5 The Witches of East Malling

by steve higgs

  I elected to lie rather than reveal that I had looked her up.

  ‘Victoria Mallory. May I come in?'

  I was still acting startled. I did not know why she was here, but I needed to get a grip and be polite. I wanted to quiz her about the verdict in the lightning strike case and now I had the perfect chance.

  I smiled warmly. ‘Please.’ I indicated inside and held the door for her.

  ‘Did I hear dogs?’ she asked.

  ‘Yes. I’m afraid I will have to let them out.’ I checked her feet. She had on a nice pair of heels and the exposed skin was sheathed in what was either pop socks or possibly tights. I wasn’t going to ask her which, but the dogs would most likely claw it. ‘I will have to field them, or they will claw your legs.’

  I opened the door and snagged them both before they could get to her. Pinned under my arms they began growling. Both had their hackles raised and were straining to get to the new lady. I could not remember them ever taking an instant dislike to someone before.

  ‘Are they alright?’ she asked.

  ‘Sorry about this.' I replied. I had intended to calmly introduce them to the lady. They would sniff and wag their tails and then, once they had established there was no food to be had, they would wander back to their beds. That is what they always do. Not today though. Bull was wriggling to be set free and curling his top lip back to reveal his teeth. ‘What is wrong with you, dogs?' I asked them. No answer was forthcoming, but it was clear that they were not going to play nicely.

  ‘I won’t be a moment.’ I advised the coroner as I turned. I took the dogs into the lounge and shut the door. Whatever business the coroner had for me would be conducted in the kitchen or the office.

  I walked back through to find her checking her hair in the mirror by the front door. ‘I’m glad you are here actually. I was planning to track you down.’

  ‘Really?’ she said. Her voice sounding very interested.

  ‘I need to talk to you about Bernhard Myers. I have good reason to believe that he was not killed by lightning and was murdered by a twisted ring of women that are colluding with one another to bump off their husbands.'

  She looked at me with a strange expression, then she laughed. ‘Goodness, I thought you were serious for a moment then.’

  ‘I am serious. Your verdict is wrong. You were the coroner on another case a few weeks ago with a similarly unusual death were you not.'

  ‘I don’t think you should question my verdicts, Tempest. I don’t think you should question me at all unless you intend to ask me why I came here this afternoon.’

  Okay, I’ll bite. ‘Why are you here?’

  ‘Because you are the sexiest man I have ever seen, and I have just got to have you.’ Before my brain could even process what she had said she had closed the space between us and had her lips on mine. I opened my mouth to protest but suddenly had an extra tongue in it.

  My Wriggly was downstairs doing stretches and limbering up like he was getting ready for some hard exercise. I tried to back up, but one pace brought me to the wall and she pushed me against it. I needed to push her off me but bringing my hands up to shove her away only resulting in me grabbing two handfuls of breast.

  ‘Yes, treat me rough.’ She moaned as she bit my neck.

  ‘Sorry, Victoria.' I said, finally getting my hands onto her shoulders. 'This is not…' What? I was struggling to finish the sentence.

  She took a step back. Looked at me quizzically, then ripped her blouse open. She had on a sexy black lace bra that pushed her boobs together and up in an entirely pleasing manner. A sheepdog bra my father would call it because it rounds them up and gets them pointed in the right direction.

  I shook my head to clear it. ‘Victoria, I am not interested in having sex with you.’ There, I had managed to say it. I wasn’t sure it was true, but I knew it was supposed to be.

  ‘Oh, really.’ She looked down at my trousers. ‘Try telling him that. I think I’ll just give him some oral encouragement and see how you feel about it after that.’

  Suddenly she was on her knees in front of me and trying to undo my belt.

  Then Amanda walked in. I guess she had got used to coming and going when my house had been the office because she didn’t knock, she just turned the door handle and walked in.

  ‘Oh, shitty death.’ She said, her eyes bugging right out of her head as she took in the view in front of her. Then she stepped back outside and slammed the door shut with her outside.

  At least it had broken the spell and Victoria was getting up from her knees again.

