‘You sell drugs here. I buy acid.’
One of his mates doubled over laughing and parroted her accent. ‘I buy acid. I buy acid. She wants to go on a trip!’
He was unsure what to do, now. All the others were still cracking up. They’d probably arranged the whole thing. It was all a piss-take.
‘Get to fuck,’ he said and sat back down, reaching uncertainly for his phone.
She inched closer. ‘How much is acid?’
He turned to them while jabbing a thumb at her. ‘You got her to do this? You fucking did, didn’t you?’
Their mouths were open, fresh guffaws pouring out.
‘Aceeed!’ Another laughed. ‘Aceeed! Fuck’s sake, that’s funny.’
He sensed the mocking was close to turning on him. ‘Suck my dick, Ting-tong.’ When she didn’t move, he sat up straighter, making his face stern. ‘Do one. Fuck off.’
Pakpao hesitated, looking into the young man’s angry eyes, before stepping back and continuing towards the main shopping area.
When she was outside Asda she extracted her list. Craig didn’t let her carry cash. Instead, she had a card. She didn’t know exactly how it worked. They took it, gave it back and let her walk out, rucksack full. Each receipt had to be handed to Craig for checking on the computer when she returned.
She had, over the years, squirrelled away the occasional stray coin. They were all now in her coat pocket. Eight pounds, forty-five pence. She’d hoped it would be enough for some acid, if the young man had been prepared to sell.
On impulse, she continued along the pedestrian street. A road at the end led to a small playground. She skirted round the seesaws, swings and a group of mothers whose flow of conversation didn’t alter with her passing. On the far side of the play area was another gate and a green footpath sign beyond it. This led her across a field to a steeply wooded slope.
Once among the trees, she stopped, tilted her head back and breathed deeply. Bird song arrowed down from the gently shifting canopy above. She heard the scratch of claws and quickly spotted the head and shoulders of a squirrel as it peeped round a nearby trunk. The animal ducked out of sight and, seconds later, reappeared on a high-up branch.
Something long-buried began to unfurl: the sense of where she used to live. Now she walked with measured, confident steps. Her progress up through the trees was swift. Muscles in her legs that hadn’t been engaged in years started to awake.
She entered a section of woodland where the trees thinned. Signs of coppicing lay around: neat stacks of wood, fresh growth of bracken and saplings. Here, she slowed and began to search the ground. She was looking for thin, spindly stalks capped by delicate grey-blue discs. The type of mushroom her people sometimes ate when they wanted time to bend and their sense of self to dissolve. The type of mushroom the farangs were happy to pay absurd amounts of money for. Back home, the mushrooms thrived in dark, moist soil that was partly shaded from the powerful sun. Here the earth was sandier, grittier; she instinctively knew her search would be futile. Eventually, she sat down on the base of a felled tree.
To her side she could see the woodland stretching away, but only for a short distance before a line of streetlights formed an abrupt border. The drone of traffic carried on the breeze. She thought of where she grew up: endlessly rippling hills, their greens fading to blues then purplish-greys. She thought about sitting motionless at the base of mighty takian trees, waiting to watch gibbons sail silently through their distant branches. She tried to recall the scent from the cassia’s bright pink blossoms. In the sky way above was a solitary plane, and she wondered whether her mother was dying and if she’d ever see her again.
When she left the supermarket the rucksack weighed heavy on her back. Ponderously, she made her way back along the precinct. But, as she reached the corner that led to the benches, she heard voices shouting.
‘Police!’
‘Stay where you are!’
‘Do not move, you little bastard. Smithy, grab him!’
Pounding footsteps grew louder and a second later the young man with the woollen cap tore round the corner.
‘Your lucky day,’ he said.
He flung a plastic bag in her direction as he sprinted past. It skidded to a halt by her foot. He reached the next intersection and had just disappeared from sight when three adult men appeared in pursuit. Each wore a black baseball cap with the word ‘Police’ across the front.
Oblivious to her, the first two ran straight past before starting to slow. The third officer looked left, right and left again before spotting her. ‘Where did he go?’
She nodded at the corner he’d fled round. Without another word, the three of them resumed the chase. She lifted her foot off the plastic bag and picked it up. Inside were several smaller bags. The sight of them brought back memories of the crowded clubs on the Jet Yod Road. Some held pinches of white powder. Some held little clumps of tightly packed green buds. Some held clusters of diamond-shaped pellets, each stamped with a little space rocket logo. Those were the ones she wanted. She slipped the bag into her pocket.
‘Pakpao!’
She unhitched the rucksack then followed the call to his study.
His back was to her as he spoke. ‘What have you been doing?’
‘Shop.’
‘Shop doesn’t take all afternoon.’ He clicked the mouse and the screen’s glow altered. He studied it for a second. ‘The credit card transaction in Asda was at forty-eight minutes past four. You set off for town before one. Where’ve you been?’
‘I walking in wood.’
‘Why?’
‘Why?’
‘Yes, why you walking in wood?’
‘It nice.’
‘Right. A delivery of logs arrives tomorrow afternoon, so all that rubbish in the far shed needs to be cleared.’
