I wasn’t—struggling, that is. In fact, I’d gone a little numb, I think, not really believing he would actually go through with it. The officer who cuffed me took my unresisting arm and led me outside to put me in the back of their car. Wainwright appeared right behind us with Maisie, who was not cuffed as I was, and who darted me a tragic and worried glance as she slid into the back seat next to me.
The constable started the car when Wainwright was in, and drove quickly down the road to the Adlebury police station.
Chapter Sixteen
Garrett
I was doing paperwork when I heard the door to my office bang against the wall and looked up to see Ella being led inside with her hands handcuffed in front of her. I dropped my pen and simply blinked for a moment, unable to process what it was I was seeing, then I dropped my gaze to my coffee accusingly, wondering if it had been drugged. When I looked back up and confirmed I wasn’t hallucinating I jumped to my feet.
“Ella?”
Her head was down, her hair mussed and falling across her face. Behind her and holding her arm was a constable I didn’t recognize, but who didn’t look at all happy to be there. Wainwright stepped in behind them, ushering Maisie in as well.
I took two determined steps forward, as Wainwright held up a hand. “Don’t interfere, Sergeant. This was a lawful arrest.”
“Arrest for what? Take those cuffs off her now.” I shot over to stand beside her. She was trembling and wouldn’t look at me, but I stepped up as close to her as I dared. The uniformed officer was fumbling with his keys, and I gave Wainwright a look that should have peeled the skin off his face.
“Have you lost your mind?”
“I’m warning you, O’Leary, don’t involve yourself in this.”
“Oh, I’ll involve myself all right.” The cuffs were off and she took a quick step closer to me, rubbing her wrists. It was all I could do not to take her in my arms. I glanced over at Maisie who was an interesting shade of red.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded. “Yes, and I’m so sorry I got Petronella involved in this. She was just trying to help me.”
“By inserting herself and her big mouth into my investigation! I warned the woman!”
“Big mouth? Ella?” I looked down at her, and she was still hiding her face against my arm. I put a hand under her chin. “What did you say?”
“I called him an overgrown ping-pong ball,” Ella repeated obediently. Wainwright immediately stiffened, obviously not liking it being repeated.
“Ella,” I said in a very dramatic way, my voice registering horror. “You didn’t.” I looked at Wainwright, shaking my head in disapproval. “Then this clearly paints the arrest in a whole new light. We don’t have a cell here, sergeant, as you know, but I think I might have some leg shackles somewhere in the back.”
I could have cried in relief when I saw Ella’s lips twitch.
“Sergeant,” Wainwright said warningly.
“Yes, Sergeant?” I repeated, reminding him we were of the same rank. He was not my superior in any way, and it was way past time I stopped trying to fit in and let this guy get away with his brand of intimidation. I’d come into contact with too many people who could actually physically hurt me to take any notice of empty threats.
“I’ve tried to apologize on the way over here, but he wouldn’t listen and told me to shut up.”
“He told you to what?” I looked up at Wainwright in disbelief, and he glared back at me. “So, just to make sure I got this… You arrested her for calling you an overgrown ping-pong ball?”
“I don’t think—”
“No, obviously not. What would you have done if she had called you “Baldie-locks? Thrown her in a cell? What about Kojak? I bet she wouldn’t have been getting a lollypop then for sure.”
“Sergeant O’Leary,” Wainwright bellowed out. “We were in a public place, and it was crowded with drunken men. According to the Public Order Act, I was prohibiting breach of the peace and threatening behavior under Common Law. I had the right.”
“Drunken men?” I looked over at Maisie with my eyebrows raised.
“They were having their lunch. A few of them had a pint, but I wouldn’t say drunken. Not at all.”
I looked back incredulously at Wainwright, and he flushed again. “They were a rowdy bunch. And this young woman was inciting them.”
“Scotland Yard might say differently,” I snapped back. “They’ve advised that compensation has recently been paid out to too many people who have been arrested for swearing, let alone for making silly insults. They’ve said bad language is now so prevalent that it was not deemed by the courts to be offensive, and have had to pay out damages for wrongful arrest, so I seriously doubt they’ll go along with detaining someone over a remark like Dr. Knight’s. But by all means, tell that to the Inspector when he arrives. Tell him how she insulted your fragile ego.”
“When he arrives? What do you mean? Is he coming?”
“He will be as soon as I call him,” I said, pulling out my mobile.
“Wait a minute,” he said. “It wasn’t only the name calling. She’s a belligerent troublemaker, and I felt she deserved to be detained.”
“Oh, I see. You ‘felt’ she ‘deserved’ it. That would be great, except it’s also unlawful. A person can’t be handcuffed just because you don’t like them or even if you think they might pose a threat to the safety of officers. We have to be able to justify cuffing a prisoner. We must fully detail all the circumstances, set the scene and describe their build, your build, their demeanor and any warning signs that they posed a threat.” He looked from me to Wainwright. “Tell me, what about this woman, who weighs about a hundred and ten pounds soaking wet and is barely five feet two inches tall constituted a threat to your safety? Or your officer’s safety?”
