Water's Edge

by G R Jordan

  Chapter 8

  Hope fought through the knot in her hair with her brush, all the while keeping the area behind her in sight by staring in the mirror. Having intended to stand there and pretend her hair was giving her trouble, it was not a relief to find that the red headed mop was actually fairly matted. But her target soon drifted into view.

  The council woman was wearing a cream blouse with a jacket thrown over it and a figure hugging black skirt that reached to her knees. The legs beneath were made sleeker by her tights, or possibly stockings and ended in a not unreasonable pair of heels. Fashionable but practical. This made Hope smile and she stood her ground, continuing to brush her hair.

  There were spaces away from her but the council woman took the mirror beside Hope and began to delve into her bag. A brush was produced and she took hold of the hair dryer on the wall. Working her hair under the blast of invisible heat, the council woman kept glancing at Hope through her mirror. Keeping a straight face, Hope smiled inside and awaited contact.

  With her hair sorted, the woman put her brush away, closed up her bag and then pretended to suddenly spot Hope.

  “Detective? Is that you? Can I just say how much I appreciated how you treated my son yesterday. It’s a God awful situation but you have been so considerate.”

  “Thank you,” said Hope, noticing the woman step closer. “We will need to ask some more questions today, of you as well. If you could pop down to the station this morning?”

  “Actually,” replied the woman giving a thoughtful look, “it’s a busy morning. Would you be free to come over right now to my office? Have you had breakfast? If not I can offer you some over there. I always have plenty around for myself as I never have breakfast at home. No point going back once your workout is done.”

  “Well, I guess it would move the day on. As you can imagine, there’s a lot still to do, that’s why I wanted to get in here early.”

  “Oh indeed. You must join me another morning, I can have company while I work out. It’s a funny lot you get in the mornings, more interested in their body rather than the body next to them. Would be good to have different company for a change.”

  Hope tilted her head feigning a slight blush. “Well, maybe. If there’s time. But shall we go to your office then? I am actually getting rather hungry.”

  “By all means. Follow me and I’ll show you where we are. It’s just across from here, the rather drab looking building that dominates. I do like those trousers you’re wearing. I’m not sure the same pair on me would give such clean curves on my rear.”

  If a man said that he would be seen as offensive, Hope mused. Yet she can drop that in and always claim it was just a compliment. That was the thing, she thought, when dating women they can say things right away a man is scared to. That’s definitely part of the attraction.

  Taking the lead through the door, Hope was aware of the eyes on her from behind and as they walked out into the drizzle, she tried to reposition herself so she could see the woman’s eyes. Eyes could tell you so much. But you still had to back it up with some solid evidence. Still, it was always a good start.

  “So, Mrs Smith, how long have you been a council woman?” asked Hope, as they crossed the car park to the large building with the bland grey walls.

  “Please, Marie. If we girls can’t talk civilly then we’ve lost everything. Been three years this time around but I’ve been active in local life for over twenty years. I’m pretty well known if I do say so myself. Hated by some, hopefully loved by others. That’s the joy of being independent.”

  “No party affiliations. Must be quite freeing, standing on your own platform. And call me Hope.”

  “Yes, well you have to stand on your own convictions whatever. And I’m not in this to rise higher, only to serve this place I call home.” Marie smiled and Hope noted the pristine teeth.

  They travelled through a door and over to a lift taking them to an upper floor. Marie lead the way along identical corridors and only the plaque on the door gave any idea that this was Marie’s office. The room was small, almost a large cupboard, Hope thought, but it had photographs of Marie at various shows and gatherings as well as letters, pinned to the wall. There was a large metallic filing cabinet and a coffee machine sat on top.

  Hope watched the woman remove her jacket and hang it on the back of the door. Bending over, she reached for some coffee out of the cabinet, unashamed or apologising that in the tight space her rear was right in front of the seated Hope. After fixing the machine, Marie turned round and sat opposite Hope before producing some croissants from another drawer.

  “Sorry, it’s a bit rough and ready but I doubt you would have time for a breakfast elsewhere. You can get a decent start in various hotels or cafes but you must be rushed at the moment, so I hope you don’t mind this.”

  “No, it’s fine Marie, really. I’m not a girl who needs the high life.” Hope pulled her notebook out and saw a look of disappointment on Marie’s face. “Sorry, I need to keep this a bit formal, we do have a murder on our hands.”

  “So it was definitely murder?”

  “Is that what the jungle drums are saying?”

  “Most definitely, was it?” Marie was leaning forward and her legs were right beside Hope’s. The whole position was certainly not that of one being interviewed but rather someone taking charge. Hope sensed a connection being made, an intent beyond being helpful.

  “It looks that way but don’t let that out. I guess it’s no big secret, after all we’re up here from Glasgow so it’s fairly obvious. Unfortunately your boy is caught up in it, as a potential suspect due to his closeness to the victim. How close were they?”

  Marie half grinned. “Not as close as he thought. She was doing a lot of things he didn’t know about.”

  “Really? How do you know?”

