by Adele Abbott
“Craig Beele?” I said, in my best police officer voice.
“What do you want?”
“As Jack Maxwell is on gardening leave, I’ve been assigned to your case.”
“My case? There is no case. It’s been closed. You’d better go back and check your records.”
“No need. This case is very much alive, and I have a few questions I’d like to ask you.”
“There’s obviously been a mistake. I was told officially that all investigations into myself and the casino have now ended.”
“Told officially by who?”
His face flushed red with anger. “I don’t have to answer your questions.”
“Who told you the case was closed?” I pressed.
“I’m not talking to you or any other police officer unless my solicitor is present.”
“In that case, I must ask you and your solicitor to report to the station later today. Ask for D.I. Lane.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“I’ll expect you later.”
He mumbled something under his breath, and then gestured for the security man to escort me out. Once outside, I quickly made my way around the back of the casino. I’d mapped out the building in my mind, so it was relatively easy to position myself directly outside Beele’s office.
It didn’t surprise me to discover that he was already on the phone, and courtesy of the ‘listen’ spell, I was able to hear every word he said.
“What’s going on?” he yelled down the phone. “I thought you’d sorted this out?”
I could hear his footsteps as he paced back and forth across the room.
“You can’t have, can you? I just had a visit from some stuck-up little cow of a copper.”
Stuck-up little cow? What a charmer.
“Just now. I can’t remember—D.I. Pain or Lane or something.”
Something crashed against the wall. He was throwing things about now. Perhaps I’d upset him?
“You’d better get your backside down here, and sharpish. I’m paying you enough. I don’t expect to have to do your work for you. I don’t care! Get over here now!”
With that, Beele ended the call. That had been exactly the response I’d hoped for.
The pillars of the building opposite provided ample cover while I waited. Fifteen minutes later, a car pulled up outside the casino.
Yes! Just as I’d expected.
I made myself invisible, and followed the man into the casino. He made a beeline for Beele’s office. Once there, I switched on the digital recorder which was in my pocket.
***
“Jill? I wasn’t expecting to see you.” I’d turned up at Jack’s flat unannounced.
“Nice joggers, Jack.” I couldn’t hide my grin.
Blaze would have approved of Maxwell’s luminous green jogging bottoms.
“They were a present from my auntie.”
“Doesn’t she like you?”
“Did you come here just to insult my clothes or was there another reason?”
“If you ask me in, I might tell you.”
“Sorry.” He stepped aside. “Come in. Do you want a drink?”
“Not right now. I need to talk to you about your suspension.”
His demeanour changed immediately. “I’ve told you already. I don’t want you getting involved. Internal Affairs will—”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. Internal Affairs will sort it out.”
“I mean it, Jill. Keep out of it.”
“Whoops! Too late, I’m afraid.”
“What have you done now?”
“Sit down, and I’ll tell you.”
“I don’t want to sit down. I want to know what you’ve been up to.”
“Sit down, please.”
“I’m okay standing.”
“You are the most exasperating man!”
“Coming from you, that’s pretty rich. Now, will you tell me what you’ve done?”
“Listen to this.”
I took the digital recorder out of my pocket and pressed ‘play’.
“What’s going on?”
“That’s Craig Beele.” Maxwell stared at the recorder.
“What did you say her name was?”
“That’s Tom. What is this, Jill?”
“Just listen. I’ll answer your questions afterwards.
“I told you. She said her name was D.I. Pain or Lane.”
“We don’t have a D.I. Pain or Lane.”
“Well, I didn’t dream her up. She was standing right where you are less than thirty minutes ago.”
“What did she say?”
“That she wanted to ask me questions about my case. My case! You told me that it had been closed.”
“It has. I closed it as soon as I got Maxwell thrown off the job.”
“Well, it looks like someone has re-opened it.”
“That’s impossible. I’d know.”
“What are you going to do about it? She wants me down at the station later today with my solicitor.”
“Don’t do anything. Not until I find out what’s going on.”
“You’d better do that, and fast. I didn’t pay you all that money to have to deal with this.”
“I’ll get it sorted.”
“Phone me when you have.”
“I can’t believe it.” Maxwell said. “Tom? Why would he do this to me?”
“He’s screwed you over right and proper. I don’t need two guesses who planted the cash in your car.”
“He and I are meant to be friends.”
“You know what they say. With friends like him—”
“How did you get this?”
“I have my methods.”
“I told you to stay out of it.” He pulled me close. “Thanks for ignoring me.” Then he planted a kiss on my lips. I was so shocked that I hardly had time to respond before he’d pulled away.
“I have to go,” he said.
“Where?”
“It’s time I had a few words with Internal Affairs.” He grabbed the digital recorder. “And with Tom Hawk.”
“One word of advice, if I may?” I shouted after him.
“What’s that?”
“Change out of those joggers first.”