  ‘This is disappointing, Tempest. Do I assume that she is your girlfriend?’

  I friggin’ wish. Mr. Wriggly had some very clear intentions for Amanda.

  ‘Business partner.’ I replied, ‘But that makes no difference at all to this situation. I want to talk to you about the lightning cases, but I don’t think taking our clothes off is a good idea.’

  ‘I can’t see why not, Tempest.’ she was at least buttoning her top back together. ‘I am not wrong about the lightning victims. You should stop wasting your time looking into it. Oh, you’re bleeding.’

  I turned to look in the mirror mounted on the wall behind me. There was a trickle of blood on my neck where her passion had taken the form of some biting.

  ‘Here.' She said as she dabbed at it with a tissue before I could take out my own handkerchief.

  ‘I think I should go, Tempest. I'm not done with you though. I still intend to have you. If you don't have a girlfriend and you are not gay I do not understand why you would refuse me.'

  I was struggling to explain why not either. Mr. Wriggly still had a full head of steam that seemed unlikely to dissipate in the next few minutes. A chap cannot listen to a half-dressed woman tell him she wants to play with his meat and two veg and not have an involuntary reaction. Can't be done.

  She was standing far too close to me, her boobs all but touching my chest, but very much filling my field of vision. ‘If I have to revisit the lightning victims’ cases to achieve that then so be it. Here’s my card.’ She produced a card from a pocket, reached around and placed it in my left buttock pocket. Then she patted Mr wriggly, giving him a quick squeeze between thumb and forefinger before reaching for the door and leaving.

  ‘Call me.’ Echoed back through the door as it closed.

  Amanda wasn’t outside that I could see. I would call her in a minute and try to explain what she had witnessed. I doubted she would let herself in any more.

  Shaking my head and trying to think boring thoughts, rather than remember the sight of the top of Victoria’s head and heaving chest as she had knelt in front of me, I walked through to the kitchen. I filled the kettle and turned it on. I needed to pee, the previous cup of tea now ready to leave my system but the liquids ejection system was not currently in a useable state. I didn’t want a cup of tea, I was hoping instead that performing a mundane task would distract me.

  My phone beeped: An incoming text. It was from Amanda apologising for interrupting me and telling me that she had found the girl already and my house was on the way to where she was going. She had dropped by to collect me.

  How do I answer? This was now the second time Amanda had come to my house and found me with a woman. I couldn't help but wonder if such awkward circumstances had already ruined any chance for her and I. Then I grimaced at myself for still considering how I might one day find myself in her arms when I already had a date with Natasha tomorrow.

  I checked out the window. Amanda's car was not outside, however, I was not surprised that she hadn't waited. Thankfully, Mr. Wriggly had given up hope and gone back to sleep, grumbling at me as he did.

  With my bladder finally empty and my belly replete, I considered what to do with my afternoon. Speak with the coroner was still on the list, but I needed to leave it a day before I called her. I had no other leads and had intended to go with Amanda to see the hookers. Amanda and I had spent far too little time together, almost none since she
started working for me. Despite the embarrassment, the best course of action was to call her, find out where she was and join her. I would explain what she had seen and maybe save some face.

  Otherwise, I would just have to explain it tomorrow. Muttering to myself, I dialled her number.

  She answered as it began ringing, ‘Hi, Tempest. All done?’

  She was making fun of me. Perfect. ‘Hello, Amanda. Yet again you catch me with my pants down.’

  ‘I’m really sorry about that. I should have knocked. I just didn’t think. I was going in and out of there for a week, so… muscle memory?’

  ‘It's fine, Amanda. You didn't disturb anything. I was trying to fight her off.' No comment from the other end. It probably hadn't looked like I was trying to fight at all. ‘I doubt that was the impression you got.' I conceded. ‘The lady is the coroner in the lightning case. I met her at Bernhard Myer’s house and she tracked me down.'

  ‘There's no need to explain, Tempest. We just work together. You're my boss for that matter. Lunchtime blowjobs are none of my business.'

