The Dark Below by Malcolm Richards

Author:Malcolm Richards [Richards, Malcolm]
Language: eng
Format: epub

26

Albert Roskilly stood in front of the shelf of Sunday newspapers at the local corner shop, listening to the conversation that was transpiring at the counter. A frown carved deep grooves into his forehead, and his heartbeat raced a little. Taking a newspaper from the shelf, he folded it neatly in half and carried it through the cramped aisles to the counter, where the elderly shopkeeper Frida Jones was talking with Albert’s next door neighbour Ben Taylor, who wasn’t so young himself. As Albert approached, they both looked in his direction.

‘Morning Albert, how’s Jan?’ Frida asked in a thick Cornish accent. She was pure Porthenev, born and bred.

‘Jan’s just fine,’ Albert replied. His gaze flicked between the two.

‘Did you hear about Terry Lawrence?’ Ben Taylor said, raising his bushy silver eyebrows.

The air seemed to retract from the room. Albert tried to suck in a deep breath but only managed a thin wheeze.

‘What about Terry Lawrence?’

‘There’s a police car outside his house. He’s missing.’

‘What do you mean he’s missing?’

Behind the counter, Frida visibly shuddered. ‘It’s true. Last night, he took the dog for a walk before bedtime and didn’t come back home. The dog did, mind you. Terry’s wife found it yapping in the street. She waited a minute, then went out looking for him. But Terry was nowhere to be found.’

Albert was silent, a sliver of ice lodged in his gullet. He cleared his throat.

‘Do the police know what happened to him?’ He was aware his voice had a nervous edge to it.

Ben shrugged his bony shoulders. ‘We all know what’s happened to him, Albert. Terrible things have been occurring in this town. First poor Sharon Bennett is murdered in her bed, then Martin Bennett goes missing—although I think we all know who that body they found at Dead Man’s Cove belongs to, don’t we? So, I expect it’s safe to assume Terry Lawrence has met a similar fate.’

Frida made the sign of the cross and gripped the small silver crucifix hanging around her neck. ‘I tell you, I’ve lived in this village my entire life, all seventy-six years of it, and not once have I ever felt afraid to go to sleep at night. Until now.’

Albert dug into his pocket for loose change, counted out the correct sum for the newspaper, and placed the coins on the counter. ‘Maybe we should wait until we hear what the police have to say before jumping to conclusions.’

‘If you say so,’ Ben said, doubtfully. ‘But I for one have started putting the bolts across my front door at night. Porthenev is no longer a safe place to live.’

Albert stared at him dumbly, unable to disagree. Instead, he told Ben and Frida to take care of themselves, then headed for the exit. With each step forwards, the ground seemed to grow soft and spongy, making it hard to walk. Leaving the shop, he stood in the street for a moment and tried to catch his breath. The world spun around him.

First Martin, now Terry, he thought.

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