by Adele Abbott
“I can’t help but worry, Jill. If that increase goes through, I could be finished.”
Delilah popped her head around the door. “Tiny is here, Farah.”
“I’ll get going,” I said. “Try not to worry.”
Tiny might have been many things, but tiny certainly wasn’t one of them. It took me all my time to squeeze past him.
***
Although I had an address for Jasmine Nodringer, I’d been unable to find a contact phone number, so I was planning to turn up on her doorstep, in the hope that she’d be prepared to talk to me. Jasmine had run the day-nursery that had been forced to close when the building in which it was located was bought by property developers.
I’d visited a few unusual houses in my time, including Mushy’s mushroom cottage, but this one took the biscuit. On either side of it were conventional houses, which made the lighthouse look even more out of place.
I knocked on the bright red door and a few seconds later, there was the sound of footsteps on stone steps. The wizard who answered the door was wearing a smart grey uniform and matching cap.
“I’m sorry it took me a while to get to the door, I was just cleaning the light.”
“I have to ask, why is there a lighthouse here? We’re miles from the coast.”
“I used to work at the lighthouse at Candle Point. When they decommissioned it, I took early retirement and set about building this place.”
“Do you actually live here?”
“I do.”
“That’s amazing. Are you Mr Nodringer?”
“That’s me. Ned Nodringer at your service.”
“I’d like a word with Jasmine if that’s possible.”
His smile faded. “Jasmine died three months ago.”
“I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”
“Are you a friend of hers?”
“No. My name is Jill Maxwell. I’m a private investigator.”
“Why did you want to see Jasmine?”
“I wanted to talk to her about the nursery she used to run.”
“You realise that closed down some time ago?”
“Yes. I was hoping to find out more about the property developers who bought it.”
“I might be able to help with that. Would you like to come in?”
“Yes, please.”
“Follow me. The living quarters are just below the lantern room.”
“I’m guessing that’s near the top of the building.”
“That’s right. There’s only one-hundred and fifty steps, though.”
“Is that all? Great.”
“Would you like something to drink, Jill?” Ned asked when we finally made it to the living quarters.
It was difficult to talk because I was too busy gasping for breath. “Water, please.”
Ned, who was at least twenty years older than me, seemed unaffected by the climb, but then he probably did it several times every day.
“Are you okay, Jill?” He handed me the water.
“Absolutely.” Other than feeling like my heart was about to explode at any second.
“You said you were interested in the property developer who took over the nursery. Can I ask what your interest is, exactly?”
“Of course.” I told Ned about the lido and my search through The Candle archives.
“And you think the same people might be involved?”
“It’s a longshot, but I have no other leads.”
“I’ll be happy to tell you everything I know, but I’m not sure if it will help.”
“It’s worth a shot.”
“The nursery was Jasmine’s life. We weren’t able to have kids, so she treated every child at that place as though they were her own.”
“Did she actually own the nursery or just manage it?”
“It was her business, but she never treated it like one. She wasn’t interested in making huge profits. As long as we had enough to live on, she was happy. I can still see her face the day she came home after hearing that the landlord had sold the building out from under her.”
“Could he do that?”
“Seems like it. She only rented it on a month-to-month basis, and there was no way she was going to find anywhere else as cheap.”
“She must have been devastated.”
“She was, but Jasmine wasn’t the kind to give up without a fight. She was determined to try and talk the buyer out of the purchase. Or at least persuade him to let her continue to run the nursery from there. She thought if she could show them what the place meant to the community, and especially the kids, that they could be persuaded.”
“What happened?”
“I’d never seen her so driven. She thought about nothing else, and it paid off in the end because she managed to find out the name of the company behind the takeover. They were called Reptile Holdings.”
“That’s the people who bought the lido. Did Jasmine manage to find out anything about them?”
“I’m not sure. I think she might have, but—” His words faded away.
“Ned, are you okay?”
“Sorry, yes. I didn’t tell you how Jasmine died. She called me one day, really excited. She said she’d made a breakthrough. I asked her to tell me about it there and then, but she said she was on her way home and would tell me when she got back.” He hesitated again. “But she never did. I knew something was wrong when she still wasn’t home two hours later. I called her a thousand times, but she didn’t answer. The next thing I knew, two policemen came to the door, and told me Jasmine’s body had been found underneath Candle Bridge.”
“That’s terrible. I’m so sorry.”
“The police said it was suicide, and of course there were plenty of people ready to testify that she’d been depressed because of the nursery closure. But I know different. When I spoke to her on the phone that day, she wasn’t depressed. Far from it. She was jubilant about whatever it was she’d discovered.”
“Do you think someone killed her?”
“I’d bet my life on it. And I’m positive it was someone connected to Reptile Holdings.”
“Did you tell the police that?”
