“Good. I would feel awkward staying here with Emma around as well.”
Eve shook her head. David was a strange man. He was worried about her being attacked by the murderer and yet he was willing to leave her alone. How could one man be so contrary? However, Eve was pleased that he hadn’t changed his mind about staying. Having time on her own would give her more opportunity to search for Lucy’s killer.
“How much time will we have together in the next few weeks then?” she asked.
Eve tried to sound resigned to the fact that he was going home, not wanting him to change his mind about staying under any circumstances. It would interfere with her plans too much.
“Oh, we’ll still spend lots of time together, darling. Of course we will. I’m not going to hide you from Emma. I said we’d take her out and about on some of the days, and of course we’ll have the evenings alone. I just don’t think we should be living together.”
Eve suddenly felt annoyed again and shook her head.
He really can be a prude sometimes.
“Well, you’d better get packed and on your way home then,” she said abruptly.
David moved towards her and started kissing her neck
“What, no breakfast then?” he whispered.
Eve’s neck was always ticklish so she couldn’t help but start laughing.
“Alright, what do you want?” she asked, giggling.
“Bacon, eggs and mushrooms’, please. “And toast. I’m starving.”
“Okay, seeing as it’s your last breakfast with me for a while.”
However, she became quiet as she cooked breakfast and David knew there was something wrong. She hadn’t been acting like herself at all since she had found Lucy Fowler’s body and he didn’t think it was just the shock.
“You’re not telling me something, are you, darling?” David asked.
The words made Eve jump.
“What do you mean?” she replied, feeling very nervous.
“You’re keeping something from me and I think I know what it is.”
Eve looked at him and started to shake.
He knows, doesn’t he? she thought. He knows that I’ve decided to go behind his back and hunt the murderer down. That’s it, isn’t it?
Eve was almost in tears, but she didn’t want to let David see her cry. She had rarely let him see her break down; always liking to appear strong, even with the man she loved. Eve had only let her guard down once or twice with him and although she had let David see more of her inner self than anyone had been allowed before, she always stopped short at baring her soul.
When Eve didn’t say anything, David continued.
“You were going to tell me that you’d decided to search for the killer after all, despite the fact that you said you wouldn’t, but you were having trouble finding the right words, weren’t you? That’s why you’ve been snappy, isn’t it? You’re disappointed in yourself, aren’t you, darling?”
Eve breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t discovered the complete truth after all, but then she had an awful thought.
I could agree with him, but I’ll still have it on my conscience. I’ll always know that I was going to lie to him.
Eve turned round, leaving David’s bacon cooking on a low heat, and looked at him.
No, I couldn’t bear to lose him, but I don’t think I can live without telling him that I intended to lie......no, it wasn’t really lying, it would have been keeping the truth from him.
Knowing that this was probably the bravest thing she had ever done, Eve looked David in the eye and spoke.
“No, David, I was going to hunt for the murderer, but to save worrying you, I wasn’t going to tell you. I’m sorry, so sorry.”
David stared at her. He didn’t know what to say. This was worse, much worse than what he had thought, but why had she finally told him? Why hadn’t she just agreed with him? It would have been so much easier. This wasn’t the Eve Masters that had first come to Crete; the Eve who wouldn’t have cared who she lied to. Was she feeling so guilty that she had to tell him?
Still, can I forgive her for even thinking about going behind my back?
“You hate me, don’t you, David?” Eve asked sadly, trying to stop a tear from falling.
“No of course I don’t hate you, Eve. I still love you. I’m just disappointed.”
“That’s worse,” she sobbed, now not caring that she was showing her vulnerability.
Unfortunately, David didn’t feel able to hug her at the moment.
“Eve, please don’t cry,” he said. “You can be your own worst enemy at times. I would have been happier if you had been honest and said you were going to hunt for the murderer whatever I said, rather than lie about it.”
“But you left me when I was hunting for Jennifer’s killer.”
“You were acting rather foolishly at that particular time, and by the way, I didn’t leave you. I went home to think about us. I came back the following day.”
Eve had stopped crying and took out a tissue to wipe away her tears, wishing she hadn’t started crying. What was she to do now? She didn’t want to beg David to stay. He’d have to make up his own mind. Perhaps she shouldn’t have told him the truth, but she knew that their relationship wouldn’t last if it was built on lies.
“Why did you tell me Eve? I must admit I’m surprised you did.”
“I was feeling guilty,” Eve muttered quietly. “This is something I want to do, but it didn’t feel right lying to you.”
David almost smiled. Eve was slowly learning how to be in a proper relationship. It had taken her almost a year to get to this point, but it was progress and David knew he had to forgive her now. This was a big step for Eve. He moved towards her and gently stroked her cheek.
“I don’t want you to search for the killer, you know that, but I can’t stop you and I’d much rather you had told me straight away. However, you did admit the truth when I gave you a great opportunity not to. If you’re going ahead, I want you to promise me one thing, Eve.”
She nodded vigorously; relieved that he hadn’t said their relationship was all over.
“I want to know if you’re planning to do something that’s risky,” David continued. “I’m here to help you if things take a turn for the worse. I don’t want to lose you, darling.”
