Read Online The Sting of Death by Rebecca Tope - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Rebecca Tope
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on telly,’ Cooper told him. ‘You’ve taken the trouble to come here. The least I can do is listen to what you have to say. Don’t you think?’
Maggs gave a little bounce on her toes, a sign that she was pleased. ‘Oh yes,’ she said. ‘Oh, definitely.’
DS Cooper had been on the brink of going home after a dull and depressing day, when the unlikely duo came in through the front entrance of thestation. An open-faced youngish man, neatly dressed and of middle height, accompanied by a plump dark-skinned girl, unself-consciously wearing clothes that showed every curve; an intriguing pair. Cooper was instantly impressed by the girl in particular. Clear-eyed and very young, she seemed completely at ease. She also seemed to have a very relaxed relationship with the chap.
It took a few minutes to establish who they were and the nature of their partnership. ‘You run a funeral business?’ he repeated incredulously. It would probably have taken him a solid week of guessing before he’d come up with that. And yet, now they’d told him, he could see that it fitted Slocombe’s well-scrubbed look, his gentle smile and air of having seen more of life than most. The girl was far more complicated. How in the world had she stumbled into such a business? He hoped he would get the chance of finding out more.
‘It isn’t at all relevant to what we’re here about,’ Slocombe assured him. ‘It’s got absolutely nothing to do with it.’
Deftly, Cooper extracted the salient points. Drew did most of the talking, turning to Maggs for confirmation now and then. The detective made notes every few seconds, circling some words and linking others with heavy lines. Finally, he summarised.
‘Your wife’s cousin asked you to help her find this Justine Pereira, after she’d failed to locate her herself. You can’t be sure, but it seems possible that she arranged to visit you yesterday with this specifically in mind. You freely agreed to this request, and you took your business partner with you on an exploration of Miss Pereira’s home. You find signs that she left in a hurry. Her landlord, a farmer, confronts you, and tells you there’s nothing to worry about – she’s gone off camping of her own accord and will contact you when she returns. So why come to us?’ He wrinkled his brow exaggeratedly.
‘Gut feeling,’ Drew ventured.
‘We couldn’t just leave it there,’ Maggs added.
Cooper smiled. ‘No,’ he agreed. ‘I do see.’
‘I’m not really sure that I do,’ admitted Drew. ‘It’s something and nothing, isn’t it. Not just the atmosphere on the farm – which really is odd – but before that. I’ve never met Penn before, but she got under my skin somehow. There was an edge to her, as if she had to hold on tight to herself. And then this farmer, Renton, was the same. You could tell he was being careful what he said, that he had to think about it first.’
Cooper had little else to do, otherwise it might have gone differently. He liked these people and trusted the bloke’s judgment. ‘I assume you regularly get involved in people’s lives,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘You see them at times of crisis, the same as I do. You get a feeling for what’s a natural reaction and what isn’t. That kind of thing?’
‘Right!’ Drew responded. ‘That’s right. You’ve put your finger on it. This Renton chap – he was behaving like a man in a crisis. And yet, if he was telling the truth, he hadn’t anything to worry about. I hadn’t thought it through until now.’ He turned to Maggs for her endorsement. ‘Had you?’
She ducked her chin, uncharacteristically self-effacing. ‘Well …’ she began. ‘I just thought he was a bit tense, I suppose. I was more bothered about Justine’s things, left the way they were. And the mobile. I didn’t believe what he said about the mobile. I think he just made that up on the spot.’
‘Er—’ Cooper prompted. ‘I don’t think you’ve told me about
Maggs gave a little bounce on her toes, a sign that she was pleased. ‘Oh yes,’ she said. ‘Oh, definitely.’
DS Cooper had been on the brink of going home after a dull and depressing day, when the unlikely duo came in through the front entrance of thestation. An open-faced youngish man, neatly dressed and of middle height, accompanied by a plump dark-skinned girl, unself-consciously wearing clothes that showed every curve; an intriguing pair. Cooper was instantly impressed by the girl in particular. Clear-eyed and very young, she seemed completely at ease. She also seemed to have a very relaxed relationship with the chap.
It took a few minutes to establish who they were and the nature of their partnership. ‘You run a funeral business?’ he repeated incredulously. It would probably have taken him a solid week of guessing before he’d come up with that. And yet, now they’d told him, he could see that it fitted Slocombe’s well-scrubbed look, his gentle smile and air of having seen more of life than most. The girl was far more complicated. How in the world had she stumbled into such a business? He hoped he would get the chance of finding out more.
‘It isn’t at all relevant to what we’re here about,’ Slocombe assured him. ‘It’s got absolutely nothing to do with it.’
Deftly, Cooper extracted the salient points. Drew did most of the talking, turning to Maggs for confirmation now and then. The detective made notes every few seconds, circling some words and linking others with heavy lines. Finally, he summarised.
‘Your wife’s cousin asked you to help her find this Justine Pereira, after she’d failed to locate her herself. You can’t be sure, but it seems possible that she arranged to visit you yesterday with this specifically in mind. You freely agreed to this request, and you took your business partner with you on an exploration of Miss Pereira’s home. You find signs that she left in a hurry. Her landlord, a farmer, confronts you, and tells you there’s nothing to worry about – she’s gone off camping of her own accord and will contact you when she returns. So why come to us?’ He wrinkled his brow exaggeratedly.
‘Gut feeling,’ Drew ventured.
‘We couldn’t just leave it there,’ Maggs added.
Cooper smiled. ‘No,’ he agreed. ‘I do see.’
‘I’m not really sure that I do,’ admitted Drew. ‘It’s something and nothing, isn’t it. Not just the atmosphere on the farm – which really is odd – but before that. I’ve never met Penn before, but she got under my skin somehow. There was an edge to her, as if she had to hold on tight to herself. And then this farmer, Renton, was the same. You could tell he was being careful what he said, that he had to think about it first.’
Cooper had little else to do, otherwise it might have gone differently. He liked these people and trusted the bloke’s judgment. ‘I assume you regularly get involved in people’s lives,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘You see them at times of crisis, the same as I do. You get a feeling for what’s a natural reaction and what isn’t. That kind of thing?’
‘Right!’ Drew responded. ‘That’s right. You’ve put your finger on it. This Renton chap – he was behaving like a man in a crisis. And yet, if he was telling the truth, he hadn’t anything to worry about. I hadn’t thought it through until now.’ He turned to Maggs for her endorsement. ‘Had you?’
She ducked her chin, uncharacteristically self-effacing. ‘Well …’ she began. ‘I just thought he was a bit tense, I suppose. I was more bothered about Justine’s things, left the way they were. And the mobile. I didn’t believe what he said about the mobile. I think he just made that up on the spot.’
‘Er—’ Cooper prompted. ‘I don’t think you’ve told me about
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