Spring continued to roll through March. Motts, despite her allergies, found herself excited for later in the season and going into summer. She knew from holidays as a child how beautiful Polperro was.
She didn’t have the same enthusiasm for the tourists who would descend on the village. It was the one downside to Cornwall. River and Nish had both told her not to borrow trouble; Vina had laughed at them, knowing how much Motts panicked over things far off in the future.
They’d been over every night since her parents left. At the end of the week, though, River and Nish were taking a brief holiday together. Vina and her new girlfriend had gone off to London for a three-day weekend.
Motts intended to settle in for the weekend. She wanted to finish up her quilled sari project for Leena. A few days focused on it would likely get her where she wanted.
A knock on the door interrupted her in the middle of finishing breakfast. She put her plate in the microwave to keep Cactus from filching from her food. Her heart dropped into her stomach when she opened the door to find Innis preparing to knock a second time.
“I want to talk.”
Motts wondered if he’d planned this conversation around a time when her friends were all away from the village. She gripped the doorknob tightly. It was tempting to slam the door. “Why? You’ve shouted quite a lot at me over the last few weeks. What else could you have to say?”
“I brought a sultana cake from Rose. She thought we might apologise for the rough welcome to the village.” Innis thrust the package at her. “It’s not poisoned.”
Well, I certainly feel reassured.
“Thanks?” Motts took the package and held it gingerly. She planned to throw the cake away the second Innis left. “Is that all you wanted to say?”
“Can I come in?”
“No.” Motts didn’t trust the man enough to be in the cottage alone with him. “Sorry.”
Innis broke into a smile that made him seem less menacing. “I deserve the mistrust. Why don’t we sit on the bench?”
After a second of consideration, Motts found, once again, her curiosity got the better of her. She stepped outside, closing the door behind her. Innis sat on the bench and thankfully didn’t comment when she remained standing close by.
“My sister and I….” Innis trailed off. He breathed in deeply before trying again. “Rhona wanted a lifestyle Polperro and the fish shop couldn’t offer her. She wanted romance, London, and everything young people seem to cling to as a measure of success and happiness.”
“And you disagreed?” Motts prompted when he fell silent.
“I worried.” He bent forward with his elbows on his knees. “Rose says I turned into my da after he passed. Who knows. Rhona never told me about the sale. We didn’t talk. We were stubborn. But I never hurt my sister. I didn’t want her around those boys.”
“Those boys?” Motts found herself drawn into the conversation. “You mean Danny?”
“Him. And his friends. They chased after her. Never trusted them. Even now, why haven’t they picked up Danny?” Innis slapped his hand against his leg in obvious frustration. “And the Watson lad. After Rhona’s disappearance, we eventually cleared out some of her things. Rose donated them to the charity shop.”
Motts nodded, waiting for him to explain the significance.
“A week or two after, I spotted him wearing one of her scarves. He still wears it in the winter.” Innis smacked his leg a second time. “I wanted to rip it off his neck.”
Better than strangling him with it.
“Maybe he liked her.” Motts did honestly find Noel’s behaviour a little strange. “Did he ever date Rhona?”
“Never. I’m not sure she liked him very much, even as a friend.” Innis got to his feet, and Motts took a step back. “I am sorry. You haven’t seen us at our best.”
“Did Rose run me over?” Motts decided to press the question, wanting to see how he’d respond.
“My Rose? Never,” Innis denied vehemently. “She threw the rock, yes, but she’d never want to cause physical harm to someone.”
And strangely enough, Motts believed him. She said goodbye and returned to the cottage. The talk had left her wondering who had been involved in Rhona’s death.
Did she believe Innis wasn’t involved? Maybe. She thought he might be capable of accidentally killing his sister in the middle of an argument.
Had he protested too much?
Heading out into her garden, Motts walked Cactus before returning to the cottage. She resisted the temptation to head down to the village. Noel hadn’t exactly been welcoming the few times she’d met him.
Odd. Angry. But not welcoming.
After wasting over an hour trying to make progress on her quilling masterpiece, Motts gave up the ruse. She dithered between going on her own or finding someone to be nosy with her. She eventually sent a text to Teo.
A good and bad idea.
Brilliant because Motts had missed him over the last few days, particularly when she cracked open a bar of chocolate. Teo turned out to be in Looe visiting his parents; he wondered if she wanted to go out for supper.
She agreed. And immediately regretted her decision. Not going to dinner with Teo; she’d enjoyed spending time with him before. But she wasn’t eagerly anticipating visiting a busy restaurant.
As Motts had already said yes, she didn’t feel comfortable backing out. By the time Teo arrived to pick her up, she’d managed to stress herself out to the point of being sick. He seemed surprised to see her so frazzled.
