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‘What do you know about Hayley’s guest?’ asked Sean. The knife slicing through the cucumber that he was cutting for the salad beat a rhythmic percussion on the wooden board underneath.

‘Her guest? Her significant other?’ Jono said with a teasing smile. ‘Her special friend?’

His father laughed, acknowledging his curiously old-fashioned terminology. ‘I never know what one’s supposed to call anyone these days. I mean, it’s a new relationship, so I don’t want to say girlfriend…’

‘Don’t pay any attention to your son’s teasing, Sean. Guest is fine, or friend,’ Julia said, rubbing his shoulder. ‘To answer your question, I know very little about her. I know that her name is Sylvia, but that’s about it. You know what Hayley is like: she plays her cards close to her chest. The only reason I know about the relationship at all is because I spotted evidence of an admirer when I was in her office – first an orchid, which appeared on her desk, and then a very nice fruit basket which I happened to see being delivered. I put two and two together.’

‘It’s almost like you’re a detective yourself.’ It was Sean’s turn to tease now. He addressed Julia with a grin. ‘Picking up clues, putting things together, solving mysteries…’

‘Arresting murderers,’ Jono said. He opened the oven door and inserted a huge vegetarian lasagne that he’d prepared the day before. He shut the door firmly, with an air of quiet satisfaction.

‘Oh, come now, I didn’t arrest any murderers. Hayley did that.’ Julia shut the cutlery drawer sharply with her hip. In her hands, she held a spiky bouquet of knives and forks. ‘But I did identify the likely presence of an admirer, and when we were wrapping up the Troilus business, Hayley sort of apologised for being so gruff and absent the last few weeks. She said that she had been completely caught up with the two murders and a new relationship. That’s when I asked them both for lunch today. To be honest, I was a little surprised when Hayley accepted and seemed eager to bring her new girlfriend. Surprised, but pleased, and a bit intrigued.’

Julia had never known Hayley to have a partner, and had no idea what sort of person she would find appealing. So yes, she was rather looking forward to meeting Sylvia.

‘Well, all will soon be revealed!’ said Jono. He had been in very good humour since he and Sean had arrived to put the lasagne in the oven and help Julia with the preparations for lunch.

Laine was coming for lunch, too, and Julia suspected that her imminent arrival was at least partly responsible for Jono’s good mood. Sean’s mind seemed to have been following a similar trajectory, because he said, ‘Is Laine bringing her goat to lunch?’

‘Of course not. You can’t take goats to other people’s houses,’ said Jono dismissively, as if it was a ridiculous idea – somehow more ridiculous than walking around Berrywick with a goat on a leash. ‘You can’t take them anywhere, goats. They eat everything. Plants, vegetables, bread rolls, washing off the line. Bringing a goat with you is a sure way of ruining a friendship, according to Laine.’

‘It sounds as if she’s had direct experience,’ said Sean, who had finished with the cucumber and was now slicing baby tomatoes. He had a surgeon’s precision with a knife, cutting each one lengthways from top to bottom in two perfectly equal halves. Julia would have done them twice as fast, but a lot less perfectly. Each to his own, she thought.

‘Yes.’ Jono rolled his eyes dramatically. ‘It did not end well, believe me.’

Julia would have liked to hear more detail about the friendship-ending goat visit, but before she could enquire, the kitchen door opened and Tabitha came in, a basket hanging from the crook of her elbow. ‘I came a bit early,’ she said. ‘I thought I could lend a hand, but it looks as if you have plenty of hands.’

‘We do, but I’m glad you’re here early.’ Julia hugged her friend. From her basket, Tabitha produced a round country loaf, studded with seeds. ‘Home-made,’ she said proudly, handing it over. ‘I’ve finally got the hang of the sourdough thing.’

‘Clever you. Gosh, this looks marvellous!’ said Julia. She passed Tabitha the cutlery that was still in her hands. ‘You set the table, and I’ll find a board for the bread.’

The salad was made and the table set when Hayley arrived, accompanied by a young woman with honey-blonde hair and a sweet, heart-shaped face. She was dressed in a long floral dress with a fitted bodice and floaty skirt, and she carried a bunch of flowers that matched the floral pattern almost exactly.

‘This is Sylvia,’ Hayley said. ‘Sylvia, this is Julia.’ Sylvia gave Julia an almost-hug and handed over the flowers. ‘And this is Sean, and Jono.’ Hayley pointed them out in turn. ‘And that’s Tabitha.’

There was a flurry of hellos. The welcome Sylvia received was so effusive that it felt rather awkward. Fortunately, Laine arrived and attention shifted to her, and then to drinks, which Sean offered and poured. Julia appreciated the way he played co-host when they entertained at her house. It felt warm and comfortable.

