Death in the Aegean

by Irena Nieslony

  “Never again,” she said out loud. “Never again will I act so foolishly.”

  Eve truly meant it as she said it, but she’d meant similar things many times before and changed her mind just as quickly. Then she remembered what she’d thought on the beach and felt as guilty as hell.

  My goodness, what a stupid thing to wish for. I didn’t really want a murder to happen, and even though I didn’t like Lucy Fowler, I certainly didn’t wish her dead......... But this happened before I wished for someone to be killed, so it isn’t my fault. Anyway, I don’t know if it was murder. It could have been an accident...........

  Eve bent down again to look at Lucy’s body. Now that she had pushed her long hair back from her face, and had got more accustomed to the light in the cave, Eve could see marks around her neck. Had she been strangled?

  “And why is she in here fully dressed. If she had gone into the sea of her own accord, she would have put on a swimming costume. It must be murder.”

  Eve got up again quickly. She’d had quite enough of looking at a dead body for one day.

  Yes, it looks like the police have another case. And it might not be as easy to solve as it first seems. Not many people liked her so I don’t suppose Kevin will be the only suspect.

  Lucy Fowler had moved to Crete the previous October with her husband Kevin. She was in her late forties and had bored Eve and many others with her endless chatter about her sons and grandchildren. She seemed to have little interest in anything else. However, Lucy turned out to have quite a vicious tongue and ended up being a suspect in the murder of Jennifer Anderson. Lucy had believed that there had been something going on between her husband and Jennifer which would have given her good cause to have murdered the woman.

  For once Eve wasn’t sure what to do. She wondered if she should ring David or the police first. David spoke Greek much better than she did, so it would be sensible if he rang on her behalf. However, somehow she didn’t want to involve him.

  He’ll probably think that I’m keen on searching for the murderer again. A moment ago I said I wouldn’t, but am I that certain that I won’t be tempted?....... Oh, what the heck; I’m getting curious about this case and I probably would like to do a bit of investigating. I love David and I don’t want to worry him, but I’d also like to find out who killed Lucy.......Yes, I’m going to do it, but perhaps the best thing would be not to tell David. I know it’s a naughty thing to do, but he worries so much about me..........

  Eve sat on a rock for a few moments trying to convince herself that this wasn’t a lie. Basically, she wouldn’t be telling him what she was going to do. Now, that wasn’t a lie, was it?

  Eve then got up, deciding it was time she took some action. She waded out of the cave back into the sea and then paddled to the beach where she had left her clothes and cell phone. Everything was still there. Despite the severe austerity measures, unless you went to the major cities on the mainland, Greece still seemed safer than the U.K.

  Eve took out her phone and suddenly remembered that she had saved the telephone number of Dimitris Kastrinakis, the police officer in charge of the previous murders. She liked to think he had given her his number because he considered her to be useful, but in reality it was because he was worried that she would keep getting herself into trouble by poking her nose in where it wasn’t wanted. However, despite Dimitris telling Eve to keep out of the investigations, she had taken no notice and ended up in danger many times.

  Eve dialed the number, intending to keep any enthusiasm for solving the crime out of her voice.

  Dimitris picked up almost immediately.

  “Nai.”

  How rude, Eve thought.

  She couldn’t get used to the way the Greeks answered the phone. Eve thought that just saying ‘nai’ which means ‘yes’, wasn’t polite at all and she certainly wasn’t going to take on this Greek custom.

  “Ah, good afternoon, officer Kastrinakis. This is Eve Masters.”

  She wasn’t certain, but she thought she heard him sigh.

  “Miss Masters, it has been a long time. What can I do for you? No more murders I hope?”

  He laughed and Eve was pleased that she was going to ruin his mood.

  Annoying man. He was always telling me not to interfere, yet I did a better job than him in finding the killers.

  “Well, I’m not certain about a murder, sir, but I have found a body,” Eve replied smugly.

  “What? Do not joke with me about such a serious matter, Miss Masters.”

