Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Len dropped her off as close to the ice cream shop as he could get, but she quickly decided on a change of destination. Once she’d cleaned herself up, all she’d want to do is lie on the couch in her pyjamas and not venture out again.
Hobbling through Hugh Town, she got a few odd looks. Apparently, her injuries weren’t subtle.
Pulling out her phone, she called Flynn.
“Are you at the station?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“Can you meet me outside in about two minutes?”
“You could just come in,” he said, a quizzical note in his voice.
“I could, but I’d rather not. Come outside, please.”
He’d just walked out when she rounded the corner. The sympathetic tilt of his head made her want to snuggle against his chest and cry until she felt better.
“What happened?” he asked softly.
“I fell out of a tree.” She’d have laughed, but suspected that would hurt.
Flynn’s eyebrows lifted. “Should I ask?”
“Not right now. I have other stuff to tell you about. This little anecdote can wait.”
“Are you okay, though?”
“Nothing’s broken.” That didn’t seem to reassure him, but she continued anyway. “I did something today that I can’t tell you about, but I have information for you about the person responsible for the thefts.”
He opened his mouth, then closed it again. “What information?” he finally asked.
“You should search Gideon Rowe’s place. Not just the communal spaces but his private rooms upstairs. The ones he always keeps locked.”
“Should I assume we’ll find the stolen goods there?”
She nodded.
“And how do you know this?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Because you did something you shouldn’t have?”
“Yeah.”
“Something illegal?”
“Yes. But with the best of intentions.”
“Okay.” He paused, thinking. “I don’t see why we can’t ask him to submit to a voluntary search. Especially since his place is so close to Hilary Phillip’s house.” He looked suddenly pensive. “He wasn’t there,” he said wistfully.
She put a hand to the back of her head, wondering if Silas had been right about her having a concussion since his words were confusing her. “What are you talking about?”
“I went up to the retreat the night of the break in. The guests were all sitting around outside, but I didn’t see Gideon.”
“He was also at Porthcressa Beach when…” Lily caught herself and stopped.
“When what?”
She tipped her head back and blew out a breath. “I need you to do something for me.”
“What?”
“When you find the stolen goods, you’ll find a black backpack. It has a little blue flower embroidered on the front pocket, and it belongs to me. I need you to get it back for me.”
His eyebrows drew together. “They stole something from you too?”
“Yes. I left the doors open when I went for a run the other morning, and when I got back, my backpack was gone.” Emotions collected in her throat, making talking difficult. “I didn’t tell you because I thought I could get it back myself.”
“What’s in it?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Something illegal?”
She couldn’t answer that because she didn’t know the answer.
“It’s personal stuff that belonged to my uncle.
I found it in his flat after he died.” Tears collected on her lower lids.
“I need you to get it back for me. Without letting the sergeant look inside the bag, and without looking in it yourself.”
“Okay,” he said after a moment.
“Okay?” Was that it? No more questions?
“If I find it, I’ll get it back to you.” He reached for her hand, lifting it to inspect the grazes on her arm. “You need to clean this. It’s got dirt in it.”
“I know, I haven’t been home yet.” The conversation had moved on too quickly, and she wasn’t convinced he’d got the message, or that he was taking her seriously. “I really need you to get the backpack to me without anyone looking through it.”
“I heard you,” he said impatiently. “But if you get sepsis because you don’t clean these wounds properly, your backpack won’t matter much.”
“I’m going home for a bath.”
“Make sure all these cuts and scrapes are clean and dry. And cover them. Do you have plasters? Big ones?”
“Yes.”
“Ask Jessica to help you if you can’t reach the ones on your shoulder.”
“Can you stop fussing now, please?”
He nodded. “I’d give you a hug but I’m scared of hurting you.”
Disappointment had her lips turning down.
“I’ll hug you if you want,” he said, palms raised.
“No, I just realised we’ll need to postpone our evening plans again.”
“True.” He grimaced as his eyes trailed down the length of her. “That’s not an attractive look.”
“Flynn!” She swatted at his chest. “I meant because I’m in pain, not because I look gross.”
“Yeah. That’s absolutely what I said, wasn’t it?”
“No.” She pouted, but leaned into him with her good side and slipped an arm around his waist.
“I can drive you home,” he said.
“I thought you weren’t allowed to take me in the police car.”
“Not when I’m going to an incident. When you are the incident, it’s a different matter.”
She snorted a laugh, then shook her head. “I can manage. You need to deal with Gideon.”