A BODY ON THE BEACH a gripping Welsh crime mystery full of twists (The West Wales Murder Mysteries Book 1) by P.F. FORD

Author:P.F. FORD [FORD, P.F.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Joffe Books crime thriller, mystery and suspense
Published: 2022-11-05T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 25

Avril Fisher was a small, timid, fifty-something. She reminded Norman of a mouse, and he was finding it challenging to get that image out of his head. Despite his best attempts to help her relax, she seemed to almost cower before them. This merely served to reinforce the image in Norman’s head.

‘I understand this must be very upsetting for you, Avril,’ he said, gently, ‘but we need to ask you a few questions about what happened, and then we’re hoping you can help us build a better picture of Kimberley. We have an idea of what she was like at home, but people can be quite different at work, so maybe you can tell us something we don’t already know.’

She nodded her head.

‘I’ll do my best,’ she said.

‘Tell us what happened the week she disappeared.’

‘She came into work as normal on Monday, but then on Tuesday morning, she didn’t show. This wasn’t like her at all. In the five years I worked for her she had never been late, so I knew something must be wrong.’

‘So, what did you do?’

‘At first, I thought perhaps her car had broken down. She had been complaining about it for days, so it seemed quite possible. But she would have phoned if that was the case, and she didn’t. By nine thirty, I decided I should call her at home and see if she was all right. I was worried about her, you see.’

‘And you’re sure it was nine thirty?’ asked Morgan.

‘Oh, yes. I had decided I would wait half an hour, and that’s exactly what I did.’

Norman had no doubt this was correct. He felt sure Avril was that precise in everything she did.

‘So, what happened when you called?’ he asked.

‘That man . . . I mean, Mr Lawrence, answered the phone.’

Morgan, who was taking notes, glanced sharply at Norman, who nodded in response. Yes, he had noticed it, too.

‘And what did Mr Lawrence say?’ asked Norman.

‘At first, he seemed confused.’

‘In what way confused?’

‘As if he didn’t believe what I was saying. He insisted I must be wrong and that Kim must be at work.’ She looked guiltily at Norman. ‘I don’t like to speak ill of people, but I believe he has a drink problem. I can’t prove it of course, but I think he may have been the worse for wear.’

‘You mean he was drunk?’

‘I would say he had a hangover.’

‘So, let me get this clear,’ said Norman. ‘You’re saying Greg Lawrence seemed to think his wife had gone to work as normal?’

‘At first, yes. Then he seemed to come to his senses, and that’s when he said he would go and look for her and let me know. He seemed to think her car may have broken down too.’

‘Okay,’ prompted Norman. ‘Then what happened?’

‘After about an hour he turned up here.’

‘You saw him?’

‘Oh, yes. He came into the office. He was hoping Kim would be here.’

‘But you still hadn’t heard anything?’

‘Not a word. It was as if she had vanished off the face of the earth.

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.