Kay slipped her front door key into the lock, her gaze falling to the paraphernalia lining the hallway beside the staircase.
A sack of cat food, another for cat litter and various small fluffy toys were placed alongside ceramic food and drink bowls.
Hearing Adam’s baritone voice in the kitchen, she kicked off her shoes, hung her bag and jacket over the newel post and padded along the hallway.
The back door had been propped open, letting in a warm breeze that carried the scent from the wisteria growing over the garden shed and the faint sound of traffic out on the A20. From the living room, one of Adam’s favourite albums playing in the background created a relaxing ambience.
Entering the kitchen, she shielded her eyes from the sudden glare from the draining board, the sun setting over the rooftops at the end of their garden reflecting off the stainless steel, then turned at the sound of a loud and indignant mew.
Her shoulders relaxed as the tall veterinarian beside the kitchen worktop turned at the sound of her footsteps, a grin on his face – and a tiny tortoiseshell kitten cupped in his hands.
Kay stopped. ‘Okay, now that’s cute.’
‘Thought you might like this week’s visitors.’
She wandered over to him, reached up to caress the nape of his neck as he bent down to kiss her, and twisted her fingers in his dark curls.
‘Bad day?’
She sighed. ‘A frustrating one. What’s the story with this one?’
‘She and her three siblings were found abandoned in a cardboard box at the services area on the M20,’ said Adam, and rubbed his finger between the kitten’s ears. ‘Luckily someone rescued them before they wandered too far and got hit by a car. The other three are in a pen in the living room.’
‘Living room?’ Kay cocked an eyebrow. ‘Not in here?’
‘It’s cooler in there at the moment.’ He managed a sheepish grin. ‘Besides, we can play with them while we’re watching the TV, right?’
She laughed. ‘I don’t think we’ll be watching much of that with this lot around. How long have you got them for?’
‘The bloke from Cats Protection says he’ll be over at the weekend to get them. I’ve sent him photographs so he can add them to the adoption page but they won’t be ready for that for another couple of weeks. We need to get some fat on them first.’
‘Are they healthy?’
He nodded. ‘They seem to be. Scott gave them a thorough check over at the practice when they came in, and I’ve told the rescue centre that I’ll donate our time plus the cost of their vaccinations until they find new homes.’
Kay reached out and squeezed his arm. ‘They’ve landed on their feet finding you.’
‘Ah, you know me – can’t resist an animal in trouble.’ He glanced down as the kitten wiggled in his hands. ‘All right, you can go back with your sister and brothers.’
‘Do you want a glass of wine?’
‘Please – I’ll just put her back in the cage and we’ll sit outside if you like. It’s lovely out there.’
‘Sounds good.’
By the time Adam joined her on the patio, Kay was sitting in one of the two rattan chairs that had been delivered last week, a bucket of ice on the matching table next to her and two glasses filled with a chilled chardonnay.
‘Here – I thought you might need this as that sun goes down.’ He handed her a fleece running jacket she kept in the downstairs cupboard. ‘You look comfy.’
She grinned. ‘I don’t think I’m going to get much of a chance to do this until we solve this latest one. I thought I’d make the most of it.’
Wriggling her arms into the jacket, she leaned back and clinked her glass against his. ‘Cheers. Here’s to four kittens finding a good home soon.’
‘I’ll drink to that.’
Kay took a sip and curled her legs under her, picking bits of grass from her socks.
‘You seem reticent tonight,’ said Adam after a few moments. ‘I take it this latest case is a trying one?’
‘That, and the fact that Sharp is leaving.’ She sighed. ‘He’s moving over to Northfleet this week. He can’t stay at Palace Avenue any longer, according to the Chief Super.’
‘You’ll miss him.’
‘I will. I mean, I know he’ll still come and help me if I need it, and I’ll have to go there for management meetings but it won’t be the same.’
‘How will that go down with the locals?’
‘I think they’ve forgiven me for putting one of their own away a few years ago. Anyway, you’d hope so by now.’ Kay wrinkled her nose. ‘I suppose I’ll find out soon, won’t I?’
‘Are you going to have to take on more of Sharp’s work that he was doing here in Maidstone?’
‘I’ll have to do more of the local press conferences on my own in future, I suppose.’ She paused, lowering her glass. ‘Speaking of which – did you happen to bring out your phone with you?’
‘Yes, here. What are you after?’ Adam pressed his thumb against the screen to unlock it, then handed it over.
‘I missed the media briefing on the news earlier – Sharp was going to make an appeal for more information about our victim’s last movements in case it turns up anything.’
Her other half wrinkled his nose. ‘Your phones will be busy tomorrow, then.’
‘Yes, and unfortunately most of the calls will be useless – but you never know.’ Kay found the app for the regional news company and worked her way down the headlines until she found the conference under a headline that screamed clickbait.
She clicked.
The video started immediately, with Sharp flanked by the Chief Superintendent, Susan Greensmith, and a media officer whose face Kay didn’t recognise.
After running through the facts to date, Sharp lifted his eyes from the prepared statement and looked directly at the camera.
‘We’re asking all members of the public to report any suspicious activity they might have seen between four-fifteen on Friday afternoon through to eight o’clock Monday morning,’ he said, pausing while a photograph was broadcast under his words. ‘In addition, we’re trying to trace the owner of this car, left on the forecourt of the used car garage where Mr Taylor’s body was found…’
Kay tuned out while Sharp read out the Crimestoppers number.
Instead, her gaze drifted to the condensation running down her wineglass as she thought about what Helen Taylor had said to her––
‘Kay?’
She blinked, turning back to Adam. ‘Sorry?’
He smiled and pointed at his phone. ‘The video’s finished.’
‘Oh, yeah.’
‘What were you thinking?’
‘Just something the delivery driver’s wife said to us. I didn’t think to ask at the time.’ She opened up his contacts. ‘You’ve got Ian’s number in here, right?’
‘It should be there.’
‘Okay. Won’t be a minute.’
She took a sip of wine while the call connected, and then Barnes’s gruff voice answered.
‘Hello?’
‘Ian, it’s Kay. I’ve just had a thought – I never asked Helen Taylor about the plumber.’
‘The plumber?’
‘Yes. She said Carl asked her to leave work early because he was expecting a plumber to turn up.’
‘Right…’
‘But I never asked her if he showed up.’
The silence at the other end of the line spun out a few seconds as Barnes mulled over her words.
‘Where are you going with this, guv?’
She frowned. ‘I’m not sure, but I think I ought to have a quick word with her in the morning. There’s something about it that I can’t quite put my finger on.’
‘No problem. I’ll pick you up as planned, and if you want to talk to her face-to-face we’ll head out to her place before speaking with Mike O’Connor again if you like.’
‘Thanks, Ian. See you tomorrow.’
As she handed back the phone to Adam, he cocked an eyebrow.
‘What are you thinking?’ he said, topping up their glasses.
‘Just tidying up some loose ends,’ said Kay, and forced a smile. ‘Call me paranoid.’