***
With a bit of luck, Jack would be back at his desk soon. That was one less thing for me to worry about. But he hadn’t been the only man playing on my mind.
Ever since I’d bumped into my father at the Fleur Hotel, I hadn’t been able to get him out of my head. Before that day, it had been quite easy for me to push him to the back of my mind; he hadn’t seemed real. But now I’d actually met him, it was much more difficult. In the end, I succumbed to what was probably no more than curiosity, and called the number on the card that he’d given me. He sounded both surprised and pleased to hear from me. We arranged to meet in the late afternoon of the following day in a small coffee shop called Caffeine Cellar.
***
The No Fangs meeting was being held in a disused chapel, in a seedy area of Washbridge. Declan met me at the door, and said he’d informed the other members of the group that I’d be attending the meeting. No-one had any objections provided I was there merely to observe, and didn’t try to participate. I readily agreed.
“It’s all very informal.” He led me through to what was obviously the main room. It was very cold inside, and quite dark too. There were eight or nine vampires, a mix of men and women, sitting in a circle. As I walked in, I could feel their eyes on me.
“Take a seat over there, Jill.”
After I joined them in the circle, Declan took his seat. “Okay everyone, before we start today’s meeting, this is Jill Gooder who I told you about earlier.”
They all glanced at me, and for some reason, I suddenly felt very uneasy.
“We don’t get many other kinds of sups in here, but Jill asked if she could check out what we do, and report back to a vampire friend of hers who’s having the usual struggles. So please make her welcome.”
A couple of them said ‘hi’, and smiled at me. As they did, I could see their fangs. That was quite unusual; vampires usually managed to hide their fangs in public. I was feeling more and more uncomfortable.
“Okay. Let’s kick things off,” Declan said. “Marcia, how have things been with you this week?”
“Not so good really, Declan. I was doing okay, but then I had to take the bus because my car was being serviced. I sat next to this young human. It was terrible. His blood—I could almost taste it! All I could think of was sinking my fangs into his neck.”
“It’s okay, Marcia, we’ve all been there. Hopefully, you managed to resist?”
“I did, Declan. I had a bottle of synthetic in my pocket, so I took a quick drink of that. He probably thought it was blackcurrant juice. I got off the bus a couple of stops early; the walk helped to clear my head.”
“You did very well, Marcia. Didn’t she, everyone?”
They all nodded and smiled in approval, but then all eyes were back on me again. And now everyone’s fangs were showing. What was going on? I’d assumed they were only interested in human blood, but I had a horrible feeling that they no longer saw me as an observer, more as a meal.
“Okay, Declan, thanks for letting me sit in.” I stood up. “I think I’ve seen enough.”
“But we’ve only just started.”
“Yeah, no, it’s fine. It seems like you’re doing an excellent job. I’ll be happy to recommend that my friend attends. Can she come next week?”
“Yes, of course. Tell her to pop in.”
“Okay.” I began to back slowly towards the door. I half expected one of them to break ranks, and chase after me.
Phew! I was glad to get out of there. I’d never had the slightest concern about vampires before, but then I’d never been alone in a room full of them.
I called Dorothy.
“About your little problem.”
“Did you come up with anything?” I could hear the hope in her voice.
“Yeah. There’s a group which meets once a week in Washbridge called No Fangs.”
“Seriously?”
“Terrible name, I know. It’s for vampires like you who are struggling to resist the temptation of human blood.”
“And do you think it will help?”
“I think so. My cousin’s fiancé says it helped several of his friends.”
“I don’t suppose you’d come with me for my first visit, would you?”
“Sorry. I don’t think that would be a good idea. You’ll be okay though. I’ll text you the address. The next meeting is a week today. Just ask for Declan.”
“Okay, Jill. That’s another one I owe you.”
Chapter 21
I’d overslept, but so what? I could go in late if I wanted. I was eating cornflakes when the phone rang. It was Kathy.
“Jill, have you seen The Bugle?”
“No. I’m still at the flat. I overslept. Why?”
“They’ve run an article on Ever.”
Dougal Bugle had told me that he planned to run an exposé on Ever A Wool Moment. Things were difficult enough with the new competition from Best Wool. The last thing Grandma needed was more bad news.
“Oh dear. Is Grandma up in arms about it?”
“No. Quite the opposite. She’s really quite pleased.”
“Very funny.”
“I’m serious. She thinks it’s great.”
“How come?”
“Hold on—she’s calling me. Got to dash, sorry. Buy a copy, and take a look for yourself.”
“Kathy?” She was gone.
I was intrigued, so I threw on some clothes, and popped over the road to the newsagent. Jasper James was wearing a yellow fedora, and was engrossed in a magazine.
I coughed to get his attention.
“Sorry, Jill. I didn’t notice you there.”
“What’s that you’re reading?”
“Fedora Weekly.”
I should have known.
He checked his watch. “You’re usually in earlier than this. Are you on holiday?”