  “She had a female friend she was really close to. Sleeping with, if you catch my drift. The girl came to me for advice because she was getting into trouble with her rent at her council house. Started asking about how things would differ if she declared her partner, or even got married.”

  “And this girl is?”

  Marie stood up and turned to look out through the small window above her cabinet. “You need to keep this discreet. It’s not easy for some people being different. You can pay a high price by letting someone know you are gay in some of our communities.”

  Hope wanted to get a good look at her face but Marie kept her back to her. “It’s fine. We won’t let anything out.”

  “It can be worse on local girls. You see the incomers can be written off, ignored as such. But when your whole family is around you here, you can’t hide.” Marie turned now and Hope thought she caught a look of regret.

  “Her name, please.”

  “Donna Mackenzie. That’s her there. In the picture with the guy in the wheelchair. She was always at events, helping out.”

  “Fairly bland looking considering her partner,” suggested Hope.

  “Yes but a good soul, Hope. I guess you want to know where to find her. I have an address for her council home. But be careful how you visit, I doubt many, if any, know of her connection. They were very discrete, very private.”

  “Can you write the address down for me?”

  “Of course,” said Marie, “My Iain has no idea. He was daft enough to think he was the main one just because she spent every Saturday night out with him and let him in her bed too. But she didn’t see her bed as something precious.” Marie’s eyes wandered slightly as if in thought.

  “How do you reach that conclusion?” probed Hope.

  “Well, she couldn’t have. I heard she entertained a lot. A lot of men flowed through her door. Especially since she started up that damn shop.”

  Hope sensed an inner pain bubbling to the surface and part of her wanted to let the woman have a moment. But the detective in her pounced for the kill.

  “Did you resent that? Did she let a lot of women in?”

  “Oh no, a lot of men.
She liked it, saw it as fun and a way to make money, I guess. But only a few women.”

  “But you had to pay. I guess that would hurt knowing you weren’t the favoured one.”

  Marie looked shocked before crumbling and falling forward into Hope. The woman dropped to her knees, her head now snivelling on Hope’s lap. She knew what Marie was wanting, for Hope to caress her hair. She didn’t trust this whole show but maybe she could learn more. Hope let her hand start to brush Marie’s auburn hair.

  “Was she wonderful?” asked Hope.

  “Yes, yes she was,” Marie sniffed. “But she never let me in. Not truly.”

  “Were you with her that night?”

  Marie stopped her weeping and looked up at Hope, her face suddenly sharp. Getting up off her knees, the scowl on her face stayed.

  “Get out! Get out of my office.”

  “Hey, you invited me here. I never asked.”

  Marie’s eyes were alight and Hope could see the anger behind them. She’d gone too far, not been subtle enough. But the woman had exposed a part of her life that was hidden and Hope now knew more. And part of her believed that Marie could have actually have killed Sara Hewitt. Her come on and breakdown may have been an act, although would Hope have known any of this if she had not been forthcoming?

  There were too many questions and only a woman with her shutters up in front of her, so it was time to back down.

  “If you need me, you can contact me.” Hope placed a card on the table but Marie’s eyes never left Hope’s face. “Where were you two nights ago? You’ll need to answer this here or at the station. And trust me, you will be making a statement to us.”

  A measure of calm returned to Marie’s face and she turned her back on Hope. “I dined out with the women’s league. You can check with them at the church. It’s the Church of Scotland down from the station.”

  “We will. Don’t leave town.”

  Hope turned on her heel and made her way back along the matching corridors until she found the stairwell and exited the building into the continuing drizzle. Sara Hewitt seems to have been a right girl, thought Sara. Clients, boyfriends, girlfriends and lovers all around. This could take some sifting out. And we need to see her true lover.

  Today was going to be a busy one and she felt glad she had had her workout. Returning back into the leisure centre she collected her belongings from a locker and then made her way back out into the car park. Then she stopped aware that eyes were on her. Glancing up at the many windows, she could not spot anyone but she calculated where Marie’s window would be. Something inside her said she had been there watching.

  Pondering developments, Hope looked for the car. The car park was far from full but the car was gone. It looked like Macleod had taken it after all. With a last glance at the council offices, she set off for the police station on foot.

  Chapter 9

  Macleod stepped into the office of the leisure centre manager and was directed to a seat behind an impressive desk. There were filing cabinets and large box files behind the manager’s own chair and the room had the look of dishevelled industry. Having never run a leisure centre, Macleod was unsure of exactly how taxing it was but if this office was anything to go by, the job might make Prime minister seem like a good option.

  The man that sat down opposite him was dressed in a suit, unlike the members of staff he had seen in their tracksuits. The man was lean and certainly not unlikeable and was trying to give a cheery disposition without being too happy for the subject matter in hand.

  “Thank you for seeing me so quickly Mr Maclean, I’m sure the news came as a shock to those who worked here.”

  Maclean shifted uneasily. “I shouldn’t say this and certainly in public I won’t but actually, no. Having had her as an employee, I can see why she met her end.” Macleod raised his eyebrows and the man quickly continued. “Not in the sense of specific people. I’m talking about her general demeanour in life.

