The first order of business was to find the police station and how hard could that be, I thought, as I slowly cruised down the main drag. I’d spotted the town hall and library two blocks back so figured the police must be somewhere close by but wasn’t having any luck.
I decided at that point to kill two birds with one stone. Get a coffee and ask the locals where the nearest RCMP detachment was located. Hell, I thought, maybe I’ll just ask after Phil Harris himself and not even bother the local constabulary about it.
Spotting a bakery-slash-coffee-shop in a pretty building overlooking the harbour, I pulled the car into a parking spot and got out. Once inside the shop, the smell of freshly baked cinnamon rolls drove all thought of investigating right out of my brain. I didn’t think about anything else until I inhaled a steaming hot coffee, and the largest cinnamon bun I’d ever seen in my life.
Only then did I notice that quite a few people in the shop were staring at me intently. I wiped the dregs of icing off my mouth and nose. They still continued to stare at me. I was thinking they weren’t used to visitors in this town. I was also noticing that several of the patrons sported long, bright red, curly hair. So perhaps asking after Phil Harris was not a great idea. In this coffee shop at least.
I cleared my throat.
“Um, hi there, folks. How are you?”
One or two people nodded but no one smiled and no one spoke.
“I’m just visiting and I was wondering if anyone knew where I could get a map of Landsend?”
The senior closest to me cracked a smile and said, “Welcome to our town. We don’t get too many visitors so I don’t rightly believe that there is a map. An official map, that is.”
“There’s the big map that’s painted on the clock tower in front of town hall,” someone at the back piped up.
“Oh yes, that’s your best bet,” the senior smiled and nodded.
“So it would show the police station, for example?” I said.
The few tentative smiles all vanished and someone said, “What do you want the police station for?”
“Oh that’s just an example,” I said. “The hospital would be on there too? Or the library?”
“Well yes, those are there of course,” the senior said, clearly regretting having talked to a stranger in the first place. “But the police station is an unusual case.”
“Oh?”
“The police have a few rooms inside town hall but Grant is usually out on his boat, so we all know to just go there when we need him.”
“Ahh, thank you,” I said. “That’s Grant …?”
“Grant Peterson. Constable. RCMP.”
After that, the only chatty person in town concentrated on sipping her earl grey tea and refused to say another word.
So about half an hour later when I was standing in front of town hall, I discovered it really wasn’t too difficult to find the police station. All it took was noticing a tiny little sign with a tiny little arrow which directed people to a door on the far side of the building.
The sign on that door indicated I was in the right place but by peering in through the glass, I could see everything inside was cloaked in darkness.
Below the sign that read “Landsend Police Department” was an even smaller sign that stated: “In case of emergency call (203) 555-3414 (ask for Grant)”
After fishing around in my purse for my brand new phone, I added that number to my list of contacts. I was up to three island numbers on my shiny new phone. Why did they all have to be cops, I fumed. Why can’t at least one be a normal person, not employed in a crime-fighting capacity?
Sighing, I put my hands on my hips and looked around at the stunning view of the marina taking up one side of the harbour, with a long white sandy beach stretching out, just one short flight of steps, away from me. The bright sunshine made the ocean sparkle like a million diamonds and it called out for me to relax.
Maybe it was time for a break, I thought. I had to digest that cinnamon bun after all and a nearby park bench looked very appealing, what with the temperature being a perfect sunny 23C. I could put the search off for a couple hours or so. I don’t want to be too good at this detecting stuff, after all. People might get ideas.
Wandering along a promenade edged by manicured rose gardens of pinks and reds and corals, I soon reached a bench perched over a retaining wall, with nearby steps that lead down to the beach. Way off in the distance, a handful of people here and there walked along the sand. One or two sat on beach chairs. No one was braving the water but it was still spring, so that was probably a wise move.
Stretching my legs out, I leaned back on the seat and laced my fingers together behind my head, breathing in the soft Pacific breezes. Yes, I could definitely get used to this. I sighed and felt the knots relaxing in my shoulders.
It was so good to see people out and about, taking advantage of the beautiful weather. Maybe I could find a good place to have lunch before I started the search for Phil Harris. Yeah I could walk along the beach, like those people over there, then go find a good restaurant. I was really warming up to the idea.
Which is when the phone rang.
I sighed. Reluctantly I stuck it to my ear, only half listening to Liam, while I continued to plan my crime-free lunch.
“Meg, about what I said earlier, I was under stress.”
For instance, I could walk over to the marina on the other side of the bay, like where that woman was walking. She was just Barbie-sized off in the distance but even from here I could tell she had long, black hair.
“The thing is that we have a bit of an issue here,” Liam said.
As she walked, the woman flicked her hair over her shoulder with irritation, in a gesture that I’d seen somewhere else quite recently. I pursed my lips and frowned, trying to think where.
“The thing is …” Liam said.
I stood up from the park bench and pointed in the woman’s direction.
“I think Sue is in Landsend,” I yelled at the same time that Liam said, “We think Sue is in Landsend.”
“What?” we both said simultaneously.
