Pumpkins, Peril and a Paella by Sherri Bryan

Author:Sherri Bryan [Bryan, Sherri]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery
Goodreads: 27871823
Publisher: Sherri Bryan
Published: 2015-11-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

Charlotte dropped the last of her plastic bottles into the recycling bin and continued on her morning walk with Pippin.

They walked along the seafront, past the marina and headed towards the town centre. “I fancy a change of scenery today, Pip. Let’s start the week with a walk along the high street.”

As they crossed the road, she caught sight of a familiar car parked in a quiet side street. With its tacky sun strip, it was instantly recognisable as the one she’d seen Richard Slade driving.

She cast her mind back to his suspicious behaviour and how secretive he’d appeared when he’d put the holdall in the boot of his car.

What was it Nathan said in his appeal for witnesses? “If you see anyone behaving in a suspicious manner, please do not approach them, but call 999 immediately.”

Charlotte thought carefully about what to do. There was no doubt that Richard Slade had been behaving suspiciously. But that was then. There was no point in calling 999 now, after the event.

She wondered where he was and made a snap decision. Crossing the road, she walked close to the car and felt the bonnet. It was warm. Hmmm. So he’s driven here recently. At that time of the morning, there were no shops open so she guessed he was probably having breakfast somewhere in the town.

As she walked around it she noticed that close-up, the car was even more battered than she remembered and it put her in mind of a very old mini she’d had years ago in Spain when she’d been learning to drive.

On the second day of lessons with her dad, she’d accidentally reversed it into a low wall and from that day, the boot would close but never lock. She’d taken it to a repair shop and when they’d told her that the cost of the repair would be more than the whole car was worth, she’d decided to make do with a boot that wouldn’t lock.

As she looked over Richard Slade’s dented vehicle she wondered if, by the remotest of possibilities, the battered boot of his battered car might also have a lock that didn’t work.

She looked around furtively as she sidled alongside the car. I hope to God no one can see me - I’m behaving just as suspiciously as Richard Slade was.

She desperately wanted to see if there was anything of interest in the boot and doubted she’d get a better opportunity than this to find out.

She reckoned she had another ten minutes of darkness before the sun rose. If I’m going to do anything, I have to do it now.

Firmly pushing the telling-off she was going to get from Nathan to the back of her mind, she walked round to the boot and pressed the button with her gloved hand. For a moment, it seemed as though the lid was jammed tight but when she wiggled the button from side to side, it suddenly popped open.

Feeling the adrenalin starting to pump, she whispered at Pippin to sit.

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