Aunt Bessie Volunteers

by Diana Xarissa

  Daisy greeted her with a hug. “The inspector said the same as you,” she said through tears. “That Hannah truly could have died of natural causes.”

  “I hope you’ll believe her.”

  “I really hope she’s right. Hannah did have heart trouble, you know. That was one of the reasons why her parents were so protective of her. It was also why she didn’t work very many hours. She got tired very quickly. I think she thought that her long walks were building up her strength, but maybe they were simply wearing her out. I can almost picture her crawling into the tower wall, curling up to go to sleep, and simply never waking up again.”

  “Let’s hope that was exactly what happened,” Bessie said.

  She introduced Mark to Daisy and listened as Daisy told him a shortened version of Hannah’s life story. The foursome then walked slowly around the castle site, talking about the site and the island’s rich history. When they reached the tower where the body had been found, Daisy stared at the police tape that covered the door.

  “You can have a look,” Anna said. She carefully removed the police tape and then unlocked the padlock on the door. Pushing the door open, she switched on a powerful torch.

  Daisy approached slowly. “Where was she?” she asked in a whisper.

  “Along the back wall,” Mark told her. “She truly did look as if she’d simply fallen asleep there.”

  “Why wasn’t the body found sooner?” was Daisy’s next question.

  “I wish I knew,” Mark sighed. “I suspect it was simply a case of no one needing to be in the tower for any reason. There never used to be locks on any of the doors, but at some point, maybe twenty-five years ago, one of my predecessors added them. It’s entirely possible that he or she simply locked everything without even glancing inside the various spaces. I did dig out old records from the site. This tower is listed as being empty, unused, and unsafe, in the records that date from fifty years ago. As such, I can see it simply being locked and left untouched.”

  “Does the castle have ghosts?” Daisy wanted to know.

  “There’s the Moddey Dhoo, of course,” Mark replied. “I don’t know that there are any other ghosts, though.”

  “That’s the black dog, right? Hannah used to see him all the time when she visited the castle at night. She said he was really friendly and used to lie down next to her while she slept.”

  Bessie and Mark exchanged glances. “He isn’t typically thought of as friendly,” Mark said after a minute. “But maybe he doesn’t deserve his reputation.”

  “If Hannah was right, he definitely doesn’t,” Daisy replied. “I hope he was with her when she died. I hate the idea of anyone dying alone.”

  Anna carefully replaced the police tape and then the foursome walked back to the castle entrance.

  “Thank you for opening for me,” Daisy told Mark. “I feel much more at peace now that I’ve seen where Hannah spent her last hours.”

  “I appreciated hearing more about her. I’m sorry that you lost your friend.”

  “It seems odd to feel so sad, after so many years, but I do feel as if I’ve lost a good friend. I suppose I always hoped that one day we’d find one another again.”

  Mark let them out, locking the castle behind them. He gave Bessie a hug before he headed back to his car.

  “Was there anything else you need to ask me?” Daisy asked Anna.

  “No, we’re done. We’ll check everything you said and see if we can’t make a formal decision on the skeleton’s identity. Thank you for your assistance,” Anna said. She nodded at Bessie and then turned and walked briskly towards the car park.

  “Do you have a car here?” Daisy asked Bessie as Anna disappeared from view.

  “I don’t drive,” Bessie replied. “I came by taxi.”

  “What do we do now?” Daisy asked, looking up and down the deserted causeway.

  Bessie pulled out her mobile and rang Dave. “Any chance of a ride from Peel Castle?” she asked.

  “How did you end up at Peel Castle?” he replied. “Never mind, I just dropped someone off not far from there. I’ll be there in five minutes or less.”

  Bessie had Dave take Daisy to her hotel in Douglas first.

  “Thank you for everything,” Daisy said as they went. “I’m going to see if I can get a ferry home tomorrow. Right now, the island has too many sad memories for me to want to see any more of it. I may come back one day, though, once I’ve worked through it all in my head.”

  When Daisy got out of the taxi, Bessie moved up to sit next to Dave.

  “That was the passenger that I took to Peel Castle this morning. I did warn her that the castle was shut in the winter, but she didn’t seem to be listening. How did you happen to find her and end up with her at the castle?” he asked curiously.

  Bessie thought about telling him the whole story. She knew he’d never repeat anything she told him in confidence, but it seemed easier to give him a significantly simplified version of events. They were back at Treoghe Bwaane by the time she finished.

  “Thank you,” Bessie told Dave as she climbed out of the car.

  Inside her cottage, she sank down in a chair and stared out the window at the sea. She was exhausted from all of the walking she’d done, but also emotionally spent from her conversation with Daisy.

  Chapter 15

  Bessie was taking an afternoon stroll a few days later when she saw the car pull into the parking area next to her cottage. She quickened her pace towards home when she saw Anna climb out from behind the wheel.

  “Good afternoon,” she called as she approached.

  “Good afternoon,” Anna replied. “Do you have a minute?”

  “Of course. Do you want to come in and have a cuppa?”

  “Could we sit somewhere out here and talk?” Anna asked. “I could do with some fresh air.”

