A Cold Nose for Murder by Jennifer Hawkins

Author:Jennifer Hawkins [Hawkins, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2022-07-05T00:00:00+00:00

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Despite its size, Brian’s garage and showroom could be easy to miss. The former farm was tucked behind a winding line of bulky Cornish hedges. Emma eased her vintage Mini Cooper up the long dirt drive and parked in front of the brick cottage that now served as the sales office.

She had just set the parking brake when Brian came out of the office with his shaggy collie dog trotting happily beside him.

“Lucy!” Oliver bounced up and down on the passenger seat. “Hello, Lucy! We’ve got fish!”

Lucy barked back with enthusiasm.

“I don’t know what he just said.” Brian opened the door so Emma could climb out. “But I think Lucy approves.”

“Maybe she smells the fish.” Emma pulled out the carrier bag. “Genny’s finest.”

“Brilliant!” Brian took the bag, and her hand. “I’m starving. This way, madame.”

There was a small patio behind the office where Brian and his family had set up a picnic table so that on nice days there was a place to eat lunch besides the office or the garage. It might be a little chilly, but Emma was glad to be out in the fresh air and autumn twilight. Brian had no candles, but he set a large torch on end and they sat beside it to eat curried fish and salty chips with plenty of malt vinegar, all washed down with thick white mugs full of strong tea. Emma felt her shoulders and mind relaxing. While the humans ate, the dogs alternated between begging for scraps and chasing each other around the yard.

“So how did the Vincent get here?” asked Emma.

“Charles called me,” said Brian. “He said that the police didn’t need to, or didn’t want to, hold it, but he and David didn’t want to try to keep it at the shop, so I picked it up for them.”

“Has anybody else called you about it?” she asked, thinking about Pippa and her report that the Vincent had been stolen. Evidently PC Raj hadn’t thought to ask about how the Kemps had gotten the Vincent in the first place, and Pippa hadn’t thought to tell him.

Brian bit into another vinegary chip. “Not today. Pippa Marsh did call yesterday. Wanted a bit for her article. Why?”

“Because the Kemps have agreed to sell the Vincent to Reggie Tapp.”

“Never.” Oliver, who had come up to the table to see if anything interesting had happened yet, wagged optimistically.

“I stopped by there after work today, and Reggie was just leaving.” Emma tossed Oliver a chip, which he caught neatly. This brought Lucy over to stretch out on her side next to him, thumping her fringed tail.

“But why?” Brian fed a chip to Lucy. Thankfully, there was no judgment here about table scraps. “Charles has no use at all for Reggie.”

“Yeah, well, there’s the problem,” said Emma. “Pippa told me she found a police report from the seventies about a Black Lightning stolen in Knightsbridge.”

Brian’s mouth pursed in a silent whistle. Emma broke another piece of fish in two. Oliver sat up.

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