Witch Is Why Promises Were Broken Read online

  Witch Is Why

  Promises Were Broken

  Published by Implode Publishing Ltd

  © Implode Publishing Ltd 2017

  The right of Adele Abbott to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  All rights reserved, worldwide. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

  The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, dead or alive, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 1

  Sigh! Paperclips—they were the bane of my life.

  It didn’t matter how many times I sorted the paperclip tray, they always seemed to get mixed up again.

  What? Yes, of course I realise that there are bigger problems in the world, but I was between cases, and bored out of my mind. I didn’t even have Winky to distract me because he’d gone out for lunch with Peggy. How come Jack never called around to take me out for lunch? I would have to have words with him.

  Just then, a cat jumped in through the open window. Naturally, I assumed it was Winky, but I soon realised that this particular cat had one hundred percent more eyes than my beloved feline companion. Judging by his size, this ginger obviously enjoyed his food.

  “Can I help you?” I pushed the paperclip drawer closed.

  “I’m looking for Winky.”

  “He’s at lunch.”

  “Are you his secretary?”

  “His what?” I almost choked. “Do I look like his secretary?”

  “Come to think of it, probably not. From what I hear, he goes for the young, sexy type.”

  Cheek!

  “What did you want with Winky?”

  “I have a case I’d like him to investigate.”

  “I think you must be mistaken.” I laughed. “I’m the P.I. around these parts.”

  “I don’t think so.” He produced a business card.

  “Let me see that.”

  What the—?

  The business card was printed in a pleasing turquoise ink on textured white card—it was way better quality than the cheapo cards I used. On it was printed:

  Winky P.I.

  Discreet, confidential investigations.

  Below that was a phone number and address. My phone number and address!

  “Do you know what time he’ll be back?” Ginger was obviously growing impatient.

  “No idea, but his lunches usually drag on well into the afternoon.”

  He took back the business card. “I’ll write my name and phone number on the back of this. Get Winky to call me, would you?”

  I was still too stunned to speak, so simply took the card from him.

  “Who were you talking to, Jill?”

  I hadn’t heard Mrs V walk into the room.

  “Talking to?” I glanced across at the window, but the cat had legged it.

  “I thought I heard you speaking to someone.”

  “Oh? I—err—I was just practising my lines.”

  “Lines for what?”

  “Err—the—err—amateur dramatics production that Kathy has roped me into.”

  “How exciting. What’s the production?”

  “It’s—err—Murder at the Vicarage.”

  “What part do you play?”

  “Miss Marple. I’m the one who solves the mystery.”

  “That will make a pleasant change for you, dear.”

  “What do you mean? I always solve the mysteries.”

  “I meant for you to take part in a play.”

  “Oh, right. Yes, I’m looking forward to it.”

  “You must let me know when it’s going to be on. Armi and I will definitely come to see it.”

  Oh bum!

  “Did you want something, Mrs V?”

  “Your two o’ clock appointment is here.”

  “Oh, yes. Mr and Mrs Gander, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. They tell me their names are Lucy and Brucey.”

  “Lucy and Brucey Gander.” I grinned. “You’d better show them in before they wander off.”

  Mrs V gave me that sympathetic look of hers.

  ***

  Mrs Gander managed a weak smile, but Mr Gander looked as though someone had ruffled his feathers.

  What? Okay, no more goose jokes. Sheesh, you lot are such spoilsports!

  “Mr and Mrs Gander, please take a seat. Can I get you a drink?”

  Mr Gander waved away the offer without consulting his wife; he was clearly keen to get down to business.

  “My brother-in-law, Lucy’s brother, Gary, died recently.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  “They say it was suicide, but that’s nonsense.”

  “You think someone murdered him?”

  “Murdered him and his wife.”

  “It might be best if you were to talk me through this from the beginning.”

  “Gary and his wife, Gena, were on the Washbridge Flyer. Have you heard of it?”

  “I can’t say I have.”

  “It’s a steam train. From what I understand, it runs most Sundays from spring through to autumn. It’s mostly steam enthusiasts who travel on it, but Gary thought it would be romantic to take Gena on there. She was murdered during the journey. Her body was found in the corridor, close to the toilet; she’d been stabbed in the heart.”

  “And your brother-in-law?”

  “They claim he jumped from the train.”

  “Who stabbed Gena?”

  “That’s just it—they reckon Gary did it, and then killed himself.”

  “You clearly don’t believe that otherwise you wouldn’t be here. What’s happening with the police investigation?”

  “What investigation?” He scoffed. “There is no police investigation. As far as they’re concerned, Gary killed Gena, and then threw himself off the train.”

  “Surely, there must have been witnesses?”