  “As if I would joke. This morning I went to a little cove to sunbathe on my own and when I went swimming, I came across a cave nearby. In this cave, I found a body.”

  Dimitris was quiet for a moment. He was stunned by this turn of events and wondered why, out of all the people in the area, it had to be Eve Masters who found a body. He hoped that the dead person wasn’t from Britain otherwise Eve would want to be involved again.

  “Have you any idea who this body is?” he asked nervously.

  “Oh yes. It’s Lucy, Lucy Fowler.”

  Eve hoped that she didn’t sound too conceited, but she couldn’t help it.

  “What? I don’t believe it. Not another English person. Do you British people do nothing but kill each other? You, Miss Masters, have given me so much extra work in the past year.”

  “Excuse me, I have not killed anybody since I arrived on Crete, but I think I discovered the murderers quicker than the police.”

  Eve was getting quite uptight and annoyed that he was taking all the glory for solving the cases for himself.

  “You caused me more work, madam. You were continually getting into trouble. You were poisoned twice, your car was tampered with, your house was set on fire, and the list goes on. If this is murder, you are to keep your nose out of it, do you hear me.”

  Dimitris was shouting at Eve by this point. She said nothing, but her blood was boiling. How dare he speak to her like this? It wasn’t very pleasant finding a dead body and for all he knew, she could be in a state of shock. All she needed was Dimitris Kastrinakis being rude and unpleasant.

  Just wait till David hears about this.

  She had forgotten that she wanted to keep as much of this from David as possible.

  However, Eve decided not to get angry with Dimitris, but instead she put on a pathetic voice in an attempt to make him feel guilty.

  “Please don’t shout at me. It’s been very upsetting finding Lucy dead like this. I don’t feel at all well. It’s been a shock.”

  Dimitris didn’t know if she was lying or not. From his experience, Eve could be a hard, calculating woman, but even tough policemen could get sick at the sight of a dead body.

  “I’m sorry.”

  He decided to give her the benefit of the doubt, though he wasn’t entirely duped by Eve.

  “I just don’t want you to get hurt,” he continued, sounding concerned. “Now tell me where you are.”

  Eve smiled to herself, believing she had fooled the detective. She didn’t think he had any idea that she wanted to solve the murder herself.

  “I’m in a small cove in Kokkino Chorio.”

  “Near the turning to Drapanos?”

  “You know it?”

  “I was brought up in Kokkino Chorio.”

  “Oh,” Eve said, not ever having imagined Dimitris Kastrinakis as a small boy. “Well, hurry please.”

  “We’ll do our best,” he replied with a sarcastic tone to his voice.

  Dimitris thought there was little need to rush if Lucy was already dead.

  When the call had finished, Eve decided to get dressed before the police arrived. Her bikini was still a little wet, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

  Eve then wondered if she should call David, but again decided against it. His first thought would be to tell her not to interfere if it was murder and she wanted to enjoy the anticipation before she had to hide the truth from him.

  I feel bad about not telling David that I’m going
to do a bit of investigating, but it’s better than arguing or, God forbid, splitting up over this.

  Eve shivered at the thought of losing David. However, a moment later, Eve smiled. The murder of Lucy Fowler was a chance for her to shine again. Eve Masters liked nothing better than being in the spotlight.

  She imagined that the police would have no idea who had a motive to kill Lucy Fowler and it would probably take them some time to find out. They knew little of what went on within the English community. She was already much further forward in the investigations than they were.

  Of course Dimitris Kastrinakis would warn her against interfering again and she would nod in agreement as usual. However, he knew that she would meddle. It went without saying.

  Then there was David. He would be concerned about her again. He hated her getting involved in these murders and had in fact left her last time, but it had ended up only being for one night. Most of the time Eve was certain that David’s love for her would keep them together, but on occasion it did cross her mind that her behavior might drive him away.

