Murder at Maple Grange by Jane Bettany

Author:Jane Bettany [Bettany, Jane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2024-02-23T17:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

As Maureen talked to DS Winterton about the buy-back option on her apartment, Violet stood up and excused herself.

‘I’m going to leave you to it, Maureen,’ she said, interrupting briefly. ‘I need to go home and put my shopping away. Keep me posted about Shirley, and let me know if there’s anything you need.’

DS Winterton cocked an eyebrow as Violet pulled on her coat.

‘It’s not like you to shy away from an investigation,’ he said, sounding bemused. ‘Are you feeling all right?’

Violet laughed. ‘I’m tickety-boo thanks, safe in the knowledge that I’m leaving Maureen in capable hands. I’ll see you soon, DS Winterton.’

He smiled back. ‘Not too soon, I hope.’

Violet felt more than a little guilty as she descended in the lift. DS Winterton’s smile would have morphed into a scowl if he’d known she had no intention of going straight home. Instead, she drove her car around to the main car park, entered Maple Grange, and made her way to Dawn Pilcher’s office. She was banking on Dawn being the person who’d been tasked with finding the CCTV footage the police had requested.

When Violet arrived at the office, she was relieved to find the door ajar. She knocked tentatively, waiting for Dawn to glance up from the laptop she was staring at.

As Dawn lifted her head, she gave a wide smile. ‘Violet! Hello. This is a surprise. Please … come in and sit down.’

Violet wondered if Dawn’s welcome would have been quite so effusive if she’d known the purpose of her visit.

‘I’m sorry to bother you, especially on a Sunday,’ Violet said. ‘To be honest, I wasn’t sure you’d be here, it being your day off.’

Dawn grimaced. ‘Unfortunately, I’m a workaholic. It’s what comes of living on the premises. I have a flat here, on the top floor, so it’s only a hop, skip and a jump down to the office, and there’s always something that needs doing around here. I came down today with the intention of spending thirty minutes at my desk, but that was over an hour ago.’

‘I try to spend my Sunday afternoons relaxing,’ Violet said. ‘Although I’m not finding it easy to switch off today. I’ve just come back from Chesterfield. I drove Maureen over there to see Shirley Allsopp, but when we arrived, we found out that Shirley had been admitted to hospital following a hit-and-run.’

Dawn closed the laptop and folded her hands over the top of it. ‘Yes, I know. The police called me a little while ago, asking for footage from our exterior CCTV cameras – that was what prompted me to come down to the office in the first place. I’ve just finished transferring the files to them. I’ve no idea why they need them. Lord knows what use they’re going to be.’

‘They’re tracking Maureen’s car. It was involved in the incident over in Chesterfield.’

Dawn leaned forward. ‘You’re not serious? They do know that Maureen’s ankle is in plaster? She’s in no fit state to drive.’

‘Maureen’s vehicle was involved, not Maureen.

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