“If he’d stolen it, why didn’t he sell it the first chance he got? Three years now he’s hung on to a valuable piece of jewellery,” Motts pointed out. She’d showed the detective inspectors the photo of the necklace currently hidden inside her cottage. “It’s incriminating evidence. If he’d killed her, getting rid of it should’ve been a top priority.”
“Criminals, in my experience, don’t often think logically or intelligently.” Teo handed her phone back to her. “Why don’t we head up to your cottage to retrieve the necklace? We’re going to need to log this into evidence.”
He means against Ashby.
How do I convince them he’s innocent?
Am I convinced he’s innocent?
Lost in thought, Motts didn’t even notice Nish had bagged up her last croissant for her until she spotted the paper sack in front of her. The twins were way too good to her. She always felt grateful for her best friends, who treated her like family.
“Are you—” Teo cut off his question when Motts’s phone began to go berserk. “Your alarm.”
Motts grabbed her phone, fumbling to get the alarm turned off. “My cottage. Maybe it’s a false alarm?”
The two detectives both stared at her. Motts shifted uncomfortably. They obviously didn’t think it was a false alarm.
Their short trip up to the cottage seemed like hours. Motts’s heart began to race when she spotted her front door. Teo grabbed her to keep her from racing inside.
“Cactus. Moss.”
“We need to make sure no one’s inside.” Teo left her with Inspector Ash while he went into the cottage.
“I don’t care about the poxy necklace. What about my family?” Motts tried to see into the hallway. “Cactus?”
Meow.
Oh, thank everything. Thank all of your nine lives.
“Cactus.” Motts’s voice trembled. She latched on to her cat, who’d sauntered out of the open cottage door. “He’s got something on his paws. Oh my. Is this blood?”
Inspector Ash jogged over to her. He gently lifted one of Cactus’s paws. “I’d say he gave someone a good scratch. We’re going to want to get a swab of this. Don’t let him lick himself clean.”
“I’ve got the alarm turned off.” Teo joined them. “I’ve got a call in to a locksmith to fix your door. Nothing else is damaged. Where’d you hide the necklace?”
Motts gently handed Cactus over to Teo. She went straight into the cottage and retrieved the necklace. She offered it to Inspector Ash, who secured it in an evidence bag. “What about my cameras?”
“The company checked the footage for me. We’ve got a figure in a hoodie, face completely covered. I’ll analyse it more thoroughly later.” Teo had a careful hold on Cactus’s paws. “Your hallway is a mess. I’d say they encountered your brave cat and decided not to press on further into the cottage.”
Meow.
“Yes, you do deserve all the treats. We’ll get you a nice big plate of tuna,” Motts promised.
The technician arrived in impressive time to swab both of Cactus’s front paws. He eyed the woman suspiciously but submitted to the inspection. Motts thought he did better than she would’ve.
“I’ll get you all cleaned up.” Motts left the police to chat. She wandered into her cottage, since they’d finished taking photos and fingerprints. “What a mess.”
The hall table had been knocked over, a painting was off the wall, her coats and umbrellas were strewn across the floor.
Nothing seemed broken, at least.
“Can I help?” Teo offered. “Perry’s got the CCTV footage from the security company. He’ll take a closer look. The lab tech’s off with the evidence. I’m hanging around for a bit. Just in case.”
“In case they come back?” Motts carried Cactus through the mess in the front into the kitchen. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
Meow.
“I know. You’re a grand Celtic warrior. You’re still having a bath.” She gently washed off the blood from his paws, checking him over for any injuries. “Why don’t I set you up with a nice snack by the window? You and Moss can gossip about what a brave boy you are.”
With Cactus taken care of, Motts returned to the hallway. She leaned against the wall and stared at the mess. The security system was supposed to be a deterrent.
Some deterrent.
My poor painting.
Motts bent down to touch the frame. She shook her head, breathing in and out rapidly. Teo stepped up behind her and lifted the artwork to place on the wall.