  ‘I get that. I do, but…' I realised the futility on trying to explain my innocence and the likelihood that Amanda genuinely didn't care what I got up to. ‘Look, I am calling to find out where you are, so I can join you. You and I should work together more than we have done.'

  ‘Oh. Oh, okay. I am in Maidstone, near the prison. There’s a kind of prostitute pick-up point at the bottom of Wheeler Street. You know where that is?’

  I did. I said I would meet her there I ten minutes. I got off the phone, checked my pockets, patted the dogs and went out the door. It had stopped raining and the sun was trying to come out.

  Hookers. Tuesday, November 8th 1402hrs

  Parking was easy in this part of Maidstone at this time of the day. There were rows of terrace houses, so it would be awful later, but it was almost devoid of cars at 1402hrs because the residents had taken them to work.

  Driving here, I had considered whether Amanda meant that there would be prostitutes here right now or if she knew some that lived nearby. Were hookers in high demand just after lunch on a Tuesday? I had no frame of reference. There had been prostitutes readily available near many of the barracks I had been sent to during my time in the Army. I had never felt the need to frequent them though. I knew men that had, of course. Prostitution was legal in Germany and well-controlled so one could argue that some of the seediness was eliminated, but I was either too tight-fisted or too reserved to ever hand over money for an act that should be a bit more special than what I imagined one would get. Big Ben had likewise never visited the brothels, but in his case, he had no need and had always claimed that he felt affronted by the concept as they should be paying him.

  I spotted Amanda as I got out of my car. She had most likely spotted me and had made herself visible. As I looked over, she waved to make sure I had seen her and went back inside a house about thirty metres down the street in the direction of the town centre.

  I went to the house and found the front door still open. ‘Hello?’ I called out as I went in. It was a small terrace house, the type with just one window on each floor at the front of the house because that was all it was wide enough for.

  ‘We're in the kitchen.' Echoed back through the house. All the terrace houses I had ever been in were of a similar design. A short corridor from the front door led to the stairs. To the right was a living room just about big enough for a sofa and a TV, to the right of the stairs as one reached them was a dining room and beyond that a kitchen. Beyond the kitchen was a toilet that would have originally been accessed from outside the house - an outside loo. I wondered if there were any houses left anywhere that had not been converted to allow internal access to the bathroom.

  The house itself was tidy enough, there was no mess visible, but its décor needed a refresh. I could hear voices ahead of me, one of which I could identify as Amanda's. As I reached the end of the corridor, rounded the stairs and entered the kitchen, I found her talking to a young woman in her early twenties. It was cool in the room because the window behind her was open and she had a cigarette in her mouth. Most of the smoke was being drawn out of the window by a breeze but there was enough of it for me to smell it and know I would need to wash all my clothes as soon as I got home.

  ‘Hello.' I said as I extended my hand. ‘Tempest Michaels.' I offered her my card, which was a natural action rather than because I wanted her to have my number.

  She took my hand and despite her tiny frame and minuscule hand, she had a firm grip. I told myself not to think about what she practiced gripping. She took my card, inspected it briefly and produced one of her own as she told me her name was Stacy Jenkins.

  ‘That’s my real name.’ she explained. ‘The name on my card says Stacy Sukks because that’s my stage name. I’m an adult actor as well.’ She boasted. I had no reply that would sound acceptable to my ears. I looked at her card.

  Stacy Sukks, Adult Actress, Female Companion and Escort

  Anything goes. Get it here every time!

  Beneath the text was an email address and a mobile phone number so the holder could get hold of her easily when they wanted to get it I assumed. I put it in my pocket only because I could not work out what else to do with it.

  ‘It’s mostly girl-girl stuff but I am thinking of branching out into…’

  ‘You were telling me about Tiffany.’ Amanda interrupted thankfully before I got to hear what Stacy might branch out into.

  ‘Oh, yeah. She should be back soon. She had a home delivery to take care of?’

  ‘Home delivery?’ I repeated dumbly, missing the point.

