‘From the outside?’ says Tanya.
‘Yes. The key was still in the lock. Tina opened the door and she. . . she found Mum, lying on the bed. Dead. There was a bottle of pills beside her. Tina called an ambulance, but she said she knew that Mum was already dead.’
‘I’m so sorry,’ says Judy.
‘It was just such a shock,’ says Bethany, taking more deep breaths. ‘I never thought. . . Mum was the last person to. . .’
‘You mentioned a bottle of pills,’ says Judy. ‘Was your mother on any medication?’
‘Not that I know of,’ says Bethany. ‘She didn’t believe in that sort of thing. She was always so well.’ She covers her face with her hands. Judy asks if she can get Bethany a glass of water. Bethany shakes her head.
‘Can we have a quick look round the house?’ says Tanya. ‘While you. . . compose yourself.’
‘The police have sealed off the bedroom,’ says Bethany, dabbing her eyes hard.
‘We’ll just get a sense of the place,’ says Tanya. Judy gives her a look but Bethany says that’s fine.
It’s a small house, just kitchen, sitting room, two bedrooms and a bathroom. The bigger bedroom, where Avril was found, has police tape across the door but they can see a double bed and mirrored wardrobes. This window, too, has a view of the sea, framed by blue velvet curtains. The small bedroom obviously doubles as an office and contains a computer and printer as well as a sewing machine which looks well-used and an exercise bike which doesn’t, as though the wrapping had just been removed. The bathroom has navy blue tiles and a walk-in shower. Everything looks very neat and clean. Clearly Tina the cleaner does a good job. Tanya is tempted to stand on the high-tech scales to check that she is still at the perfect BMI. She says as much to Judy but is greeted by a blank look. The kitchen is galley style, with white units and the same navy tiles. There are pots of herbs on the window sill and magnets on the fridge. A calendar shows the Beauties of Norfolk with many appointments scribbled in for February. Again, it feels like a place where someone has been busy and happy.
Bethany doesn’t have much more to tell them. She has no idea how the bedroom came to be locked from the outside. She doesn’t know if anyone else, apart from Tina, had a key to the house but she thinks it’s unlikely. They take Tina’s address and the names of Avril’s closest friends, her next-door neighbour, Jean, and Maggie from the church.
‘There was also a man called Hugh that she used to see at the library,’ says Bethany. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t have an address for him.’
‘We’ll ask at the library,’ says Judy. ‘Thank you. We’ll leave you in peace now, but we’ll stay in touch, keep you updated on any developments. And, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call me. You’ve got my card.’
‘Thank you,’ says Bethany. ‘You’ve been very kind.’
They decide to call on Jean first. The house next door is bigger than Avril’s but, Tanya notes, it doesn’t have the veranda.
‘I can’t believe it,’ says Jean. ‘Avril, of all people.’
‘Were you close?’ asks Judy.
‘As close as neighbours can be,’ says Jean, gesturing towards the garden wall as demonstrating the physical distance between the houses. In fact, by Tanya’s standards, the houses are quite far apart, set within large gardens. It’s not like the suburban street where Tanya grew up, where she could lean out of the window of her semi-detached house and pass notes to her friend Rachel– in retrospect, her first crush.
‘How long did you know Avril?’ asks Judy.
‘Ever since she moved here,’ says Jean. ‘It must be five years ago now. I’ve been here almost thirty years. I knew the previous couple well too. This is a friendly area.’ Jean is probably older than Avril, thinks Tanya, but what her mother would call ‘well preserved’, with tanned skin and short white hair.
‘How did Avril seem when you last saw her?’ asks Tanya.
‘Fine,’ says Jean. ‘We talked about the weather. You know, like you do.’
It doesn’t sound to Tanya as if the two women had a very close friendship. She asks if Jean saw anything unusual yesterday morning.
‘Unusual?’ says Jean, bridling slightly. ‘What do you mean, unusual?’
‘Just anything out of the ordinary,’ says Judy, with a quick glance at Tanya. ‘Any callers. Anything unexpected.’
‘I just saw the cleaning lady going in at about eleven,’ says Jean. ‘But I don’t spend all day looking out of my window. The first thing I knew was when the ambulance arrived. I went next door then to see if I could help but Tina said that Avril had. . . well, passed.’
‘Passed’ is Tanya’s least favourite euphemism for death. It seems far too casual somehow.
‘Do you know Tina Prentice, the cleaner?’ asks Tanya.
‘Everyone knows Tina,’ said Jean. ‘She was devoted to Avril.’
Chapter 10