Eve flung her arms around David.
“Oh thank you, David. I was so scared of you leaving me, but I had to tell you. I love you so much,” she whispered in his ear before kissing him. David took her hand and led her back upstairs while the bacon slowly burnt to a cinder on the stove.
* * * *
An hour and a half later, David was packed and ready to go home. Eve, meanwhile, was scraping bits of burnt bacon off her pan before deciding to throw the whole lot, saucepan included, into the bin.
David grinned. Eve never had any stamina for housework, but then she could easily afford to buy another saucepan, so why bother?
All of a sudden, David’s expression changed and he wished he was staying with Eve after all.
“I’m going to miss you,” he said, stroking her neck.
“We’re going to see each other later for dinner,” Eve replied, now not minding at all that he was going home.
She would have the rest of the day to think about Lucy’s murder and she was looking forward to getting her brain cells working.
“I know, but it won’t be the same,” David replied.
Eve nearly told him it was his fault that they wouldn’t be staying together, but then she decided to leave it. There was no point going over the same ground again. She had asked him time and time again not to go home and he had refused. Mind you, now she had changed her mind and didn’t want him to stay. She was a little worried that if she said anything, he might have a change of heart and move both himself and Emma in. How on earth would she be able to solve the murder then?
Instead, Eve led David to the door and gave him a long slow kiss.
“You’d better get going.
You don’t want to be late picking Emma up from the airport.”
David sighed, wondering if perhaps he was being foolish going back to his own house, but then it wouldn’t be the same staying with Eve if Emma was around. Yes, this was all for the best.
“We’ll pick you up at about eight then,” was all he said.
“Okay, darling. Now, go.”
As David reluctantly left, Eve sighed with relief. Now that she was alone, she could concentrate on solving Lucy’s murder, because solving it was exactly what she was going to do!
Chapter 6
A few hours earlier, just after bumping into Eve, Paul turned up at his brother’s house. Despite it being very early, Kevin was already awake. He was sitting outside on the terrace nursing a mug of black coffee. Paul thought he looked drained.
“Kevin, how are you doing, mate?” he asked, trying to sound upbeat.
Although Kevin had stopped caring about Lucy months ago, he thought that the police would probably consider him to be the number one suspect and he was worried sick.
“Honestly, I haven’t slept a lot, Paul. I kept going through everything in my head. I know the police are going to think that I killed Lucy, but I didn’t; I swear.”
“I believe you, mate. At least there’ll be one other suspect; Lucy’s lover, whoever that might be.”
“Yes, but that’s the problem. I’m not certain who it is. The police will probably think I’m making it up to take the blame away from myself.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.......Anyway, you did say you’d narrowed it down to a couple of people. Don’t keep me in suspense any longer.”
Paul was dying to find out who Kevin thought it was.
“Well, there’s Don Jones for a start.”
“Don!” Paul exclaimed. “I can’t imagine him having an affair. He’s such a quiet chap and a gentleman to boot. On top of everything, Betty would kill him!”
“I know, but he and Lucy became good friends at the drama group. She told me that he listened to her. They even went out for coffee together now and again. Imagine that, she didn’t even bother to hide it from me. I don’t think it would have taken much for their relationship to go a step further. I mean, Betty is pretty obnoxious and doesn’t seem to treat Don well at all. I can just see them being thrown together after moaning about their respective spouses, can’t you?”
“When you put it like that, it does sound possible,” Paul agreed.
“Then there’s Ken from The Black Cat,” Kevin continued. “Lucy spent a hell of a lot of time talking to him at the bar, especially when Jan wasn’t there. You said the same thing yourself a few weeks ago. And she always wanted to go up and order the drinks.”
“Yes, but I only thought she was flirting to make you jealous. I’ve always thought of Ken and Jan as a solid couple. I’ve often seen them having a cuddle behind the bar......Anyway, why do you think either of them, or whoever Lucy was seeing, would have wanted to kill her?”
“I don’t know,” Kevin replied. “It could have been anything. Perhaps Lucy dumped whoever it was and he got angry. Or maybe he ended their relationship, but she kept pursuing him and he thought the only way to get rid of her was by killing her. I’m not certain if I can see Don committing murder though. He’s so mild mannered, and besides is he strong enough to strangle anyone? Ken is the more powerful of the two and he’s younger.”
“I suppose you’re right about that, but out of the two men, I reckon Don’s the more likely to have had the affair.”
Kevin was relieved that his brother was coming round to the idea that Lucy both had an affair and that someone else had a motive to kill her.
“I wonder what another man would have seen in Lucy,” Paul mused.
“I know you didn’t like her, Paul, but she could be charming when she wanted. She always used to be in the old days, and she even looked quite pretty when she put on her make-up. It’s a pity, but she hadn’t bothered dolling herself up for years.”
“Except when she went to the drama group.”
“What?” Kevin asked, sounding surprised.
Kevin had planned to join the drama group as well, but he had decided that a break from Lucy a few evenings a week was far preferable, considering the state of their relationship.
“Lucy always came beautifully made-up to the rehearsals, Kevin.”
