The Haunting of Styre House by Amy Cross

Author:Amy Cross [Cross, Amy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-04-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

“Has anyone seen Henry?” Colin asked as he made his way through the crowded pub, trying to reach the bar. “Sorry, I don't mean to bother you, but has anyone seen Henry Overton this evening? I've been trying to contact him but -”

“Mind out,” a man grumbled, almost spilling his pint as Colin tried to squeeze past. “Watch where you're going.”

“Sorry,” Colin mumbled, twisting first one way and then the other as he finally managed to reach the bar, where he found the landlord waiting for him. “Sorry, Graham,” he continued, “I didn't mean to cause a -”

“Drink?” the landlord asked gruffly.

“No, thank you, I only -”

“You'll have to have a drink if you want to be here,” the man said, grabbing a glass and starting to pour Colin a pint of ale “It's not free for me to have the radiators on, you know.”

“I'm sure,” Colin said, “but I really don't like beer very much. Or most alcohol.”

“I'm pouring it now,” the landlord pointed out. “What do you expect me to do? Chuck it away?”

“No, but -”

“Get that down your neck,” the man continued, sliding the pint over to him. “You'll enjoy it, you know. It's a good brew from barely twenty miles down the road.”

“Right,” Colin replied, “but -”

“That'll be five pounds and eighty of your pennies, please.”

“Well, I...”

Colin's voice trailed off for a moment, but he already knew that he couldn't exactly refuse. Reaching into his pocket, he took out his wallet and found his bank card, and then he tapped the reader that Graham had already held out for him.

“Thank you,” Colin continued, “but -”

“You were asking about Henry Overton?”

“He was supposed to come back to the hub before closing time, but he didn't show up,” Colin explained. “I'm sure nothing's wrong, but I've been doing some more research into Styre House and I really think Henry would be interested in what I've found. I've tried his mobile, but it's switched off or out of range of a tower, and I've tried knocking on his door but there's no sign of him. I know he likes coming in here, so I just thought that maybe someone might have seen him.”

He waited for a reply, but he could already tell that he wasn't making much of a good impression.

“Drink,” Graham said firmly.

“Oh, I -”

“Drink.”

“Right.” Looking down at the pint, Colin realized that he had no choice. He lifted the glass to his lips, and then he took a sip, immediately disliking the taste. He knew he couldn't let his dislike show, however, so he forced himself to swallow several times before setting the glass back down. To his surprise, he saw that he'd managed to drink almost a third. “Wow.”

“Good stuff, eh?” Graham suggested.

“It certainly has a distinctive taste,” Colin admitted, before furrowing his brow. “And aftertaste. Listen, I'm really sorry to bother you, I don't need to keep you for long. Are you saying that you haven't seen Henry at all this evening?”

“He hasn't been in,” Graham said firmly.

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