Deadhead and Buried (The English Cottage Garden Mysteries ~ Book 1) by H.Y. Hanna

Author:H.Y. Hanna [Hanna, H.Y.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wisheart Press
Published: 2019-02-15T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY

Pete Sykes’s wife was with another man: a rather short man in his thirties, with a big nose and a thin, almost weasel-like face. He was dressed in a navy suit, with a loud shirt and tie, and was gesticulating and talking in a brash, cocksure manner, obviously enjoying the way the woman next to him was hanging on his every word. They turned away from Poppy and walked arm in arm up the lane, disappearing around the corner at the end, where it joined the main boulevard.

Poppy hesitated for a fraction of a second, then hurried after them. She reached the corner just in time to see them merging with the crowds which were milling down the wide pedestrianised street that was Oxford’s main shopping strip. She followed quickly and trailed them into the Covered Market, one of university city’s most popular tourist attractions. It would have been easy to lose them in the labyrinth of alleyways, but luckily the crowds seemed to be thinner in here, so that it was fairly easy to keep them within sight.

As Poppy followed the couple at a discreet distance, she found herself enjoying the historic feel of the place and the bustling market atmosphere. Used as she was to slick, modern supermarkets, with their plastic-wrapped, manufactured goods, it was almost a novelty to see an old-fashioned butcher, fishmonger, and greengrocer, as well as other traditional shops, like a cobbler and a milliner, all trading as they had done for over two hundred years.

She wondered if Jenny Sykes and her companion were heading for a particular shop but it looked like they were just browsing aimlessly and flirting, as lovers do. At last, they stopped in front of a shop window and stood with their heads together. As surreptitiously as she could, Poppy sauntered over and stood next to them, pretending to admire the items displayed as well.

It was a boutique selling handmade leather creations by local artisans and craftsmen, with several pretty embroidered wallets arranged in a semicircle at the front of the window. Each wallet had a design of dainty, pendulous white flowers on thin stalks, surrounded by long green leaves.

“…aren’t they gorgeous?” Jenny was saying, pointing at the wallets. She looked meaningfully at her companion. “And it’s my favourite flower too: snowdrops—”

“Snowdrops?” The man pulled a face. “You don’t want to carry something with them on… My nan always told me that snowdrops are bad luck. Mum said she used to pick them every February when she was a little girl, but my nan would never let her bring them into the house. Said they were an omen of death.”

“Oh, rubbish! That’s just an old superstition,” said Jenny, wrinkling her nose. “Come on, darling… they’re gorgeous and I’d been looking for a new wallet… and it’s nearly my birthday…” she wheedled.

The man sighed and glanced at the display again, then did a double take. “Bloody hell—is that the price?”

Jenny pouted. “Are you going to be like Pete was and

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.