The Sherlock Effect by Raymond Kay Lyon

Author:Raymond Kay Lyon [Lyon, Raymond Kay]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thistle Publishing
Published: 2017-11-15T07:00:00+00:00

GARDENER’S QUESTIONS

CHAPTER ONE

As a general rule I avoid my namesake’s meretricious habit of

drawing multiple inferences from a casual glance at a person. But in the case of Mr. George Beaumaris, who visited our consulting-parlour one afternoon in the late spring of 2013, I was tempted to make a rare exception.

‘Let me hazard that you are retired, or perhaps of private means. You possess two or more cars, at least one of which is a vintage model. As to hobbies, you are an enthusiastic, not to say a fanatical gardener.’

My visitor grinned broadly, which had the effect of inverting his foxy brown moustache.

‘You certainly live up to your name,’ he said, ‘I am a keen gardener. How could you tell?’

‘Your clothes are impeccably tailored, yet there are splashes of fresh mud on your shoes and trousers, and what I take to be earth underneath your fingernails. Obviously you felt compelled to tend your beloved plants despite this morning’s torrential rain. It even made you half an hour late for our appointment.’

‘Ah, yes, sorry about that,’ said Beaumaris, shifting in his seat. ‘I’m afraid my rosarium has become a bit of an obsession over the years. You ought to see it, Mr. Webster, next time you’re in the Saffron Walden area.’

‘Thank you, I will. But what about my other conjectures? Was I right about the cars?’

‘Yes. I own four in all; three from the thirties, and that Volvo estate outside. It was the R.A.C. Club tie that gave me away, I suppose?’

‘Quite. And are you retired?’

‘Have been since my father died, twelve years ago. I was lucky enough to inherit a considerable estate.’

‘Which explains how you managed to see me at such short notice. A man with professional commitments would surely have needed longer. But I’m digressing from the purpose of your visit, Mr. Beaumaris. A problem concerning your new fiancée, if I remember correctly?’

‘Yes. I think it’s off beat enough for you. Let me put the thing into context first, if I may. My wife, Gloria, died in a car crash two years ago. She was driving back from my sister’s house when she lost control of the car. We’d been happily married for many years.’

‘Very distressing,’ I sympathised.

Beaumaris nodded, his eyes moistening slightly.

‘Yes – yes it was. Still haven’t really got over it, to be honest. Anyway, last year a close friend suggested I should try to meet some other women. He said it would be therapeutic – bring me out of myself. At first I was reluctant, but my friend persisted, and in the end I agreed to join a dating agency – Top Table Introductions.’

‘Sounds rather exclusive,’ I commented.

‘Well, I suppose it was, in a way. They put me in touch with several suitable ladies, some of whom were extremely charming, others less so. But there was no spark with any of them, if you know what I mean. I quickly became disillusioned – told the agency not to bother with me any more. Several months passed, and I’d completely forgotten about the whole thing when I got a call from a woman named Janine Yorke.

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.