  ‘Yes, that’s when we go to someone’s house for sex rather than them picking us up somewhere.’ Stacy supplied.

  Lovely.

  ‘Anyway.’ Amanda tried to steer Stacy back onto the topic of interest. ‘You recognised the man in the photograph I showed you.’

  ‘Yeah, that’s Martin. He always says his name is Bob, but Tiffany and I learned to check bloke’s wallets for their driving license long ago. Much safer to know a bloke’s real name. He’s a regular.’

  ‘And the girl in the picture?' Amanda prompted, holding the picture up so I could see it was the one taken by the speed camera.

  ‘That’s Tiffany.’

  Amanda put the photograph away. ‘It would seem that Martin likes to pick up young ladies for sex. I am not sure what we are supposed to do with the case now. He wants us to prove that the lady in the photograph is a ghost. The only thing we can show is that it is not.’ Amanda was clearly asking my opinion about what to do next.

  I scratched my head, both physically and mentally. Did we expose him to his wife? It felt like the decent thing to do. Did I then return his money? No, we had been paid to conduct an investigation and had done so. It had cost us time and we billed hours even when we did not arrive at a successful conclusion. So, the bill stood, but what about the result? It wasn't my job to balance the scales in their marriage or stand in judgment of other people's actions. I investigated and reported my findings. Often this resulted in a criminal prosecution for someone because they had committed a crime. Again, I passed no judgement.

  ‘I think this is the same as any other case. Our investigation is concluded so your next task is to present the client with a written report detailing our findings.’

  She nodded. ‘I’ll go back to the office and do that now.’ Amanda turned back to Stacy and thanked her for her time. Stacy shrugged.

  Back outside the house in the cool Autumn air, I paused waiting for Amanda to join me. Spending time with Amanda was… unsettling. Finding the right word was difficult. Even after distracting myself with Hayley and Roberta, and even with the impending date with the gorgeous Natasha, I was still undeniably bewitched by her. There was something about her, something intangible that to me meant that she would always be…’

  ‘Were you waiting for me?’ Amanda’s voice suddenly by my ear made me start.

  I turned t
o face her. ‘Sort of.' I replied. I was looking at her beautiful, wonderful face again. I had just been thinking about her, my entire train of thought focused on how perfect I thought she was and now she was standing in front of me once more, waiting for me to speak. I tried to find something intelligent to say. I failed. ‘I hadn't decided what to do next. You said you were heading back to the office?'

  ‘It feels like the case is closed. This is how it works, isn't it? I select cases, I solve the cases and bill the hours, right?'

  ‘That’s what I do.’ I replied.

  She nodded, looking to the middle distance while she thought. I wondered what she was thinking. Then she looked at me again and an uncomfortable silence stretched out for a few seconds while we both waited for the other to speak.

  Then, inevitably, we both tried to speak at the same time, stopped, tried again and finally, I held up my hands and asked her to go first.

  ‘Will you be in the office tomorrow?'

  ‘That is my current plan.' I considered that for a moment. ‘Maybe we should make it a standard thing that we meet at the office each day before we go off to tackle our casework.'

  ‘Okay. Sounds good. So… see you in the morning?’

  ‘Yup.’ I turned to go then turned back. ‘You know, I really was trying to fight her off earlier. She caught me by surprise and then you walked in before I had a chance to do anything.’

  Amanda grinned at me. What the heck did that mean? ‘Tempest.’ she looked down, smiling, then looked back up with a lopsided grin. ‘You are a good-looking guy, women are going to be drawn to you. It doesn’t surprise me. Don’t worry about it.’

  I just stared at her, dumbfounded. I had no response. I was treading water, lost in a sea of relationship confusion. Before I could form a coherent response, she chucked me on the arm and headed down the street towards her car.

  I watched her go, her perfect bottom swaying from side to side rhythmically as she went. I sighed and turned my eyes away. I shouldn’t be looking at it anyway.

  I needed to buy flowers. I had a date with an attractive woman that was, in contrast to Amanda, actually interested in me. I needed to focus on her and take my head out of the clouds.