“Why don’t you join Cactus and Moss in the living room? Have some tea?” he suggested. He sighed when Motts shook her head. “How can I help?”
Go away.
Motts wanted to resettle into the cottage. She needed familiarity to wash away the sense of having her safest space violated, even if only briefly. “I need some quiet and space.”
Teo eased back after righting the coat stand. “I’ll speak with Perry. We’ll see if Constable Stone can keep an eye on your cottage today.”
“Teo.”
He waved off her attempt to apologise. “Clear your head. I’ll ask Nish to bring you a takeaway. Fish and chips are good for the soul, I’m told.”
Motts managed a smile. She put the hallway table back against the wall and began replacing the items that had fallen off. “They are. Salty, vinegary chips. A greasy boon to a weary soul.”
He chuckled, finishing placing the last coat on the stand. “There. All fixed up.”
After Teo left, Motts closed the door. She unlocked and locked it a few more times, just to be sure. The hallway had returned to normal; nothing seemed out of place.
“What are you?” Motts spotted something poking out from underneath the rug. She eased out a receipt from the Griffin Brews. “Coffee and a pasty. Same as Ashby.”
And likely the same order as twenty other people who came into the café. The receipt showed no identifying information. Bugger. I’ll text a photo to Teo later. And to Nish; maybe he can identify it for me—and the police.
Later, when my head isn’t buzzing from adrenaline and stress.
One of Motts’s favourite things in the world was organising her supplies. She set multiple containers of papers on the coffee table. The peony project needed more work; she wanted a clear head before starting.
Meow.
“I know you’re trying to be helpful. The last time you did, I had to throw away an entire bouquet because you taught it a lesson.” Motts gently plucked Cactus off the table and set him on the couch behind her. “You can supervise from a distance.”
Meow.
“You’ll survive the trauma of being separated from the coffee table.” Motts grabbed the first container. She pried off the lid and began lifting out stacks of loose paper and organising them into piles based on colour and stack. “We’ll survive.”
No matter what.
Oh, this is a lovely purple. Maybe I can make a bouquet of irises for Teo’s mum.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Knock, knock.”
“Why do you bother pretending to knock when you use your key? Better question. Why did I give you access to my cottage when you swan in as if it’s yours?” Motts stared over the rim of her coffee mug at her cousin. He held up a Tupperware container. “Breakfast?”
“Mum made English breakfast baos. She insisted I bring them over and make sure you were okay.” River peeled the lid off the container. Motts immediately grabbed one of the steamed buns. “Bacon, eggs, a stewed tomato sort of sauce. Works surprisingly well in the baozi.”
Motts took a large bite of her bun. It tasted almost orgasmic, based on Vina’s far too graphic explanation of one. She made up a mug of coffee for her cousin while they munched on the baos.
“Want to watch CCTV footage with me?” Motts had collected the video from the cameras in her cottage and planned to peruse it over breakfast. She might spot something the police hadn’t. “Maybe you’ll recognise the person if I don’t.”
&
nbsp; Coffee and baos in hand, they sat beside each other at the kitchen table. Motts set up her laptop for them both to see. She queued up the video from the front of the cottage and hit Play.
“Here we go. Now, who’s this berk.” River leaned in closer to the screen. “Could be any bloke in a hoodie, to be honest.”
“Where does your head come to on the doorframe?” Motts tried to gauge where the hooded figure stood by the door. “If we know roughly how tall he is, we might eliminate some of the suspects.”
“I’ll go check.” River dashed to the front door and back in a matter of seconds. “I’d say he’s about my height, maybe a hair taller.”
“Mikey’s shorter than you. Jasper and Ashby are both about your height.”
“As are loads of other men and women in Cornwall.” He selected one of the remaining buns. “Good news is, Mikey’s in the clear. One less person to prod for an answer. Ran into Hughie on my way through the village. He said they’d managed to verify his alibi; he definitely wasn’t in the area the week Nadine was reported missing. How in the world did he remember what he was doing three years ago? I’m fuzzy on yesterday, never mind years.”