Jake, who had been banished from the kitchen, joined them all in the sitting room. He calmly took his place in front of the sofa where Jono sat with Laine, and lay down between their two sets of feet with a sigh. Leo was already happily asleep in a patch of sunlight.

‘Aren’t they lovely chaps?’ Sylvia said.

‘Do you have dogs, Sylvia?’ Julia asked, making conversation.

‘Not at the moment. I would love to, but I’m at work most of the day, so it doesn’t seem fair. Besides, I spend all day with seven-year-olds, who are basically like puppies. Energetic, full of fun, exhausting, cute as buttons.’

Jono laughed. ‘You’re a teacher?’

‘Yes, I am. I love it, honestly I do.’ She beamed. She had a lovely, lively energy, and a sweet lightness to her. She and Hayley must have been in the ‘opposites attract’ camp. Hayley was intense and driven, and while she could be funny and kind, no one had ever accused her of lightness.

‘What do you do for work, Jono?’ asked Sylvia.

Julia felt a jolt of worry for poor Jono. Sylvia had asked the question with warmth and genuine interest, but it was an awkward one, given that he was an unemployed failed musician currently living with his dad.

Surprisingly, he beamed at Sylvia and answered eagerly. ‘Well, I suppose this is a good time to tell everyone that I’m starting a new job on Monday!’

‘What?’ Sean looked amazed at this news. Clearly, Jono hadn’t told him. He was a dark horse, that young man.

‘I’ll be working at the reception at our local vet. I phoned Dr Ryan yesterday and we chatted and they asked me to come in on Monday. It’s a temp job, really. I’ll be on trial for a few weeks. But if I like it and they like me, we’ll make it official.’

‘That’s absolutely brilliant news!’ said Julia. ‘Well done, Jono.’

‘Well, thanks for the lead. You’re the one who told me they were looking.’

‘Oh, that’s my pleasure. They’re lucky to have you.’ She turned to Sylvia and explained, ‘Jono is an absolute dog whisperer. If he wasn’t here, Jake would be running around whacking our drinks out of our hands with his tail. And look, he’s perfectly calm.’

‘What a wonderful skill to have,’ Sylvia laughed. ‘You should come to my class, see if you can do the same with kids. Perfectly calm sounds nice, at least every now and then.’

Jono blushed. ‘I’m sure small humans are way beyond my abilities. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go and check on the lasagne.’

‘A lasagne whisperer, too? You’re a man of many talents,’ said Laine. ‘I’ll come and help you, shall I?’

Jono practically bounced out of the room, a big grin on his face, with Laine following close behind him. If it was possible, Sean looked even happier than Jono. Julia caught his eye, and they did a small pantomime of microexpressions indicating surprise and happiness and the promise of a full discussion on the matter as soon as they were alone.

‘Now, Hayley,’ Tabitha said, who had clearly been waiting for the opportunity to address the important matter of the day. ‘I heard that you arrested Troilus. Can you tell us any more? Whatever isn’t confidential, I mean.’

‘The press is all over it, as you can imagine. It will be in all the papers tomorrow, so there’s no need for secrecy,’ Hayley said. ‘I can tell you that Troilus has been arrested for both murders. The evidence is pretty overwhelming.’

‘But why?’ said Sylvia. ‘I don’t understand. ’

Julia answered slowly. ‘Troilus had a really difficult childhood. His mother died when he was young, and his world has centred around Hector, who protected him and looked after him, not always disciplining him when he should have. They had both lost the person they loved most, and it made them even closer to each other. Too close, some might argue.’

‘But what made him want to kill those men?’ asked Sylvia. ‘Not every traumatised young man ends up murdering people.’

‘You’re quite right. It would probably never have happened if it wasn’t for the show. Troilus saw how desperately Hector wanted a bigger part, and I think that he saw a way he could finally help his father, like his father always helped him. Troilus killed Graham thinking that with him gone, and with Hector himself knowing the lines, he’d get the lead role.’

‘That’s right,’ said Hayley. ‘It seems that he was often around at rehearsals, skulking about the hall, or backstage. Nobody really noticed him after a while.’

‘That’s so true,’ said Julia. ‘When we had to list the people involved in the show, we didn’t even think of Troilus. We all treated him like Hector’s shadow. Maybe if we hadn’t…’ Julia felt herself getting upset again, as she did every time she thought about how their dismissive attitude to Troilus had almost helped him get away with not one, but two murders.

Sean reached out a comforting hand. ‘You couldn’t have known, Julia.’

‘You certainly couldn’t have,’ said Hayley firmly.

‘So, what happened, exactly?’ Sylvia asked Hayley. ‘How did he do it?’

