By the end of the day, Motts discovered Marnie hadn’t managed to keep the secret. She was stirring up hot chocolate on the stove when someone knocked on the door. The app on her phone told her Detective Inspector Herceg stood waiting for her.
“You poked the bear.”
“I haven’t poked any bears. I have all of my fingers.” Motts wriggled said digits at him. She welcomed him into the house. “Want some hot chocolate? My dad’s recipe. It’s a magical potion worthy of Harry Potter.”
“How can I say no?” He followed her down the hall into the kitchen, sitting in one of the chairs by the table and making it creak. “Why don’t you tell me about your adventures yesterday? The ones not involving poking any bears—even Innis Walters-shaped ones.”
Motts poured hot chocolate into two mugs and set one in front of Teo. She sat across from him, stirring the spoon around nervously. “You might be bored.”
“I doubt it.”
She smiled down at her mug. “I ran into Danny.”
“On purpose?”
“I didn’t run him over.” Motts went on to explain her brief conversation with Danny. Teo seemed particularly interested in his mentioning of Rhona and Innis’s contentious relationship. “And I don’t believe he killed her.”
“Oh?” He bent forward with his elbows on the table. “Aside from his alibi?”
Motts found it easier to stare at her mug than to meet Teo’s intense gaze. “Even without the alibi, Danny might be an impulsive, window-peeping prat. He wouldn’t have killed her. His devastation at her death seemed too tangibly real. Tangible tangent trembling.”
“Not the best alliteration I’ve heard from you.” Teo grabbed the notebook from his jacket pocket. “Did Danny have anything else to say?”
“Other than that?” She hesitated. “I went by a charity shop and spoke to Noel Watson. He had an intense overreaction to my mentioning Rhona’s name.”
“Did he?”
“And he owned a bracelet similar to the one found in the chest in my garden.” Motts glanced up when his pen stopped moving. “I didn’t intend to investigate. It’s just—unanswered questions bother me so much. I had to know if the bracelet was his.”
“He shouted at you.” Teo fixated on one part of her story. “Because you asked if he knew Rhona? Someone who’d lived local, gone to school with him, and he’d obviously have known even if just by name.”
“Yes.”
“And he shouted at you?”
“I said yes.” Motts didn’t know why he kept repeating it. She decided to brush it off as a weird non-autistic thing. “Did they figure out how she died?”
He closed his notebook and rested his pen on top. “I can’t give you any details. I will say they found no evidence of physical trauma.”
No evidence of physical trauma.
What did he mean?
Had Rhona died from suffocation or poison or something that hadn’t damaged her bones?
“Did they test the flowers in the chest?”
“Foxglove.”
Motts sat up quickly, and her arm almost knocked over the hot chocolate. “Foxglove? Isn’t it poisonous?”
“Motts.” Teo had resumed his serious detective inspector frowning persona. He finished up his hot chocolate and got to his feet. “I’ll see myself out. Please don’t go pressing for more answers. We don’t know who tried to run you over. I don’t want them focusing their attention on you again. Okay?”
Motts nodded absently. She grabbed both mugs and set them in the sink, filling them with water. “Did you stop by for any reason?”
“Oh, yes. Inspector Ash told me you’d paid a visit to the Salty Seaman. I wanted to make sure you were alright.” He rested a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently before heading towards the front door. “Lock up behind me.”
And she did.
Meow.
Motts finished pushing the deadlock across, then picked up Cactus. “Why don’t we have a little snack? Would you like chicken or some cheese?”
Meow.
“Cheese it is. I’ll have crackers.” Motts grabbed a packet of Jacob’s, buttered a handful, and sliced up some aged cheddar. “Why don’t we see what’s on YouTube?”
Catching up on her many subscriptions, Motts fed Cactus a few slivers of cheese. They munched on their snacks. She couldn’t stop thinking about Innis and Noel.
To her, they were the strongest suspects with Danny proving himself innocent. She put Innis above Noel. The latter didn’t seem to have any motive whatsoever.
Did he give her a strange vibe? Yes. Was it enough to accuse him of murder? No.
“What a strange place I’ve moved us to.” Motts cuddled Cactus into her arms, shoving the plate across the table. “Do you think Auntie Daisy had any idea? Probably not.”
Meow.
“Yes, I am going to have a bath.” Motts placed Cactus on the sofa. She dropped a few veggies in for Moss, making sure all was well in the turtle’s world. “The more I live here, the more I realise what a small world London had become for me.”
Running the water for a bath, Motts grabbed her laptop. She set it up on the sink at an angle to allow her to watch one of her video playlists. And after checking all the windows and doors, she returned to the bathroom and dropped a bath bomb into the water and watched the fizzing.
Motts had one foot in the water when the sound of glass breaking caused her to freeze. “What the—”
She shoved her clothes back on. Cactus sat in the hallway, hissing viciously. She dialled the police while inching her way forward.