“I said I think I’ve spotted Sue here in Landsend and I’m following her.” I abandoned my park bench and my plans, setting off after Sue.
“Oh that’s a relief,” Liam said. “She got away from Cora and Arnold and we couldn’t find her anywhere. So we figured she went in search of this Phil Harris guy.”
The woman I was following headed towards an old dock yard, full of grey weathered buildings that looked like they’d seen better days.
“Yeah, about that, I haven’t found Phil Harris yet, or even been able to talk to the local police here in Landsend,” I said.
“Okay. I’ll try to get in touch with the RCMP from my end. Where are you exactly?”
“I’m near the beach and Sue is approaching the wharf at the east end of town.”
“Okay, I’ll let them know. Be careful.”
“Always. Bye.”
Hanging up, I doubled my pace when I saw Sue disappear up a side street leading to an industrial part of town.
In the fifteen minutes it took me to reach the same point where she disappeared from view, she was nowhere to be seen. But this part of town seemed to consist of only a couple streets and a dozen or so buildings, so searching around would probably produce some results.
The streets were deserted as I walked along and the buildings looked like they’d seen better days. Perhaps the fishing industry had fallen on bad times here. Or maybe it wasn’t fishing season yet.
All was quiet. The hustle and bustle of town life near the waterfront was off in the distance and I felt like I was walking through a museum. Which is when the phone rang, making me jump out of my skin.
Pulling it blindly from my purse, I half whispered, half yelled, “What?” into it, expecting Liam with more news for me. Or more complaints. One or the other.
“Meg! How you doing?” A familiar voice rang out.
&nbs
p; “Ted?” I asked, recognizing the boisterous, jovial voice of a co-worker from Toronto, remembering then that I’d sent my new number to Liz back at work. If Liz knew it, everyone knew it.
“Yeah it’s me. You haven’t forgotten us already, have you? It’s only been a week.” Ted laughed. “So how are you doing? What are you up to?”
“Oh you know,” I said, peering around the corner of a building to find another deserted street. “Just going for a walk along the beach. It’s beautiful here.”
“Oh yeah? Whereabouts are you?”
“It’s called Landsend. It’s a little town near Victoria,” I said, trying to peer into the darkened windows of an old factory. “The beach here is gorgeous. There are so many sailboats out of the water today.”
“Oh that’s great, Meg. It’s good to hear you enjoying yourself. I gotta tell you the boys and I have a bet going about how long it’ll take before you’re investigating some crime or other out there. So it’s good to hear you’re taking it easy.”
“Oh Ted, you guys are so funny. I told you that would never happen,” I said, turning the corner onto the street furthest away from the water, and spotting a red car.
An involuntary gasp of excitement escaped as I hurried towards the car that I last saw speeding away from the hotel in Victoria.
“What is it, Meg? Are you all right?” Ted asked.
“Oh I’m great, Ted. Thanks! My drink’s just arrived. So I’ll let you go,” I whispered.
“Okay sure, Meg. No problem. Why are you whispering? But, oh before you go, if you do plan on investigating something, can you do it twenty days from now? There’s a pool starting up here and the pot is getting quite big.”
“It’s never going to happen, Ted. Never,” I whispered, hanging up as I got half a block away from the car. Sheltering in a darkened doorway of a deserted café, I peered around looking for signs of life on the street. But a tall, skinny, long-haired redhead could not be seen anywhere in or near the vehicle. And there was no sign of a maid with long, black hair either. But they had to be nearby somewhere.
“Let’s just have a look, shall we,” I muttered, hurrying towards the car.
When I was within twenty feet, I slowed way down, trying to peer over a fence at the large building closest to the car. Faded letters on the side read “Industrial Frameworks” but the business looked as if it went under twenty years ago or more.
I trailed my hand along the fence looking to see where anyone could gain access. The red car was parked right in front of the only gate I could see but the large chain with the heavy lock on it looked like it hadn’t been opened in years.
Pulling on the gate, I could see there was just enough give in the chain that a thin person could squeeze through the gate. I fit that bill, so pushed my way through, pausing when the gate squeaked loudly. When no one appeared from the building, I continued my entry.
Tiptoeing closer, I reached a small window next to the only door I could see. Peering inside, a vast empty space met my gaze.
So I tested the door handle and was pleased to find it unlocked. A quick silent movement and I was inside, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Which is when I heard them. Charging out from behind a stack of pallets, they were on me before I could react. Sue on my right and a scrawny, red-haired man whom I assumed was Phil Harris on my left.
Struggling to get out of their grasp, I attempted to wrench my arms free. I think if Phil had been the only person to deal with, I could’ve gotten away easily but with Sue there, it proved to be impossible. She was definitely the stronger one of the pair.
Wrestling me towards a chair, the two of them managed to tie me up, Phil taking the wrists and Sue tying up my ankles. Although I managed to get a good kick in before she accomplished it.
“Geez you’re a bitch,” Sue said to me, before waving Phil over to a far corner of the empty warehouse. Clearly she thought they could have a private conversation over there, but neglected to realize how voices would carry through that big, echoing space.
