04 The Royal Baths Murder by J. R. Ellis

Author:J. R. Ellis
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2019-08-28T16:00:00+00:00

Five

Brimham Rocks is a collection of bizarre rock formations on a hillside in Nidderdale. They were caused by millstone grit being weathered by water, wind and glaciation. The shapes have suggested names for the rocks such as The Dancing Bear, The Sphinx, The Watchdog, The Camel and The Turtle.

It was early on Thursday morning before Andy got a chance to go to Patricia Hughes’s flat. He took DC Robinson with him. The flat was up the hill out of the centre of the town, off Cold Bath Road. It was a section of a Victorian villa that had been split up into separate dwellings.

As he was opening the door, there was the noise of loud meowing.

‘I think we’ve got a hungry cat in here who hasn’t been fed for a while.’

‘Sounds like it, Sarge.’

Inside, a black-and-white cat, not expecting strangers, backed away and looked at them cautiously, but then continued to plead in the most urgent manner. Andy picked up a few pieces of mail and they went through to the kitchen. DC Robinson found a bag of dried cat food and fed the poor animal while Andy looked around. There were all the usual sad signs that the person who lived there had expected to return soon, though now they never would. He’d seen it many times before: fridge full of food; little reminder notes and a shopping list left on the table; washing drying on a rack; a pair of glasses on the arm of a chair and a book with a bookmark in it; quite a few dirty cups and plates by the sink ready to be washed up; and the cooker hob rather dirty. She’d been very busy right up to her death with the festival, and domestic chores had suffered.

‘Funny how death can happen so suddenly, isn’t it? And when you don’t expect it.’

Robinson looked over at him. ‘Steady on, Sarge, that’s a bit deep. You sound like the gaffer. It’s just like him to come out with stuff like that.’

‘True – perhaps I’ve worked with him long enough to start getting like him. Actually, I think I’d rather go like that myself. You know, quickly, over and done with before you know anything about it. Better than lying in hospital for ages in pain, don’t you think?’

‘I don’t really think about it, Sarge, can’t see the point. We’re all going to go, and we can’t do anything about it. If you start thinking too much, you just make yourself miserable.’

This was very philosophical for DC Robinson. Andy was impressed by his sensible practicality. ‘I think you’re right. Let’s get on with the job.’

‘Are we looking for anything in particular, Sarge?’

‘Any clues as to what she might have known that led someone to kill her.’

They wandered through the flat with its eerie stillness. The cat had gorged itself and disappeared through a cat flap. Arrangements would have to be made to find it a new home. Andy paid particular interest to a small room that had obviously been Hughes’s study and library.

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