“I have a weapon,” Motts lied. She grabbed the broom leaning against the wall and rounded the corner to find nothing but a broken front window and a large rock on the carpet. “Bugger. Why me?”
It didn’t surprise her when Teo and Inspector Ash showed up with Hughie. The three men were more serious than she’d ever seen them. She watched from inside while they inspected the outside.
“I’m going to need you to download your CCTV footage for me. You likely caught the crime on camera.” Inspector Ash wandered over to speak with Hughie.
“Can’t I leave you alone for a second?” Teo loomed over her. He seemed so much taller all of a sudden. “Did you see anyone?”
“No.” Motts was annoyed to find herself blushing at the thought of mentioning she’d been in the bath. What kind of nonsense is this? It’s a bath—everyone bathes, Motts. “I wasn’t in the living room at the time. I was getting in the bath.”
“Were you?” He cleared his throat, turned around, and went over to Perry Ash.
Men (and neurotypicals especially) can be so strange.
“Are you alright?” Hughie came over to sit beside her on the bench in front of the cottage. “I’ve called a bloke I know. He’ll be over in a jiffy to fix your window. Doesn’t even need to measure, since he fit the windows for your auntie a few years ago.”
“Okay.” Motts wrapped her arms around herself. She rocked slightly on the bench, trying to ease some of the tension in her body. Now was not the time to have a meltdown or a shutdown. “Okay. Okay. Broken bashed battered babbling boomer.”
“You sure you’re alright?” Hughie asked. “Do you need to visit the doctor?”
She shook her head rapidly. “I’m fine.”
“Stone. Over here.” Inspector Ash interrupted their awkward attempt at small talk. “We’ve got the video from the security cameras. Take a look.”
While the two locals viewed the footage from her CCTV camera, Teo came over and sat beside her. He reached into his pocket to retrieve a package. Motts blinked when a chocolate bar appeared in his hand.
“Lemon Meringue White Chocolate.” Her mouth watered thinking about the combination. “Kernow Chocolate. They’re wizards.”
“Probably use cauldrons and potions to keep us addicted. Might need to investigate further.”
“By purchasing and taste testing more flavours?” Motts peeled back the wrapper of the chocolate. She broke off a few bars and offered it to Teo. “I’d recommend thorough research. Might have to try multiple times to get a complete assessment.”
“Agreed.” He popped the chocolate into his mouth. “Is your attack kitten safe? And your turtle-tank?”
“Moss is not a tank. She lives in one.” Motts stared down at the remaining chocolate in her hand. “I put Cactus in my room until I clean the glass up.”
They sat in silence for a while. Teo went over to the other two police officers to check out the video. Motts watched them from the bench. So much for her plans for a relaxing evening.
True to his word, Hughie’s friend showed up and immediately got to work with one of his employees to take out the broken window and replace it. Motts used her gardening gloves to pick up the larger pieces, then swept the rest before vacuuming, just to be sure. She’d never forgive herself if Cactus got a sliver in his paw.
Hughie and Teo carried out the glass. They also checked her garden and made certain the cameras and lights were functioning correctly. It was almost midnight by the time Motts had the house to herself.
They hadn’t told her what they found on the CCTV footage. Motts decided to take a look for herself. She went to grab her laptop, only to change directions when someone knocked on the door.
She checked the app on her phone and found Nish, River, and Vina making faces into the camera. I love my family. They crowded into the cottage when she opened the door, carrying her along with them into the living room. “You’re all out late.”
“Marnie texted me after her hubby got home,” Vina explained. “I messaged River and Nish, who were out with friends in Looe. They picked up a takeaway and then me. And here we are. We’ve got pizza, chips, and apparently deep-fried something from the smell.”
“Mars bars. You’ll thank me later.” River grabbed the massive paper sack from Nish. “Someone get plates. I got a few bottles of ale as well.”
“So, basically, you brought me a heart attack.” Motts accepted the bottle Nish held out to her. She narrowed her eyes on her cousin. “Did you two have a date?”
“We went to a small concert with a group of friends,” River insisted. “Vina? Where are the plates?”
“They were on a date.” Vina came over from the kitchen with four plates and an assortment of silverware. “Isn’t it adorable? We’ll be related and everything.”
“One date. Vina. One.” Nish flicked his sister on the arm. “Let’s not have wedding bells ringing.”
Seeing how uncomfortable River was getting, Motts decided to provide a distraction. She explained to everyone what had happened with her window. They were as anxious as she was to see the video footage.
They plated up the food, divvying out pizza and chips. The fried candy bars would be left for last. Motts planned to leave those for everyone else; she didn’t want to ruin her chocolate palate with bizarre, greasy sweetness.
