she called softly, stepping into the garage. A couple of cautious steps later, she called again. “Hello? Is there anyone here?” The bay with the open door was empty, but there were cars parked in the other two spaces. Janet knew very little about cars, but they both looked relatively new. Ja...
There was no one at the house when they arrived home. Joan fixed a quick lunch and then rang the police station. Janet could only hear Joan’s end of the conversation, which was short. “Hello, Susan, how are you?” Joan began. “Yes, well I’d be ever so grateful if you’d ask Robert to ring or stop...
Chalmers has some concerns about some of your guests,” he told Janet, gesturing towards the man who was standing behind him looking miserable. “But they’re his cousins,” Janet replied. “Not the Stones,” William growled. “The Harrisons.” “They haven’t come down for breakfast yet,” Joan told their...
Bessie wasn’t sure she understood, but she knew there was no point in washing the blanket herself. Chores finished, she sank down on a couch in the sitting room and then realised that her morning routine had been completely disrupted by events. She hadn’t even turned the ringer on her phone back...
“Ah, what a shame.” It was Edward who broke the awkward silence. “Janet just this minute agreed to have dinner with me tonight,” he told them. Janet turned her stare towards him and he winked at her. “Oh, that is a shame,” Michael said. “I hope Joan won’t be too bored, listening to us talk a...
“Good afternoon,” Janet greeted the woman as she made her way from the car towards the house. “Can we help you?” The woman looked at her and then sighed deeply. “I suppose I must go on, mustn’t I? I wasn’t sure I was even going to stop, but then there you were and I didn’t feel as if I could j...
John had offered to ring for a taxi for Bessie, but she insisted she was happy to walk back to her cottage. It wasn’t until she was nearly at Doona’s door that Bessie realised that she wasn’t walking home at all. She shook her head and had a quick word with her subconscious. Imagine walking al...
Awake again at six, she showered, dressed and ate a bowl of cereal with milk. The cup of tea she used to wash it down helped her feel more like herself. She headed out for her morning walk. The mirror that was still hanging outside of her door caught her frown. This morning her welcome mat wa...
“Bessie, it’s John,” the voice said. “I was just about to start ringing around to try to track down a few of the women who went out with Jacob, and I thought I’d check with you first and see how you’re doing with them.” “I’ve spoken to three women who went out with him,” Bessie reported. “All t...
“Have a seat,” she said, waving Bessie into an uncomfortable-looking wooden chair. Bessie sat down and frowned. The seat was hard and she was tired of sitting anyway. “I know it’s not the most comfortable chair around, but I’ll try to keep this brief,” the inspector told her. “Let’s start with ...
Bessie said as she crossed the room. “No, it isn’t,” John replied. He stepped around the table and gave Bessie a quick hug. “You shouldn’t hug suspects,” Pete said from the doorway. “And I’ll deny I did it if Bessie ends up being the murderer,” John said with a tight smile. Bessie forced a smil...