“I told anyone who would listen, but it hasn’t done any good so far. Do you think you’ll be able to bring these people to justice?”
“Hopefully, but I have to track them down first and that isn’t proving to be easy.”
***
Something very bad was going on. Initially, I’d simply been trying to find out who had taken over the lido, but it had now developed into something much more serious. Two people were dead, and they had both died under suspicious circumstances: Doug Duggan, an experienced lifeguard and manager of the lido, had supposedly fallen into the pool and drowned. And, according to the police, Jasmine Nodringer had committed suicide. Yet, only minutes before, she had called her husband who insisted she’d sounded upbeat and excited to share some news with him. The common denominator was Reptile Holdings who, as yet, I had been spectacularly unsuccessful in tracking down.
After leaving Ned Nodringer, I decided to take a look at the site where the nursery had once stood. In its place was an unremarkable office building. There was no sign to indicate who occupied it, and the mirrored windows made it impossible to see inside.
“Ain’t no one in there, love.”
I turned around to find an elderly wizard, walking an equally elderly Labrador.
“Hi. How do you know that?”
“I live right over there.” He pointed to the row of houses that faced the office block. “There’s not been anyone through those front doors since they finished building it. Don’t know why they bothered putting it up.”
“That’s strange.”
“It’s not the only strange thing.”
“Oh?”
“There’s a van comes to the building in the early hours of the morning. I’m only a light sleeper and it wakes me up every time.”
“How often?”
“Most nights.”
“I
thought you said no one had been through the doors.”
“I said no one had been through the front doors. The van pulls around the back. There’s another door there.”
“Do you have any idea what they’re doing?”
“Not a clue. I just see the van go down the alley around the back. It’s usually there about an hour or so.”
“Okay, thanks.”
“Don’t I know you from somewhere? Aren’t you that Gooder woman?”
“I used to be, but that’s some years ago. My name is Jill Maxwell now.”
“I thought I recognised your face. How come you haven’t taken part in any of the tournaments recently?”
“I have a daughter now, so I’ve retired from all competitions.”
“Pity. You were always entertaining.”
“Thanks.” I think.
***
I was in two minds whether or not to risk a visit to Cuppy C. The last time I’d spoken to the twins, they’d been on my case because I’d let it slip to Aunt Lucy about the cork museum. In the end, my craving for blueberries encased in a muffin was stronger than my fear of facing their wrath.
“Look who it isn’t,” Pearl said. “The town crier.”
“You’ve got a nerve, showing your face in here.” Amber was tapping her fingers on the counter.
“I’ve said I’m sorry, girls. What else can I do?”
“You could persuade Mum to change her mind about letting us use her corks.”
“What makes you think she’ll listen to me?”
“She always takes more notice of you than us.”
“I could try, I suppose, but I can’t guarantee she’ll change her mind.”
“Good. That’s the least you can do under the circumstances.”
“Does that mean I can have a coffee and a muffin?”
“I suppose so,” Pearl said, somewhat begrudgingly I felt.
Chapter 20
I went straight from Cuppy C to Aunt Lucy’s house, to try to change her mind about the corks. Fortunately, I was blessed with incredible powers of persuasion.
“No. Definitely not.”
“But, Aunt Lucy, I really think—”
“I know the twins have sent you over here to try and butter me up, Jill, but they should have had the courage to come and ask me themselves.”
“They’ve already told lots of people about the cork museum. What are they going to do if there are no corks in it?”
“That’s not my problem. They should have thought about that before they made their plans without checking with me first.”
“If they come over here and ask you themselves, might you say yes?”
“I might.” She grinned. “Then again, I might not.”
“I think you’re enjoying this.”
“The twins have taken me for granted all of their lives. It won’t do them any harm to realise my sole purpose in life isn’t to pander to them.”
“Fair enough.”
“Anyway, enough about the twins. How are you, Jill? If you don’t mind me saying so, you seem a little on edge.”
“I’m fine. Just really busy.”
“And what about Florence?”
“She’s obsessed with unicorns and caterpillars at the moment.”
“And dancing.” Aunt Lucy smirked.
“She is, but what made you mention that?”
“No need for modesty. I’ve seen your competition-winning routine.”
“How?”
“Grandma showed it to me. She said she’d downloaded it from something called YouTube, I think.”
“Great!”
I waited until I’d left Aunt Lucy’s house before calling the twins.
“What did she say?” Pearl said.
“That if you want her corks, the two of you have to go around there and ask her in person.”
“Can we have them?” Amber shouted from somewhere in the background.
“She told Jill that we have to ask her in person. If we do what she asks, Jill, do you think she’ll let us have them?”
“I don’t know. She just said she’d think about it.”
“Mum’s never like this.” Pearl sighed. “I don’t know what’s got into her.”
“Maybe she’s tired of you two taking her for granted. Anyway, it’s over to you now. There’s nothing more I can do.”