  “I won’t lie to you, I found her a fun and very good looking girl when she started here. But that was when she had just left the school and got her first job. She had that way around men. You liked seeing her and she flirted without being so brazen that you could see her motives.”

  “Did she have motives?” asked Macleod.

  “Oh yes. With me and here in the job, she just wanted to get more money, lift herself up. But I don’t think she understood that even if I was so inclined, and I wasn’t, it’s not that easy to just give people promotion.”

  “What did she do exactly?”

  The man shifted uneasily in his seat. “You need to promise me to keep this within the confines of your investigation. I didn’t tell my wife about it and you can’t. I should have at the time but, well, it’s a bit late to say now. Would seem suspicious to her. But you need to know just what Sara was like.”

  “Okay, I understand how to keep things quiet.”

  The man stood and took off his jacket. Macleod noticed he was beginning to sweat a little and this was obviously a tricky revelation.

  “In the first few months of her employ as a lifeguard, she suggested to me that maybe the health suite we have could be opened an hour beyond closing for use by the staff. I saw nothing sinister and when I checked on the practicalities I thought it a good idea. There’s not a large number of perks but this would be one and probably a good team bonding one.

  “Well the first few weeks it went well and although I had only announced it as a trial period, I did think it was a runner. In fact I had heaped praise on Sara for suggesting it.”

  “So what changed?” asked Macleod.

  “Well, things got a bit too uncomfortable. She started flirting more with me. Nothing too over the top and usually on a one to one basis. In front of everyone else she was a model staff member but when no one was there she would say the odd inappropriate thing. Nothing too sensational but little come-ons. I didn’t react to them, although I probably blushed. In truth, I enjoyed the attention, home life was a little rough then.

  “But it came to a head when I went to the health suite after work when I thought it was empty. I had had a busy day and wanted a soak in the Jacuzzi. I’m in there and all is fine. Sara then shows up saying everyone else had gone home. This was normal and I had said I would lock up. She then asks if we could talk about her prospects, promotion and that. I was in no mood and told her we’d chat the next day.

  “She says, let’s talk now. As far as you are from me that’s how close she was to me. And she basically just stripped the lot off.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I just sat there. She was stunning. Young, entering her prime and I was in a little shock. Truth be told, I was in a lot of ways loving it but I knew it wasn’t right. I might not be the perfect husband but I am true to my Katie. Eyes may drift at times but I don’t let them lead me, Inspector.

  “I got up and walked right past her. I guess there’s not many days we get put to the test but that was mine. But I also said nothing to no one. Sara never mentioned it either but her come-ons stopped and she started to focus on other men.”

  “Some of the staff?”

  “No. Customers. I caught her openly flirting with quite a few. There was also this one guy who never paid her any attention unless she was off from her duty period. She would always go for a swim when she’d finished and he was prone to turn up after her duty time was up. Almost bang on. Nothing wrong with that but I like to keep tabs on what my staff are doing.

  “But then she started disappearing with him into the sauna. With what happened before with myself I decided to check up one night. Sure enough, she was trying it on with him but he wasn’t holding back. Caught them in full flow so to speak. I told her to get dressed and waited outside. She came out first and got the full force of my tongue. But he slipped out behind me and he’s never been in this place again. Seen him once or twice around the island.”

  “Could you identify him again?”

  “Sure. If I see him I’ll ring
you, if that’s what you want.”

  “Please do,” said Macleod, “Here’s my card. Did she stay long after that?”

  “No. That’s when she started this idea of the massage parlour and sure enough she was out of here within three months. Not sacked. I felt sorry for her to be honest.”

  “Why?”

  “Well her mother was a bit of an alcoholic and put it about too. Her stepdad, the last one was okay, but the girl was wild in terms of her sexuality. I guess she had no example. But workwise she was great. If she’d leave the men alone, she would have gotten on fine. Her work spoke for itself, she had no need to sell anything else.”

  Maclean got up and moved towards a kettle on the sideboard. “Coffee, Inspector?”

  “Please. Did anyone else here get close to her? Anyone else have the same kind of experience as you?”

  “Not that I am aware of,” said Maclean flicking the on switch. “Sure she flirted but I didn’t hear of any incidents. To be honest I think she targeted those in power.”

  “It’s more common than you think.”

  “Maybe on the mainland,” said Maclean, “but here, we don’t get this kind of thing. Not a murder. Sure some domestic stuff, other scandals but not this. I guess it comes to everywhere eventually.”

  “Sad to say but yes.”

  Macleod ran through some other lines of enquiry but there was little else the manager could offer. He had seemed a decent man and certainly quite measured in his opinions. The other man was interesting, thought Macleod, especially if something had kicked off properly between them. But what did she gain from him? Macleod counted himself lucky he never had a body he could use as a weapon, all these temptations were far from him.

  He walked out into the drizzle and got into the car. He should have been heading straight to the station, and by foot, to do his morning briefing but something was playing on his mind and he needed to go there first. He took the car to a road just out of town and headed down the mainly single track to a car park beneath a line of single wind turbines. Small ones but all neatly arranged. The swish of their blades broke through his memories and he remembered that they had not been here back then.