Scones and Scoundrels by Charlotte Graham

Author:Charlotte Graham [Graham, Charlotte]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-05-11T16:00:00+00:00

Georgina arrived back at Harris Manchester College with only fifteen minutes to spare before her police-imposed curfew. She headed straightaway to Holywell Manor, where she found Kevin, the Maths student, sitting at the kitchen table reading a textbook.

“Hello, Kevin,” Georgina greeted the young man, who didn’t even look up from his textbook, his only response being a barely audible grunt. As Georgina tucked her takeaway curry into the refrigerator to save it for tomorrow’s lunch, Lucy walked into the common kitchen.

“Late night, eh?” Lucy asked, rummaging through the cupboard for a clean teacup.

“Indeed,” Georgina said, glancing at her wristwatch, which informed her that it had just gone ten o’clock. “And I arrived home not a moment too soon!”

Lucy plugged in the electric kettle and sat down at the kitchen table. “So, tell me all about The Starving Artist. Find any good information?”

“Oh, the art exhibit was lovely,” Georgina said lightly. She raised her eyebrows sharply and nodded her head in Kevin’s direction, hoping Lucy would take the hint that she didn’t feel comfortable speaking freely in front of their reticent flatmate.

Thankfully, Lucy seemed to get the hint, for she said, “How about I pour us some tea and we go to my room? I want to show you my latest draft of our next essay.”

“Brilliant,” Georgina said. The teakettle whistled, and Lucy poured them each a cup of tea, which she carried up to her bedroom, Georgina following. Once Lucy’s bedroom door was shut, Georgina plopped down on her friend’s bed and sighed dramatically. “Oh Lucy, have I got loads to tell you! And not just about Ben Miller! And I really must say, this whole dormitory business is for the birds. I can’t say I’m a fan of having to sneak about in my own residence just to have a bit of privacy. I do so miss my London flat.”

“I hear you,” Lucy agreed. “Why, the other day when Charles phoned me up, our other flatmate Miriam walked into the kitchen, and I think she heard me flirting with him. Anyway, tell me what you’ve discovered!”

“Well, for starters, I’ve got a niggling feeling that the owner of The Starving Artist is lying to protect Ben’s alibi,” Georgina said, taking a sip of her tea. “He’s called Jackson Tomlinson, and he was a student at the Ruskin as well, though he graduated a few years ago. He was quite amiable — well, as amiable as those artistic hipster types can be — until I mentioned Ben Miller. As soon as I asked about Ben’s whereabouts on Saturday night, Jackson got nervous and clammed up. He was all too quick to confirm Ben’s alibi for the whole evening.”

“But you didn’t manage to gather any concrete proof against Ben’s alibi?” Lucy asked, blowing on her tea to cool it down.

“Regrettably, no,” Georgina said, “but I do feel quite confident that this chap Jackson is helping Ben hide something, and I’ve got a feeling it’s got something to do with wherever Ben keeps sneaking off to when he calls out ‘sick’ from his bartending job at the last minute.

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