by Issy Brooke
“Do not go experimenting,” he said. “Have you spoken to Cath?”
“No, she’s away and she won’t talk to me about confidential work stuff anyway,” Penny said sulkily. “Unless I get her drunk, of course, and that’s hard while she’s in London.”
“You should stay out of it, anyway. If the police think someone is running around killing people with what is, effectively, a chemical weapon, then you need to be well away from it. Asking questions could get you in a whole new world of bother.”
Penny kicked at the ground, and spoke plaintively into the phone. “But Drew, listen. My sister has been interviewed by the police. She thinks she is a suspect. I know she can’t possibly have done it, but she’s so stressed with everything else. I’m worried about her.”
“She does have a lot on her plate right now,” he agreed.
“Yes,” said Penny. “And we weren’t in touch for years, so I want to make it all up to her now. Therefore whatever she needs, I will do it for her. And if that means finding out who killed Julie Rose, I will do that.”
“You can trust the police to do that.”
“Really? Drew, there have been four murders since I moved here, and I helped in solving every single one. Whatever I am doing, I’m doing something right.”
There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. Eventually, Drew said, “Okay. Okay, I’m stupid and crazy for saying this, but whatever help you need, Penny, I will give it to you. Just … try not to get arrested. Or worse.”
Penny’s heart was fluttering and she felt a little sick, but in a good way. “Thank you so much!”
But when she ended the call, and tucked her phone away, she went to look around the market hall for William and his daughter. And there was no sign of them. She had lost the tail.
Chapter Seven
Throughout Monday and Tuesday, Penny caught up with jobs to do with her craft business. She strived to keep it part-time; she was technically retired, after all, and she wanted the free time to enjoy her early retirement.
It was far too easy to let the tasks pile up, and it was difficult to know when to stop, not least because it was so much fun. She knew it would be a different matter if she were reliant on her income entirely.
She made up some hand-printed calico bags, and started to think about Christmas. She’d given up going to craft fairs, but there were some local events coming up, and she thought she might take a stall at them. Tuesday was spent at her kitchen table, with the radio on, and Kali at her feet, while she sketched out seasonal ideas.
She was feeling restless by Wednesday, and it was harder to concentrate. She decided she would complete a watercolour sketch based on a photograph of Lincoln’s narrow back streets at the top of Steep Hill, the Bailgate, and then wander into town for lunch and gossip.
She was just laying down the first blue wash, with the board propped at an angle while she swept the wide soft paintbrush in confident strokes from side to side, when her phone buzzed with a text. She couldn’t stop to read it; she had to finish the wash or it would have streaky lines.
When she did read it, she sat down with a thump, and read it again, three times.
It was from Francine, and it was a revelation.
“Big news, overheard this. Charlotte is not William’s daughter. But she is Julie’s. I don’t know father.”
Julie was Charlotte’s mother.
Who was the father? Was that even relevant?
Penny tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Did Charlotte know about this? Obviously Julie had known … hadn’t she? There were a few scenarios that Penny could imagine where she might not have known the young woman was her daughter, but they seemed improbable. William must have known, surely. No one else in the town knew, did they? There had not even been a hint of gossip.
Had Francine even got the information correct?
Penny sent a quick text back, asking for confirmation and asking who else knew, specifically Charlotte herself. There was no immediate reply.
Now Penny felt restless. She decided to go into town early, but it was going to be hard to ask anyone about this without revealing what she knew.
She was standing in her small hallway, dithering, when the unlocked front door opened, and Kali launched herself from behind Penny to attack the intruder with licks and wags.
It was Wolf. He went to his knees to greet Kali before he looked up and said hello to Penny.
“How’s your mother?” Penny asked.
The twelve-year-old looked more mature than he usually did, and he was a mature sort of lad at the best of times. He sat back on his heels and said, thoughtfully, “The toll is showing.”
He was a bookish boy and liked words, Penny thought. That’s not a sentence Destiny would ever say. “How so?” she asked.
“She isn’t sleeping. She looks really haggard, and I know that I shouldn’t say that because she’s my mum and everything, but she looks older. She’s all thin. She paces around a lot. Flicks through magazines without reading them, and when she’s bored of that, she shouts at me and Destiny. Though,” he added with a more childish tone, “Destiny usually deserves it, so there’s that.”
“How is Destiny?”
He just pulled a face.
“Right. How are you?”
He then looked surprised. “No one has asked me that. It’s all about mum and my sister.”
“Oh, you poor lamb–”
But he was a pragmatic sort. He stood up and shrugged. “Nah, it’s all right. I’m fine. I’m doing what I can to help out. I’m trying not to argue with Destiny too much, or at least, not when mum can hear us rowing. And I’m being helpful around the house.” He frowned. “But I don’t think anyone’s noticed.”
“I am sure they have,” Penny said, making a whole slew of mental notes to address this issue with Ariadne. “You sound like you’re being amazing.”
“Yeah. I don’t mind. She had a load of dog-walks booked this week, especially on Monday, and she wasn’t even going to do them.”
“She can’t let people down! It’s her business.”
