Home Sweet Home (A Sweet Cove Mystery Book 6) by J A Whiting

Author:J A Whiting [Whiting, J A]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: J A Whiting
Published: 2015-10-30T06:00:00+00:00

13

Angie borrowed Jenna’s car and made the short drive to the studio apartment in South Coveside. She parked at the curb in front of the landlady’s Craftsman-style house. She walked up the porch steps and rang the bell. After a minute passed, the door opened.

“Thanks for coming over.” The landlady was a short, plump, sixty-something woman. Her faced looked pinched. “I don’t think I introduced myself the last time you were here.” She extended her hand. “Marge Hopkins.” She gestured for Angie to enter.

The living room was nicely decorated with comfortable blue and white sofas and chairs. Big windows on two sides of the room allowed full sunlight to liven the space. Mrs. Hopkins invited Angie to sit.

“I’m probably making a mountain out of a molehill.” She rubbed the side of her face.

“What’s bothering you?” Angie couldn’t imagine what was causing the woman’s distress.

“Since Mrs. Collins left the studio, there have been some odd occurrences.” Mrs. Hopkins looked at Angie. “I didn’t know the woman or her circumstances, so I didn’t know if I should report to the police or not.”

“What happened?” Angie sat on the edge of the seat.

“The very evening you moved Mrs. Collins out, a man was lurking near the trees at the end of the driveway near the studio. At first I thought he was with the new tenant, but the new woman in the studio called me. She was alarmed. She reported the man standing there in the dark. She wondered if it was my husband or maybe my son and asked why he was staring at the studio.”

“I told her I thought he was with her. I went out on the back porch and he was gone.” She shook her head. “I suppose I should have called the police, but I assumed it an isolated incident.”

Angie’s heart beat quickened. “Was it Tony Collins?”

“I never met the man. I’ve seen his picture on the news, of course, but that’s not the same as seeing someone in person. Mr. Collins rented the studio over the phone. He sent me cash in the mail to pay for the month which I thought was quite odd. Who sends cash by post?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Anyway, it was dark. I couldn’t make out the man’s features, just his shape and movements.” Mrs. Hopkins went on. “If it was Mr. Collins, why wouldn’t he just ring the bell and ask me where his wife had gone?”

Thoughts raced through Angie’s brain. “Well, if he hit his head and fell overboard, maybe he isn’t thinking clearly?”

Mrs. Hopkins’ eyebrows knitted together. “If he fell overboard, there’s a good chance he’s dead.”

“Maybe something else is interfering with his thinking. Maybe he had a mild stroke and left the boat after it grounded?”

Mrs. Hopkins pooh-poohed that notion. “Wouldn’t someone have found him wandering around by now? Or wouldn’t he have asked for help?”

“I don’t know,” Angie admitted. She weighed the possibility that Tony Collins might have suffered some kind of head injury and somehow was keeping himself hidden from people.

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