  “The rock behind my cottage is perfect for that, assuming the tide isn’t in.”

  The tide was going out as they walked behind the cottage. The sand was still damp, but they were able to reach the rock without stepping into water.

  Bessie sat down and, after a moment, Anna carefully climbed onto the rock next to her.

  “I’ve spoken to Daisy again,” Anna said after a minute. “She was able to confirm that Hannah had told her that she’d broken her left arm twice and her right arm once as a child. She also told Daisy that she’d broken her right leg in her teen years. Those injuries match what we found on the skeleton.”

  “So you’re certain it was Hannah?”

  “We’re certain. We’d like to compare the skeleton’s DNA with a relative, but we haven’t found any yet. What we have found are some medical records for her. They confirm what Daisy said about her having a heart condition and her childhood injuries.”

  “So she may have actually died of natural causes?”

  “It’s one possibility, the one I prefer, really, although that’s the human being in me, not the police inspector. Without any evidence of foul play, the chief constable wants to close the case as undetermined.”

  “Are you happy with that?”

  “I get credit for closing the case, so I won’t complain. I’ve spoken to LouLar and John has spoken to Rosemary Quayle, but we’re just going around in circles now. No one knows what actually happened to Hannah Butler.”

  Bessie sighed. “It still feels unfinished.”

  “I think she killed herself,” Anna said quietly. “That’s the police inspector in me talking now. The notes from her doctor also suggest that her father was abusive. Small children don’t generally break their arms, not three times in as many years. The doctor had concerns, but such things weren’t handled in the same way then as they are now.”

  “The poor girl.”

  “Yes, but here’s where it gets even more interesting,” Anna said. “I went back over the reports on the fire at Hannah’s house, the one that killed her parents. It wasn’t an accident.”

  “It wasn’t? What do you mean?”

&n
bsp; “Someone spilled a large amount of petrol in the sitting room and the bedroom where the parents were sleeping. Then that someone lit a match.”

  “You think Hannah caused the fire that killed her parents?”

  “That’s one possibility, certainly. I was going to ask Daisy for her views on the matter, but I didn’t want to upset her. I don’t know that it matters, not after all these years.”

  “Why wasn’t there a police investigation at the time?”

  “It was ongoing when Hannah disappeared. They didn’t have enough evidence to charge her with anything, but I know the investigators thought she’d been behind the blaze.”

  “And they still didn’t charge her?”

  “As I said, there wasn’t any evidence against her. She didn’t drive, and they couldn’t work out how she could have acquired the amount of petrol that was used. When the fire was discovered, she was miles away, walking on the beach. With the amount of accelerants used, she shouldn’t have been able to get that far away before someone raised the alarm.”

  “If she didn’t do it, who did?” Bessie demanded.

  “The investigators were convinced that she’d done it. Their reports of the conversations they had with her after the fire were definitely odd, anyway. They could be read as the ramblings of a guilty woman or the confused thoughts of a woman who’d led a sheltered life up to that point.”

  “She was the latter, certainly.”

  “She was, which means we’ll never know what actually happened.”

  “Did she have any idea who might have started the fire?”

  “She suggested that her father may have done it to kill them all. He was having financial difficulties, so that’s another possibility to add to the mix.”

  “It’s very frustrating, not knowing and not having a way of finding out the truth,” Bessie said.

  “We’ve identified the skeleton from Peel Castle. That’s a major accomplishment and one that no one thought we would manage. I’m happy enough with that for today.”

  “Let’s hope your next case is an easier one,” Bessie said.

  “I’m leaving the island,” Anna told her.

  “I thought you wanted to stay here.”

  “I did want to stay here, more to prove that I don’t run away when things go wrong than for any other reason, but I’ve been offered a position in private security, working for my brother, actually, and the offer is too good to pass up.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m tired of working all hours, day and night, being on call and never knowing what I’m going to have to deal with when I get wherever I’m going. This job comes with regular hours, proper holiday entitlement, and a salary that makes my eyes water when I think about it. I’d be crazy to turn it down, especially now.”

  “When do you go?”

  “In about six weeks. I have things to wrap up here, and my brother will wait for me, however long that takes.”

  “That’s nice.”

  Anna laughed. “We may end up killing one another once we actually have to work together, but for now it all sounds wonderful.”

  “Let’s have lunch one day before you go,” Bessie suggested.

  “I’d like that,” Anna replied. “I’ll ring you.”

  “If you don’t, I’ll ring you.”

  “See that you do.”

  Bessie walked back up the beach with the inspector and then watched as she drove away before she let herself into Treoghe Bwaane. Her phone was ringing.

  “Bessie, John wants us all to have dinner at his house tonight,” Doona said. “I know it’s short notice, but he said it’s about time we had a nice social occasion. Hugh and Grace are bringing Aalish and the kids will both be there.”

  “Is everything okay?”

  “As far as I know, everything is just the same. Sue is still in hospital and Harvey won’t answer when John rings. He won’t talk to the children, either. They spoke to Sue yesterday and she told them that she’s feeling much better.”

  “That’s good news. Did she say anything about coming home?”