“What’s wrong?” Teo strode forward to take her hand gently. “We don’t have to go out.”
“I had a panic attack.” Motts pulled her hand away, twisting her fingers together anxiously. “I kept thinking about crowded restaurants and embarrassing myself.”
“Polperro’s not really known for takeaway.” Teo followed her into the cottage, where she immediately curled up on the sofa with Cactus beside her. “Unless you want fish and chips. Griffin Brews is closed for the weekend. How about I make a quick trip back to Looe, grab a pizza or something greasy and comforting. We can chill here for dinner instead of stressing you out further by going to some restaurant.”
“You don’t mind the drive?”
“I’ve done more driving than the twenty minutes or so it’ll take me to get there and back. I know the perfect place for a takeaway; a friend of mine runs the place.” Teo gave Cactus’s head a pat. “Any specific cravings?”
Motts shook her head. “I hate being a bother.”
“You’re not a bother. My friend’s inquiring questions about who my date is will definitely be more of an annoyance than you could ever be. I’ll even get a little something special for Cactus,” Teo promised.
She watched him leave and forced herself to get up and lock the door. Cactus followed her down the hall. “I think I like him.”
Meow.
“Yes, he’s very considerate to get you a treat. Smart man.” Motts stayed on the couch and waited for his return. She greatly appreciated Teo’s kindness to her. “We’ll have to keep him around.”
Turning on one of her favourite vlogger channels, Motts allowed the stress to slowly bleed away. When Teo returned, her anxiety had dropped significantly. She felt capable of holding a conversation with him.
“He made tapas for us. Croatian-Cornish-inspired tapas.” Teo held up two bags filled with small containers. “I said I was bringing dinner for a date, and this is what he gave me.”
Motts tried not to laugh at how disgruntled he appeared. “They’ll be lovely.”
“I’m going to tell his mother.” Teo had a slightly vicious smile on his face. Motts imagined he appeared the same way when a criminal confessed under interrogation. “She goes to my knitting club.”
“Right, knitting. What’s your current project?”
Teo shifted both of the bags into one hand and grabbed his phone out of his pocket. He scrolled through before twisting the screen around to show a greyish blue knitted lace circle. “I haven’t done much yet. It’ll be a shawl eventually, but it’s the most complicated pattern I’ve attempted.”
Over the course of their meal of various dishes, Motts told him about her conversation with Innis. Teo agreed with her that his comments on Danny and Noel were interesting. He did say they were continuing to investigate the small group of friends who’d hung around Rhona.
“Why would he wear her scarf?”
“Unrequited love?” Teo speared a piece of Komiška pogača. He’d described the dish as a savoury pie. It reminded Motts of a beautifully flavoured combination of a tomato pie and a salty onion focaccia. “Maybe he lost Rhona to Danny?”
“She was a person, not a prize,” Motts muttered.
“I agree.” He held up his hands in surrender. “It’s something we have to consider.”
“Do you know what vehicles Noel owns or has access to?” Motts had come to the conclusion that her accident and the discovery of Rhona’s body had to be connected. “I don’t believe Rose attacked me.”
“Aside from throwing a rock through your window? And possibly locking you in the shed?”
Motts glared at him but had to laugh when he simply grinned. She liked the way he smiled at her. “Did she admit to locking me in the shed?”
“No.”
“There you go then.”
“Yes, because criminals never lie to the police.” Teo waved his fork, sending a crumb flying. He laughed when Cactus tried to pounce immediately on the piece of pie. “Though, I agree with you. I don’t believe Rose did anything aside from breaking your window.”
“So, who did run me over?”
“I wish you’d stop saying it so casually.” His hand clenched around the fork. “But to answer your question, I’m not sure yet. We’re still trying to track down who stole the vehicle involved.”
“Okay.” Motts let the subject go. She had a feeling Teo knew more but he couldn’t or wouldn’t share with her yet. “Want to visit the charity shop with me?”
Teo set his fork down. “No. I’ll have Inspector Ash follow up with Noel. He knows him better. If I go, he’s already going to be on edge.”
“I could—”
“Stay away from anyone who might potentially have committed murder,” he said firmly.
Motts wasn’t sold on Noel being the killer, but she saw the wisdom in not putting herself in danger. “I wasn’t trying to be around them when they ran me over.”
“Try your best.” Teo set his plate on the coffee table. He moved around to sit next to her on the couch. “One thing I’ve learnt since this cold case landed on my desk is that quite a lot of people care about your well-being. And I include myself in that group. You matter.”
Motts shifted uneasily on the sofa. She never knew how to handle emotional moments. “I promise to try not to run headfirst into any other vehicles.”
Teo was surprised into a laugh. “Good enough.”