“Prodding probes potentially problematic.” Motts decided to grab the last bao before her cousin finished them off. “No idea. I’ve already forgotten what happened when I woke up.”
“It’s called getting older.”
“Ignoring you.” Motts grabbed the receipt from the table to show him. “I found this under the carpet. I’m guessing whoever broke in dropped it while fending off Cactus’s attack. Think Nish could figure it out?”
“Cash payment? Standard order with nothing fancy? Maybe. I doubt it.” River grabbed his phone and snapped a photo. “Never hurts to ask.”
Getting River out of her hair took an hour; Motts finally had time to clean. She’d had the lock to her front door changed and gotten a spare set of keys for her cousin. Always good for someone to have an extra key. She planned to regain her sense of security by thoroughly organising and wiping down everything in the hallway.
She moved each piece of furniture and wall art out into the living room. “Careful, Cactus.”
Meow.
“Yes, you’re an excellent supervisor.” Motts noticed a folded scrap of paper where the coat stand had been. “Where did you come from?”
She didn’t remember dropping paper.
Had Cactus’s furious attack caused the intruder to drop more than the receipt?
Setting the paper on the kitchen counter, Motts went back to finishing up with her cleaning. She made quick work of dusting everything and then returning all the furniture. After shampooing the carpet, she left it outside to dry on a washing line.
There. Feels as though I’ve cleared the evil air out of my home. I refuse to be afraid in my cottage.
Motts had just put the duster away when a familiar jaunty whistle caught her attention. She went outside to greet her grandparents. “Hello, you two. I’m fine.”
“Never had any doubts.” Her granddad pulled a paper sack out of his pocket. “I went by the sweet shop.”
“Unlike your granddad, I brought something more filling. Scones.” Her gran eased closer to her. “Is it a hug day? Or are you still bruised from your accident?”
Motts gave her gran a hug and smiled when her granddad held the bag of chocolate buttons out to her. She grabbed a handful. “Are you enjoying the weather? It’s lovely and warm.”
Her gran ignored her attempt at safe small talk and bustled into the kitchen with Cactus following behind. He meowed loudly at one of his favourite people. “Yes, love. I’ve brought you a treat as well.”
“She’s got carrots for Moss and peas for Cactus. And I’ve got the wire I promised in the boot of the car.” Her granddad wrapped his arm around her and held out the bag of chocolate buttons. “How goes your mystery?”
“Granddad.”
“Any new clues?”
Sharing the two pieces of paper with her granddad, they inspected the newly found evidence together. A small scrap of paper folded and ripped in half, it appeared to show a partially scribbled telephone number.
But whose?
How do we figure out the complete number?
“What about using the Google?” her granddad suggested. “You can find everything on there.”
“The Google?” Motts’s mouth started to water when her gran held out a plate with apricot and honey scones slathered with her homemade apricot jam. “Thanks, Gran. Do you use the Google as well?”
After tea and scones with her grandparents, her granddad helped her set up the wire in the garden. She planned to plant peas in the autumn. Her grandparents headed up, leaving her to try and figure out the partial phone number.
Searching on the internet didn’t provide any useful information. There weren’t enough digits to even make an educated guess. Mott was still perusing websites on how to find phone numbers mid-afternoon when someone knocked on her door.
“Hello.” Vina grinned when Motts opened the door. She pushed her way inside. “I brought you a present.”
“Have you?” Motts was immediately suspicious when Vina shoved a heavy, large box into her arms. “You shouldn’t have?”
“I definitely should have. River and Nish are bringing cold beers and a takeaway along with their movie projector. I’ve got a sheet we can string up against the cottage.” Vina grabbed her by the hand to drag her out into the garden. “Let’s set it up.”