As soon as I ended the call, my phone rang. I assumed it would be the twins again, but it turned out to be Elizabeth Duggan.
“Jill, I’ve just found something in one of the pockets of Doug’s jacket. It’s a note in his handwriting that says AnonFront. I just wondered if that name meant anything to you?”
“No, it doesn’t. Is that one word or two?”
“One.”
“Okay. I’ll check it out and see what I come up with. Thanks, Elizabeth.”
***
I’d arranged to meet Sid, Chains’ second-in-command. At his request, we were meeting in the grounds of Washbridge College—a curious choice of venue, I thought.
He hadn’t grown any less ugly since our last encounter, but his attire was certainly different. Instead of the leathers he’d sported at the Wash-on-Wheels clubhouse, he was wearing a shirt, smart trousers and a pair of brogues.
“I almost didn’t recognise you in that get-up,” I said.
“The college don’t approve of the leathers.”
“You’re a student here?”
“A mature student, yeah. Why so surprised?”
“I guess I’d expected you to work in a garage or something. What are you studying?”
“English lit. Can we crack on? My next class is in twenty minutes.”
“Sure. I mainly wanted to ask how you got on with Killer?”
“Okay, although to be honest, I didn’t have a lot to do with him. I love bikes, but I’m only interested in riding them. I’ve never understood the appeal of taking them apart and putting them back together again. Too much like hard work if you ask me.”
“Did the two of you ever socialise?”
“Only as part of the whole club.”
“Never just the two of you?”
“No. We didn’t really have anything in common.”
“Did you ever have any bust-ups with him?”
“It sounds like you think I had something to do with his death, and I didn’t. You should be talking to Slugger.”
“I’ve already spoken to him. I don’t believe he had anything to do with it.”
“He’s worked his charm on you, I see. Slugger always was good with the ladies.”
“Not at all. Apparently, Killer was going to re-join the Loose Chippings club.”
“Says who? Slugger? I wouldn’t believe him if he told me rain was wet.”
“You said you and Killer weren’t close, but I understand that he lent you some money.”
“Who told you that?”
“Did he?”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean we were buddies or anything. It was strictly a business arrangement.”
“I also heard you and he had argued because you were late repaying the loan.”
“It was Fi who told you, wasn’t it? She should keep her big mouth shut.”
“Is it true?”
“Yeah, I was late, but I gave him a gold ring in full payment.”
“And he was happy with that?”
“More than happy. That ring was worth more than I owed him, and he knew it.”
“Can you prove that’s what happened?”
“How am I supposed to do that? No one else knew about the arrangement.” Sid took out his phone and brought up a photo of a ring with a skull on it. “This is it. I loved that ring.”
“Let’s for a minute assume it wasn’t Slugger who murdered Killer. Is there anyone else who might have wanted him dead?”
Sid shrugged. “Maybe one of Fi’s fellas—there’s enough of them. Did you know she’d had a fling with Killer?”
“Yeah, she mentioned it.”
“Maybe that boyfriend of hers, Johnny or whatever his name is, found out.”
“No one else you can think of?”
“No, I’ve already told you that Slugger is your man.”
***
Back at the office, Mrs V was too busy meditating to notice my arrival. I couldn’t begin to imagine what a client would think if they arrived at the office, only to find her sitting cross-legged on the desk, humming.
Winky had company.
“Jill, can I introduce you to two of my best friends. This is Augustus.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Jill.” Augustus, a black and white cat, sporting a monocle and a walking stick, took a little bow.
“Hi.”
“And this is Bertram.”
“I’m very pleased to make your acquaintance, Jill.” Bertram, a ginger cat, tipped his boater.
“Likewise.”
“Augustus, Bertram and I were just discussing world affairs,” Winky said.
“Right.”
“Perhaps you’d care to join our discussion, Jill,” Augustus said. “We would value a two-leggeds take on matters.”
“Err, thanks, but I have a lot of work to catch up on.”
“Another time, maybe?”
“Maybe.”
“Before you sit down, Jill,” Winky said. “The three of us are rather hungry. Do you think you could see your way clear to breaking out the salmon?”
Under normal circumstances, I would have told him and his posh pals to do one, but I was still feeling guilty at having forced him onto the streets with my unfounded accusations.
“Sure. No problem.”
“Red not pink.”
“Obviously.”
While Winky and his snooty friends tucked into their salmon, I ran through everything I knew so far about Killer’s murder, which if I’m honest, wasn’t much.
Or should that be: Witch if I’m honest?
The big question was whether the ‘S’ shaped blood print on the tank of Killer’s bike was significant or not. If it was, and Killer had tried to leave a clue to the identity of his murderer, then he hadn’t narrowed the field by much. Slugger and Sid were both candidates by virtue of their names, but then so was Fi because of the tattoo on her wrist.