‘I do now?’
‘Yes. Start now – do what you can until it gets dark. And I will have to fly to Ireland in the morning.’
At breakfast, he didn’t linger. As soon as he’d finished his coffee, he headed out the back door, briefcase in hand. Washing up, she watched him open the barn that housed his plane. The land he owned extended for a few hundred metres to a low fence. Beyond that, cows grazed. The animals vaguely resembled the water buffalo back home. But the animals before her stood idle for hour after hour. Often, only their jaws moved. They were flabby, and even walking to the farmer’s gate on the far side seemed a challenge for them. She couldn’t imagine them being able to drag a plough across a water-logged paddy field or haul a cart up a steep mountain path.
A throaty roar started up and the white plane rolled out from the barn’s gloomy interior, its propeller blurring the air in front of the cockpit. She could see his head and shoulders, grey earphones clamped to his head as he spoke into a mouthpiece. The plane taxied round to the end of the makeshift runway, paused a moment, then accelerated across the closely cropped grass. The cows watched with dumbfounded faces as it lifted into the air, scaling some invisible slope into the sky. Before it was a speck, their heads had gone back down, lips brushing the grass as if murmuring to it in confusion.
The police car arrived at dusk. She opened the door to them and waited for one to speak. The male officer nodded awkwardly then immediately turned to his female colleague.
‘Mrs Evans? Mrs Pakpao Evans?’ she asked gently.
‘Yes.’
‘May we come in?’
She led them through to the kitchen and asked if they wanted tea. Or perhaps coffee? She lifted the cafetière from beside the sink.
‘We’re fine, thanks,’ the female officer replied. ‘Mrs Evans, your husband activated a flight plan first thing this morning with the aerodrome at Chester. Do you understand?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, still cradling the cafetière. ‘He fly Ireland – for his business.’
‘I see. Mrs Evans, perhaps you’d like to sit? We have some very sad news.’
‘I stand.’
‘OK, well…’ She cl
eared her throat. ‘Your husband didn’t land at the aerodrome outside Dublin, as he’d planned. Recordings show that his flight path altered some thirty miles off the British coast. His route became erratic, before he turned in a southerly direction, away from the Irish coast and out into the Atlantic. I’m afraid Air Traffic Control then lost contact. Search and Rescue can find no trace of any wreckage, Mrs Evans. It appears he crashed somewhere out at sea. I’m so very sorry.’
Pakpao remained silent, her gaze directed at her feet.
From the corner of her eye she saw the officers exchange an uneasy glance.
‘Mrs Evans?’ The female officer said in a quiet voice. ‘Do you understand what I just said?’
She looked up. ‘He is dead.’
‘It … it would appear so. Are you OK?’
The officer searched for a clue in the tiny woman’s face, but her expression was unreadable.
The male officer spoke up now. ‘Is there anyone we can call to come round? Perhaps a family memb…’ He seemed to realise his mistake and came to a stop.
Pakpao breathed in slowly then replaced the cafetière on the draining board. Earlier, she’d washed what remained of the coffee that she’d laced with eight tabs of acid down the sink. She thought of her husband gulping it down. ‘I would like to see my mother.’
‘Your mother?’ the female officer quickly replied, sounding relieved. ‘OK. We can give you a lift; is she somewhere close?’
Pakpao took her purse off a nearby shelf and removed the credit card from inside. ‘Can you show me to do this on computer? To see my mother, I must fly.’
Accounting for Murder
Christine Poulson
Item # 1
‘Say it with Cake’
Speciality Cakes for all Occasions
1 Market Square, Silverbridge
Prop. Magdalene Dyer
Iced Victoria sponge with inscription:
‘To my darling wife Laura on our 20th’
To be collected by Mr Jolyon Sleep 6 pm 25 June.
£25 to be paid
Item # 2
The George and Vulture
2–6 Market Square, Silverbridge
Visa: xxxx xxxx xxxx 0307
Sale: 2 x 1 gin and tonic
1 bottle Chardonnay
Amount: £28.16
19:24 25/6/2012
Item # 3
Blooming Lovely
17 Market Square
Framley
27 June 2012
12 red roses to be delivered to Miss Magdalene Dyer at 1 Market Square, Silverbridge
Message: ‘Enjoyed our drink. Lunch tomorrow? J’
£30
Paid in cash
Item # 4
Veronica’s Secret: Bras, Lingerie and Nightwear
Veronicassecret.com
Welcome to your account, Magdalene:
Shopping Basket
Plunge push-up bra £89
Waist cincher £78
V-string panty £62
Total: £229
Item # 5
The Dragon of Wantly
Gastro pub,
Barchester
Lamb shank £16.50
Salmon en croute £14.50
Eton Mess £6.00
Local Cheeses and biscuits £6.00
½ Bottle of Pouilly-Fumé £11.00
½ Bottle of Merlot £12.00
2 x espresso £4.00
Subtotal: £70.00
Service at 15% £10.50
Total: £80.50
Date: 28/06/2012 Time: 14:16
Item # 6
The Beeches Motel,
Boxall Hill
27 June 2012
For 1 double room,
Received from Mr Smith:
£70 paid in cash
Date: 28/06/2012 Time: 17:02
Item # 7
CARPHONE WAREHOUSE
Annesgrove
Pay As You Go Nokia 225 x 2
£29.99 paid in cash
Date: 29/06/2012 Time: 15:26
Item # 8
CROWN SPA HOTEL
THE ESPLANADE
TORQUAY
11 July 2012
FOR 1 SUITE, £201
ROOM SERVICE:
BOLLINGER SPECIAL CUVÉE: £65.00
SMOKED SALMON SANDWICHES: £12.95
RECEIVED FROM MR SMITH: £278.95
PAID IN CASH
Item # 9
Hello, Jolyon, we thought you would like to know that we have dispatched your item(s). Your order is on its way and can no longer be changed.