“Are you all right?” Phil asked.
“Yeah, she just got me in the shoulder,” Sue said, rubbing my shoeprint off her jacket.
“No, I mean about the hotel. What the hell happened?”
“You tell me. You were the one working with Jimmy. What went wrong?” Sue demanded.
“I have no idea. One minute, Jimmy was there. The next, he was gone.”
“He’s gone all right.”
“What does that mean?”
“He’s dead. Jimmy’s dead. Don’t you know that?”
“No. I thought he took off with the loot. I couldn’t find him anywhere.”
Sue could not keep the relief out of her voice when she said, “Oh thank goodness. I thought …”
“You thought what?”
“Well you know.”
“No.”
“Well you and Jimmy weren’t exactly getting along since we started seeing each other. So I thought Jimmy might have tried something and you defended yourself.”
“No. I would never hurt anyone…” Phil said, but even at this distance I was having trouble believing him. Something happens to a person’s voice when they’re lying. “What a minute. You thought I killed him? I thought you killed him.”
“Me? Why would I kill him?”
“You really hated each other. You couldn’t even stand to be in the same room with each other. Last time we ran into him at Stan’s place, you almost killed him.”
“Yeah, well he deserved it.”
“So you DID kill him?” Phil asked in a hushed whisper.
“No! Stop asking me that. I did not kill him. There, are you happy?”
“Oh thank goodness,” Phil said, his reply ending in a muffle as he grabbed her and hugged her in a tight embrace.
“Oh Phil, I love you,” Sue said, before protracted kissing noises started up.
I sighed. Why me? If there are any kissy-faced gangsters within a ten block radius they always manage to find me. And I don’t know what they had to be happy about anyway. Even from this distance, I could tell that both of them were being less than truthful.
Clearly the way that Sue had been wailing over Jimmy’s dead body, the two of them were more than just exes. Something that Phil obviously wasn’t aware of, given the nauseating feelings being expressed on the other side of the room.
But the good thing was, the suction cup noises going on over there covered the sound of me sawing through ropes. I could feel the binds on my wrist start to give way. Never underestimate the sharpness of a rusty old metal chair.
“Oh Phil.”
“Sue. Oh Sue.”
Oh good lord, I had to get out of there. Immediately.
Savagely ripping at the rope, I broke free and leaned over to get the binds off my ankles. Within minutes, I was hiding in the darkness between the nearest wall and a mountain of pallets. I just needed to find another door since the make-out session was going on near the door I entered through.
“Sue, you know I love you.”
“Oh Phil, this is so hot. Taking a hostage really turns me on. We should … Oh. My. God!”
“What?”
“Where is she? She’s gone. What the hell, Phil. Where did she go?”
Shit. If she had to know, I was in the worst possible location I could be in. I was as far away from the door as I could get, in the vain search for another exit, which I was certain, at that point, did not exist. That was the bad news.
The good news was that the two lovebirds were moving away from the only door and were almost back over to my chair. At that exact moment in time, I had clear passage to the exit but it would require leaving cover and making a mad dash across the open space in the centre of the factory. The two of them would spot me almost immediately but it had to be done. If I waited, one of the brain trust would eventually have the brilliant idea to position themselves in front of the door while the other on
e searched for me.
Sprinting out of my hiding place, I was grateful for my sneakers not making any sound on the concrete, combined with my ten-kilometre-a-day running habit, because I made it two thirds of the way to the door before they even noticed me.
“Hey Phil, look. Get her!”
I was pretty sure they didn’t have guns so if I just concentrated on the door, I figured I was as good as gone.
Except that Phil was faster than his stoner appearance would have anyone believe. The little bastard was blocking my way by the time I still had five steps to go. Who thought that ninety-pound weakling had it in him?
“Get out of my way,” I yelled, adding emphasis by aiming my fists at his face.
“Hey,” he yelled and ducked to one side.
I grabbed the handle and yanked the door open, screaming as loud as I could to the deserted industrial yard outside, all the while trying to exit the building.
But someone was holding me back and when I turned to see who it was, was dismayed to find the maid had a firm grip on my arms. So screaming all the way, I did my best not to be pulled back into the building but two against one meant I was soon sitting back on the chair.
“What are we going to do about her?” Sue asked, slightly out of breath.
Phil was still bent double, wheezing, unable to talk, which brought a smile to my face.
“We can’t risk her doing that again. And she knows who we are,” Sue said.
“What are you saying?” Phil asked.
“Well we can’t just let her get away, babe.”
“We leave her here and walk away. No one will ever find her.”
“Babe, she just escaped once.”
“So. What are you suggesting?”
“We can’t have any loose ends,” Sue said, her gaze drilling a hole into Phil.
“Do you mean?”
Sue stared some more.
“No,” Phil said.
“Yes,” Sue said.
“I thought you claimed you weren’t a killer,” Phil said, his shock and dismay written all over his face.
Which is when the door was kicked in and three men swarmed in, one who was wearing an RCMP uniform, and two of the biggest sailors I’d ever seen in my life.
Victim in Victoria Page 4