee to carry the can?”
“Looks like it,” said Jack. “Don’t forget — she was going to have to own up not just to one affair, but to two. Laurent and Lee. And I know the French are pretty liberal about these things, but even they might complain a little about that…”
“I don’t think they’ll charge her though,” said Sarah. “She says Laurent attacked her first — and I saw the evidence. Very nasty marks on her neck and face too, hence the sunglasses she refused to take off.”
“Lee’s got a pretty good defence too — sauvez la femme, isn’t that what they say?”
“If it really did play out like that.”
“Exactly,” said Jack. “If. Guess we’ll never know.”
The bubbles subsided.
“Want some more?” said Sarah.
“You bet,” said Jack.
Sarah hit the button and the bubble action started again.
“You know, right at the beginning, if we’d looked at the old staff photos in the corridor there, we’d have found a young Lee Jones. He’s in both 1988 and 1989, smiling at the camera with his arm round a kitchen maid.”
“Every case — you can look back and see a short cut,” said Jack. “But we were following the money, Sarah. We wouldn’t have connected Lover-boy Lee to the island. And the girls he took out there — we would have just thought he used the boats…”
“You’re right,” said Sarah. “He wasn’t going to own up to knowing about the tunnel until the game was up.”
“Any more news on the twinning?”
“Not a whisper,” said Sarah. “And apparently the item has been quietly deleted from the agenda for the next Parish Council meeting.”
“How very Cherringham,” said Jack with a smile.
The door to the hot tub area opened up and Sarah saw Simon peering in.
“Can I get you chaps anything?” he said. “Open tab all day, you know.”
“We’re fine thanks, Simon,” said Sarah.
“Jolly good,” said Simon. “Dinner for four at your usual table?”
“You bet,” said Jack. “Though Simon perhaps you could have a word with chef for me?”
“Of course, Jack,” said Simon. “I hope there isn’t a problem…”
“No, no,” said Jack. “It’s just I’m aiming to have the oysters tonight, and if chef doesn’t mind, I’d quite like to make my own sauce.”
“Not a problem. I’ll make sure he’s ready.”
Sarah watched Simon go then turned to Jack.
“Well, you’re certainly making yourself at home,” she said.
Jack smiled at her.
“I’m retired,” he said. “A guy’s got to do something with all the hours in the day.”
He raised his glass.
“To a life of leisure,” said Jack.
“I wish,” said Sarah.
Next episode
One of the worst blizzards in years hits Cherringham, cutting off the village from the rest of the world. Just outside of town, Broadmead Grange is a struggling retirement home, housed in a gothic mansion behind towering walls. One of the home’s residents, poor old Archy, becomes Cherringham’s latest victim after he loses himself amongst the snow drifts. Did Archy really just fall victim to the elements, or was there foul play involved? Jack and Sarah take on the case to dig up the truth.
Cherringham — A Cosy Crime Series
Snowblind
by Matthew Costello and Neil Richards
Cherringham — A Cosy Crime Series
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Cherringham--The Body in the Lake Page 10
