Chapter 9
There was little opportunity to talk on the way back to the shop as the road was now busy with shoppers.
Abby led Balthazar through the lanes and Lara could not help flinching as several pedestrians walked through Abby and her horse.
She managed to whisper to her as they approached the shop, ‘Well? What do you think?’
Abby shook her head, but all she would say was, ‘I have reconsidered. I would not want Dr Patil as my physician.’
Lara looked puzzled but had no chance to say any more. From where she stood it was clear that the flower shop was busy and she hurried over to help Becky.
The rest of the morning went by in a whirl.
Becky and Lara had wedding flowers to prepare and in between serving customers they worked together on the bouquets and buttonholes.
Sarah from the delicatessen popped in with some autumn berry flapjacks – a new recipe she was trialling – and Abby once again marvelled at how Lara appeared to withdraw behind an invisible shield of cool reserve.
Abby kept her thoughts to herself but shook her head over it.
Becky was just boxing up the wedding flowers on a bed of mint-coloured tissue paper when the door opened and a large fleshy man came into the shop.
His smart pink cords and bright primrose waistcoat were stretched tightly across his ample form.
Everything about him appeared to shine, from the sheen on his brow to the grease on his unnaturally brown hair.
He had very little feet and small, beautifully manicured hands. Abby distrusted him on sight.
‘Good morning, Miss McGregor,’ he wheezed in a high-pitched voice.
‘Lovely, lovely day and my, my what delightful flowers. Beautiful flowers. Beautiful ladieees,’ he drawled, looking at Becky, with a distinctly unpleasant glint in his eye.
‘Now could you make me up a small something. I have a luncheon engagement with an old pal and I always think it’s nice to take a gift. ’
Lara stepped forward to serve this customer, putting herself protectively between him and Becky’s diminutive form. Abby smiled when she saw this.
Good morning, Jason, I’m sure we can make you something gorgeous.’ Lara was at her most professional – polite and efficient, and totally in control.
‘Lovely, lovely,’ the visitor said again, smiling and wheezing at the women.
His gaze flicked across to where Abby was sitting.
‘Lovely,’ he said for the third time and beamed.
His face shone, his teeth positively gleamed but Abby noticed that his eyes remained calculating and cold.
Lara chatted to Jason as she worked, discussing Chamber of Commerce business.
It became apparent that Jason ran the antique shop nearby.
This, thought Abby, must be the proprietor of Honeybourne Antiques, the bow-fronted shop that she had noticed in the square on the previous morning.
There was just something about him that made her say to Lara, ‘Ask Mr Honeybourne about Lady Porter.’ Maybe it was the look in his eye or maybe it was her recollection that Harding the butler (who had dispatched Lord Unwin by drowning him in his bath) had also had exceptionally small feet.
‘What?… oh, ah,’ Lara said, glancing her way.
Jason Honeybourne then repeated himself as if Lara was hard of hearing, ‘I said, the traders will be meeting to discuss the Christmas decorations for the square very soon. I hope we will see you there.’
Lara was nearly caught out in a laugh, but this quickly faded when Jason added, waggishly, ‘I believe our esteemed estate agent, Julian Armstrong, will be chairing the meeting,’ and Lara wondered bitterly if there was anyone in this town who didn’t know what a fool she was making of herself over Julian.
As Jason continued to talk, Abby became restive and stood beside him cocking her head towards him in a suggestive manner.
This did make Lara want to smile, and she commented, with a slight question in her tone, ‘I still can’t get over the fact Lady Porter is no longer part of the life of the square.’
Jason’s expression became ludicrously morose. ‘Yes, yes, indeed. A very sad day for the community when we lost that good lady.’ He bowed his head as if in silent prayer.
Abby raised her eyes heavenwards.
‘Did you know her well?’ Lara asked, suppressing a grin. Really this was getting exhausting. Her face muscles were beginning to ache.
‘Who didn’t know the good lady in some way,’ Jason replied evasively.
‘Oh, he is a slippery fish to be sure,’ Abby said, now staring directly at him, taking in the sheen of his face and his shiny, unfeasibly brown locks. She wrinkled her nose, ‘The smell of his hair oil is really most unpleasant.’
‘She was very interested in paintings and antiques…’ Lara prompted.
‘That is true. Many is the time she was in my little emporium admiring my wares. I like to think that my humble offerings didn’t disappoint.’
‘Did you ever go to visit her in Gillmore House?’
For some reason this question seemed to disconcert Jason Honeybourne and he shifted from foot to foot. ‘Only ever in a professional capacity,’ he replied curtly and Lara was left wondering why this innocuous question had touched a nerve.
After that, Jason’s manner became brusquer and he quickly concluded his purchase and left the shop. But not without giving Becky a last lingering look and glancing nervously in Abby’s direction.
As Abby followed his progress to the door she declared, ‘You really are very good at your job, Miss McGregor, and I believe it would be a fool who would underestimate you.’
Lara and Abby finally got the opportunity for a much needed catch-up when Becky left the shop to deliver the wedding flowers. ‘So!’ said Lara, as she moved around the shop sweeping the floor.
‘So!’ repeated Abby, watching her.
Lara stopped sweeping and leant on her broom. She wanted to ask Abby about Jason Honeybourne, but first she felt she needed to get to the bottom of her conversation with Dr Patil.
‘I just don’t know what to think, Abby. Dr Patil clearly knew Lady Porter much better than I thought, so that explains the crying after her funeral.’
‘And it seems that the doctor followed her here… or maybe? I wonder who came to this area first?’ Abby mused.
‘It does seem that they were close,’ Lara agreed, ‘and yet…’
‘Yes?’ prompted Abby.
