4 A Demon Summer by G.M. Malliet

Author:G.M. Malliet [Malliet, G.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781250021427
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 2014-10-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

DCI COTTON

If a serious sin be hidden in the conscience of one of the sisters, she shall reveal it only to the abbess or to one of the spiritual elders of the nunnery.

—The Rule of the Order of the Handmaids of St. Lucy

“I thought you were supposed to be keeping an eye on things,” said DCI Cotton, as if picking up where their phone conversation had left off.

“I know. I know,” said Max. “I feel bad enough already, but thanks for bringing it up.”

They had agreed to meet in Max’s Spartan guest room once Cotton had surveyed the situation and set his team in motion. It promised a modicum of privacy; the other male guests of the nunnery were several doors away and engaged in dressing for the day. Daylight had begun to penetrate the room but hesitantly, as if not sure of its welcome on such a dolorous occasion.

Cotton had pulled up to the nunnery in a squad car, looking immaculate as if he had been ready and waiting for the middle-of-the-night call that brought him here. Not for the first time, Max was driven to speculate on Cotton’s private life. He did not particularly seem to have one. Given the finicky perfection of his wardrobe, Max thought he might spend a lot of time laying out his clothes, even starching his shirts and ironing them. It was an absurd speculation. The man was far too busy for such self-indulgent homesteading behavior. Wasn’t he?

Right now he was worrying a thread on his jacket that threatened to come loose. Cotton had a precise and orderly mind if one not as intuitive as his friend Max’s. While Cotton did not tip over into Mr. Monk–like habits, still he took an inordinate amount of pleasure in, for example, going through his spice rack and discarding tins that had passed their expiration date. Generally he would do this as he thought through a crime scene in his mind. A policeman’s life did not allow much time for home cooking, regrettably, for Cotton was a good cook who could be an excellent one, given time to practice.

“Just to get the parish notices out of the way,” said Cotton, “why don’t you fill me in on your impressions since you got here?”

“I’m not sure any clear impressions have formed,” said Max. “Only questions. And the biggest question I have—other, of course, than why Lord Lislelivet was murdered—is why he was here to begin with.”

“You mean since, according to him at least, his last visit nearly killed him.”

“Precisely. What would make him dare attempt a return engagement? It must have been something important. Unless you buy his story of a sudden and overwhelming interest in religion, which I don’t.”

“Neither does his wife. I had a brief word with her. She’s following this investigation with bated breath, in between appointments with her manicurist.”

Cotton summarized the essence of Lady Lislelivet’s statements and beliefs.

“It doesn’t sound like she liked her husband very much,” said Max. “So I wonder why she’s pushing now for an investigation into his death—apart from the reasons we discussed.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.