“I know,” Wolf said. “So I did them for her.”
Penny wondered if her heart could actually break. She took a moment to look at the ceiling and blink furiously to clear her eyes. “You are the best son, and best nephew, ever.”
“Yeah, I know. Anyway, so how is the murder investigation? Mum said you were going to sort everything out.”
“Ah, I love her confidence. Come through. Do you want a drink? I’ve got fizzy pop.”
“I’m not allowed fizzy pop.”
“Yes, you are, today. You’ve earned it.”
Wolf and Kali followed Penny into the kitchen, where she read aloud the text she had just received from Francine. “What do you think to that?” she said.
Wolf was looking puzzled. “I don’t get it,” he said. “If Julie was her mother, why didn’t she say so?”
Penny reminded herself that Wolf was only twelve. She wasn’t very experienced with kids, and she spoke carefully. “Julie might have got pregnant very young, perhaps. Or she might not have been able to look after Charlotte properly at that time. Perhaps she had been ill.”
“Yeah but you wouldn’t need to lie about it,” he said.
“Twenty and thirty years ago, things were different. Julie might not have been with the father.”
“Oh, yeah,” Wolf said. “She might not have even known the guy, right?”
“Er … right. Yes, quite so.”
“So the questions are … does Charlotte know, does anyone else know, and why did is it a secret?” Wolf downed his can of drink and smacked his lips. “How are you going to find out? I mean, you can’t just go and ask people.”
“Absolutely not,” Penny said firmly. “And everyone is used to me being a busybody … Wolf, now you know about this, perhaps you could keep your ears open for information. Don’t go asking questions. You’ll get into loads of trouble. But go and hang around where people are
gossiping.”
He grinned. “I’ll put my headphones in and stare at my phone. Everyone will think I’m watching videos or something. But I won’t be! I’ll be like a spy. I’ll be undercover.”
“Exactly. That would be great. And maybe you could get Destiny to help out? You were both excellent last time.”
He grimaced at that. “She’ll whinge and get in the way,” he whined.
Penny laughed at him. “You do a good whinge yourself, you know.”
“Sorry. I suppose it will be good for her.”
“Yes,” Penny said. “See it as a public service. And Wolf…”
“Mm?”
“Thank you. Take another can of pop with you.”
“Ace.”
* * * *
Wolf’s visit had invigorated Penny. The boy was having to deal with too much, and she had to act. She needed to make things better not just for her sister, but for her sister’s family.
For her sister’s family was her own family, Penny realised. As she grew older, ties become more important. It wasn’t fair for Wolf to take on the emotional and physical responsibilities that he had; and no amount of cans of fizzy pop were going to make it all right.
Penny grabbed her phone. She didn’t take any more time to stop and think things through. She was on a roll, buzzing with righteous energy. She called Drew.
“Hi, Drew! Are you busy this afternoon?”
“I’m free from two o’clock. I’ve been getting stuff ready for the history day. So, what did you have in mind?” he asked, a low and sultry tone coming into his voice.
“Are your windows dirty?” she asked.
“Um … well, I can see daylight through them. They’re not too bad. Anyway, shall we go sight-seeing? There’s an abandoned and derelict church that you might like, not too far away. It would make some excellent photos. You could upload them to the community website.”
“Maybe you need to have your windows cleaned, first,” she said.
Drew sounded very confused. “Is this one of those, um, naughty phone calls?” he said. “Isn’t it supposed to be the other way around? You know, I dress up as a window cleaner and you…”
“Oh my goodness, no, stop that!” she said. She’d been waiting for him to flirt with her for months, and now they had a chance, it was entirely the wrong time. “No, listen. I want to talk to Kevin the window cleaner. We argued, so he isn’t going to give me the time of day. But I’ve got a plan…”
Four hours later, the plan was put into motion.
* * * *
Penny crouched down, her back against the wall of Drew’s front bedroom. On previous visits, she had only been on the ground floor of his cottage, and it felt a little strange to be upstairs. She wasn’t in his own bedroom, but she still felt like an intruder. This room was apparently a general dumping-ground for various things. There was a narrow single bed against the far wall, which had a tatty old cover representing a football team she didn’t recognise. There was, somewhat disconcertingly, a long metal shotgun cabinet against the wall in the far corner. The bed itself was piled with old clothes, a ragged wax jacket, some hairy fisherman’s jumpers, and a pair of boots that she longed to move to the floor. Boots looked wrong on a bed. She stifled her inner grandmother, and cocked her ear to the window.
She heard the clank of the ladders as they were put against the outside wall. She could hear voices; Drew’s windows were only single-glazed. It was an old cottage, one of a row near the manor house to the south of the town, and bordered by trees and open land.
“When was the last time you had these done, eh?” That was Kevin’s voice, laughing and joking, and getting louder. The ladder creaked as he climbed it.
She heard Drew answer. “I can’t remember.”
Kevin chuckled, and she realised he was at the top of the ladder. There was then a succession of swishing and squeaking noises as he set about his task with practised efficiency.
Now was her chance.
