The Evil Man - Part One: Featuring Inspector Walter Darriteau by David Carter

Author:David Carter [Carter, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: TrackerDog Media
Published: 2024-01-26T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter twenty-five

Standing in the Varnes’ back garden, the phone pressed hard to his ear, Tarquin said, ‘How much did you say?’

‘£705,000!’

‘Wow! Why so much?’

‘Henry Craig, he’s one of the builders, repeated they bought the house next door but one, and are in negotiations with the immediate neighbour, and don’t want to risk being involved in a sealed bids situation which I mentioned might arise.’

‘I don’t think we need that.’

‘Of course, we don’t! This offer has blown the ceiling price out of the water, not only for the road but the entire neighbourhood. You’d be mad to turn it down. I could work for ten years before I received an offer anywhere close.’

‘You’re right.’

‘You accept, Mr Fobi?’

‘I do.’

‘And you can complete without delay? Because that’s what they want.’

‘I can.’

‘And your solicitors are still Pelmet & Brough over in Nantwich?’

‘They are.’

‘Excellent. I’ll start the ball rolling. Geoff Pelmet can act fast when he knows there is a deal at stake.’

‘So, I heard.’

‘There’s a fair bit of stuff in the house. What are you going to do with that?’

‘I’ll be appointing a house clearance company in the next day or two. There is nothing here I want. They can come and shift every damned thing. You don’t need to worry about that.’

‘Good man. I can see you have everything in hand. I’ll be in touch the moment I have further news.’

‘Excellent, Jeremy, and thank you.’

Tarquin let go a tiny satisfied smile, a sly grin witnessed by Melvin watching from the kitchen. Mel wondered what brought it on. Maybe he really was buying a house and was taking a firm step towards moving out, and the sooner the better. In the next moment, the man was in the kitchen, staring and grinning at Jimmy and Mel.

Tarquin rubbed his hands together, looking like he had enjoyed a great day, and said, ‘Now, come on, Mel. What have you come up with for dinner? What plans have you, eh?’

‘I hadn’t thought about it. I’m not in the mood, to tell you the truth. I can’t help thinking and wondering what’s going on at the Countess.’

‘You worry too much,’ said Quigs, opening the fridge. ‘She’s in the best possible hands. That right, Tarqs?’

‘Of course she is,’ said Tarquin, nodding for a green-bottled beer. ‘They would ring if there was a problem. She’ll be out tomorrow, and in finer fettle than when she went in.’

Quigs offered one to Melvin and he took it, as Tarquin moved in, flipped off the lid, and Mel swigged cold beer.

‘Breast of chicken with new potatoes?’ said Mel, though his mind was elsewhere.

‘Great!’ said Tarquin. ‘No broccoli for me. It turns my piss green.’

Melvin had been uneasy and on edge from the first second he saw those men in his house, and being alone with them with no one to talk to, the uneasiness grew. At gone eleven, tiredness overcame him, and he muttered a goodnight and headed upstairs. He visited the bathroom and ambled towards the front bedroom. It was strange with her not being there.

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.