“I’m warning you, O’Leary…”
“Oh, are you? Good. Let’s just let the Inspector sort this out, then.” I began to dial my mobile, and he put a hand out to stop me.
“Wait. Let’s see if we can work this out. If she’s willing to apologize, then I might…”
“No. You need to apologize to her. Profusely. Where exactly were you when she was detained?”
“In the pub,” Maisie said, giving him a dark look.
“In front of half the village?” I raised my eyebrows at him, shook my head and turned to steer Ella over to my desk to sit her down. She was still refusing to meet my gaze, and I looked back over at the detective. “I don’t know if I can talk her out of suing you, but Ella is a friend of mine and I’ll try. If she agrees to let this go, then we can let her get back to work and if I were you, I’d allow Ms. Wickham here to call her solicitor. Then we’ll all sit here and wait for him to arrive. Does that sound all right to you, Ms. Wickham?”
“Yes, please,” she replied in a small voice.
“Would you feel comfortable waiting here in my office for him?”
She nodded, and I took Ella’s arm to gently lead her to the door. “I’m going to see the doctor to the door. I’ll be right out here in the hallway if you need me. Please have a seat, and use my phone to call your solicitor if you need to.”
“I have my mobile,” she said, pulling it out of her pocket.
“Good. I’ll be right back. Call out if you need me.” I took Ella out into the hallway just past the door, gently pushed her up against the wall and looked down at her.
“Are you okay, honey?”
She looked up at me finally, her pretty eyes swimming in tears, stood up on her toes and threw her arms around my neck. “You were amazing.”
I wasn’t. I’d let Wainwright be a bully for far too long, but it was going to stop now. I hugged Ella back and made a decision. “I think we should take Maisie back to the pub and wait for her solicitor there. She’s not under arrest, and I think we need a plan of action.” A few months ago—heck even a week ago, I would have firmly and politely told Ella to stop involving herself in police work as it was far too
dangerous. Unfortunately, I’d begun to realize that having her front and center was the best way of making sure she was safe. If she was trying to hide her actions from me because she was scared, I would disapprove or try and stop her, she might put herself in even more danger.
I still hadn’t recovered from seeing her nearly run over, and I was waiting for CCTV images to help me track down that car and driver.
I brushed a kiss on Ella’s forehead, and she squeezed me again and took a breath. “You’re right. This has gone on far too long.”
“I’m going to call Tom and ask him to meet us. In case I needed back up.” We were both officially still off the case, but I valued his input especially where Wainwright was concerned. We walked back to the office. Wainwright was gone, and I glanced at Maisie who was sitting in front of my desk, looking at her phone.
“He got a call and they rushed out that way,” she said, pointing to the back exit. “He said I was free to go for now, but he’d talk to me later. I was just calling my dad to let him know we were on our way back.”
Interesting that he suddenly had to leave before apologizing or before I called the Inspector. I wondered which one bothered him the most.
“Okay, let’s go back to the pub then. I need a break anyway.”
The Young Farmers’ club were having their monthly meeting when we got back to the pub and the lounge was packed. “Let’s go outside,” Maisie suggested and armed with three mugs and the coffee pot, we all walked through the back. People called out to us as we went, asking Ella and Maisie if they were all right. It was easy to see that Ella was popular and Maisie, too, despite all the recent talk. People liked to gossip, I guess, but when it came to seeing one of their own actually being harmed by that unfounded gossip, it seemed to be a different story.
“This is nice,” I said admiringly. I’d never actually been in their “beer garden” and while it was small, it was well thought out. There was a barbecue area off to the side, and a small climbing frame for the kids at the lower end. Various tables and chairs were dotted about, and I sat down at the nearest. Maisie poured my coffee black, then went back for cream and sugar. Ella sat and blew out a breath.
“He’s a strange man.”
“Wainwright? He isn’t just strange. I’d add incompetent to his resume as well.”
“C.V.” Ella corrected.
I glanced at her in exasperation. “C.V.? What on earth’s that?”
“Curriculum vitae or course of life.”
“And that is?”
She grinned. “What you’d call a resumé.”
“But that’s in Latin for goodness sake, why can’t you just speak English?”
“Resumé is French. And would that be American English or Her Majesty’s variety?” Maisie said cheekily as she reappeared and sat back down, passing me a couple of packets of sugar.
“So, what’s the plan?” Ella asked.
I subsided, still gazing out at the garden and trying to think of one. Then I wrinkled my nose as I saw what was over by the rosebushes. “Ugh, don’t tell me you like those things.” I gestured to the garden gnome set in the corner.
“I hate them,” Maisie admitted, “but it was a present.”
Ella leaned over and squeezed her hand, and I looked from one to another. Had I upset her? “Sorry,” I started, but Maisie interrupted me.
“Oh, it’s okay. I agree. I just feel bad because of who bought it for me.”
I stood up and walked over to it. It looked like the one that had been decapitated in Miss. Edgeware’s garden. “Who bought it?”
“Roger,” Maisie admitted. “He said it was expensive, specially ordered. Believe it or not they’re numbered. You know like so many copies of a painting? It even has a stupid name I can never remember.
