“That’s all right.”
“How are you doing? You sound stressed.”
“Oh Mum, you have no idea,” Nova said with a tired laugh.
“Is it pre-wedding nerves?”
“That and the fact I’ve been suspended from work and questioned by the police for assault.”
“What? Nono, what happened?”
“Sandy was attacked in her home the other night.”
“Oh God, is she okay?”
“Yes. But a witness saw someone wearing a red coat like mine near her house at the exact time she was attacked, so I’m the prime suspect.”
“But what does that mean? Do you think someone tried to frame you?”
“I think it’s possible.”
“Why would anyone do that? You’re hardly the kind of person who makes enemies. Unless…you don’t think this has anything to do with Declan, do you?”
“Declan? No, I don’t think so. Phyllis, this lady from my book club, is convinced it’s all connected to the stolen community centermoney I e-mailed you about the other day. She has this theory involving the wife of the man we think stole the money and his dead mother, which is too complicated to even explain. But whatever’s going on, my life has pretty much imploded in the last forty-eight hours.”
“Oh sweetheart, I’m so sorry I’ve not been there for you,” Maddy said quietly. “Has Craig been helpful?”
“Yes, but you know how much he worries. He just wants me to focus on the wedding and not get distracted by everything that’s going on at work.”
“Easy for him to say! This is your job, the career you love and have worked so hard for. If I were you, I’d be fighting to clear my name too.”
“Well, instead of doing that I’m sitting here, making up monogrammed bags of sugared almonds as gifts for the wedding guests tomorrow.”
Maddy laughed and then stopped when she realized Nova wasn’t joking. “Sweetheart, I don’t want to come between you and Craig, but you’re not the kind of person who sits back and does nothing. Remember at school, when that awful teacher tried to get you thrown out of the drama club because she thought you’d stolen some costumes? You took up a one-woman crusade to clear your name and get yourself back into that club.”
“Yeah, but this is a bit more serious than a stolen brocade jacket, Mum. A woman’s been murdered, money’s been stolen, and Sandy’s been attacked. The police are involved, so shouldn’t I just stay out of it?”
“Okay love, if you think that’s best. But just remember what your dad always used to say.”
Nova knew immediately what her mum was referring to. Shecould picture her dad sitting cross-legged on her old bed, reading one of their many favorite stories.You have to get out there and seize life with both hands, Nono, he used to say when he closed the pages and kissed her goodnight.After all, no one writes books about characters who sit around waiting for life to happen to them.
Nova glanced at the clock on the wall and took a deep breath.
“All right, Mum. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Phyllis
Phyllis smiled to herself as the car bombed down the A39. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this far from St. Tredock. Her mother hadn’t believed in holidays and so the furthest they’d ever ventured was Weston-super-Mare for a few joyless weekends. When her mother died, Phyllis had considered going on a proper holiday and had even got as far as picking up passport forms from the post office, but something had always stopped her. It was the same thing that had stopped her selling the wretched house and moving out of St. Tredock altogether. Thewhat if?
“We’ll have to stop halfway and let Craddock out for a pee,” she said, but Nova didn’t respond. The girl hadn’t said a word since she’d almost run over Phyllis half an hour ago. Even when she’d stopped the car, all she’d done was open the passenger door and indicate for Phyllis to get in. They’d driven in silence ever since, Nova hunched over the steering wheel as if she were Michael Schumacher in the Grand Prix. Still, Phyllis didn’t mind; she was on her way to find Michael Watkins and finally get to the bottom of the case.
She glanced out the window and saw a signpost for Bodmin Moor, and the smile disappeared from her face. This was one detailPhyllis still needed to work out. Why had Michael abandoned his car in the middle of the moor, sixty miles from his final destination? Two possible explanations presented themselves. One—and Phyllis hated to admit this even to herself—was that Arthur had been correct, and Michael had arranged a rendezvous with a mysterious stranger on the moor, at which point he’d abandoned his car and traveled the remaining distance in an alternative vehicle. If that was the case, it would suggest that his whole “disappearance” had been both voluntary and premeditated, and Michael was currently shacked up in the cottage with his lover and ten grand in cash.
The second explanation, and the one Phyllis’s instincts told her was nearer to the truth, was her original theory that Michael’s disappearance was neither premeditated nor voluntary. Cynthia and/or Graham Pierce had finally caught up with Michael on Bodmin Moor, where they forced him out of his vehicle and into theirs. They’d then driven him to Lizard Point, where he was being held hostage while Cynthia no doubt emptied their bank account and eloped with her lover. In which case, Phyllis and Nova’s road trip might be about to turn into a full-blown rescue mission.
A loud ringing noise filled the car and Nova grimaced.