  “No, which is probably a good thing. John isn’t looking forward to fighting her for custody. Anyway, I’ll collect you at six. John said that Amy and Thomas are doing all of the cooking, so don’t come too hungry,” she laughed.

  Bessie spent the rest of her afternoon with a good book and then changed into a nice dress for dinner. Doona was right on time, and the drive to John’s house only took a few minutes.

  John lived in a modernised bungalow a few streets away from Doona’s home. She found a parking spot on the street nearby and she and Bessie walked back to the house.

  “Bessie, thank you for coming,” John greeted her with a hug. He gave Doona a very quick embrace, too, before pulling away. “I have to get back to the kitchen to keep an eye on everything. Hugh and Grace are in the sitting room.”

  Grace was pacing back and forth with the baby as they walked into the sitting room.

  “She’s only happy when I’m moving,” Grace said apologetically. She stopped to give Bessie an awkward hug around Aalish. As soon as Grace stopped moving, Aalish began to wail.

  “Give her to me,” Hugh said. “Then you can sit and chat with Bessie and Doona for a short while. You deserve a break.”

  “She’ll fuss for you, too,” Grace warned. “She’s only happy with me right now.”

  “A bit of fussing won’t hurt her,” Hugh said. He took the baby and held her close. “Hush, now, you pest,” he told her affectionately. “Mummy needs a break from all your shouting.”

  The baby seemed to study him for a second. As she opened her mouth to yell, he began to stomp back and forth across the room. The movement seemed to surprise Aalish enough to keep her quiet, at least for a short while.

  John and the children joined them a few minutes later.

  “Everything is ready,” John announced. “We’ve arranged it all like a buffet in the kitchen.”

  The roast chicken and all of the trimmings smelled delicious. Bessie filled her plate and then followed the others into the small dining room. Everything tasted as good as it smelled, except for the roast potatoes. They’d come out rather harder than they should have been. Bessie tried to cut into one and found it was impossible.

  “Sorry about that,” Amy said, flushing. “I think I may have baked them for too long. Last time I did them, they went black, so I knew I’d overcooked them. This time they’ve simply gone rock hard.”

  “Never mind, everything else is delicious,” Bessie assured her.

  They were clearing away dishes, ready for pudding, when the phone rang. John grabbed it and everyone went quiet.

  “Yes?”

  “But that can’t…” he glanced over at Thomas and Amy and then quickly left the room.

  “Let’s get these plates into the kitchen,” Bessie said brightly. “You have a dishwasher, don’t you? I’ve never used one.”

  John joined them in kitchen a few minutes later. Bessie could tell from the look on his face that he’d had bad news. He glanced around and then sighed.

  “At least we’re among friends,” he said softly. “Thomas, Amy, that was the hospital where your mother has been staying. She passed away this morning.”

  Thomas stared at him for a minute and then shook his head. “There’s been a mistake. We talked to her yesterday. She was feeling better.”

  “I’m sorry,” John said.

  Amy burst into tears and threw herself into her father’s arms. Thomas kept shaking his head until Doona pulled him into a hug then he too, began to cry. Aalish had been sleeping. Now she woke up and joined in.

  “What can I do?” Bessie asked John over Amy’s head.

  “I don’t know that there’s anything anyone can do,” he replied sadly.

  Glossary of Terms

  Manx to English

  moghrey mie - good morning

  House Names – Manx to English

  Thie yn Traie - Beach House

  Tr
eoghe Bwaane - Widow’s Cottage

  English to American Terms

  advocate - Manx title for a lawyer (solicitor)

  aye - yes

  bin - garbage can

  biscuits - cookies

  bonnet (car) - hood

  boot (car) - trunk

  car park - parking lot

  chemist - pharmacist

  chips -french fries

  chippy - fish and chips shop

  cuppa - cup of tea (informally)

  dear - expensive

  estate agent - real estate agent (realtor)

  fairy cakes - cupcakes

  fancy dress - costume

  fizzy drink - soda (pop)

  holiday - vacation

  jumper - sweater

  lie in - sleep late

  midday - noon

  pavement - sidewalk

  plait (hair) - braid

  primary school - elementary school

  pudding - dessert

  skeet - gossip

  skirting boards - baseboards

  starters - appetizers

  supply teacher - substitute teacher

  telly - television

  torch - flashlight

  trolley - shopping cart

  windscreen - windshield

  Other Notes

  The emergency number in the UK and the Isle of Man is 999, not 911.

  CID is the Criminal Investigation Department of the Isle of Man Constabulary (Police Force).

  When talking about time, the English say, for example, “half seven” to mean “seven-thirty.”

  With regard to Bessie’s age: UK (and IOM) residents get a free bus pass at the age of 60. Bessie is somewhere between that age and the age at which she will get a birthday card from the Queen. British citizens used to receive telegrams from the ruling monarch on the occasion of their one-hundredth birthday. Cards replaced the telegrams in 1982, but the special greeting is still widely referred to as a telegram.

  When island residents talk about someone being from “across,” they mean that the person is from somewhere in the United Kingdom (across the water).