  Suddenly Eve remembered Lucy and wished she felt sorry for her, but she didn’t and instead felt guilty for using her death to her advantage. However, she kept telling herself that Lucy hadn’t been a nice person. Would anyone be sorry? She expected that the only people who would care would be her sons and grandchildren. Eve guessed that Kevin wouldn’t be sad, not going on that conversation she overheard at their Christmas party. In fact they seemed to hate each other. She decided it would be better to forget about him for the moment, so she turned her attention to Lucy.

  Was Lucy killed in the cave or was she murdered somewhere else and then thrown into the sea, finally washing up there? Or perhaps she was brought to the cave in a boat or she could have been carried from the cove? It wasn’t far and she was very light. And who had killed her? Kevin? His brother, Paul? Or somebody else? This is so interesting. I would love to solve the case before the police.

  Eve was getting excited, the shock of finding Lucy’s dead body subsiding. Eve lived in the moment and was able to put things behind her very quickly, except where David was concerned.

  However, as Eve sat there, an awful thought ran through her head. She had touched the body.

  The police will say I shouldn’t have touched it. Damn......... Well, I had to see who it was. I know, I’ll say I had to make sure she was dead. She might not have been and I could have helped her. The light was very dim so I had to make certain and that meant touching her.

  Eve’s thoughts were disturbed by sirens and she was relieved. Although she thought the killer was long gone, a small part of her was worried that he or she might suddenly appear and attack her.

  Before long, a police car and ambulance drove down to the cove. The road was steep and dusty, and while Eve hadn’t bothered driving down in her expensive Mercedes, they didn’t seem bothered.

  Dimitris Kastrinakis and a few other policemen walked towards Eve, followed by a couple of men with a stretcher. Eve started to get excited about the start of a new case, although she knew that this was the last thing she should be feeling.

  I must pretend to be upset about Lucy’s death, I really must, she said to herself, trying to look sad.

  Eve knew the possibility of Dimitris seeing through her facade was very real, but she had to give it a go. She needed to be as discreet as possible this time, for the sake of her relationship with David. When she discovered who the murderer was without getting hurt or getting into any sort of trouble, then she would tell him. In fact, she probably wouldn’t have to, as it would be reported on T.V. and in the papers. He would most certainly be proud of her achievement and would forgive her for going behind his back.

  Within a couple of minutes, Dimitris Kastrinakis came over to talk to Eve, followed by another officer.

  “Well, it’s been a while,” Dimitris said, almost smiling. “After you point out where the cave is, I will need to ask you a few questions, Miss Masters, as I’m sure you’d expect.”

  Eve nodded. She didn’t feel like getting into another argument with him. She was certain that they would never see eye to eye, but she had no choice but to answer his questions.

  Eve waded into the sea with Dimitris, another policeman called Stavros, and the men carrying the stretcher. Once she had shown them where the cave was, she paddled back to the beach and waited for Dimitris to come back. She suddenly felt quite nervous; countless questions filling her mind. What if the body had disappeared? What if Dimitris was angry with her for touching Lucy? What if they suspected her of the murder?

  However, Eve calmed down once Dimitris got back and started questioning her. She was surprised that he seemed less antagonistic than usual and wondered if it was because she had found the body. Perhaps he realized that she must still be in shock.

  “So, can you tell us in your own words, what happened this morning, Miss Masters?”

  He spoke gently, but Eve still sighed.

  He knows exactly what happened, but I suppose I’ve got to repeat it for the other officer so he can write it down.”

  “Well,” Eve said in a monotone voice, surprising Dimitris by her lack of enthusiasm. “I got hot sunbathing so I went into the sea for a while. When I’d had enough, I started to come back to the beach, but I saw a cave not far from here. I was curious so decided to go in. It was quite dark and I tripped over something. When I looked, it was the body. I bent down and saw it was Lucy Fowler. Her body anyway.”

  “If she were face down, how could you recognize her?”

  “Oh, for a start, I recognized her outfit. She was wearing exactly the same thing when I saw her in the village shop yesterday afternoon. Then I pushed her hair away from her face to make sure.”