‘He knew that Oscar pulled the trigger in the final scene. He’d seen him do it in the dress rehearsal. He was one of those children who collected odd objects that he found – fossils and broken trinkets and, as luck would have it, an old bullet that he had found in a field. Hector said that it had never occurred to him that it was an actual bullet. He put it into the prop gun. I’m not sure he actually understood that it wasn’t a real gun, and unfortunately, some models of prop gun sometimes work if they are loaded with a real bullet. It was a tragic set of unfortunate coincidences.’

‘And his father didn’t get the role?’ Sylvia asked.

‘No. Roger Grave, the director, didn’t give it to him, because he knew he couldn’t do it justice,’ said Julia. ‘We heard the audition, Tabitha and I. Hector is a really terrible actor.’

‘Indescribably bad,’ Tabitha concurred.

‘So Troilus killed the director?’

‘Yes,’ Julia nodded. ‘I don’t think Troilus meant to kill him. He just wanted to persuade him that his father was right for the part. Wanted to do something for Hector. But things got out of hand.’

Hayley nodded. ‘That’s his story, and I believe it. He threw the Shakespeare book at Grave, and Grave fell and hit his head.’

Tabitha shook her head sadly. ‘I just can’t believe that two people are dead over a part in an amateur play!’

‘It was nearly three people,’ Sean said with a shudder. He reached over and took Julia’s hand. ‘He came to Julia’s house. He threatened to…’ He could hardly say the words.

‘Oh, I don’t think it would have come to that. I don’t think he would really have harmed me,’ said Julia, with more certainty than she felt. It had turned out that Troilus had an iron poker in his satchel, which Julia had a horrible feeling would have been a far more effective weapon than The Complete Works of Shakespeare . She reminded herself that it hadn’t come to that. ‘Anyway, Hayley showed up just in time, so all’s well that ends well.’

Sylvia looked at Hayley, her eyes wide with admiration. ‘You saved the day?’ she asked.

‘Thanks to Julia’s quick thinking.’ She turned to Julia. ‘It’s just as well you managed to get that message to me and let me know you were in need of help. ’

‘And it’s just as well you got the message, understood what was going on, and came rushing to my rescue! The way you tackled Troilus to the floor when you got there – it was so brave and clever. I’ll never forget the sight of you sitting on his back, holding him down.’

‘I was just doing my job,’ the detective inspector said modestly. There was a pause. ‘I only wish I’d got to the answer earlier. If we’d worked out Graham Powell’s murder earlier, Roger Grave would still be alive.’

‘I don’t think you could have suspected that a man would be killed over a role in an amateur play,’ said Sylvia, absolutely decisively, and Hayley smiled at her.

‘Food’s on the table,’ Jono called through the door. Indeed, the smell of melted cheese and oregano and hot olive oil wafted tantalisingly towards them. Julia felt her mouth water and her tummy rumble in anticipation.

‘Come along, everyone,’ she said, and led the way to the table.

‘It’s absolutely delicious,’ said Tabitha, once they had all been served and were tucking in. ‘I think it might be the best lasagne I’ve ever had. And I’ve had quite a few!’ She patted her soft tummy, and laughed.

‘It’s my mum’s special recipe. She taught me how to make it. She was sick…but she made sure I got the hang of it before she died. I wanted to make it to say thanks to Dad and Julia for all the good meals they’ve been making for me.’

Jono’s touching story was met with a thoughtful silence, which he broke with a joke: ‘And to impress Laine, of course.’

Everyone laughed. Laine blushed.

The lasagne was so good it was polished off, and the last crispy bits scraped off the sides with a spoon.

‘Fantastic meal.’ Sean reached over and put his hand on top of his son’s. ‘Your mum would be pleased to know you made her recipe for the people you care about. She’d be proud of you, Jono.’

‘Would she?’ he asked. There was a tiny tremor in his voice.

‘Oh yes, without a doubt! Your resilience, your kindness, your gift with animals. And as for this lasagne…Your mum would be proud as punch.’

‘She’d be proud of us both, Dad.’ Jono glanced over at Julia and said, ‘I know that she’d be happy to see you happy, Dad.’

‘Ah, look at us, getting all sentimental.’ Sean’s tone managed to be both gruff and tender.

‘Nothing wrong with a bit of sentimentality,’ said Julia. ‘Life is unpredictable. We must appreciate what we have.’

‘Indeed we must. And we do.’ He gave her a loving smile.

‘And I happen to have chocolate brownies, which I made just this morning, and which I think people might appreciate right about now,’ she said.

‘I’m sure you’re right on that score,’ said Hayley.

‘Well, if you clear the table, I’ll fetch the brownies.’

* * *

Were you totally gripped by Julia’s sleuthing adventures in A Village Theatre Murder ? Then you’ll love Murder in the Winter Woods .