“No. Just running a little late—I overslept.”
“I have just the magazine for you: ‘Alarm Clock Enthusiast’.”
I smiled. Everyone’s a comedian.
Then, to my amazement, he produced said magazine from the shelf.
“See. Everything you could ever want to know about alarm clocks. Would you like a copy?”
Back at my flat, I laid The Bugle on the kitchen table. There was nothing about Ever on the front page; that was a relief. Perhaps Grandma had somehow persuaded Dougal to bury the article in the inside pages. I flicked through, page after page, but there was no sign of it. Then, I realised that the centre pages were actually a pull-out feature.
What? Unbelievable!
The whole pull-out was dedicated to Ever A Wool Moment. It covered: Everlasting Wool, One-Size Knitting Needles and Ever membership. There was even a write-up on the tea room, complete with photographs. The article was very upbeat with glowing reports on all aspects of the business. The whole thing was as good as a giant advert for Ever A Wool Moment.
What had happened to the article Dougal had told me he intended to print? Grandma must have used magic; nothing else could account for such a complete turnaround. Somehow, she’d once again come out smelling of roses.
***
Madeline dropped by at lunch time; she was dressed in her librarian outfit. It was almost like knowing two different people—the contrast between her two personas: Madeline and Mad, was so pronounced.
“Hey, Mad. How goes the librarian life?”
“Boring as ever. Are you sure you don’t need someone to work with you? I could see myself as a private investigator.”
“I can barely find enough work to keep myself afloat, I’m afraid. Besides, your dress sense is hardly suited to the P.I. life.”
“You mean this outfit?”
“No. I meant your after work gear. It can be a bit outrageous.”
“Only a bit? I must be mellowing.” She grinned.
“So, to what do I owe this pleasure?”
“It’s a bit awkward, really. I’ve been approached by your grandmother.”
“What did she want?”
“She asked if I’d like to open a franchise of Ever A Wool Moment in Ghost Town.”
“Do ghosts knit?”
“Apparently, they do. According to your grandmother, research has shown that per head of population, ghosts knit more than humans.”
“You learn something new every day. Does that apply to sups too? If so, I’m surprised she hasn’t opened a branch in Candlefield.”
“I wondered about that myself, but I didn’t like to ask her.”
“Maybe she feels it would undermine her credibility as a witch? Grandma is one of the most powerful witches in Candlefield. Opening a wool shop might detract from that image. How do you feel about taking on the franchise? You’re always saying that you’re bored with being a librarian.”
“It’s a non-starter. If I was to take her up on her offer, I’d have to quit my job as a Ghost Hunter. If nothing else, ghost hunting is a secure, well-paid job, so it would be a big risk for me to give it up. And anyway, can you see me working in a wool shop?”
“No, but then I couldn’t see you working in a library either.”
“I’d be useless. I know about as much about wool as you do.”
“You’d be surprised how much I know about wool these days. What with Mrs V and Grandma, I’m becoming quite the expert.”
“I’m a bit worried about how your grandmother’s going to take it when I say no. I get the impression she’s not used to people saying no to her.”
“You’re right there. Look, if you like, I’ll tell her that you don’t want to do it.”
“You will?”
“Yeah, why not? I mean, she’s already got it in for me.”
***
I arrived ten minutes ahead of time for my meeting
with my father. I ordered a latte, but couldn’t face anything to eat even though they had some delicious looking muffins. I had no appetite; my stomach was churning.
He arrived on the dot, and without even bothering to order a drink, came over and joined me at my table.
“Thanks for seeing me, Jill.”
“I don’t have long. I have to meet someone in fifteen minutes. Just say whatever it is you want to say to me.”
“I’d like to start by explaining why I wasn’t in your life when you were growing up.”
“No explanation necessary. You walked out. Seems pretty straightforward to me.”
“I had no idea Darlene was pregnant when I left.”
“Would it have made a difference if you had known?”
He hesitated. “Probably not. Things had gone very badly for me in a short space of time. I’d made some very bad decisions that had come back to haunt me. I had to put some distance between myself and the ones I loved—to protect them.”
“Oh, I see. So it was a purely unselfish act on your part?”
“No. I would never claim that. It was my selfishness that got me into that situation in the first place, but I left to protect Darlene.”
“Did you ever love my mother?”
He looked surprised by the question. “Of course I did.” He glanced down at the table. “I still do.”
His answer threw me for a moment. “Why come back now?”
“To warn you of the danger you are in. During my exile, I met many people. Some of them good, but a lot of them bad. But none as evil as TDO.”
“What exactly do you know about TDO?”
“Too much.”
“Do you know who he is and where he is?”
“It’ll be safer for you if I don’t answer those questions.”
“Don’t give me that. Either you know him or you don’t.”
“I can’t tell you any more than I already have.”
“Are you TDO?” I challenged him.