‘He didn’t know about her childhood… that doesn’t sound right. Hadn’t she told him? Or maybe he didn’t know her that well?’ Lara paused, thoughtfully. ‘Or could Lady Porter be lying about her past? But then why on earth would she do that?
‘None of it makes sense!’ Lara concluded in frustration.
‘Well, certainly someone has been less than honest,’ Abby responded, ‘and that is always illuminating. For example, we only have the doctor’s word for it that they were close.
He could simply know Lady Porter was called Elizabeth from her medical record.
You can tell a lot from a medical record, Lara Petunia McGregor. ’
‘Really?!’ Lara exploded. ‘Really?!’ Then she muttered, ‘They’re my dad’s favourite flower.’
Abby ignored this. ‘It is always a mistake, I feel, to take people at their word. However, as I said, I do think the conversation shed some light on the matter.’
‘Well, it may be clearer for you, but I feel like I’m in thick fog over here.’ Lara kicked the broom in her frustration. ‘At least he didn’t think it was an accident,’ she added as an afterthought, ‘but then, in his mind, that leaves us with suicide… and… oh, I don’t know…’
Abby walked over to stand directly in front of Lara, who was now frowning off into space. She looked her full in the face. ‘Tell me exactly what your instinct says to you about his statements. It does not have to make sense. It is what you feel that matters.’
Lara drew a deep breath. ‘Not for one moment did I sense that she was a woman carrying a burden. I just don’t think she was hiding something.
Whatever he says about never knowing what someone is thinking,’ Lara sighed.
‘That’s what I feel. Yet if I start to think about it I have huge doubts.
Because at the end of the day I was just her florist and I hadn’t known her for that long. He was her doctor and an old friend.’
Abby smiled at her encouragingly.
‘And what was it with the “running in the family” and her “determination”? He said he was thinking about Reginald, but I don’t know…’ Lara felt there was no end to what she didn’t know.
‘Do you regard the Honourable Richard Porter as a man of determination?’ Abby asked Lara thoughtfully.
‘Not really. He always seems like he’s full of hot air to me. You know, all bluster.’
Abby did know. Harding the butler had been the terror of the downstairs staff (and if truth be told, of Lord Unwin), but he had always reminded Abby of an over-inflated balloon in need of bursting.
Which, she smiled, looking back, was exactly what she and James the footman did.
Still, determination took many forms. ‘Are there any circumstances in which you could imagine Richard Porter finding some backbone?’
Lara thought for a while. ‘I would say, he would be pretty determined if it meant him getting something over on someone, especially if that person hadn’t shown him the respect he felt he deserved.
Or worse still, who had laughed at him… or…
’ she continued, thoughtfully, ‘if money was involved. I would guess, then, he could be mean and nasty. But determined… as Dr Patil meant it…?’ Lara’s voice trailed off.
Abby started striding around the shop, her voluminous skirts swishing about her. ‘That certainly is interesting. Also interesting that Dr Patil mentioned it. I rather think you caught the good doctor off his guard when he said that.’
‘So you think it means something?’ Lara asked eagerly, wondering about the questioning note in Abby’s voice when she said ‘good doctor’.
‘Oh, undoubtedly.’ Abby continued, ‘I felt that it had significance. That and something else he said about Lord Porter.’
Lara looked at her expectantly.
Abby decided at this stage to keep her ruminations to herself. She required more time to think them through. However, there was something she did want to share with Lara.
Before she could speak, Lara said abruptly, ‘You know who I think could be determined?’ She clearly didn’t expect Abby to answer and supplied, ‘Penny Porter.’
‘Ah, Richard’s wife. The artist and younger woman. Likes to paint dogs and horses,’ Abby recalled.
‘You’ve got a good memory,’ Lara commented as an aside.
‘I have had plenty of practice,’ Abby responded dryly.
Lara supposed she had. Which reminded her that she was talking to a ghost. At least she hoped she was, otherwise she was spending an awful lot of time talking to herself.
She rushed on, ‘Penny Porter is all fluffy and dithery, but I don’t know, I’ve sometimes thought there’s a lot more going on inside.
Not that I know her that well. But I once caught her looking at Richard at a Chamber of Commerce event – she didn’t think anyone was watching… ’
‘Yes?’ Abby said, thinking that things were looking up. She did like a nice pool of suspects to splash around in.
‘I thought, you’re not so daft as you seem…’
‘And?’ Abby prompted once more.
‘Well,’ Lara laughed, ‘at the time I thought, I bet he’s sleeping in the spare room tonight. But afterwards I remember thinking I wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of Penny Porter. But maybe I’m imagining things.’
‘We cannot rule that out,’ said the ghost. ‘We will definitely need to meet Mrs Porter, but for now would you like to hear what I found out from the doctor’s notes?’ Abby proposed.
‘Would that be my notes or Lady Porter’s notes?’ Lara Petunia McGregor asked her pointedly.
‘My goodness, Lara, I would never read your private notes,’ Abby said for all the world like she meant it.
She continued quickly, ‘Dr Patil had visited Lady Porter quite a few times at the beginning of the year, and there was some reference to blood tests and some sort of scan. I confess I did get a bit confused by the terminology, although all appeared negative. But there was no record of him visiting her on the 10th of August.’
‘I knew it!’ Lara exclaimed and started to sweep the floor again with renewed fervour as if she didn’t know quite what to do with herself.
‘I knew something wasn’t quite right.’ She thought this also probably explained Abby not wanting Dr Patil as her doctor.
He was standing not two feet away from her as he blatantly lied to them.
Or rather, she corrected herself, lied to Lara.
‘And do you want to know another very interesting thing, Lara?’ Abby continued. Lara spun around.
‘There was no record of a prescription for sleeping pills.’