Body Breaker by M. W. Craven

Author:M. W. Craven [Craven, M. W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781472132659
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Published: 2020-01-08T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

Jinx’s caravan was smaller than Twist and Faith’s. Almost a mini caravan. It was wooden and painted a light shade of blue. What he initially thought were mud spatters running up the sides, and along the trim, were in fact delicately painted flowers. Whoever had construed the idea had painted a thin band of green running all the way around the base, and it was from this the flowers grew. And it wasn’t just flowers, Fluke noticed as he bent down to have a closer look. Birds were flying in the sky, as were vibrantly coloured butterflies. He marvelled at the skill of the artist.

‘Who painted this?’

‘Jinx,’ Twist replied. ‘The caravan was a right state when she bought it. We all told her it was a bad deal but she fell in love as soon as she saw it. Wouldn’t take no for an answer.’

That fitted with the little Fluke knew of her. Stubborn but passionate.

‘Course, we have any number of expert wood carvers here, so it was soon fixed up. She spent the best part of a year painting it. Everything you see was something she’d seen on her travels.’

Jinx clearly lived her life outside. The inside was only just big enough to sleep in and keep a few possessions dry. It was a primitive way of living but Fluke suspected it was liberating. He doubted she’d ever get shotgun cartridges posted through her front door.

Of course, the illusion of idyllic life was slightly tempered by the police tape and sealed paper lock. Fluke removed his key-ring from his pocket and selected a small multi-functional tool. Opening a blade, he slit the seal on the door. It didn’t have a lock. Fluke opened it.

The light in the wood was still bright enough for Fluke to see all the way into the caravan. It was empty. Stripped bare.

Frowning he turned to Zoe. ‘This your lot’s work?’ he said, quiet enough so Twist couldn’t hear.

She nodded. ‘She’s a suspect.’

Fluke said nothing. In his mind, Jinx was just as much a victim as Bish.

‘We were looking for Mark’s notebook. We knew he kept one although no one ever saw it.’

‘And what about Jinx’s stuff?’

‘Nothing. Mainly clothes, if you can call the fucking rags she wore clothes, and some other weird shit. Incense burners, that kind of thing. They took it all anyway.’

Fluke sighed. Although it hadn’t been a wasted trip – he’d found out a bit more about Zoe’s relationship with Bish – the traveller’s camp had been a bust. And Zoe’s antagonism towards a woman she’d never met was beginning to grate.

He stepped into the caravan anyway. Five minutes later he was satisfied. Reyes might be a prick but his team had completed a thorough search. Jinx hadn’t struck him as the type of person who put much store in possessions. She’d had next to nothing when she had stayed with them. Just her iPod and a small sack containing one change of clothes.

‘Now what?’ Zoe asked.

‘Now we go and see the blacksmith.

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