“Set what up?”
Vina crowded in next to her and ripped off some of the wrapping paper. “Surprise!”
“An inflatable paddling pool?”
“Big enough we can squash in together.” Vina nodded enthusiastically.
“A large rectangular inflatable paddling pool.” Motts didn’t know whether to be happy or mildly annoyed. “Is it even going to fit?”
“I measured.”
“Of course you did.”
“You need to relax. It’s boiling out. You can’t solve a mystery when you’re melting in the heat and stressed out over a break-in.”
* * *
Motts stared at the expanded pool. They’d moved it into the front of the cottage because she didn’t want to risk crushing her plants. “Are you sure four of us will fit?”
“Definitely,” Vina promised.
“Not sure Auntie Daisy envisioned this when she left the cottage to me.” Motts sat on the edge of the pool with her feet dangling in the cool water. They’d dragged the garden hose around to fill it. “Nish and River are nicking this from you.”
“Probably.”
“Did you find anything on the receipt?” Motts changed the subject.
“We narrowed it down to a few people who came in while you were there and ordered the same thing. Ashby, of course, which you knew. Jasper. Callie. And another young lad, don’t know his name. He works at the O’Connell warehouse.” Vina shifted the garden hose out of the way and sat across from Motts. “The bad news is, it doesn’t really narrow it down from two of your suspects.”
“So, you’re useless.”
“I brought you a pool.” Vina shifted the hose to spray Motts. “At least it proves it wasn’t a random stranger trying to steal from you.”
No, just a potential murderer breaking into my house.
Not comforting.
At all.
“Murdering murderer murders maddeningly.” Motts wiped the water from her face.
After Nish and River arrived, they set up the sheet on the outside of the cottage and queued up one of Motts’s YouTube playlists. They watched a Try Channel live stream, laughing and eating their weight in takeaway while lounging in the overcrowded pool. They’d almost finished when a police car pulled up.
“Oi. You four degenerates. What’s all this racket?” Hughie glowered at them before breaking into a massive grin. “It’ll come as no surprise Old Man Orchard called in to complain about the noise even though there’s no possible way he can hear you from up here.�
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“Chips?” River held out a packet to the constable. “While we’ve got you here, Motts has a number. Can you see if you recognise it? I don’t.”
“That’s not a number. It’s a part of one.” Hughie tapped his finger against the paper after Motts handed it to him. “Can’t say for sure, but I think this belongs to one of the young lads who works part-time for the O’Connells. I rang him the other day about a delivery.”
Does it now?
Chapter Twenty-Four
Meow.
Motts peered over her mug of coffee at Cactus, who was lounging on his cushion by the window, having finished his breakfast. “I could try calling the number Hughie gave me last night.”
Meow.
“I do hate talking on the phone,” Motts agreed. She tapped a finger against the mug. “I could pay another visit to the warehouse. See if this young lad is there.”
Meow.
“No, I shouldn’t go alone. Though I’m sure I’ll be fine if I stay away from the freezers.” Motts shivered at the icy memory. “Marnie might be up and about this morning.”
Grabbing her phone, Motts sent a text to her. Marnie claimed to be closed for inventory. She told Motts to swing by on her way to the warehouse so she could join her.
After changing into something other than the comfy pyjamas she lived in most days, Motts made her way into the village. She wasn’t surprised to find Marnie waiting outside the shop for her with two cups in hand. Someone’s already been to Griffin Brews and probably gossiped about our upcoming adventure.
Nothing ever stayed secret in a small village, particularly amongst friends.
“Vina says to stay away from freezers.” Marnie handed one of the cups to her. “Nish suggested avoiding the O’Connells full stop.”
“Not surprised.” Motts sipped her favourite chai, made perfectly. She loved the twins. “Did you tell Perry?”
“No.” Marnie winked. She waited for Motts to step up beside her before starting to walk. “Being married to a detective inspector has taught me the value of discretion.”
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