He didn’t have to be with Alex to see her face. All he had to do was think about her. Tony went into the inn entrance at the Black Dog and walked through to the public bar. He stopped to watch her sliding the stems of clean glasses into racks above the counter.
His life was a bloody mess. Oh, on the surface he had it all together, but there was major unfinished business and he couldn’t do one thing to tie it up.
Did that have anything to do with what had become a complicated connection with Alex?
She had to stand on tiptoe to seat those glasses but she didn’t have the look of a lot of small women who managed the impression that a good wind would blow them away. Alex was compact. When she forgot herself she could be vivacious and he’d seen that come peeking through. And he liked her looks, those tilted-up eyes the kids called ‘witchy’ back when they were all running the fields and getting into trouble. Like scrumping apples and making it away, pockets bulging, arms flying, laughing madly, and with yelling voices behind them.
It was a long time since they had been children.
‘Good morning, Alex,’ he said, and smiled when she saw him. ‘It’s quiet in here.’
‘Probably a good thing. I’m on my own. Cathy and Will both asked for the day off – or Cathy did, then Will got in a mood and said he needed to get away.’
‘I can help if you tell me what to do.’ He knew how unlikely that sounded. ‘Katie thinks she’s a pub dog anyway.’ Katie was already beside Bogie in front of the fire.
‘That’s sweet of you,’ Alex said. ‘I’ve got extra staff coming in shortly and Mum’s in the kitchen if I need her. But right now it’s just you – my one and only customer. What can I get you, Dr Harrison?’ She grinned and that vivacious girl came out to play again.
‘Coffee, me darlin’,’ he said and stood with his forearms crossed on the bar and a boot braced on the brass foot rail. ‘And I wouldn’t say no to a nice Tesco’s digestive biscuit.’
She poured a mug of coffee, paused, and poured a second mug. That was all it took to make him feel warmer. Alex coming to join him and drink coffee. He didn’t mention that she’d forgotten the biscuits.
‘Have you seen O’Reilly today?’ he asked.
‘No. I assume he left very early. I feel as if there’s a huge shoe hovering just out of sight, waiting to give all of us one big kick in the posterior.’
Tony snorted into a fist. ‘Posterior? Now there’s a word I don’t often hear.’
She frowned, set her mouth in a line and suddenly said, ‘Arse. Is that better?’
They both sniggered into their coffee and Alex held up a finger before grabbing a package of digestive biscuits from a shelf. Coffee, biscuits and sporadic sniggering had the expected result, and they both caught sprays of crumbs in napkins.
She sobered first. ‘I think I’m getting hysterical. If some sort of religious person – the official kind – walked through the door, I’d faint. Early this morning I was on the internet searching for anything I could find about gyrovagi. Nothing very complimentary was said about them, at least not a century ago, or even ten. They were persecuted. I don’t think Percy or Edward were wandering charlatans likely to whip out the odd potion for getting rid of evil spirits, or wooden dolls for warding off whatever. They just didn’t have a need for a group. They didn’t need to belong. And they liked being free.’
‘So you’re sure it was Edward?’
She looked thoughtful. ‘I called him that, didn’t I? Don’t you think that’s who it was?’
‘Probably. But the idea of some anti-religious zealot knocking off men of the cloth doesn’t cut it for me. I believe there’s a history to all this and the Derwinters are tied in somehow.’
‘They have to be,’ Alex agreed. ‘But not, you know …’
‘No, of course not,’ he filled in for her. Neither of them wanted to even mention murder in the same breath with Leonard and Heather.
A phone rang and Alex went to answer.
Liz Hadley walked in behind the bar, glancing around the empty room with a frown on her face.
‘Business will pick up,’ Tony told her.
‘It better,’ she said. ‘I closed the shop early when I heard Alex needed help – not that I had any customers either. I think all this trouble is starting to keep people home.’
She might be right but he didn’t want to say so. ‘It’s been cold a long time. We all get tired of braving it eventually. How’s the shop doing?’
‘Not too bad,’ Liz said. ‘It’s always a bit quiet in Bourton at this time of year but Christmas was really good and it’s light now, but not dead.’ She raised her shoulders slightly and grimaced at him.
Death had become an avoided topic.
Four people who looked like businessmen came in, talking and chuckling their way to a table. One of them came to the bar to order drinks and food. Liz went busily about her own business and looked more cheerful immediately.
The coffee was good. Getting a little cool but still good.
With the phone still to her ear, Alex pivoted slowly toward him. Her eyes downcast, a deep furrow between her brows, she spoke quietly. When she glanced up their eyes met. He knew real concern when he saw it.
She put down the phone and went directly to Liz, then almost ran through to the kitchen. Lily came back with her, wearing a similarly worried expression.
Tony’s gut clenched. He took a deep breath, watched Alex, and waited.
Finally she hurried to him and leaned close. ‘I’m not supposed to say anything in case someone else gets the idea to follow me.’
‘Follow you where?’ He realized he’d all but shouted and lowered his voice. ‘What are you talking about?’
‘That was a nurse at St Mary’s Hospital in London.’ She spoke so close to his ear; her cheek brushed against his. ‘Reverend Restrick is there and he’s asking to see me. She said Charlotte asked them to call me.’
‘His wife?’ He caught her by the shoulders. ‘Does that make sense? That he’d ask to see you? Why didn’t Charlotte Restrick call you herself?’
‘I don’t know but she probably couldn’t leave him for long enough.’ Alex closed her eyes. ‘I’ve got to go. Now. If anyone asks, make an excuse for me. I’ve picked up a bug – anything. I haven’t told anyone but you about the call. All Mum knows is that I have to leave.’
‘I’ll come with you.’
‘No.’ She shook her head emphatically. ‘I think he’s going to tell me more about what happened to Brother Percy.’
‘You don’t know that.’ He could tell she wasn’t really listening to him.
‘Why else would he ask to see me in particular? I trust you not to tell anyone, Tony. Back me up with this, will you? I’ll go straight there and call you after I’ve seen him. If we went together and O’Reilly heard about it, he might suspect we were meddling – which is what he thinks we’re up to anyway.’
‘I don’t want you to go on your own.’ He cast about for something to back up his case. ‘The roads are bad.’
‘And I’m a damn good driver. I’ll call you on the way.’