A chill ran right down my spine. “Nicholas Nevermore?”
Maisie gaped. “How did you—?”
“Maisie, do you know an Elaine Edgeware?”
She looked puzzled. “No, should I?”
”Ella? Have you ever heard of an Elaine Edgeware?”
Ella frowned and shook her head. “No. Does she live in the village?”
“No, over in Woolhampton.”
“I don’t have any patients there I can think of. They have a small animal practice in Padworth. They usually cover that area.”
“I need to go check something out. Both of you stay here until I get back.”
“Why?” Ella asked.
“Because I interviewed a woman last week, who had a garden sculpture exactly like that one.” I gestured to the gnome.
“No, she couldn’t have, because Roger had this one ordered specially.”
“I’d swear it was the same. It’s quite possibly a coincidence, but I don’t like coincidences, so I’m going to call Tom and ask him to meet me in Woolhampton. I have a few questions I’d like to ask Miss Edgeware.”
Ella glanced back at Maisie, and I knew Ella desperately wanted to come with me. “I can’t take both of you. Maisie will be safer here and so will you. And it’s not that I don’t think you’re more capable, more intelligent, and way more beautiful than anyone I’ve ever seen,” I added, as she blushed. “It’s because the thought of you getting hurt horrifies me.” I reached forward and brushed a light kiss on her lips. “Please.”
Ella blinked before replying. I couldn’t help but notice she sounded a little breathless when she did. “But-but I don’t understand. Who is this woman? What does she have to do with all this?”
“Maybe nothing. But I’ve been thinking about yours and Lily’s little whiteboard.” He gave me a stern look. “Don’t laugh.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. Go on…what about our whiteboard?”
“The one suspect I couldn’t easily shoot down was the Unknown Woman Friend, remember?”
“Yes, you were rather sarcastic. You said, ‘Since she’s unknown, we really don’t have any way to rule her in or out. We need more information before we discuss her.’”
“I think we may have just stumbled on more information. The woman I mentioned, Elaine Edgeware, told me the thing had been a gift from her boyfriend, an expensive gift that had to be specially commissioned. I need to go question her again to find out more. It may be a long shot, but seriously, how many Nicholas Nevermores could there be around here or boyfriends who think they’d make a nice gift? I have a hunch we’ve stumbled onto the crazy ex-girlfriend.”
Ella nodded. “You could probably call the manufacturer and find out who commissioned them.”
“Excellent idea!” Garrett turned to Maisie with excitement. “I know this is a long shot, but would you happen to remember the name of the manufacturer?”
“No…but I think Dad put the crate in the back room. He never throws things away, and he said I might decide to ship the ugly thing back one day. Let me go check.” She got up and took off, and Ella laid a hand on my arm.
“If this plays out like you hope it will, this woman could be dangerous, couldn’t she?”
“Yes.”
Ella narrowed her eyes for a second. “Okay, but call me, or I’ll come and find you myself.”
I smiled at her. “We don’t know anything for sure, and I believe Roger Battersley had a lot of women.
This could be just one of many of his women.”
“True, but Roger only had a few women he was serious about. And despite how ugly you think the gnome is, he paid a lot of money for it. And what would be this woman’s motive for killing him? Don’t we have to have one?”
“Not necessarily. Motive is tricky, like I’ve told you before. What might make me want to hurt someone might not bother you and vice versa.”
“I’d never want to hurt anyone.”
“Well, see, that’s where we’re different. I’d want to hurt anyone who threatened you.”
She caught her breath and stared up at me with those pretty blue eyes, and I leaned in again to kiss her. It seemed like once I’d got started, I couldn’t seem to stop.
I pulled out my mobile and started searching for it on Google. A phone number came up, and I looked back up at Ella and Maisie. “Okay, I’ve got it. On the way to talk to the Edgeware woman, I’ll call them. You two stay here, unless Ella, do you have to go back to the clinic?”
“In a little while. Henry’s there today, so I can call him and explain why I’m late.”
“Good.” I rushed off, already dialing Tom, who was stuck on an interview but promised me he would send uniform to back me up. I didn’t even question his odd phrasing by that time.
Before I left for Woolhampton, I called the number for Hudson and Sons, and finally got through to the manager’s office. It took him a while to understand what I needed, but when I finally got it through to him, he assured me he’d get the information about the special order for me and call me back.
There was absolutely no answer when I knocked some twenty minutes later at Elaine Edgeware’s. The garden was as immaculate as ever, and I left the Constable Reynolds, who seemed to be delighted to be working with me again, trying both the houses next door, in case anyone had seen her. I walked around the back to check.
Meanwhile, I was on the phone to the station. Elaine Edgeware, age forty-three, and single, was a home nurse, or district nurse as they called it. That was easy enough to find out, but she seemed to have quite a few unaccounted for years, so I left Constable Reynold’s colleague in the car trying to see if she could find out any more info.
“Sarge?”
I turned at the shout from where I was surveying the empty spot where the decapitated gnome had sat, trying to remember what it looked like, and if it really had been exactly the same, the way I thought it was. It was Constable Reynolds with a teenager in tow.
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