  “So you touched the body?” Dimitris asked, a little more harshly now.

  Eve had heard him speak like this to her many times, usually when she had interfered in his cases before.

  “I had to be sure,” Eve replied calmly, refusing to be put off by his attitude. “I know; I wasn’t thinking, but I also wasn’t certain that she was dead. I had to check. It could have been a matter of life and death. As it was, she was well and truly dead.”

  Dimitris wasn’t sure if he believed her. She was probably just being nosey, but then not many women, even someone as brave as Eve, would particularly want to touch a dead body.

  “I mean if she had still been alive, I could have helped her, don’t you agree?” Eve smiled sweetly.

  Dimitris wondered what Eve was playing at. She wasn’t behaving in her normal manner. She was being co-operative and that was nothing like the Eve Masters who Dimitris Kastrinakis knew.

  She’s up to something. I don’t know what, but I’ll have to keep a close eye on her.

  “Yes, you could have helped her and she could have told us who had attacked her. Very well, I agree you had to find out if she was alive or not. Now, I just have a few more questions for you. What time yesterday afternoon did you see Lucy Fowler?”

  “It was just after three. I can tell you that because I’d watched Masterchef Australia on TV which finishes at three and I went to the shop directly after.”

  “Did you speak to Lucy?”

  “We said hello and that was it. We don’t get on particularly well.”

  “During the last case, she and her husband weren’t getting on. Have they reconciled?”

  “I don’t think they are getting on any better, though they still live together,” Eve replied, wondering if he suspected Kevin.

  “And you, Miss Masters, have you seen her socially recently?”

  “No, I try to avoid socializing with people I don’t get on with, though sometimes it can’t be helped. However I did notice her out with other people on Saturday. David and I were in The Black Cat with Paul and Jane having a drink while Lucy was there with her husband and Betty and Don Jones.”

  “Isn’t Paul her brother-in-law?” Dimitris asked.

  “Yes, well by adoption as you know, why?”


  “I’m surprised you weren’t all having a drink together. That would seem like a case for burying the hatchet, as you British say.”

  “I’m very impressed by your knowledge of common English sayings,” Eve said, sounding surprised.

  Dimitris gave a nod of the head, but Eve didn’t give him time to elaborate, certain he would say it was because he had been spending too much time solving English ex-pat murder cases.

  “I think you know that Betty and I don’t much care for each other, so it would hardly have been a pleasant evening.”

  In fact Eve and Betty hadn’t been able to stand the sight of each other from the moment they had first met and there had been a feud going on between them since that time. Betty had tried her hardest to keep her apart from David, but she hadn’t succeeded and instead had now alienated David as well as Eve, much to Betty’s disappointment. She admired David enormously.

  “How did Lucy seem on Saturday?” Dimitris continued.

  “It’s funny you should ask because she was a bit tipsy. It’s quite unusual for her and she gets argumentative when she’s drunk. We all heard Kevin trying to quieten her down, but that’s nothing new since their marriage hit rock bottom. Then a little while later they left, followed shortly by Betty and Don.”

  “Well, I think that will be all for now, thank you. I hope you haven’t any plans to leave the country at the moment?”

  “What, do you think I killed her?” Eve asked in disgust.

  “You are an important witness, Miss Masters.”

  Eve looked at him crossly. How dare he tell her what to do? Luckily, she hadn’t any plans to leave Crete, but she would have been very annoyed if she had.

  “Oh, and by the way, don’t go looking for the murderer again, Miss Masters. Remember last time and the time before. You weren’t too keen on staying in the hospital, if I remember rightly. Of course, this time you might not be so lucky.”

  With that Dimitris Kastrinakis turned and walked away quickly, leaving Eve open-mouthed with no time to respond.

  * * * *

  While all this was going on, David was crouched over his laptop at Eve’s house. After she had stormed out, he had barely typed a word, not being able to get her out of his mind.