She jumped to her feet to face him, hoping that she didn’t startle him off the ladder with her dramatic appearance.
There was no risk of that; the window was completely white. He had covered the whole thing in some cleaning solution.
She then had to stand there, her hands on her hips, and wait for the window to be wiped clear, her dramatic reveal somewhat undermined.
A long dark line appeared at the top edge of the window and was dragged from left to right, clearing a sparkling clear path. She could now see the top of his head.
There was a pause, and a watery sloshing noise. She continued to wait.
The line of the squeegee appeared at the other side of the window. As he cut a clear swathe through the white foam, he emerged into visibility.
Penny smiled and waved.
He stopped with his squeegee halfway across the window, and stared at her.
“Hi, Kevin,” she said brightly, loud enough to be heard through the thin glass.
“What the–”
“Look, I just want to talk to you, and we finished badly last time.”
“I don’t want to talk to you,” he said in annoyance.
“I thought so, which is why you’ve been asked to come here.”
“I’ve been set up?” He looked down at Drew, and then back at Penny. “I can’t believe this. You are impossible. The pair of you! Drew, I thought better of you than this.”
“Tell me why you argued with Julie,” Penny said.
“I’ll tell you nothing.”
“You’re at the top of a ladder,” she said, stepping forward and putting her hand on the catch of the window.
“Are you threatening me?” he asked incredulously.
She hadn’t been. She thought she had just been stating a fact, but in hindsight, it did sound like she was threatening to push him off the ladder. She decided she might as well run with the idea anyway. “I’m just saying that you might as well talk to me, because I’m going to find out sooner or later, and why not tell me yourself rather than let it get to me second-hand and through gossip?”
“Look, I don’t care what they say. She was a nasty woman, and out for herself. Everyone makes out like she was some kind of saint for looking after her uncle, and then her niece, but if you ask me, he didn’t need looking after. She forced herself into his life.”
“What about her own life? Was she ever married? Did she have kids?”
Kevin threw his squeegee into his bucket. “I don’t know and I don’t care. Leave me alone. Hey,” he said, looking down at Drew. “You’re still going to pay me for this job, you know.”
“Aren’t you going to finish it?” Drew shouted up.
“Am I heck,” Kevin muttered and he began to angrily climb down the ladder.
Penny threw the window open and leaned out. The movement distracted Kevin and he looked up, missed his footing when he was still around five feet above the ground, and he tumbled off the ladder.
The water sprayed everywhere in an arc of shining suds as the bucket fell alongside him, and his belt of equipment scattered its contents across the small front yard. Kevin landed awkwardly, partly on his feet but crumpling instantly to his knees with a cry of pain.
Drew was at his side straight away, saying something about a first aid certificate he had. Penny stared, aghast, for a moment. She was almost about to climb out of the window and shimmy down the ladder herself until she realised she should just turn around and go down the stairs.
By the time she had run down the stairs, along the hall, through the porch and out to the front of the house, Kevin was sitting on the wall and swearing.
He started to get to his feet when he saw her, and she backed into the house again, holding the door ready to slam in his face. “I am so sorry,” she said. “You should have taken more care…”
“Me? This is my fault?”
“No, no, it is my fault,” she said. “But…”
“Leave it. I don’t want to hear it.”
“Yes, yes, of course
.”
Drew was gathering up his sponges and bucket and cloths. He nodded towards Kevin’s van.
“Yeah, just sling them in the back. I think I’ve sprained my ankle,” he said to Penny. “Who is going to walk my dog now, eh?”
“I am sure that Ariadne will do you a freebie,” she said.
He said something foul, got to his feet and hobbled to his van.
Penny did feel awful. He seemed to be able to put some weight on the ankle, though, so she told herself that it was probably going to be fine. Nothing looked like it was actually broken. She waited and watched Drew as he folded the ladders and stowed them safely on the roof rack. He then went to the front driver’s side window and passed some notes through to Kevin.
Kevin drove away without a wave.
Drew came back towards his cottage and Penny opened the door.
“Um. Yeah, so that went well,” she said.
“Are you being sarcastic?” he asked.
“Not entirely, no.” She pulled out a sheet of paper from her pocket and unfolded it. “Look. I have made a list of suspects, and now I can definitely move Kevin to the top of it.”
Drew took the paper from her hand, and scrutinised it. “It’s not a list,” he pointed out. “There’s only actually one name on it, and that’s Kevin.”
“Well, yes. He has the means – who else has loads of cleaning chemicals? He has motive; it’s clear they didn’t get on, and he is still angry about her, even though she’s dead. He was in the area. The police have talked to him. And there’s more,” she added. “The bathroom was locked. But he has ladders. He could have got in and out through the window.”
Drew passed the paper back to her. “I do follow your logic,” he said. “But I think you need other suspects to consider too.”
“Oh? Like who?”
“The same people that the police have talked to. Remember they will have more information than you.”
“Oh, they might have different information, that’s all.”
Drew shook his head apologetically. “Don’t get blinded by your relationship to your sister,” he said. “I think you need Ariadne on the list, too. And Julie’s niece, what’s her name? Charlotte?”