Your estimated delivery date is: 13 July – 14 July.
Your order was sent to:
Magdalene Dyer
Flat 1b,
Cosby Lodge,
33 Courcy Road,
Silverbridge
Delivery Information: Jean Patou Joy Eau de Parfum Spray 75 ml: £110
Item # 10
The Riverside Hotel
London W1
Romance Package: £550 (inclusive of VAT) based upon two people sharing, including: One night’s sumptuous accommodation in an Edwardian inspired guest room; Flowers, fresh fruit and a bottle of Champagne in your room on arrival;
Rose petals on turndown;
English breakfast.
Item # 11
Mssrs. Harter and Benjamin
Old Bond Street
London
19 July 2012
White Gold Watch: 18ct white gold and diamonds
- 0.18ct of round, brilliant-cut diamonds
- White mother of pearl dial
- Alligator strap with pin buckle
In 18ct white gold
£9,950
To be engraved: ‘M mon amour J’
Item # 12
London St Pancras Int’l to Paris Gare Du Nord
Eurostar
Departs 09:17 on Tues, 07 Aug
Arrives 12:47 on Tues, 07 Aug
Business Premier
2 x adults (£245.00)
£490.00
Paris Gare Du Nord to London St Pancras Int’l
Eurostar
Departs 16:13 on Wed, 08 Aug
Arrives 17:39 on Wed, 08 Aug
Business Premier
2 x adults (£245.00)
£490.00
Total:
£980.00
Item # 13
Le Bristol Paris
112 rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré | 8th Arr., 75008 Paris, France
8 August 2012
Suite de luxe: €990
Dom Perignon Rosé: €109
Total: €1099
Item #14
James Scuttle Motor Company Ltd
Established 1977
27–39 West Street
Exeter
17 August
Vehicle Sales Invoice:
Mr Jolyon Sleep
Ullathorne House
Barchester
Vehicle Vehicle Porsche 911 Cabriolet
Colour Red
New/Used New
Invoice total: £80,169 incl. VAT
Deliver to:
Magdalene Dyer
Flat 1b
Cosby Lodge,
33 Courcy Road,
Silverbridge
Item # 15
www.credit-edelweiss.com/uk/en/private-banking.html
Discover how we can help you. Based in Zurich we have the expertise and experience to deal with all your banking needs.
Get in touch to arrange a meeting, speak to an Account Manager or request a login to access our Investment Research through My Credit Edelweiss.
Please note: the minimum investment for clients of
Credit Edelweiss is £1 million.
Numbered accounts available.
Item # 16
Littlebitofeden.com
Idyllic Ocean View Home. Sales Price: US$599,000
Ready for a new lifestyle? Welcome to Paradise! This 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom house has easy access to the beachside town of Santa
Teresa, a luxurious pool measuring over 550 sq. ft., large, open living spaces, and a manicured lawn. Built-in A/C makes sure even the hottest Costa Rican days are cool and comfortable. It’s a bargain you really won’t want to miss!
Good connections from local airport to San José International Airport.
Item # 17
Barsetshire Bank
Crabtree Parva,
Barsetshire
29 August 2012
Dear Mr and Mrs Sleep,
We are writing to inform you that your joint current account is overdrawn by £213.86. This deficit cannot be made good from your other accounts, which we have closed as per your instructions. We would be grateful if you would remedy this situation at your earliest convenience.
Yours sincerely,
Matthew Todd, Branch Manager
Item # 18
Harry’s Hardware
Scarington
Barsetshire
For All Your DIY Needs!
We’re Here To Help!
Thick bleach 5 litre
Qty: 2: £16.58
Polythene Sheeting Black 4m x 25m 500g
Qty: 1 Roll: £25
Black gaffer tape 50mm by 50m
Qty: 1 Roll: £2.30
Total: £43.88
Date: 30/8/2012 Time: 09.34
Item # 19
White Goods Warehouse
Greshamsbury Retail Park
Barsetshire
30/8/2012
Chest Freezer, capacity: 250 litres
Energy rating: A+
Width: 111 cm
Suitable for outbuildings
One-year manufacturer’s warranty
£229 paid in cash
Date: 30:8:2012 Time: 14:21
Item # 20
Self-Storage Units
Mystery Tour Page 6