“Here we go.” Motts had her laptop on the end of the coffee table. They’d all sat on the floor around it to eat. She hit play on the video clip from when the rock was thrown; she rewound it a few times before finally pausing it on the person. “That’s not—”
“A bloke,” River finished for her.
The video clearly showed a slight figure with generous curves. She had a hoodie on, shielding her face. The woman had a rock already in hand and launched it directly at the front window before fleeing on foot.
“A woman.” Vina eased the laptop closer. “I can’t see any identifying features. It could be any number of people in the village.”
“Could be you,” Nish teased.
“I don’t do anything that requires me to run.” She grabbed her brother’s pizza to take a bite. “The important question is, how are we going to hunt this person down?”
“Ten to one, this ends badly,” Nish remarked when River jumped on board with the idea.
“We’re not hunting anyone down.” Motts grabbed another slice of pizza, fending off Cactus’s attempt to steal a piece of pepperoni. “The police can handle things.”
All three of them turned to stare at her. Motts blocked their gazes with her plate. She conveniently chose not to think about the questions she’d been asking around the village.
Questions weren’t the same as going after someone with pitchforks. The trio bantered back and forth. Motts ignored them and finished her pizza slice.
Meow.
Motts glanced over at Cactus, who’d climbed up to perch on her shoulder. “I agree. I think they need to sleep.”
They finished up their incredibly late supper. Vina insisted on watching the CCTV video several more times. She was convinced the way the mysterious figure walked was familiar.
“Doesn’t seem different from anyone else’s walk.” Motts didn’t really see what she was talking about.
“You don’t watch women’s arses when they walk.” Vina offered a tiny piece of crust to Cactus, who knocked it to the floor and proceeded to play with the bit of pizza. “I’ve seen this woman in the village.”
“So, what are we going to do? Sit outside the café and observe people for days on end?” Nish grabbed the last chip in the packet. “We do have jobs.”
“We’ll figure it out.” Vina patted Motts on the hand. “No one is going to mess with our Mottsy.”
The following morning, Motts woke to find her bed crowded by her cousin and the twins. Cactus had curled up on top of Vina’s head. She snuck out of the room to keep her routine.
She brushed her teeth, splashed water on her face, and walked Cactus around her little garden. “What are we going to do? I’m not running away. I love this cottage even though we haven’t been here long. I can see making this home forever.”
Meow.
“Exactly. It’s sized perfectly for us. I’m even growing catnip for you. We’ll have to make sure you don’t become addicted.” Motts crouched down to check on some of the new plants. They wouldn’t bud for a while. She continued to obsessively monitor them anyway. “We better head inside and start breakfast.”
Meow.
“No, you can’t eat an entire package of bacon or sausage. You’re going to have to share.” Motts led her cat inside. She set him up on the blankets by the rear window. He enjoyed watching the birds who took advantage of the feeders and bath in the garden. “Live-action telly for you.”
Moving into the kitchen, Motts grabbed eggs, bacon, and some freshly baked bread. She knew the others would wake up starving. River definitely would.
She dropped bread into the toaster but didn’t push it down yet. “I can hear you hovering.”
“Can I help?” Vina had Motts’s bathrobe wrapped around her. “Heard the detective brought you chocolate.”
“He did.” Motts focused her attention on cracking eggs into a bowl. She dropped the shells into a little bucket under the sink. “Kernow.”
“Your favourite.” Vina nudged her gently with her elbow. “He’s aesthetically pleasing.”
“Don’t tease.” Motts didn’t have the energy to deal with joking. She felt like an overly wrung out tea towel. “I’m not up for it.”
“Sorry.” She wrapped an arm around Motts and hugged her. “I’m sorry your move to the seaside has been marred by all this nonsense. We’ll get it solved.”
“The police will.” Motts whisked up the eggs. She added a dash of seasoning, her own blend. She couldn’t wait for her garden to grow to have fresh herbs again. “I trust them.”
“You trust him,” Vina corrected. She grabbed the packet of bacon. “Bacon or sausage? Or, both?”
“Both. The boys will be hungry.” Motts genuinely hoped her cousin and one of her closest friends did develop a romantic relationship. They’d be perfect together. “Get the kettle going? I’m going to need buckets of coffee to wake up.”
“I slept great.”
“You can sleep anywhere. You could sleep on top of a moving train.” Motts hadn’t been able to settle down with her overcrowded bed. She’d mostly dozed until about six in the morning. “There was a bed in the spare room.”
“You clearly don’t grasp the importance of sleepovers.”
“Think we’re too old for sleepovers. My body definitely is. I find new aches and pains every morning,” Motts grumbled. “And hot flashes. I’m dying of heat even when it’s snowing outside.”
“Age comes for us all.”
“Age came for me early. Nothing good comes from coming.” Motts paused, then briefly met Vina’s eyes before they broke into giggles. “Go wake up the new lovebirds. The bacon’s about done. And then I’ll pop in the eggs to scramble them.”