  “There weren’t. The corridor where the toilet is located isn’t visible from the main carriage. One of the other passengers found Gena’s body.”

  “And your brother-in-law?”

  “His body was found by the track.”

  “No one saw him jump?”

  “He didn’t jump!”

  “Sorry.”

  “Whoever stabbed Gena must have fought with Gary, and pushed him off the train.”

  “Have you shared these thoughts with the police?”

  “Of course I have, but they’re not interested. That’s why we’ve come to see you today.”

  “You said this happened recently? When exactly?”

  “Two months ago.”

  “Where does the steam train run from? Washbridge station?”

  “No. There’s a small station at Upper Wash. It’s on the main line, but the regular trains haven’t called there for many years. Will you take the case, Ms Gooder?”

/>   “It’s Jill. I am rather busy at the moment, but I can see how much this means to you, so I’ll make time.”

  The Ganders had no sooner left than Winky returned from his lunch.

  “Did you manage to get all the paperclips sorted?” He was sitting on the window sill, preening himself.

  “I’ll have you know that while you’ve been taking a lazy lunch, I’ve just landed a new case.”

  “Paperclip related?”

  “A double murder. Potentially.”

  “I guess that means you’ll be able to stave off the bailiffs for another month.”

  “You had a visitor while you were out.”

  “It wasn’t Jimmy The Jewels, was it? I told him I’d pay for the bracelet by the end of the month.”

  “What bracelet?”

  “The one I bought for Peggy.”

  “Is it her birthday?”

  “No. I don’t need a reason to buy jewellery for my lady. Was it Jimmy?”

  Jack really did need to take a leaf out of Winky’s book.

  “It wasn’t Jimmy The Jewels, but it was a cat.”

  “Not Bella coming to beg me to take her back, I hope? She’s becoming an embarrassment.”

  “It wasn’t Bella either. He left his name and number on the back of this.”

  Winky jumped off the window sill, and onto my desk. When he reached for the card, I pulled it away.

  “Hey, do you mind? Give it here.”

  “All in good time. First, I’d like you to explain this.” I flipped the card over. “Since when were you a P.I?”

  “Didn’t I mention it? I’m sure I did.”

  “I’m sure you didn’t. I would have remembered. What makes you think you can be a P.I?”

  “Do you really need to ask? If you can do the job, then it stands to reason that I can.”

  “This is a difficult job. Not everyone is cut out for it.”

  “Yeah, yeah. You have to say that, but you seem to be able to wing it with little or no skills.”

  “And who said you could use my phone number for your business?”

  “You’re right. It isn’t ideal. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about getting a second line put in. It shouldn’t add much to your bill.”

  “Dream on, Sherlock.”

  ***

  It was Jack’s turn to make dinner. Hurray!

  He’d just texted to say he wouldn’t be home until late. Boo!

  That left me with three choices: I could make my own dinner. Or I could buy a ready-meal from the corner shop.

  Or…

  “Thanks for inviting me over for dinner, Kathy.”

  “Come in. And, as I recall, you invited yourself.”

  “Pah, semantics. Where’s everyone?”

  “Pete isn’t back from work yet. Mikey’s having dinner at a friend’s house, and Lizzie is in her room. Actually, I’m a bit worried about her. Just lately, she’s been spending more and more time in there by herself.”

  “Does she seem down?”

  “Far from it. She’s been really bubbly recently, but I still worry about her spending so much time alone in her bedroom.”

  “I’m sure she’s fine.”

  “It isn’t just that. She’s started talking to herself.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “A few times now, I’ve heard her talking when she’s been alone in her room.”

  “Are you sure she wasn’t singing? Or maybe it was the TV?”

  “She doesn’t have a TV in there, and she definitely wasn’t singing. She seemed to be having a one-sided conversation.”

  “Have you spoken to her about it?”

  “I’ve tried to, but she denied she’d been doing it. Would you have a word with her? She seems to open up to you more than she does to me.”

  “Sure. I’ll go say hello to her now.”

  As soon as I walked into Lizzie’s room, I could see exactly what was going on. Sitting on the bed, next to Lizzie, was Caroline—the little ghost girl from Lizzie’s school.

  “Hi, you two,” I said, in a whisper.

  “This is my Auntie Jill, Caroline.”

  “I know. She came to my house when I was poorly. Remember?”

  “Oh yes.” Lizzie giggled. “That’s when you gave me Marky.” She held up the ghost beanie.

  “You two need to keep your voices down in here.” I put my finger to my lips. “Your mummy thinks you’re talking to yourself, Lizzie.”

  The two girls giggled.

  “Mummy can’t hear Caroline, can she?”

  “No. Just you. That’s why she thinks you’re talking to yourself. Anyway, how come Caroline is here and not at the school?”