“I’ll be damned. She must have put it on in the car and then took it off before she got back. She looked the same as ever when she left home. God, what a calculating little bitch.”
Paul had a feeling that underneath everything and despite their continual arguing, Kevin still held a bit of affection for that awful woman. He had no idea why. He had told Kevin to leave Lucy time and time again, but he hadn’t and Paul couldn’t work out what the reason was. They weren’t happy, but neither wanted to make the first move to change their circumstances.
“I think you need to tell the police,” Paul said instead. “About the lover that is.”
“I’ve been thinking about that, but I am a bit worried. I’ll have to tell them who I suspect and what if they arrest the wrong person? Say they take Don into custody and he didn’t kill Lucy. He could go to jail for something he didn’t do. I would hate to be the one to destroy his life for no good reason.”
“I’m certain the police will find out the truth,” Paul replied. “They’re not going to throw anyone in jail unless they’re one hundred percent certain it’s the right person.”
“Then there’s Betty,” Kevin added. “If she finds out that Don’s been accused of both having an affair and murdering Lucy, their relationship could be over. Even if he’s proved innocent there may be too many harsh words said between them, making it impossible for them to reconcile.”
“We might be doing Don a favor then. Betty treats him terribly.”
“Still, he could actually love her, Paul. You don’t know what goes on behind closed doors. She could have a heart of gold underneath all that bitterness.”
Paul laughed.
“I very much doubt it, but if she still cares for Don and he’s innocent, she’ll forgive him. Anyway, I think the police have to be told everything.”
“You’re right, but I don’t know that much,” Kevin agreed reluctantly. “But I suppose the sooner I do it, the better. Paul, will you stay here in case Justin gets up? I presume he did get some sleep. I didn’t want to disturb him.”
“Of course. You go off to the police station and I’ll sort out breakfast.”
Kevin got up unenthusiastically, dreading having to tell the police about Lucy having an affair. He was very much a proud man and didn’t like appearing a cuckold. It was fine for him to have had a one night stand with Jennifer Anderson the previous year, but how dare Lucy have an affair? Kevin decided there and then that he was going to find out who the man was, and the sooner the better.
* * * *
A few hours later, Detective Chief Inspector Dimitris Kastrinakis could be seen with his head in his hands. His assistant, Stavros, was reluctant to disturb him. There had been a constant flow of English people coming in to see Dimitris and as each person came out of his office; he looked more and more stressed.
The first person to arrive had been Kevin Fowler which had surprised Dimitris as it was very early. He had planned to go to Kevin’s house a little later to collect him to identify his wife’s body.
“Mr. Fowler, I was going to come to your house to speak with you later this morning. I’m afraid there hasn’t been any progress yet in the case of your wife’s murder. You do need to identify her body, but she isn’t here of course.”
Kevin was a little shocked at the officer’s bluntness, but put it down to the fact that he was foreign; completely dismissing the reality which was that he was the foreigner in the country, not Dimitris.
Prior to his visit, Kevin had decided that he would try to be as polite as possible. He didn’t want to antagonize the police, partly because he feared that he was a suspect, and also because he
wanted the police to find the real culprit as soon as possible so that he could get on with his life.
“Actually my son, Justin, wants to identify his mother. I tried to dissuade him, but he’s determined to see her one last time. I have something else to tell you........Oh God.... this is a bit hard for me to put into words....”
Dimitris Kastrinakis was surprised that Kevin Fowler was struggling to say something. Did he have some important information about his wife’s murder?
“Take your time, sir,” Dimitris said. “If this is about the murder, I will have to get another officer in to write this down anyway.”
The inspector was getting a horrible feeling. There had been complications surrounding the previous murders and this obviously wasn’t going to be a straightforward case either.
“It’s about Lucy,” Kevin said and waited a moment while Dimitris called Stavros in.
“I’ll just come out with it then,” Kevin blurted out a few moments later when the other police officer had sat down. “I’m ashamed to say that my wife was having an affair. I’m not certain who with, although I have my suspicions.”
Dimitris raised his eyebrows. This was certainly quite a twist; if it was the truth of course. Kevin could be trying to switch the blame onto someone else. Dimitris found it quite hard to imagine Lucy Fowler having an affair, remembering that she was not exactly a beautiful woman.
“And who do you suspect, sir?” Dimitris asked, his facial expression not changing one bit, despite his doubts.
“Well, I’ve thought long and hard and I could be completely wrong, but the most likely person is Don Jones. He and Lucy were spending a lot of time together. They went to Eve’s drama group and this led to them having coffee out and who knows what else. Things might have gone wrong in their relationship and he could have killed her, or perhaps Betty might have found out and she could have committed the terrible act.”
It suddenly came to Kevin that it could have been Betty, not Don, who had murdered his wife. There was nothing worse that a woman scorned.
Betty isn’t a pleasant person and always seems to be in a bad mood these days, Kevin thought. If she found out that her husband had been having an affair with my wife, she’d probably be as mad as hell and completely lose it. Yes, Betty could easily have been the murderer.
Death in the Aegean Page 8