Darjeeling and A Deadly Disappearance: A British Cozy Murder Mystery with a Female Sleuth (A Waterwheel Cafe Mystery Book 2) by Victoria Tait

Author:Victoria Tait [Tait, Victoria]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781915413475
Publisher: Kanga Press
Published: 2023-09-07T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

“OK,” Keya checked her watch. Half past three on Friday afternoon. She said, “Ryan, you’ve had a long day. Do you want to continue door-to-door enquiries, or do you need to return to the station?”

Hesitating, Ryan pressed his lips together.

Zivah spoke for him, “He’s going to Whitemead Forest Park this weekend with some friends. Who did you say’s playing tomorrow night?”

Blushing, Ryan replied, “It’s an Elvis tribute act.”

“Are you getting dressed up?” asked Keya.

The colour in Ryan’s cheeks deepened. “Yes.”

“What fun!” cried Zivah.

“Then you should go back to the station and clock off,” said Keya. “You’ve done a lot of legwork today.” She looked from Ryan to Zivah. “You both have. Thank you. And we should let Chief Inspector Greg and his team handle the case now.”

“What about Inspector Evans’ instructions?” asked Ryan.

“I’ll keep digging, but it’s the weekend and we have important arrangements to make, don’t we, Zivah?”

Zivah sat back in her chair. “Not tonight.” She rubbed her forehead before asking, “Can I stay at yours? I feel like a girl’s night curled up in your living room watching a film. But not a Bollywood one,” she added hastily.

“What about Mum and Dad?” Keya asked.

“Exactly. All they’ll want to do is ask questions and hassle me about the wedding.”

“Fair point. And of course you can stay.” Keya smiled. “It’ll be fun.” She pushed back her chair and stood up. “But first, let’s hand in Tasha’s phone and catch up with the case. Have a great weekend, Ryan.”

“Thanks. You too.”

“Bye,” Zivah waved as Keya led the way through the snug and out through the low stone-arched doorway at the back of the pub. The car park was less than half full.

Keya drove to Akemans and once again parked in front of the antiques centre. “Do you want to come with me?”

Zivah shook her head. “No, I don’t think that would be appropriate. I’ll look round the antiques centre. How long will you be?”

“I’m not sure. But I’ll try not to get tasked with anything else this afternoon. The only place I want to go now is home.”

Solomon and Linda were still sitting on the grey sofa with mugs of tea or coffee in front of them on the wooden coffee table.

As Keya closed the reception door, Inspector Sue stood up and walked across to meet her. “Any news?”

Keya shook her head. “Nothing in the village. How are Tasha’s parents?”

“I’m trying to persuade them to return to their hotel, but Solomon is refusing. He wants to wait here while the first search is conducted.”

“First search?” What had she, Zivah, and Ryan been doing all day?

“Yes. Following the community meeting, there’s going to be a search of the village, and the accessible roads and paths around it, this evening. If that doesn’t yield anything, the police quad bikes and a specialist search and rescue team will join a more widescale search in the morning.”

“It sounds as if you’re going to be busy. When will you go home?” asked Keya.

“I won’t. I have a room reserved in the same hotel as the Nkosis, so I can be on hand.

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