Chapter 16
The physiotherapy centre wasn’t far from Moira’s house, in a small shopfront at the end of a narrow road – opposite the church and just a stone’s throw from the beach.
Cal parked the car on double yellows and made straight for the door when he exited the car.
The view distracted Jamie – dark clouds looming ominously at the horizon, blurring the line between sea and sky.
Struggling to drag his gaze away, he walked slowly, until Cal shouted at him to get a move on.
The door opened to a small waiting room with a few chairs and a coffee table with a selection of health magazines. Two coats hung on a stand inside the door and several umbrellas stood in a tub on the floor. In the corner, a computer sat on a small desk.
“Is there a bell or something?” Cal said, looking around.
Jamie didn’t have time to respond before a door opened and the chatter of two female voices met them. An elderly lady with a grey perm walked out first and stopped talking abruptly. Her lips pulled into a smile.
“Hiya, Cal!”
“Hello, Deirdre. How are you?”
One side of her mouth pulled down. “My back’s been playing up but other than that I’m not too bad. Amira’s been helping me.”
“Glad to hear it,” Cal said, then helped her on with her coat when she took it from the rack. “I’ll see you next week,” she said to Amira, then gave Cal an affectionate pat on his arm before leaving.
“Can I help you?” Amira asked, then narrowed her eyes at Jamie. “Have we met?”
“No.” He extended his hand. “I’m Jamie. We saw each other at the Langfords’ house the other day, but we weren’t properly introduced.”
Her face fell as soon as he mentioned the Langfords. “You were working in the garden?” she mumbled while her eyes took on the faraway quality of someone lost in thought.
“Did you hear about Marguerite Langford?” Cal asked bluntly.
“Yes.” Her eyes were on her shoes. “So sad.” She sucked in a breath and looked up at them. “Were you looking for Catherine?”
“Who’s Catherine?” Cal asked, sinking into one of the chairs and idly picking up a magazine.
“She’s the owner here,” Amira said. “My boss.”
“We were looking for you,” Jamie said. He started to speak again, but couldn’t figure out the most tactful way of raising the subject.
Cal leaned back in the chair, propped his ankle on his knee. “We heard you were at the Langfords’ house on Monday evening and that you were involved in an argument.”
That was one approach. Direct.
Her eyes rounded and she took a subtle step backwards. “What?”
“Were you at the Langfords’ house on Monday evening?” Cal asked, his voice firm but level.
“Well . . . I . . . umm.” She fixed her gaze on Jamie. “Why do you want to know?”
Great question. He should also have thought of a cover story for why they were asking. On the spot he struggled to come up with anything. “We’re just trying to figure out Marguerite’s last movements,” he said eventually.
“But why?” Amira asked.
“Why not?” Cal snapped, coming to stand beside Jamie, arms folded over his broad chest. “Were you arguing with Marguerite on Monday evening or not?”
“No.” She wrapped her arms around her waist. “I wasn’t.”
“But you were at her house?” Cal asked.
“Yes, briefly.”
“Why?” Jamie asked.
She toyed with the heart pendant on her necklace. “I was there earlier in the day and I forgot my scarf. I called in to pick it up.”
“The neighbour said she heard shouting while you were there,” Jamie said.
She bit down on her lip. “Marguerite had the TV on pretty loud. Maybe that’s what she heard. No one was shouting.”
“The neighbour must have got it wrong,” Cal said.
Amira clutched at her necklace. “I guess so.”
“Okay.” Cal turned towards the door. “That’s all we needed to know.”
“Why are you asking questions?” Again, she looked at Jamie. “I don’t understand.”
He opened his mouth, but was grateful when Cal spoke over him since he wasn’t sure what to say.
“We’re asking questions because we like asking questions,” he said gruffly. “Is that a problem for you?”
She shook her head in small rapid movements.
“Thanks!” Cal called over his shoulder.
After saying a feeble goodbye Jamie followed him.
“You don’t care what anyone thinks, do you?” he asked when they were back in the car.
“Sometimes,” Cal said. “But I didn’t care what she thought. Why should I?”
Jamie couldn’t think of a reason. There really was no reason to care what Amira thought about them asking questions. Apart from social norms which were apparently strongly ingrained in him.
“What did you think?” Cal asked as he turned the engine on. “Was she telling the truth?”
“No idea,” Jamie replied. “It seems a little odd that she’d have needed to go back for a scarf. Why not get it next time? People usually have more than one scarf, don’t they?”
“Women do, aye.”
“But even if she’d argued with Marguerite, or Heather, I can’t imagine she’d kill Marguerite.”
“That would all depend on what they argued about.”
Fair point.
“It all seems far-fetched,” Jamie said. “It’s hard to believe it was anything other than an accident.”
Cal pulled the car away. “You accidentally botched the repairs?”
“No.” He groaned. “I don’t know.”
They fell silent until Cal pulled over at Moira’s house.
“Cat posters next,” Jamie said, reaching for the door handle.
“I seriously wouldn’t bother. You can bet you’ll go to all that effort only to find Misty on the doorstep when you get home.”
“I’d be perfectly okay with that scenario.”
“Whatever. I can’t help.”
“You said you would,” Jamie complained.
“Well I lied. I have stuff to do.”
Jamie was about to ask what he had planned, but his phone pinged with a message, distracting him.
“That’s not good,” Jamie muttered as he read it. “The place I was supposed to do a job tomorrow has cancelled. They say they’ve decided to wait for Moira to get back.”
“Who was it?”
“Someone called Mary Whittaker. I was supposed to clear out the drains.”
“She’s a long-standing customer,” Cal told him. “And she’s old – probably doesn’t like change.”
“Or she heard I’m not to be trusted.” He frowned. “I’m being paranoid, right? Word wouldn’t have spread that fast.”
Cal grimaced. “Word would definitely spread that fast.”
“Great.”
“Cheer up,” Cal said. “It’s not so bad.”
“Not so bad? I’m not quite sure how things can get worse.”
Cal laughed. “Don’t go tempting fate!”
He told Jamie he’d call him and drove away leaving him the task of plastering the town with missing cat posters.