  “She spends most of her time at school, but she likes to come over for sleepovers sometimes, don’t you?”

  Caroline nodded. “I’d never been on a sleepover until I met Lizzie.”

  “You won’t tell Mummy, will you, Auntie Jill? She’ll think I’m making it up.”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t say anything, but just remember to keep your voices down.”

  “Well?” Kathy said, as soon as I joined her in the kitchen. “What do you think?”

  “She’s absolutely fine. There’s nothing to worry about.”

  “What about the whole talking to herself thing?”

  “She isn’t talking to herself. She’s talking to her imaginary friend.”

  “Oh no! I knew it.”

  “Calm down. Lots of kids have imaginary friends when they’re around Lizzie’s age. It’s perfectly natural. She’ll soon grow out of it.”

  “I didn’t have an imaginary friend.”

  “I did. Don’t you remember Wilbur?”

  “No.”

  “That’s because you were so self-absorbed. Wilbur was my imaginary friend for a couple of years.”

  “Then what?”

  “I grew out of him. The same will happen with Lizzie.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Positive, but I wouldn’t mention to her that you know. It might embarrass her. She’ll tell you about her friend when she’s ready.”

  “Okay. I hope you’re right.”

  As soon as Peter came through the door, Kathy was on him. “Well? Did you get it?”

  “Let me get inside first. Hi, Jill.”

  “Hi.”

  “Come on,” Kathy demanded. “Tell me.”

  “Yeah. I got it.”

  “Brilliant!” She threw her arms around him. “Does that mean I can have a new car?”

  I was intrigued. “What’s this all about?”

  “I’ve just landed a contract with Washbridge Country Hall. I’ll be maintaining their gardens on a regular basis. It’s almost as big a contract as the Washbridge House job.”

  “Well done, you.”

  “Thanks, Jill. I just hope I don’t encounter the same problems as the previous three contractors.”

  “I’ve told you,” Kathy chipped in. “That’s a load of old nonsense.”

  “What happened with the other contractors?” I asked.

  “They quit because of—” He glanced at Kathy.

  “You may as well tell her now that you’ve started.”

  “They quit because they said there were ghosts in the maze.”

  I laughed. “You don’t believe in ghosts, Peter, do you?”

  “No, of course not.” He didn’t sound very convincing.

  “Guess who’s going to get a new car?” Kathy beamed.

  Chapter 2

  The next morning, Jack was already up when I eventually managed to drag myself out of bed and downstairs.

  “I thought you were going to have that steak and kidney pie for dinner last night,” he said. “It’s still in the fridge.”

  “I was going to, but then Kathy asked me to go around to her place for dinner.”

  “I bet she did.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “It means I bet you couldn’t be bothered to cook, so invited yourself ov
er there.”

  “Well, that’s where you’re wrong. I wasn’t bothered about going over there, but she insisted, and she is my sister after all.”

  He grinned. “So, if I give her a call, she’ll confirm that, will she?”

  “Of course. Go ahead if you don’t believe me.” I called his bluff.

  “No need. I’ll ask her the next time I see her.”

  I shrugged. “What time did you get in last night?”

  “Just after midnight.”

  “Were you working on anything interesting?”

  “Not really, but I did hear some interesting news, though.”

  “Oh?”

  “Leo Riley has been transferred to Exeter.”

  “When does he leave?”

  “He’s already gone. His replacement starts today, apparently.”

  “Who is it? Anyone you know?”

  “I didn’t actually hear who had replaced him.”

  “I should go over to the police station, to introduce myself.”

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

  “Why not? I’d like to get off on the right foot this time. I’ve got more chance of doing that if I let them know who I am and what I’m about.”

  “You have a bad habit of rubbing people up the wrong way.”

  “That’s not true. When have I ever done that?”

  “How long have you got? It’s a long list.”

  “Nonsense. I think it’s a good idea. I’ll be charm personified.”

  Just then, there was a knock at the door.

  “Who could that be at this time of the morning?” I grumbled. “Whoever it is, tell them to get lost.”

  “Charm personified, eh?” Jack started for the door. I followed him.

  “Sorry to call so early.” Mr Hosey smiled that crooked smile of his. “I’m trying to catch people before they go to work.”

  “That’s no problem,” Jack said.

  “Tell him to sling his hook,” I whispered in Jack’s ear.

  “Is that you, Jill?” Mr Hosey craned his neck. “I didn’t see you there.”

  “Morning, Mr Hosey,” I said, through gritted teeth. “We were just about to have breakfast.”

  “That’s very kind of you, but I really need to get around as many houses as I can before people leave for work.”

  Huh?

  “What can I do for you, Mr Hosey?” Jack said.